Clutch Mods Leaving line and slipping clutch

Its seems to me that older KZ clutches have a learning curve over newer hydraulic setups.

I know there are some forum guys that butter their bread on older kz drag platforms.

Could you share some clutch mods and the correct methods of drag launches and slipping clutch.

I'm running very high 60-foot times and wish to improve it.

I regularly trip the clutch basket damper springs making for an awkward feel at launch.

I am running a all stock setup with no mods.

Thanks

A "stock KZ1000 street bike" can "average" 1.6 - 1.7 - 1.8, 60 foot times and that's before lowering it, or using struts in the rear, or strapping the front end down. 2.0 is considered a slow/high 60ft time. You didn't say what your 60ft. time is currently.

You pick an RPM the bike can launch at without being wheelie prone. This RPM is different on the street, than at the dragstrip because of rubber on the track and traction compound.

So for example drop the rear tire pressure (experiment a little) between 22-26lbs. of air and you roll up to a nice quiet side road in second gear and stage the bike in a second gear burnout until you see smoke coming off the rear tire, and hold it another 4-8 seconds for good measure. Stay and launch from the same spot as it's warm from your burnout, and assists you with traction on your launch, like being at the dragstrip.

The 45 second burnouts, and laying the bike side to side while doing so is nothing but school yard antics. Everybody wants to be Terry Vance, Spiderman McBride, or Russ Collins, at some point in their life. :blink:

Using random numbers in my example:

Once tire is warmed up enough, put the bike back into first gear and roll the throttle up to 3500 RPM's on the tachometer. Your job now is to let the clutch lever out as fast as possible and find the balance of doing this without breaking traction, or having the bike wheelie over backwards on you.

So let's say at 3500RPM's you let the clutch out at a fair rate and the bike "bogs down" off the line in your launch. You have to much traction, not enough RPM. So repeat the burnout process and then raise your RPM up to 3800-4000 and try again. So this time the bike pulls better but not enough to yank the wheel off the ground. Repeat, bringing the RPM's up in increments of 500 until you can launch clean with the front wheel on or slightly off the ground through first gear, without breaking rear wheel traction. etc, etc. It all comes with time and practice.

Set-up:

Prior to "Strapping" the frontend of the bike down, try sliding the fork tubes up into the triple trees which should lower the frontend an inch or inch and a half.

If rear shocks are good and not all sagged out and springy, bump them up to the tallest/stiffest setting making them give a bit of a "Rear Strut" effect.

After your burnout (with a non-airshifted bike) place your left foot back on the foot peg for shifting and use your right leg for the launch. On take off don't leave your legs flailing behind you like an amateur. :woohoo:


.

With my stock GPz clutch it's a fine line
between throttle and clutch.

Ideal I should be at WFO when the last yellow go's OUT
and slide the clutch till it movin fast enough
to take all the power and not wheelie.

Real world my clutch is like a hair trigger
I've got about a 1/4" travel at the lever
in the slide zone that make's a little tuff.

Last time out went 1,71 60ft. back tire leaving half throttle