csajal

Hi All,

We all know how critical Power to Weight ratio is for bikes.... specially those which we intent to rip hard. Also, it's a fact that most of the Indian speedsters have very lousy numbers in this aspect, resulting in the bikes not being able to perform to their full potentials.

Say for example my bike - 2007 Bajaj Pulsar 200 ->

With a Peak Power of 18 PS and a kerb Weight of 145 Kilos, the bike is expending a considerable amount of that 18 PS pulling itself. And when I'm riding it, it's a straight 145 + 80 = 225 kilo..... but the Peak Power reamined the same at 18 PS. Again we also need to consider the fact that this Peak Power of 18 PS, comes somewhere arround the 8500 rpm mark, and genereally we are not ripping that hard all the time, so that means, I mean putting 225 kilo on the bike when it's milling out less than 18 PS.

One way to decrease this dicrepency is to amply increase the Power Output of the Engine. But with the current SOHC, Single Cylinder and twine valve architecture of the engine, we can't make a significant impact on the engine power, and also I do not advocate heafty engine mods. So, the other way round is to make the bike lighter...... as lighter as possible. But the approach should be sensitive and well thought off, else instead of zippy bike, we would be riding a time bomb, ticking and waiting to fall apart.

Second most important thing is the safety features. I mean take any Indian bikes and it's sans any safety features. It's a fact that the bike is as safe as the rider rides safely, but still our Indian bikes lack any safety technology built in. I Gurgaon roads, I've seen fatal accidents with rider riding a 100cc bike and crashing!!

So, fellow Bikers .... Bike Lover let's discuss how we can make our mean machines more zippy, lighter and above all safer..... so that when the fun is on.... we live it to the fullest!!

Aryan

Topic Approved.

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csajal

Thanks Aryan!!

pulsater

empty your balls and bladder before you ride, that might help

on a serious note, safety features like ABS or CBS result in extra weight on the bike and not all riders like the feeling that they are not in the control of their bike. The most you can do to shred the weight of a 18 ps bike is to remove the side and front panels and use light weight alloys but that would make your bike looks alien and illegal to ride on city roads.

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diffuser911

If you are seriously thinking of changing the bike light, you can take cues from Joel's Super Fiero thread. Some weight can be shed by using a lighter swingarm (must be sturdy though). You can also opt for a lighter and custom-built free flow exhaust to shed some more kilos of the P200.

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csajal

@ pulsater
Nice joke there bro!!

For the ABS making the bike heavy..... I would suggest just check out the ABS unit at KRPs website.... it's just a small unit and is of negligible weight, but works like magic.... alternatively you can also check out the steering damper... and that's also pretty light.

@diffuser
A lighter swing arm can definitely be an option, but ya.... finding the right stuff can be a challenge.

The intent of this thread is not that I want to do some mods on my bike and I want some help (else I would have put up the article on the Help forum ), but I was looking for some serious discussion on making our machines more agile, not only mine but every biker in this forum!!

Samarth 619

So, you may remove the tyre hugger, chain covers, mud guard, saree guard etc. & use lighter tyres. and your weight reduces by 5 kgs. This might make a small difference in your performance.

But, What's the use of decreasing 5 kgs? Will it really create a noticeable difference?

I mean, 200 kgs or 205 kgs, What would be the difference?

We can remove a lot of stuff to save weight, but we need our bikes to be ROAD USEABLE... so, we need those things like RVMs, Half fairing+ Headlight, etc.


A great thing we can do is use alternative exhausts. They save weight by an acceptable margin, and also perk up the low end & middle end torque.

But again, you should learn to live with that noise (for me, it's serious music though) ...

csajal

@Samarth

That's some really meaningfull insight you have there!!

I too accept the fact that there's not much scope available in the stock bike to reduce the weight and still maintain the useability of the bike. Going for lighter tyres is a good choice though... for example Michilen's soft compound tyres are good, they are not only light, but they provide that extra bit of helpfull tracktion (a little at the cost of economy though!!).

Then again you mentioned about the alternate exhaust which can also be an option but might not be that acceptable, because of the noice factor you mentioned.

Frankly speaking I myself having ridden so much and hard, both here and in US, can't think of much, by which we can make our Indian bikes have Power:Weight ratio more close, coz the design and implementation of the bikes from ground up have not catered to this aspect.

abhijeet080808

Just curious, why is a P200 heavier compard to say, a Splendour. Is it only the frame that contributes to the weight or are there some other factors too?

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csajal

@abhijeet

Dude, I might be wrong but here's what I think as to why a P200 might be heavier than say a Splendor (because before my P200 I used to ride a Super Splendor and my elder brother rides a CD Dawn!! )

1) First and foremost as you pointed out is the chassis!! For the increased power, the chassis has to be stronger. Since not much is invested in building a steardy, yet light frame, so the chassis does take the hit of getting heavy. Also, the P200 has a longer swing arm than CD Dawn and the Super Splendor.

2) Second I think is the weight of the engine. A bigger engine is bound to be heavy than Horizontal 100cc or the 125cc.

3) The bigger rear tyre of the P200 also plays it's part. The stock MRF Zapper is definitely heavy. I just did a small test myself. I pickup the default 120 section rear tyre of the P200 you need to use atleast your three fingures. But at the same time, if you try and lift a Michilen's 130 section soft compound rear tyre, you can lift it using your pinky fingure.

4) Then again the bigger fuel tank and the huge exhaust mufler paly their part.

Unfortunately enough, all the above four points I think are the major contributers to the overall kerb weight of the machine, but except for the tyres, I think we can't do much about the others as they are very integral to the overall design and implementation of the bike.

Do, let me know your thougts!!