"Rat" bike?

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tim ferrell

Active member
Joined
Jan 15, 2021
Messages
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Location
Surry, Maine
I am wondering if going without the lower front fairings is possible. I've got to thinking (yes, I know!) that without them the bike might not be so hot, and fabbing brackets for the turn signals would not be that hard. I think it might look butch like a rat bike, but wanted to know if anyone here has first hand experience with something like this. I am not saying I am going to do it, just gathering information at this point. Exploding heads need not respond. Thanks.
 
A person has done a "naked" or "streetfighter" version of the FJR, yes. Try searching on those terms and you'll likely find the project including pictures and details.
 
@tim ferrell - What year is your FJR? Leaving fairings off will mostly just let the hot air from the radiator and engine blow back on you instead of being directed. There are a host of heat management techniques for Gen I bikes. But before we go there, a high number of riders that are uncomfortably warm on the FJR are riding in jeans instead of dedicated riding pants. (Long ago, one of the biggest complainers turned out to be riding 25-30 mph in shorts in Florida).

So, what year, what do you wear for pants when riding and what type of riding do you use your FJR for?
 
I thought the following, found on YouTube, a very cool story. It's about a guy who made a crashed and donated '07 FJR1300 into a "Street Fighter" / "Rat Bike". Custom, sans plastics and mean look'n - most definitely original and a very cool idea. While clearly not my work or video, you've got to give Frankie and his builder Andrew (unsure of his real name) credit where it's due - enjoy!
Frankie - 2007 FJR1300 Naked Street Fighter
P.S.
If you look on his channel, he has several other videos of Frankie.
-ZF
 
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@tim ferrell - What year is your FJR? Leaving fairings off will mostly just let the hot air from the radiator and engine blow back on you instead of being directed. There are a host of heat management techniques for Gen I bikes. But before we go there, a high number of riders that are uncomfortably warm on the FJR are riding in jeans instead of dedicated riding pants. (Long ago, one of the biggest complainers turned out to be riding 25-30 mph in shorts in Florida).

So, what year, what do you wear for pants when riding and what type of riding do you use your FJR for?
Thank you for your reply. She is an '03, which I uses so far for blasting around country roads here in Maine, punctuated by highway tears between larger towns. Touring has not developed yet due to many factors(...). I always wear at least double front carharts, and often with bohn armor underneath (never shorts on any bike!). I had dedicated riding pants with armor but they wore out and I have not replaced them. I do have the reflective stuff under the gas tank but found that to be minimally effective. My biggest ergo problem is that the stock seat pushes my XXL frame forward, crunching my yarbles and putting a sensitive area right at the hottest spot on the bike....
 
I thought the following, found on YouTube, a very cool story. It's about a guy who made a crashed and donated '07 FJR1300 into a "Street Fighter" / "Rat Bike". Custom, sans plastics and mean look'n - most definitely original and a very cool idea. While clearly not my work or video, you've got to give Frankie and his builder Andrew (unsure of his real name) credit where it's due - enjoy!
Frankie - 2007 FJR1300 Naked Street Fighter
P.S.
If you look on his channel, he has several other videos of Frankie.
-ZF
Cool video! Thanks!
 
Thank you for your reply. She is an '03, which I uses so far for blasting around country roads here in Maine, punctuated by highway tears between larger towns. Touring has not developed yet due to many factors(...). I always wear at least double front carharts, and often with bohn armor underneath (never shorts on any bike!). I had dedicated riding pants with armor but they wore out and I have not replaced them. I do have the reflective stuff under the gas tank but found that to be minimally effective. My biggest ergo problem is that the stock seat pushes my XXL frame forward, crunching my yarbles and putting a sensitive area right at the hottest spot on the bike....
Thanks for the response. For reference, I'm 260 lbs, 5', 11". The insulated, self adhesive foam or bubble freezer insulation works better than the film shiny stuff. I put ~260k on my '04 with only that mod, living in the Western US and riding a lot in the desert. Not running around with a 1/4 tank also helps. ;) The Carharts are not optimal as a heat barrier. There are a host of heat mods, if you want to get more involved.

There is a ton of 1st Gen FJR info here - fjr1300.info (the heat mod about the V panel has since been discounted as ineffective, but nearly all of the info there is still good and valid.) And heat mod info here - LINK You can also search for "Cromeit heat mod" for more involved efforts with aluminum pieces, etc.
 
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