Purchasing consideration 961 Sport- confused Biker!!

contours · Sep 24, 2015

Britfan60 said:
Ummmmm.....she sure looks pretty enough.

Well, I'm glad you think so. She just looks a bit unfinished close up. The cockpit fairing needs some kind of trim and all the rest of the fairing fasteners have yet to be removed. The exhaust pipe could stand a good cleaning, too. But she runs like a Banshee on fire, I tell ya! More power than I deserve.

contours · Oct 17, 2015

Rizzo said:
I'm awaiting a dry day to demo one, next dilemma is - new or used. I've got my eye on a couple of 2014 models, I've heard that iteration has had a number of the previous issues addressed.

Have you made a decision yet? Or did I just miss your post by now? :wink:

worntorn · Oct 17, 2015

contours said:
Britfan60 said:

Ummmmm.....she sure looks pretty enough.

Click to expand...

Well, I'm glad you think so. She just looks a bit unfinished close up. The cockpit fairing needs some kind of trim and all the rest of the fairing fasteners have yet to be removed. The exhaust pipe could stand a good cleaning, too. But she runs like a Banshee on fire, I tell ya! More power than I deserve.

It looks to have the t595 rear bodywork but the post 02 style seat, is this correct? What year is the engine and frame?
Glen

contours · Oct 17, 2015

worntorn said:
contours said:

It looks to have the t595 rear bodywork but the post 02 style seat, is this correct? What year is the engine and frame?
Glen

Click to expand...

Hey Glen! It's 2003. The original bodywork was removed and replaced with a Sharkskinz 2-piece fairing. I sold off the front portion since it had no cut-out for headlights and kept the rear because it's so simple. I added the stock cockpit fairing and made 'er street legal with new headlights.

She's a screamer! More than I can handle, frankly.

worntorn · Oct 18, 2015

I know the feeling. I have an 05 with the same pipe, soft rev limiter removed etc. It's hard to hang onto at times. Bulletproof engine, silky smooth and sounds like nothing else.
Glen

contours · Oct 18, 2015

worntorn said:
It's hard to hang onto at times. Bulletproof engine, silky smooth and sounds like nothing else.

I love everything about this machine ... except the suspension. Mine is kinda bouncy. It may not be an inherent problem - it might simply need maintenance. But I hear ya, the power is a bit too much for me. I'm looking forward to a calmer experience with the 961.

worntorn · Oct 18, 2015

The suspension can be dialed in and then it gives an excellent ride, quite cushy for a sport bike. Even though it had greater acceleration than all of the other litre sportbikes except the GSXR1000 (it beat the gixxer zero to sixty and was about even zero to 120 MPH) when this version Daytona appeared in 02, it was always a half step behind as a track bike. That was said to be due to the suspension which is designed for road use, not track use. So it really does make a great roadbike. The GSXRs and R1s, Ducs, Aprilias etc were generally slightly quicker around a track but comparitively harsh on a real road.
I have a track test where the Daytona is pitted against a Ducati 998, Aprillia RSV4 factory, Honda Fireblade and so on. The Daytona was a half second slower than the others, however when it came time to ride all the bikes 150 miles back to Magazine headquarters, all of the riders went for the Daytona keys!

As far as the excessive power goes, we just need to learn to control the right hand better! :mrgreen:
Fresh speeding ticket last Thursday for me. Luckily I had slowed down quite a bit when the radar gun got me, otherwise I would be talking about the Daytona I used to own!
But I did have a wonderful 400 mile ride on old twisty, often bumpy roads and felt great afterward, no soreness at all. The Sargeant seat is helpful.

It will be interesting to see what your thoughts are when riding the new Norton after riding the old (relatively) Daytona.

Glen

contours · Oct 18, 2015

worntorn said:
The GSXRs and R1s, Ducs, Aprilias etc were generally slightly quicker around a track but comparitively harsh on a real road.

Well, it could be that the previous owner changed the front forks in some way since it was a track bike for 2 years before I bought it and converted it. I am about to install the RaceTech Gold Valve kit as well as change the oil. I do know it has an upgraded triple tree.

worntorn said:
As far as the excessive power goes, we just need to learn to control the right hand better! :mrgreen:
Fresh speeding ticket last Thursday for me. Luckily I had slowed down quite a bit when the radar gun got me, otherwise I would be talking about the Daytona I used to own!

Well, that was a past life for me. These days I get off on decent acceleration and handling in slow corners. I don't see myself getting any speeding tickets anymore. :lol:

worntorn said:
It will be interesting to see what your thoughts are when riding the new Norton after riding the old (relatively) Daytona.

Yes, I am anxious to compare the two. Sometime next Spring if the delivery estimate MCC gave is at all accurate.