Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

Hey everyone!

I picked up my first 600 a few days ago, it's a 99 ZX6R.

It's got 47k kms on it and it's pretty much stock apart from a Yoshimura RS-3 bolt on. First thing I plan to change are the tyres to some Pilot Pures or Road 3's in a few weeks.

The bike a recreational bike, I don't plan on commuting on it. I do plan on doing some advance rider courses as well as taking the bike to track days.

Just wondering what everyone's thoughts are on the things that usually need to be changed/worked on for this specific bike? I know the G1/G2 ZX6R's are considered a lot more comfortable/toury than their newer counterparts, the 03+ models apparently got a lot more raw and race/track focused.

Suspension? Are the standard forks and shocks considered decent if I get them re-valved by someone like Zeno? Or would replacement units be on the cards?
Brakes? What would be the usual - pads, braided lines, rotors?

I'm thinking that suspension would be the first thing I'd spend money on after getting new tyres.

Thanks in advance for any feedback guys!

My first bike was an 02 ZX636R and I loved it! I had a G1 track bike too, pretty much the same!

After getting the tyres sorted I'd say to get the suspension setup first and just ride it, see how you like it before making any major changes!

My upgrades went;

Braided lines & HH pads
Pazzo levers (personal preference)
Quick throttle (have one here I think if you want it) totally changes the bike

That was the start but everything after that was just to make it suit me!

Hi Jim, how did you find the G1 as a track bike?

I rode my friends K7 GSXR 600 yesterday, and going back to my ZX6R I noticed the distance between foot peg to gear level was so much further apart! The K7 only required a little tap to change gears, and the ZX6R seems like so much effort now.

Looking into rear sets, but finding it pretty hard to locate one for a G1/G2.

Oh and about the quick throttle, please PM me more details about price/installation!

As a track bike the G1 was fine but could be done with better gearing for UK circuits. Dropping the front through the yokes a touch helped with steering without any bottoming out issues.

I've recently bought rearsets from racesuppliesdirect on eBay in the UK for my ZXR which are pretty much the same as the ones on my old trackie and were only $150 or so! But there are plenty of bits available for your bike as I think most parts from the J and A1 model will fit!

Had one of these as my first bike. The calipers off the j have different piston sizes and work better than the g. I ended up 10mm up in the rear and 5mm down on the forks to speed it up. Never had any stability issues. If you like corners get some rear sets or riser plates to stop the pegs grinding. Do the suspension. Stock it's sprung for a 75 kg rider. I got an ohlins for the rear and gold valves in the front with correct springs and it was night and day.

i had the j series... as aussie ninja said, jack the rear up about 10mm and bring the forks through 5mm... definitely get the front springs changed, made a huge difference to compliance and front end control... i managed to play with the rebound and compression settings on the rear and i dont remember ever wanting anything more done to the rear.

i never had any problems scraping pegs on road or track but maybe thats just me

other than that, enjoy

Thanks for all the responses guys! Especially to Jim for sending me the quick throttle tube, I haven't fitted it yet but I'll be doing it sometime over the next week or two.

Just an update: over the past few weeks I've
- fitted a set of Danmoto rear sets and I no longer scrape my boot when leaning through a corner. The gear lever travel is also so much shorter and it feels a lot tighter!
- fitted new Pilot Road 3's, much better than the worn out Road 2's I had
- I've also got Fren Tubo braided lines sitting here, but I probably won't fit it until I decide to take off the calipers to get them a clean at the same time
I have a few additional questions if you guys can be bothered to answer haha.

1. So the stock suspension is sprung for a 70-75kg rider? If so then this is perfect since I weigh at the 70kg mark and probably end up closer to 75kg with gear on!

2. Even if it is set up from factory for 70-75kg, now that the bike is 13 years old and has goen through 47,000kms - I'm assuming even if I get the forks/shock rebuilt/serviced the springs should probably get replaced at teh same time anyway due to wear and tear?


3. Can the 10mm raise for the rear and 5mm drop at the front be done with the stock components? I'm bringing the bike to Shock Treatment tomorrow morning to get him to set up my sag, preload, rebound etc. so I may as well ask him to do the height adjustments while he's at it.

ongsta wrote: Even if it is set up from factory for 70-75kg, now that the bike is 13 years old and has goen through 47,000kms - I'm assuming even if I get the forks/shock rebuilt/serviced the springs should probably get replaced at teh same time anyway due to wear and tear?

Can the 10mm raise for the rear and 5mm drop at the front be done with the stock components? I'm bringing the bike to Shock Treatment tomorrow morning to get him to set up my sag, preload, rebound etc. so I may as well ask him to do the height adjustments while he's at it.

If you are getting the suspension serviced, while it's apart Terry will be able to check the spring rates for you to confirm they haven't lost tension and are correct for your weight. You can do the ride height and drop the forks with the stock gear.

Aussie Ninja wrote: If you are getting the suspension serviced, while it's apart Terry will be able to check the spring rates for you to confirm they haven't lost tension and are correct for your weight. You can do the ride height and drop the forks with the stock gear.

I'm only taking the bike to Terry so he can 'set up' the suspension by changing whatever stock available settings allow for. Hoping whatever adjustments he makes can sort out the slight unstable front end during slow speed cornering (roundabouts etc.)

From working on the bike, I'm hoping he can tell me what additional work the bike needs. Worst case scenario I'm expecting:

- servicing/re-valving forks + shocks
- new springs
- steering stem bearings
- rear swing arm bearings

Question is do I spend that sort of money on the bike now, or save it for an upgrade to a newer bike that won't require this kind of work? These decisions are so hard

I'm going to revise what I said. Terry will be able to tell with reasonable accuracy if the springs are right for you while doing the static and rider sag measurements to set the spring preload.

As for spending money, even if you aren't keeping it that long I'd get the suspension serviced and set up. New bikes still need this stuff done if you want it set up for you rather than the generic set up the manufacturers have to use to cover a broad spectrum of riders. You will find with a new bike the spring rates are quite stiff. If you only weigh 75kg ringing wet you may actually need to get lighter springs put on a new sports scoot.