Yep, you're right on the exchange rate. But the top product you posted the pic of actually is nearly AU$ 1000,-. The one for US$ 500,- comes w/o tail light and turn signals.

And I agree the overall price is a bit over the top. But hey, if you like it...

 

I was looking at those too. Expensive. I've been looking into making one something like it. Or I'll end up buying one.

 

That shouldn't be too hard to DIY if you were so inclined

 

Yeah, price is a HUGE factor, if I have to pay for a new tire, I'm looking at prices and quality. Canada's motorcycle is where I got my tire for the virago, and the pipes for the breakout, happy both times, will definitely look at them again!

Ok, so it is technically a taller tire, but the sidewall is the same size. So from the tread to the rim, it's all the same, but the tread portion is going the exact opposite way from the "dark side" guys? That totally makes sense as to why it will allow a little more lean, even if it does widen up my chicken strips a bit. That's what you're saying, right?

Yes, that's exactly what happened, totally a perfect storm situation, but on a bike that has a half decent ground clearance when cornering, this would never have been an issue...

As for the stock pegs, they are ugly, but I actually like the feelers. I sit my foot on the peg the same as you, and scrape boot before feeler, but I do like having the feeler there anyways, just so I know, "hard stuff is coming up REAL soon" when cornering...

I did read that you were able to corner harder, but no biggie there.

That actually looks pretty sweet. The factory side mount is horizontal, not vertical, isn't it? If side mount is illegal in your state, what does your bike come with? It's not the Canadian center mount fender, is it?

 

Weezl- it's not just about the tire with your scraping situation. it is also about the weak stock front suspension. As it is, your bike sits about an inch / inch and a half lower up front under it's own weight (called "sag"). Add any braking force or a small bump, and the front compresses even further. Add any gravity force in a corner and again it compresses. This vastly reduces your ground clearance and you scrape sooner than expected. It pissed me off so much when I first got the bike that I honestly almost turned around and sold it.

to fix, do your front forks with the racetech springs and ricor or racetech dampers. done deal.

Aftermarket tires will be a big improvement over the stock clunkers. They will just do everything better. The stock rear tire has a very flat face profile versus good aftermarket tires with proper radius. The stock front tire is like a mushroom. Besides you will not find any tire mfr that recommends a 130/60/21 tire for a front 3.5" rim... it is just plain wrong. 120/70 is correct. I threw my tires away with only about 1k miles on them with no regrets. There are very good offerings from Metzeler, Dunlop and Pirelli and they are superior + cost less than the stock tires. If the stock tires were actually decent you would not hear about so many riders tossing them and the good results post-upgrade. good luck!

I about **** when I saw those prices. really?? some parts are clearly worth $500 or a grand and others not. Hell if I was going to drop a grand on something decent I'd upgrade my belt pulleys- oh wait, I did

Granted the OP is concerned about tickets for a vertical license plate. it's the same issue here in Cali and many other states. but you know it has to be a pretty bored *** cop to pull you over only for that here in the US. Not very likely. And how many license plate fix-it tickets would it take to equal $500 to a grand?? I'll pay that ticket, thanks

 

how many license plate fix-it tickets would it take to equal $500 to a grand??

-> That is a really good point!! Need to reconsider

 

Has anyone considered adding these to their front ends? Link

I would like to have more of a stretched out look without adversely affecting my handling. Besides the extra ground clearance might help keep my peg feelers off the pavement...

 

The peg feelers unbolt from the pegs...that will for sure keep them off the pavement.

 

the suspension i totally understand about, and will be my next upgrade to the bike. tires i will probably hold on to until they are worn out completely

here, it could be only one. depending on the officer he has the ability to write a few different things. there are 4 options really. a normal ticket, at $176, (3 tickets of any sort in a year and your mandatory insurance policy with the government monopoly provider, goes up)

second is a box 3 (best case imo.) written a ticket, but given the opportunity to fix it and the ticket gets ripped up.

box 2, vehicle requires an inspection at a government certified facility, within 60 days. anything not meeting government criteria must be fixed before passing. this includes any pipes that are louder than stock, moved or aftermarket non-dot signals, brake lights, oil leaks, ect. plus the plate ticket, repairs, and $150 for the inspection.

worst case scenario, box 1. this is typically only used for rolling scrap heaps, but i have seen one given for worn out door bushings. same as box 2, except no 60 days. vehicle gets impounded, towed in, towed out, towed to a shop for the inspection. impound rates are $30 per day, plus tow, starting at about $100. so, box 1: $176 ticket, $150 inspection, MIN $100 tow in, likely 2 days storage to arrange an inspection, $60, tow to shop (tow out starts at $60, $90 for bikes) repairs at shop $?? thats $586, minimum, before you pay for the shop to do work that you could do on your own just fine


that being said, i have been pulled over for a vertical plate, and rode away with just a $176 ticket

a friend of mine got pulled over with a fender eliminator kit on his ninja, everything else stock, got a box 2, and was out about $600 when it was all said and done

 

For christ sake.... Can't the government just leave us alone? I understand the Police Officers (for my part, much respect for them) are just doing their jobs, but holy shi&!.

Thanks guys for the comments.