Brand New Darksider

Hi All,
Just got my Hercules Raptis TR1 installed yesterday.  Picked it up from a dealer in Topeka a couple days ago and took it to a local bike shop yesterday to have it put on.  It was no problem for these folks.  Had it aired up to 36 psi and then brought it home for installation.

Of course, in the midst of all this was my first crack at removing the rear wheel and tire assembly.  Was pretty tentative at first but then quickly saw how simple it would be.  Reinstallation was easy except for one small glitch I caused myself.  Got the final swing arm on and tight but the axle nut still needed to go  two or three more threads after it was tight.  Plus the wheel still would slide sideways about half and inch.  Long-story-short, I loosened it all up and got it properly positioned to finish up.

When I finally got around to take it out for a spin this morning, I fired it up and went for a jaunt out in my 'pasture' area for a short while just to make sure nothing would fall off.  Then back in to the garage to double check the air pressure.  Well, it was down about 10 pounds so I aired it back up to 36 and headed down the road for a short 10 mile trip.  Checked the air about seven hours later and it was still holding good, so maybe the short trip helped with the sealing of the rim ??

My initial take on this experience is that there isn't a lot of difference between the MC tire and the car tire.  As a matter of fact, I found slower speed slalom moves to be "quicker" than before.  Travel at all speeds seemed smoother plus didn't notice any out of balance conditions either despite two old balance weights left on and no shop balancing.  My '05 has the ABS system but didn't feel as though it operated any different.  Someone else mentioned that slight nanosecond more feeling it seemed to take to start into a curve or turn and I believe I noticed it too; am sure it'll go away before long.

All in all, it looks like it's going to be a pleasant change to what I had before.  'Course, will get a lot better education as the miles start to add up.  Being a total novice when I started rideing some six plus years ago, I'm maybe not one who should be trying to compare such critical items.  Then too, there was that uniqueness about being able to get the scoot up on the center stand easier which is offset by the increased lean onto the side stand caused by the increased height...(?).   Oh well, will keep everyone posted on whatever else I come up with.

New Day - Monday - Apr 20th, 15...  Took the SWing out for another 10 mile jaunt since I had to be at the elementary school today.  Just for the heck of it, I aired up the new tire to 40 pounds (44 is max) from the 36 I had it set at before.  Had my hands full battling a gusty 35 mph side/head wind on the way over.  Lots of leaning involved.  The ride home was much more settled and happened to notice that the ride was enjoyably smooth.  Maybe it was my inexperienced riding imagination but I sure did enjoy it.  Just wanted to add that note.

I'm a new Darksider too and so far I'm okay with everything about the change over. It does take some getting used to, just like my 2010 Suzuki C109 1800cc cruiser did with the HUGE 240 series tire on the back: Even though it was a 'motorcycle' tire, I still felt a nano second delay in transitions in and out of corners---but I got used to it quickly like I've gotten used to it on my Cheeseburger 650. I appreciate the extra amount of tread on the thing and I'm sure it will last a long time.

If I have to ride a long distance and there is a big chance of rain, I'll take my Kymco Xciting 500, with it's large oversize Pirelli Diablo radial tire on the back as I'd feel safer on curvy roads with a traditional "Rounded" tire.

Sam

When I first Ds my swing on 2 wheels,I personally found riding in a heavy down poor  much safer and I did the twisties as fast and as safe as a mc tire.