NEW MONSTER OWNER!!!! MY FIRST LOVE

[rockaduc]

Hey baller30,

Welcome!  You didn't happen to buy your new pride and joy from Jack Trebour in Ledgewood did you?

I am pretty damn sure I was hanging out there when the previous owner brought that bike in to sell it to them.  And I don't think he was the original owner b/c when I asked him about a few of the mods, he gave some vague, incorrect answers.  That was in the summer of last year IIRC.  I'm glad it has a new home.  Good Luck! 

[baller30]

yup trebour was the dealership. Everything seemed to check out good when we did the paperwork and transaction. And the bike runs great so far. But hopefully even if he wasnt the original owner there is nothing wrong. The sales rep gave me a story the the owner selling the bike was just trying to get out of what he owed the dealership because he financed it (i think). The reason they said he had to end his ownership so quickly was supposedly he got a job for the secret service for the president lol and was away from home 300 days a year. Yea i know its a wacky sounding story but that is what henry told us.

[baller30]

The bike was just so clean and i loved the red and black i couldnt pass it up.

[rockaduc]

Hey, I'm not knocking anything about that bike, I've seen it first hand.  
The service manager, Joe, is first class and will always take care of you.

After you've taken your MSF class and gotten some seat time on 'er, pm me and we can meet-up for a ride. [moto]

[Spidey]

Congrats.  I hope you either budgeted for protective gear or already have some.  If not, time to start saving again.

A ninja 250 to an S4r is a significant jump (as you've likely already noticed).  A Ninja 250 is really forgiving if you're sloppy with the brakes, the throttle or shifting.  An s4r is much, much less so.  I used to race Ninja 250s and have ridden that same model s4r a bunch.  Here's some stuff to keep an eye out for.

Brakes.  The S4r front brakes are much, much more powerful.  The 250 has a lot of initial dive because the forks suck, not because the brakes work.  You can also squeeze the hell out of the 250 brakes without much happening.  The S4r is very different.  You'll get more initial braking (though possibly less fork dive) and you'll get to what feels like max braking much earlier.  Be gentle with them for a while, and practice emergency stops.  The S4r brakes are a lot easier to lock 'em up.  The s4r front

Engine braking.  Related to brakes, you'll notice there is a lot of engine braking on the S4r.  This is totally non-existent on the Ninja 250.  When you roll off the throttle, the bike will slow noticeably and the front end will dive a bit.  If you let the front end come up and then apply the brakes, it'll dive again.  If you roll off the throttle and stab the brakes at the same time, you can overload the front.  The short version:  try to be smooth.  For now, roll of the throttle gently (don't snap it shut like you would on the 250), let the bike settle, and then brake.  On a 250, it doesn't matter.  You can snap the throttle shut and brake at the same time and the bike isn't going to get too upset. 

Throttle.  The 250 throttle is sloppy and doesn't do anything.  A 250 rewards going WFO early and often.  DO NOT DO THIS ON THE s4r.  It's not just about keeping it in low RPMs, as you've suggested you intend to do until you're comfortable with it.  It's about how fast you get it up into the RPMs.  You have to be more fluid with the throttle on the s4r.  Think about gently rolling on and and rolling off.  If you wanna go fast, wait until you're up and down and have some speed before you get on the throttle hard.  The part that is likely to bite you is the initial throttle input.  Be gentle initially, let the bike get some speed and then you can roll on harder.  That said, be careful once you've already go the throttle open a bit.  Once you're moving a bit on the 250, applying a lot of throttle doesn't do much.  It feels like the more you give it, the less happens.  If you're already doing 40, it doesn't take off like a banshee.  The s4r is NOT like that at all.  If you're doing 40 and you act like it's got a 250 throttle and open it up quickly, you're gonna feel like you're doing Mach 1 in about half a second.  That's fine if you're on an open road.  But be aware when you're in traffic or in the twisties. 

Also, the Ninja 250 allows you roll off the throttle mid-turn pretty much with impunity.  Be very careful not to do so with the S4r.  As I said before, there is a lot of engine braking with the S4r and rolling off the throttle mid-turn will slow the bike down a lot and upset your line.  You can still roll off the throttle if you need, but you have to be GENTLE.

Suspension.  You're going to feel a lot better on the S4r.  It's a lot stiffer bike.  Occasionally, you'll feel the bumps more, but they won't unsettle the bike the way they do with the 250.  The Ninja 250's frame and forks are so flexible that they often absorbs stuff that you'll feel with the s4r.  But don't worry about it.  You'll feel some bumps, but the bike will stay planted.  Find a friend (and some help online) to set your sag.  Or have a mechanic do it for $20 or $40.  Best adjustment you can make.

Turning feel.  The S4r will feel a lot heavier (that b/c of more rotational weight.  And cuz its heavier) and a lot faster.  That said, you might also feel like it 'carves' through turns better and that it falls into turns better.  Some of that is tire shape.  A lot of it is better suspension and chassis.  Starting a turn on a 250 will be easier, but once you've started to get it leaned, the S4r will fall into the turn better and track the line better.

Shifting.  The s4r is the exact opposite of the 250.  On the 250, you can be sloppy as hell with your shifts and how you use the clutch.  Shifting gears feels all buttery.  The S4r has a heavy clutch and gear shifts will go "CLUNK."  Take some time to work on your clutch release and on shifting really affirmatively.  You can easily upset the bike with too quick a clutch release.  Basically, like everything else, the S4r is going to be less forgiving and a bad input will give a noticeably bad response.

I hope some of that helps.  If there's any take-away, just to remember to use gentle inputs on the s4r (brakes, throttle, clutch).  And enjoy your new ride.   

 [moto]

[baller30]

Congrats.  I hope you either budgeted for protective gear or already have some.  If not, time to start saving again.

A ninja 250 to an S4r is a significant jump (as you've likely already noticed).  A Ninja 250 is really forgiving if you're sloppy with the brakes, the throttle or shifting.  An s4r is much, much less so.  I used to race Ninja 250s and have ridden that same model s4r a bunch.  Here's some stuff to keep an eye out for.

Brakes.  The S4r front brakes are much, much more powerful.  The 250 has a lot of initial dive because the forks suck, not because the brakes work.  You can also squeeze the hell out of the 250 brakes without much happening.  The S4r is very different.  You'll get more initial braking (though possibly less fork dive) and you'll get to what feels like max braking much earlier.  Be gentle with them for a while, and practice emergency stops.  The S4r brakes are a lot easier to lock 'em up.  The s4r front

Engine braking.  Related to brakes, you'll notice there is a lot of engine braking on the S4r.  This is totally non-existent on the Ninja 250.  When you roll off the throttle, the bike will slow noticeably and the front end will dive a bit.  If you let the front end come up and then apply the brakes, it'll dive again.  If you roll off the throttle and stab the brakes at the same time, you can overload the front.  The short version:  try to be smooth.  For now, roll of the throttle gently (don't snap it shut like you would on the 250), let the bike settle, and then brake.  On a 250, it doesn't matter.  You can snap the throttle shut and brake at the same time and the bike isn't going to get too upset. 

Throttle.  The 250 throttle is sloppy and doesn't do anything.  A 250 rewards going WFO early and often.  DO NOT DO THIS ON THE s4r.  It's not just about keeping it in low RPMs, as you've suggested you intend to do until you're comfortable with it.  It's about how fast you get it up into the RPMs.  You have to be more fluid with the throttle on the s4r.  Think about gently rolling on and and rolling off.  If you wanna go fast, wait until you're up and down and have some speed before you get on the throttle hard.  The part that is likely to bite you is the initial throttle input.  Be gentle initially, let the bike get some speed and then you can roll on harder.  That said, be careful once you've already go the throttle open a bit.  Once you're moving a bit on the 250, applying a lot of throttle doesn't do much.  It feels like the more you give it, the less happens.  If you're already doing 40, it doesn't take off like a banshee.  The s4r is NOT like that at all.  If you're doing 40 and you act like it's got a 250 throttle and open it up quickly, you're gonna feel like you're doing Mach 1 in about half a second.  That's fine if you're on an open road.  But be aware when you're in traffic or in the twisties. 

Also, the Ninja 250 allows you roll off the throttle mid-turn pretty much with impunity.  Be very careful not to do so with the S4r.  As I said before, there is a lot of engine braking with the S4r and rolling off the throttle mid-turn will slow the bike down a lot and upset your line.  You can still roll off the throttle if you need, but you have to be GENTLE.

Suspension.  You're going to feel a lot better on the S4r.  It's a lot stiffer bike.  Occasionally, you'll feel the bumps more, but they won't unsettle the bike the way they do with the 250.  The Ninja 250's frame and forks are so flexible that they often absorbs stuff that you'll feel with the s4r.  But don't worry about it.  You'll feel some bumps, but the bike will stay planted.  Find a friend (and some help online) to set your sag.  Or have a mechanic do it for $20 or $40.  Best adjustment you can make.

Turning feel.  The S4r will feel a lot heavier (that b/c of more rotational weight.  And cuz its heavier) and a lot faster.  That said, you might also feel like it 'carves' through turns better and that it falls into turns better.  Some of that is tire shape.  A lot of it is better suspension and chassis.  Starting a turn on a 250 will be easier, but once you've started to get it leaned, the S4r will fall into the turn better and track the line better.

Shifting.  The s4r is the exact opposite of the 250.  On the 250, you can be sloppy as hell with your shifts and how you use the clutch.  Shifting gears feels all buttery.  The S4r has a heavy clutch and gear shifts will go "CLUNK."  Take some time to work on your clutch release and on shifting really affirmatively.  You can easily upset the bike with too quick a clutch release.  Basically, like everything else, the S4r is going to be less forgiving and a bad input will give a noticeably bad response.

I hope some of that helps.  If there's any take-away, just to remember to use gentle inputs on the s4r (brakes, throttle, clutch).  And enjoy your new ride.   

 [moto]

Wow, Spidey i EXTREMELY appreciate everything that you said, that was very helpful in explaining many things ive been noticing about the bike, especially with the suspension. The toughest thing im working on right now is the engine braking. Especially when i down shift. Im nervous about locking up the rear wheel.

[baller30]

Oh and about the gear, i just bought the kevlar jeans because i want a more relaxed pant, but since i know there nothing compared to leather i also bought a pair of the knox knee and shin guards for a little extra protection in that area. I also bought a pair of A* gloves and an AGV rossi helmet. Im still working on the leather jacket though, im having a hard time finding one that fits right.

[Popeye the Sailor]

Don't forget earplugs, and the whole atgatt thing.

Trust those of us who have slid down the pavement.

[Spidey]

Especially when i down shift. Im nervous about locking up the rear wheel.

It's a lot easier to lock up the rear wheel on the S4r than the Ninja 250.  Two things that will help.  First, work the clutch on downshifts.  Don't jump dump the clutch.  Let it out so that it engages a bit, but don't let it out all the way.  Let the engine slow down and then ease it out the rest of the way.  You probably did this some on the 250, but the clutch is much sloppier (and easier on the hand) and there wasn't really a need.  The 250 engine spins up quickly enough that it's a lot harder to lock up the rear.  It'll take a bit more practice--and hand strength--to get your technique down on the s4r. 

Second, once you've got that down comfortably, you can teach yourself to blip the throttle (give it a bit of gas) on downshifts.  It'll cause the engine--not the bike--to temporarily speed up as you downshift and will reduce the likelihood of the rear wheel locking up.  That said, wait 'til you're smooth with downshifts before you start trying to blip.  I don't want you trying to gas it on downshifts before you've gotten comfortable with how sensitive the throttle is. 

And remember, if the rear wheels locks up or hops for a bit, it's no big deal.  Keep the bike pointed forward and just ride it out.
Which reminds me -- careful with the back brake on the S4r.  It's sensitive.  Ducati rear brakes are known for operating in one of two states:  disengaged or fully locked up. 

Good luck.   

[baller30]

thank you so much for all the advice and i will use every bit of it spidey. And i know i already locked up the rear wheel with the back brake the first ride out lol. But it was fine i just know not to panic. But again thank you spidey

[baller30]

Quick question ill just add onto my thread.
When i bought the bike it came with two little ferrari sticker emblems on each side as you can see. Idk why the person who owned the bike put them on since a ducat is not a ferrari lol, but i want to take them off. What is the safest way to get a well stuck sticker off of your ducatis paint. Like a blow dryer or heat gun maybe?? Im not sure so any help would be appreciated. Also once the sticker is off whats the best way to clean the little glue that is left on the paint?

[Spidey]

blow dryer

 

[z0mb1e_DUC]

And Goo Gone for the remaining adhesive.  Best stuff there is.

[baller30]

thanks guys

[jc2ducati]

Do people still blip the throttle on downshifts? On older bikes, i thought that was more or less required or you'd get get a big klunk. That's what i was told 20 years ago when I test rode his sport bike. Sort of a habit now.

However, now, being in a new "green" world, i wonder if it's not only not necessary but also needlessly reduces fuel mileage.

Second, once you've got that down comfortably, you can teach yourself to blip the throttle (give it a bit of gas) on downshifts.  It'll cause the engine--not the bike--to temporarily speed up as you downshift and will reduce the likelihood of the rear wheel locking up.  That said, wait 'til you're smooth with downshifts before you start trying to blip.  I don't want you trying to gas it on downshifts before you've gotten comfortable with how sensitive the throttle is.