Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

As a general guide, to increase pulling power or your top end speed, you change sprockets and cogs?
Can anyone give me some more thorough information on this please?

I'll have a stab at it
1tooth smaller on the front is the same as 3 teeth bigger on the rear and vice versa
if you want a higher top speed go smaller on the rear but if you go too small you'll have trouble taking off, or you could go larger in the front but remember you may have clearance issues with casings if you go too big there.
If you wanna pop Wheelies everywhere and ride like a lunatic but aren't too fussed about top end get a bigger sprocket for the rear
also if you add or take away too many teeth you may have to get a longer chain or shorten the one you have.
did that help at all??

ducati_paul wrote:I'll have a stab at it
1tooth smaller on the front is the same as 3 teeth bigger on the rear and vice versa
if you want a higher top speed go smaller on the rear but if you go too small you'll have trouble taking off, or you could go larger in the front but remember you may have clearance issues with casings if you go too big there.
If you wanna pop Wheelies everywhere and ride like a lunatic but aren't too fussed about top end get a bigger sprocket for the rear
also if you add or take away too many teeth you may have to get a longer chain or shorten the one you have.
did that help at all??

It did. Thank you very much.

ducati_paul wrote:I'll have a stab at it
1tooth smaller on the front is the same as 3 teeth bigger on the rear and vice versa
if you want a higher top speed go smaller on the rear but if you go too small you'll have trouble taking off, or you could go larger in the front but remember you may have clearance issues with casings if you go too big there.
If you wanna pop Wheelies everywhere and ride like a lunatic but aren't too fussed about top end get a bigger sprocket for the rear
also if you add or take away too many teeth you may have to get a longer chain or shorten the one you have.
did that help at all??

I note that you also ride a ZZR 600? I note that the speedo goes to 280 on these things? Is that indicative of what they are capable of doing? or just some designer's wet dream?

When i got a new chain on my bike i had it put on with one extra link so that when i replaced the sprockets i could go up one tooth on the rear (they didn't have sprockets to suit when i was stuck and had to change the chain when at p.i at last years supers). All i was after was an ever so slightly easier bike to handle when in heavy traffic and the mod did that.

Storm Front wrote:
I note that you also ride a ZZR 600? I note that the speedo goes to 280 on these things? Is that indicative of what they are capable of doing? or just some designer's wet dream?

Sorry mate mines a track bike only and doesn't have a speedo so I have no idea

Storm Front wrote:I note that you also ride a ZZR 600? I note that the speedo goes to 280 on these things? Is that indicative of what they are capable of doing? or just some designer's wet dream?

My '98 ZZR600 managed 220 on the EC straight before I ran out of room - and I wasn't doing particularly quick times.
I doubt it'd have 280 in it - but I think it'd do over 240 with enough room.

Storm Front wrote:.....I note that you also ride a ZZR 600? I note that the speedo goes to 280 on these things? Is that indicative of what they are capable of doing? or just some designer's wet dream?.....

I have highlited the correct answer !!

on the best day of the week downhill with a 20-knot tailwind - the speedo may indeed show 240kmh. Actual speed will be less than that. Probably 225-230-ish....

I think I read somewhere that the actual top speed was supposed to be 237 when it was new.
I changed the front sprocket to an 18 with a 48 rear, which had the effect of moving 5th gear to where 6th used to be. Good for fuel economy and not very noticeable down low.

BTW, the speedo on our ZZR1100 goes to 380kmh.

Daisy wrote:I think I read somewhere that the actual top speed was supposed to be 237 when it was new.
I changed the front sprocket to an 18 with a 48 rear, which had the effect of moving 5th gear to where 6th used to be. Good for fuel economy and not very noticeable down low.

BTW, the speedo on our ZZR1100 goes to 380kmh.

380? Madness.

If you have a look at the Healtech site http://www.healtech-electronics.com/ they have an online calculator where you can input any gearing and tyre changes. It will then give you a percentage of change to apply.
Handy if you just want to see what differnt size sprockets will give you.

For example on my 9 I went up 1 tooth on the front but changed the back tyre from a 50 to a 55 and the difference overall was only 3.4%.