View Full Version : Fitting crash bungs
Squashed_Fly
25-01-11, 09:45 AM
The only set of crash bungs I can find for my bike, come in at just over £100!!! Does that seem about right?
What's doubley annoying, is that they can't be fitted without holesawing a 25mm hole in my fairing as the spot to bolt them is hidden behind the plastics.
Does anyone know of a cheaper, and less destructive way to mount some protection? I've already signed up to 1 trackday this summer so I figure it's probably a good idea to fit some...?
Uber Dave
25-01-11, 10:29 AM
My R6 came with them mounted already but the dealer had to cut some of the fairing away to get two of them in the first place.
I would rather cut 25mm away than have to replace the entire fairing after sending it down the road/track, you can only tell any has been cut away from mine when you look really really close as well as the crash bung hides it.
I had to cut the fairing for my ninja, looked around but there was no other option. Drill from the inside of the fairing out, that way if the drill slips it wont scratch a visible part of the fairing.
Price seems very good... The R&G ones I got for the sv were more than that!!!
As to cutting your fairing, get a scruffy second hand set and put them of for tracking, and cut a hole in them!!
Squashed_Fly
25-01-11, 12:03 PM
Good idea, I hadn't thought of that! I have just sent a request through a breakers site. Can anyone recommend anywhere worth looking for a cheap set of fairings? Is/are there any other parts worth getting protection for or spares of?
SQ, just in case you didn't know, Nooj can fit crash bungs!
Squashed_Fly
25-01-11, 12:23 PM
Am thinking about a set of these (on the right shaped fairings of course!). You can have any colour & sticker scheme from any bike, on any other bikes fairing.
£440!!!! Plus they will replace any Yamaha stickers with Kawasaki ones and put the 46 on for me :)
Gay? Possibly. Sad? Almost definately! Do I still want them? You bet!
http://www.motocc.co.uk/acatalog/R1%202009%20FIAT%201.JPG
It's your bike and your cash! If you like it go for it!
Squashed_Fly
25-01-11, 12:56 PM
I heard that fitting a race replica fairing will increase my riding abilities and add lots of BHP to my power output..... ;)
Some bungs don't need holes drilling, a friend of mine had a 2002 R6 that had a good set (weren't R&Gs) that used the front engine mounts and didn't interfere with the plastics. They stood up very well to a big stack at Cadwell's Gooseneck, much better than R&Gs in my experience... didn't save the bodywork though; both sides and top of the fairing, tank and tail unit were toast :'( To be honest, bungs only really work for static and low speed drops - useful in that respect but they may only limit damage to an extent at higher speed; a panel may be damaged rather than obliterated...
As for fitting through a panel, it's quite easy - slacken off the engine mount in question and withdraw the bolt a way, daub tippex or white paint on the bolt head and then refit the panel (correctly!) so the bolt head touches the inside to mark its position (may take a few goes to get the bolt the right distance out) - once the position is marked, drill through from the inside with a drill the same size as the centre drill of the hole saws that you'll be using (5 or 6mm) - now your hole saw will cut in the right position. Next step doesn't matter which side you go from - if you're steady of hand and have someone holding the panel flat and steady, you can go from the outside, your choice. Fit the correct diameter hole saw securely to the drill chuck, spin the drill fast IN REVERSE and cut through using the pilot hole for guidance. Cutting in reverse is a very useful trick with plastics, the drill or cutter doesn't snatch when it breaks through, especially useful when drilling screw holes in number plates and fairing screens as they can crack when the material snatches.
Simples 8-)
Good idea, I hadn't thought of that! I have just sent a request through a breakers site. Can anyone recommend anywhere worth looking for a cheap set of fairings? Is/are there any other parts worth getting protection for or spares of?
If you're looking for other panels with trackday use in mind, just use the tatty ones, or better still, if you're looking at removing panels for this, get a race fairing instead of using OE stuff, they're easy enough to fit and you won't have headlights and indicators to risk damaging, though to be honest, the only real danger to your bike on a trackday is yourself. Ride within your limitations, don't get carried away thinking you're the new Valentino (because you definitely won't be...) and you'll be fine, you and bike will come home in the same shape as you went, minus a bit of rubber off the edges of the tyres 8-)
Can't emphasise enough about what Scotty says about drilling the fairings in reverse, and I know it doesn't matter from which side you start from but I would advise from the inside (just in case the worse happens and the drill slips...and I have seen it when the worst happens ;D)
With regards to the fitting of the crash bungs, do not over tighten the bolts. The bung bolts do not require the same torque as the OE engine bolts....well...I'm speaking R&G here. Over tighten the bolts and they will lose flex and will simply just snap off after any decent off.
Squashed_Fly
25-01-11, 02:06 PM
[quote author=Squashed_Fly link=1295948752/4#4 date=1295957039] don't get carried away thinking you're the new Valentino (because you definitely won't be...)
What, not even if I fit the replica fairings? Damn it! lol
Don't worry, I won't be acting like a nob. I can't afford to waste the money I spent on it!
Green Man
25-01-11, 04:28 PM
I got R&G ones on my ZX9R they used the front engine mounts and didn't interfere with any of the plastics. [smiley=thumbsup.gif] [smiley=thumbsup.gif]
Squashed_Fly
25-01-11, 04:58 PM
I got R&G ones on my ZX9R they used the front engine mounts and didn't interfere with any of the plastics. [smiley=thumbsup.gif] [smiley=thumbsup.gif]
Yeah, most of the models are fine. But for some reason with my model and year, they didn't forsee the need to get to the holes to mount them, in their infinite wisdom!
Mark_Able
25-01-11, 08:56 PM
Good idea, I hadn't thought of that! I have just sent a request through a breakers site. Can anyone recommend anywhere worth looking for a cheap set of fairings? Is/are there any other parts worth getting protection for or spares of?
If you're looking for other panels with trackday use in mind, just use the tatty ones, or better still, if you're looking at removing panels for this, get a race fairing instead of using OE stuff, they're easy enough to fit and you won't have headlights and indicators to risk damaging, though to be honest, the only real danger to your bike on a trackday is yourself. Ride within your limitations, don't get carried away thinking you're the new Valentino (because you definitely won't be...) and you'll be fine, you and bike will come home in the same shape as you went, minus a bit of rubber off the edges of the tyres 8-)
Exactly what I was going to suggest Scotty. Fibreglass replica fairings are cheap (cost me £300 for the whole lot, seat unit included, on the R1), and easy to repair (might have had to mend a couple of cracks, a couple of times ::)). I had crash bungs fitted to the swingarm pivot, and upper engine mounts. So that's two each side. The swingarm bungs were the biggest and best ones, but they do not save your plastics. They saved my engine casings. Forget the tiny little mushroom things, they're a waste of time. They couldn't save themselves, let alone your fairing... :)
I had to cut my fairings for my R&G's but they totally saved the bike in the recent slide down the tarmac..no fairing/plastics damage whatsoever so worth every penny
I had to cut my fairings for my R&G's but they totally saved the bike in the recent slide down the tarmac..no fairing/plastics damage whatsoever so worth every penny
Absolutely.
Have always had a set on my Sv. And they have saved the bike more than once. Took a decent spill in wales a few years back, slid down the road, and the only damage was a cracked fairing, and broken gear and clutch lever. Trashed the bung (it tore off) but it saved massive damage.
The Missus has often dropped her bikes at slow speeds (and mine twice!), she has R&G stuff on both her bikes that's saved her bodywork a number of times now, unlike on my old Fazer with no protection where the fairing lower mount punched a hole through the plastic when she dropped it in the garage >:(
For a road bike, crash protection is designed to lessen the damage, not prevent it completely, there are too many variable involved in every crash and drop to do that.
It's the silly little things where it comes into it's own. A set of bungs may cost however many pounds, but a smashed fairing panel, snapped indicator, dented tank and a holed crank case are going to cost a lot more to put right and take up a lot more time than the half hour it takes to fit bungs.
A mate of mine had a slow speed slide on a brand new R1 and holed his crank case outside my house. If he'd have had engine sliders and bungs fitted the bike could have been ridden home, as it was he had to pay over £140 for a new parts and oil, then wait a week for the parts to come in and have me fix it up again. Good job he crashed outside my house, not in the middle of Wales.
R&G parts are expensive, but they are good quality, a lot of work has gone into their stuff. There's cheaper protection out there, but although the plastic bits may look the same, it's the bracketry underneath that's the important bit. I have Aprilia's own bungs on my bike and the brackets are just a couple of hollow steel tubed with no connection between them. The R&G equivilents are billet aluminium blocks with a connecting steel bar between them, way stronger. As soon as I can afford it (oh, the irony!), I'm swapping to R&G.
Some times you do have to drill holes in the fairings. That's not the fault of R&G or other bung manufactureres, but the fault of the bike designers for hiding any suitable structural mounting points behind acres of plastic, eg. The new VFR1200 has no visible fairing mounts anywhere. Drill the pilot hole from the inside, but drill the proper hole from the outside, it'll give a cleaner finish to the visible side of the hole. Top tip about running the hole saw in reverse!
The tip about not over tightening is also correct, the bolts R&G use are designed to bend and not snap off. Using nice stainless or titanium bolts instead will look way better, but will be much more likely sheer off in the event of a slide. If a bolt is bent, DO NOT be tempted to beat it straight and reuse it! It's done it's job, chuck it away and buy new one. When fitting, screw in the bolt until you feel it start to tighten. Turn a little more so that you feel the compression increase slightly. Then apply a quarter turn. Do not over tighten as damage can occur to the bike and the bung. Also the bolt can stretch, again making it more likely to sheer. Do not exceed 40nm of torque on R&G's bolts! A dab of mild Loctite will stop them rattling loose and falling out.
Yes I can fit R&G stuff for you if you want, but it's not that difficult. If you really want me to do it, fitting a pair of bungs normally starts at £20, or £30 for drilling your fairings. Sounds expensive, but it's half the price of the local shops I spoke to about doing it.
As an exclusive forum offer if you buy any R&G kit through me, come into me in Newbury and I'll fit it for free, how about that?
Squashed_Fly
26-01-11, 07:41 PM
How much would you charge for a set for a ZX636r A1 (02)?
Mark_Able
26-01-11, 08:05 PM
Good advice from Nooj. It was what I was trying to say really. It's a bonus if the bungs save your fairings, but it's the engine that's more important. You can ride home with a cracked fairing, but not with a hole in your engine casing. :)
Would you feckin believe it! The missus has just this second got back from work and....... dropped her bike in the garden.
Muppet.
Everything's still intact, nothing that's bolted on is damaged, but I expect the Givi arms will be bent as the top box touches down when the bike is on it's side. Though saying that, they may actually have been re-straightened, as I believe it went down on the other side last time.
;D
Will get a price on 636 bungs later, their site is down ATM, seems they could do with some website crash protection. Ha ha!
Top advise Nooj. R&G are the only ones worth going for.
Squashed_Fly
27-01-11, 08:25 AM
Would you feckin believe it! The missus has just this second got back from work and....... dropped her bike in the garden.
Fail!
If you can let me know, that'd be fab. Will come and get them done as soon as I have some spare money.
Did you get my message about the bike festival?
ZX636A £108.67 inc.VAT. That includes a replacement expansion tank. Bungs come in a choice of black (nice) or white (will show every scratch and bit of dirt).
http://www.rg-racing.com/images/products/large/img161_3.jpg
Got your message about the show, thanks. It's been added to my 'to do' list.
Nooj
Remind me to talk to you about this on Sunday :)
Nooj
Remind me to talk to you about this on Sunday :)
Seems they don't do engine case sliders for your year bike, only up to '06. They do have bungs though:
http://www.rg-racing.com/images/products/large/img173_9.jpg
Aero style ones as well, nice! £78.60 inc. postage & VAT if you're interested, plus I'm doing free fitting for the forum if you buy them through me.
Uber Dave
01-02-11, 10:10 PM
Them Aero ones are good, got four of them on my R6, the stickers came off though on the plugs for the holes, I emailed R&G and they sent some more out for me for free which was good of them!
They sent me a free sheet recently, they're normally a quid a sticker! Anyone that comes in with a sticker missing, give them a replacement they said. That's more than you'd get from a lot of companies, quite good I thought.
Squashed_Fly
02-02-11, 08:15 AM
Safety is sooooo expensive! Top helmet = £300+, leathers the same. £100 for crash bungs, spare fairings are £300+.... It's enough to make a grown man weep! Worth every penny, but I do wish it was a little more affordable at times...
Tell me about it! Some of the shiny titanium stuff I sell I can't afford, even with a trade discount, same with decent crash protection for the bike :'(
It's definitely worth spending out on decent kit for your self though, a crippling injury sustained by a crash in poor kit will work out to be a lot more expensive.
£100 for crash bungs, spare fairings are £300+.... It's enough to make a grown man weep! Worth every penny, but I do wish it was a little more affordable at times...
Cheaper to get a dedicated track bike.....
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