[DomNineT]

Thought I'd journal my 9T build here so it's in one place. Lets me add my ramblings on mods etc in one place 😁.

Bought new in 2020 right as hard lockdowns hit for the better part of 4 months and marked my foray back into riding after over a decade away so was looking for a bike that would not encourage hooligan riding. I've since discovered that the hooligan lives in the rider not the bike and that the 9T is more than capable of riding aggresively, particularly with some performance mods.

I've focussed on function over form for basically all my mods so far, except for a tail tidy, front Rizoma screen and rear aluminium tail cowl which were more vanity mods. Everything else has been for function.

Still not finished but here it is in its current state. 30,000km on the clock, 4 track days under its belt.

Mods -

1. Wilbers 642 Rear Shock, +25mm ride height and +15mm adjustment - set to +40mm.

2. Nitron TVT 25 Race Kashima coated front cartridges.

3. Akrapovic Ti headers

4. ACS Forged Alloy wheels - machined to correct offset and clear anodized.

5. Schwabenmax fast throttle

6. K&N air filter

7. SBS Lithium Battery

8. Rizoma MA011 bars

9. Gilles Rearsets

10. Rizoma Spy R mirrors

11. Rizoma Screen

12. Rear cowl

13. Aella stainless oil cooler guard

14. Evotech tail tidy

15. Bridgestone S22 tyres

16. Rapidbike easy
17. Unit garage side bag system.

Next post i'll discuss what I think of the mods and what i'd like to do next.

I have grown more and more in love with this bike with each mod and each additional km ridden.

Cheers, Dom

 

[gasket]

Photo from the rear and side rear please? I'm keen to check out your tail tidy.

 

[DomNineT]

As standard the 9T had a few areas for improvement for me -

1. Too relaxed and upright riding position. Wind would rip my helmet off at speed and it just felt too relaxed. Like sitting at a keyboard.
The lower Rizoma Bars, rearsets and raising the rear end 40mm with the Wilbers 642 fixed that. The position is now far more purposeful while being even more comfortable.

2. Ground clearance could be improved - The rearsets and 40mm increase in ride height sorted this and the bike now has substantially more cornering clearance. Hanging right off the bike allows it to corner as quick as most anything else, especially on the road. Knee down is no problem.

3. Slow-ish steering and change of direction - the 9T is not a fast steering bike and requires a fair bit of muscling around.
The 40mm rear ride height increase reduces trail and increases rake, as well as putting a little more weight on the front, helped by the bars and rearsets also - markedly speeding up the steering. More substantially, the ACS wheels, reducing rotating mass by 4.2kg plus 1.7kg by losing tubes is absolutely, hands down, a game-changer in terms of improving the bikes agility. It is hugely more nimble now and much much easier and quicker changing direction, particularly at higher speeds. It's actually astounding the difference it makes. Losing about 19kg of total weight via lithium battery, subframe, wheels, flapper, charcoal filter, shock, ti headers etc also helped the bike feel more nimble - but the wheels were far, far, more impactful than the static weight savings. Switching to Bridgestone s22 tyres also made the bike far more nimble than the Z8's it came with - a huge improvement.

4. Engine felt unhappy reving out and felt and sounded constricted.
The catless Ti headers made the engine far more free revving, smoother at higher rpm and more responsive. A very noticeable and positive improvment.
The schwabenmax fast throttle kit was also a huge improvment to the feel of the engine, making it feel far peppier by allowing you to apply the throttle fully and more quickly - highly recommended and a cheap easy mod to fit. The lighter wheels, again, make the bike feel far more lively. It will easily power wheelie in second gear now! The wheels made the bike feel like it has 10-15% more power.

5. Ride quality and handling over rough roads. Too much brake dive and insufficient front spring stiffness under brakes.
The wilbers 642 rear shock and Nitron cartridges have made the bike handle beautifully and maintain composure on the road and track. The rear was more noticeable for ride quality, but the front felt far more composed under hard riding and trail braking into corners as well as changes in direction where the std forks felt like they didn't settle quickly enough and got tied in knots.

Overall the bike now feels far better in every way. More agile, more comfortable, quicker and more sporty / capable overall.

More ramblings to come. I'm on my soapbox here haha.

Cheers, Dom

 

[gasket]

Regarding front spring stiffness, how heavy are you? Mine is a 2021, I'm 67kg and don't have any complaints.

 

[DomNineT]

Regarding front spring stiffness, how heavy are you? Mine is a 2021, I'm 67kg and don't have any complaints.

I'm 72kg. No real issue with spring stiffness on the road but was bottoming out under heavy brakes on track.

 

[Greybeard.1]

Beautiful bike!
The fast throttle is just an insert ?

 

[TwoWheelsOrBust]

I really like how much silver is on the bike. It's different than the all black look that's been popular for so long. I too am looking to keep it lighter and your wheels are a perfect addition. Look perfect.

 

[Foxster]

Love the look of the bike and those handling mods must make it great to ride.

Can you say a bit about the Rapid Bike Easy? What did fitment involve and have you had it on a dyno to check changes to AFR and power?

My understanding is that this device, like other O2 sensor tweakers, don't do much if anything for performance. They can help though with some low RPM/speed hesitancy issues if your bike suffers from those.

 

[AdamB]

Thanks DomNineT! Really helpful reading your assessments of the bike and modifications made. I share some of your views about the stock set up.

 

[AdamB]

Do the Gilles rearsets get your feet any further up and back vs the OEM foot pegs? I appreciate the Wilbers rear shock has made the biggest difference, but was wondering about rear sets.

 

[Ian_H]

Looks fantastic ... and I love your ideas ... (I've done a few of those myself)
I'd love the ACS wheels, and I'd definitely get them - just not sure I can find someone local to me to fix the offset.
Great look - nice one.

 

[DomNineT]

Beautiful bike!
The fast throttle is just an insert ?

Yes, just a small insert in the throttle housing. It reduces throw by maybe 20-30% - enough to allow you to snap to full throttle. Really makes the bike feel more lively.

 

[DomNineT]

I really like how much silver is on the bike. It's different than the all black look that's been popular for so long. I too am looking to keep it lighter and your wheels are a perfect addition. Look perfect.

Thanks mate. I was on the fence between black and clear anodise. Can always change in the future - luckily anodising isn't expensive. I guess once you go black, you can't go back though.

 

[DomNineT]

Do the Gilles rearsets get your feet any further up and back vs the OEM foot pegs? I appreciate the Wilbers rear shock has made the biggest difference, but was wondering about rear sets.

The Gilles rearsets only provide about 1 inch of movement in an arc around the original peg location. So up to 1inch back or close to 1 inch back and 1/2" up for example.
I believe they sell longer extensions at 40mm instead of 25mm and i'd like to get my hands on some to move them further back, otherwise I may machine up some plates to move the rearsets back another 30mm or so. Especially if I fit clip-ons, the pegs would need to be further back to be comfortable.

 

[DomNineT]

Love the look of the bike and those handling mods must make it great to ride.

Can you say a bit about the Rapid Bike Easy? What did fitment involve and have you had it on a dyno to check changes to AFR and power?

My understanding is that this device, like other O2 sensor tweakers, don't do much if anything for performance. They can help though with some low RPM/speed hesitancy issues if your bike suffers from those.

I've actually removed the easy and will sell it and try the Evo. I think it may have smoothed the low end a little but not noticeably, and gave me assurance I wasn't running too lean, but it also reduced engine braking which i didn't like.

 

[DomNineT]

As for future plans;

I'd really like to pick up a single Akra end can, to lose another 2.8kg, maybe gain a hp or so, and expose the rear wheel a little. This would bring wet weight down below about 199kg.

I have an Ohlins sd044 steering damper on the way to see if that improves the steering feel.

I'd like to try a Rapidbike Evo unit and possibly a dyno tune to see if any more power can be extracted from the motor.

I may machine up some adaptor plates to move the rearsets back another 30-40mm and then fit some clip-ons to get lower at the front without closing up the hips any further.

I also need to muck around adjusting the suspension again given the lighter wheels.

I also need to get a 190/55 rear tyre as the 180/55 on the 6 inch rim is suffering for traction out of corners.

After that, I may look at some titanium bolts for the rotors, back wheel and rotor holder to wheel bolts, to lower rotating mass a little further - particularly now that I see how huge the benefits are.

Cheers, Dom

 

[Chris<CJ>]

Admire what you have done to the bike and the "function over form" approach.
As you have noted, a single exhaust can will save weight and also open up the rear end view.
Would a "shorty" single can, be a better fit for the bill vs the Akra?
Any thought about the black front mudguard and gold forks disturbing the silver of the color symmetry?
Cheers

 

[Ian_H]

Admire what you have done to the bike and the "function over form" approach.
As you have noted, a single exhaust can will save weight and also open up the rear end view.
Would a "shorty" single can, be a better fit for the bill vs the Akra?
Any thought about the black front mudguard and gold forks disturbing the silver of the color symmetry?
Cheers

I've got the akra single, and I'd agree with the comment about considering a shorter exhaust. I only wonder if it might be much noisier as it must be harder to dampen all that noise with less silencer?
@DomNineT Rizoma do a nice silver front mudguard. See here

 

[Chris<CJ>]

Slight digression....
"dampen all that noise with less silencer? "
You are correct, quite often shorty mufflers are nosier, but you can have " short" and " fat" and get a muffler with matching volumetric dimension. Thing is that the noise suppression also depends on the type of mechanical muffling that is used in the exhaust.

Gulp, " short and fat", have I just posted a description of me?
And, I am no expert in this field.

 

[DomNineT]

Yeah, I don't like the sound of the shorter pipes. I had an RPTuning shorty and it was just too Harley like / farty / clappy. Now with the catless headers and no flapper it would be absurdly loud with that muffler or any shorty. I think the single akra is the best chance of a not overly loud, smoother sound. I think it looks great too.