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Extended Swingarms


Guest nruas800

Question

Guest nruas800

I love my 02 VFR and I love the look of the extended swingarm style on other bikes. Just wondering if anyone has ever heard of a VFR with an extended swingarm or a company that makes them.

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Ya typically see extended swingarms on hyper bikes...the Busa's and zx14's of the world. Usually the bikes that have more power than they know what to do with (our bikes defenitely dont have that problem :fing02: ) I dont think i've ever seen a VFR with an extended swingarm, but i'd be interested to see some pics if someone can find any...

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Why would you want to take a bike that handles decently and perform a mod that does nothing but make the bike handle like a dump truck?

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The only use an extended swingarm has is to extend the wheelbase of a motorcycle to allow it to accelerate faster without flipping over in a wheelie, which is why drag bikes have them. A VFR is not afflicted with a lot of horsepower, so flipping from a wheelie is not even a concern. A side effect of an extended swing arm is the bike handles like a sinking oil tanker with no rudder.

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The latest sport bikes do have longer swingarms than ones from a few years back. It supposed to have improved the handling for these bikes. The wheelbases haven't gotten longer though.

Beck

95 VFR

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The latest sport bikes do have longer swingarms than ones from a few years back. It supposed to have improved the handling for these bikes. The wheelbases haven't gotten longer though.

Beck

95 VFR

I think the OP is talking about this:

ZX_me.jpg

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The latest sport bikes do have longer swingarms than ones from a few years back. It supposed to have improved the handling for these bikes. The wheelbases haven't gotten longer though.

Beck

95 VFR

I think the OP is talking about this:

ZX_me.jpg

Oh, I had this in mind

1001hillclimb004.jpg

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The latest sport bikes do have longer swingarms than ones from a few years back. It supposed to have improved the handling for these bikes. The wheelbases haven't gotten longer though.

Beck

95 VFR

I think the OP is talking about this:

ZX_me.jpg

One word:..... WHY??!!

Beck

95 VFR

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The latest sport bikes do have longer swingarms than ones from a few years back. It supposed to have improved the handling for these bikes. The wheelbases haven't gotten longer though.

Beck

95 VFR

I think the OP is talking about this:

ZX_me.jpg

One word:..... WHY??!!

Beck

95 VFR

Drag racing I guess? When I lived in FL, most people had an extended swingarm busa, GSXR1K, R1, and even most 600s :fing02:

It seems to be popular in the urban (Ghetto) 'culture'

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JMO, They love riding fast but are afraid of leaning over and using the side of the tire. So lengthen the rear and make it a strait liner. A lot of them around here, but the curvies are not easy to find (they are here though).

I'm not saying anything bad about it, just not my style.

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Dont go bashing the show bike culture - which is the purpose of the extended swing arm on these bikes with extravagant paint and chrome. I saw a Busa at Cannery Row with a really nice paint scheme, some custom molded body pieces - paint job itself would have come to at least 12k$ but the guy did it himself, with some really nice ghost flames with a pinstripe edge that was all hand done - very very skilled paint job. He also had a nice sound system on the bike and some neon lights that looked great on the Row after the California sun went down in Monteray.

If you just take it for what it is its a nice show bike. He rolls it onto his covered trailer and takes it out on bike nights and big events like Laguna Seca. I thought it was pretty cool, would not want to actually try and ride the thing but it was a cool looking design. The guy must have sunk 50 grand into it easy and it was immaculate. Not everybody is a knee dragger or a sport tourer. Some of us just like to make art peices.

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An extended swing arm does have a functional use. It is on the drag strip. If you are running a turbo charged Busa with a nitrous shot it is hard to keep the front end down on launch. The long swing arm works as leverage or anti leverage, however you want to look at it, and helps keep the bike from poppeing a wheelie.

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Dont go bashing the show bike culture - which is the purpose of the extended swing arm on these bikes with extravagant paint and chrome. I saw a Busa at Cannery Row with a really nice paint scheme, some custom molded body pieces - paint job itself would have come to at least 12k$ but the guy did it himself, with some really nice ghost flames with a pinstripe edge that was all hand done - very very skilled paint job. He also had a nice sound system on the bike and some neon lights that looked great on the Row after the California sun went down in Monteray.

If you just take it for what it is its a nice show bike. He rolls it onto his covered trailer and takes it out on bike nights and big events like Laguna Seca. I thought it was pretty cool, would not want to actually try and ride the thing but it was a cool looking design. The guy must have sunk 50 grand into it easy and it was immaculate. Not everybody is a knee dragger or a sport tourer. Some of us just like to make art peices.

Great perspective.....different folks are in this sport for different reasons, and have different opinions on what great bikes are. Years past, I built choppers and some show bikes, and can really appreciate what goes into the making of one. Think you love your VFR, believe me, some of the extended Busa and Chopper crowd really know what love for your bike is...... :fing02:

Lotsa' serious riders got into this sport from first seeing customs at shows (I'm one in fact), then after getting "hooked" found other nitches, cruisers, dirt bikes, sport bikes, tourers, etc. that they preferred. I have respect for everyone that loves motorcycles, regardless of type............. :fing02:

Oh yeah, in 2002 at the custom bike show at the Honda Hoot, there was a custom painted, chromed out, extended swingarm brand new 02 VFR..........I'll see if I can dig a pic out of some "archives" if I can find em'................. :biggrin:

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I'm not saying anything bad about it, just not my style.

Ditto....

My mom taught me... "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all..."

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There's a welding shop down the road from me that extends swingarms for the local drag racers and they do a fabulous job so I guess you could find a welder to do it for you. Saw a ZX10 the other day with an extended tubular steel SSS.

Aside from a longer chain and brake lines wonder how long the rear shock would last from the extra leverage?

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There's a welding shop down the road from me that extends swingarms for the local drag racers and they do a fabulous job so I guess you could find a welder to do it for you. Saw a ZX10 the other day with an extended tubular steel SSS.

Aside from a longer chain and brake lines wonder how long the rear shock would last from the extra leverage?

:fing02:

Any custom extendo-s I have seen with a SSSA have ones that are made from steel tube. I believe there are a few companies that make bolt-on ones (but they are bolt-ons for common bikes with dual-sided SAs). IMO, that would look better than trying to extend the standard VFR swingarm, too. It's not my cup of tea, but there's no stopping you.

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Not everybody is a knee dragger or a sport tourer. Some of us just like to make art peices.

here's how I evaluate the situation.

1. Motorcycles are machines.

2. Machines have a function.

3. Form follows function.

4. If it doesn't do anything well after sinking 50K into it; it's junk, not art.

5. Art hangs on the wall.

Just my .02 tongue.gif

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Jeesh. Didn't realize I'd make such a buzz about it. Yeah, I like the extended look and love my VFR even more. Just thought I'd mix the two and see what people think. Trust me, I don't have $$$ to spend on such a mod for my bike. But I do think it would look nice, maybe not practical, but nice. At least to ME. :biggrin:

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You could take a conventional swingarm from a Fireblade or CBR1100XX, and have it modded to suit the VFR (of course you'd need the donor rear wheel and brakes too, so the XX would be best to allow for the LBS caliper). While it's being modded at the pivot end, get 'em to lengthen it too. Done :biggrin:

And sell your swingarm/wheel to someone who wants to stick it on a Fireblade - probably end up breaking even.

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But I do think it would look nice, maybe not practical, but nice. At least to ME. :musik20:

Most important part, and the only part that counts............... :biggrin:

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Not everybody is a knee dragger or a sport tourer. Some of us just like to make art peices.

here's how I evaluate the situation.

1. Motorcycles are machines.

2. Machines have a function.

3. Form follows function.

4. If it doesn't do anything well after sinking 50K into it; it's junk, not art.

5. Art hangs on the wall.

Just my .02 tongue.gif

Not sure where that leaves VTEC technology, hanging on the wall I guess... +1.gif :biggrin: :musik20:

Flame suit on, running for the exit.... +1.gif :goofy:

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