Hawk 250 power/gearing downfall? - Page 2

OneLeggedRider · 03-28-2019, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Megadan

If you ever need highway gearing just swap the front to a 13 and it will be in the 2.50 range just like a 17/43 setup. I went with a 13 front 35 rear - aka 2.70 or 17/45

So no problems with the front sprocket cover fitting over the 13 tooth and an O-ring chain?

Megadan · 03-28-2019, 10:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OneLeggedRider

So no problems with the front sprocket cover fitting over the 13 tooth and an O-ring chain?

Fits better than my 17 tooth and 428 O ring chain did.

Emerikol · 03-28-2019, 11:07 AM

I have had the 17/39 setup on my Hawk pretty much from day 1. I rode it stock just long enough to go up and down my street a few times and get the oil warm. Then it went right back into the garage and got the oil changed, carb tune, exhaust, digital speedo, sprocket, and everything else done to it all at once. For the way I use the Hawk, 17/39 is great, as long as I don't want to do over 60mph. I'm 5'9"ish, and tip the scales at about 170lbs. If I really tuck in tight, have a nice tailwind, and the planets align, I can get the bike up to about 70. I don't like it all, and to say that I don't feel safe would be something of an understatement. I have all the top speed I need for the roads I ride, and I wouldn't dream of attempting even a single exit jump on the highways out here. I think that once I wear down the stock knobbies and shoe on some more street-oriented rubber I'll be a little better off, but time will tell on that. The bottom line is this: These bikes are endlessly customizable for anything you want to do. On the one hand, you have a really cheap platform to get started. On the other hand, it's really easy to look up one day and discover that you've spent more money turning this platform into, say, a DR250 or other comparable bike, that it would have made more sense to just go out and pick up a new bike from the big four. I think that if you have time to tinker and a welding bent, you could easily swap in a Ninja 300 engine and get this bike to do everything that it seems you want. On the other hand, if the bike is just a putter around rig, it doesn't make sense to do a lot of mods and upgrades apart from the things that make it more comfortable and useable on the street. Hope this helps.

Sochin · 03-28-2019, 11:08 AM

I still run a 17/50 here in the Rocky Mountains, has worked well for me.

**JerryHawk250** · 03-28-2019, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Megadan

Fits better than my 17 tooth and 428 O ring chain did.

Thanks for clearing that up. Whenever I wear down the rear sprocket I will convert over to the 520 setup and just swap between the 12 and 13 tooth as needed for riding conditions.

OneLeggedRider · 03-28-2019, 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emerikol

I have had the 17/39 setup on my Hawk pretty much from day 1. I rode it stock just long enough to go up and down my street a few times and get the oil warm. Then it went right back into the garage and got the oil changed, carb tune, exhaust, digital speedo, sprocket, and everything else done to it all at once. For the way I use the Hawk, 17/39 is great, as long as I don't want to do over 60mph. I'm 5'9"ish, and tip the scales at about 170lbs. If I really tuck in tight, have a nice tailwind, and the planets align, I can get the bike up to about 70. I don't like it all, and to say that I don't feel safe would be something of an understatement. I have all the top speed I need for the roads I ride, and I wouldn't dream of attempting even a single exit jump on the highways out here. I think that once I wear down the stock knobbies and shoe on some more street-oriented rubber I'll be a little better off, but time will tell on that. The bottom line is this: These bikes are endlessly customizable for anything you want to do. On the one hand, you have a really cheap platform to get started. On the other hand, it's really easy to look up one day and discover that you've spent more money turning this platform into, say, a DR250 or other comparable bike, that it would have made more sense to just go out and pick up a new bike from the big four. I think that if you have time to tinker and a welding bent, you could easily swap in a Ninja 300 engine and get this bike to do everything that it seems you want. On the other hand, if the bike is just a putter around rig, it doesn't make sense to do a lot of mods and upgrades apart from the things that make it more comfortable and useable on the street. Hope this helps.

I have this disease where I can't stop spending money on any toy I buy lol. And I think it's part of the fun. Because I know if I can make it a little bit better/faster etc. and it will be unique..

But this had led to an R/C truck going from $450 to $2,500. A $1,500 Scramber going to $6,000 and a '74 Chevy K20 going from $800 to $6,000. Right now I've got $1,800 in the Hawk and I haven't even ridden it yet! And I think it will need another $400 make it what I want. $200 of that is for going Tubliss, because some of the trails around here are pretty nasty.

Weazler · 03-28-2019, 09:55 PM

Thank you everyone for all the info! Seems like I may just be expecting too much for too little, as I commonly do. I have the same condition as OneLeggedRider, I'm over $3k into a $900 95 Corolla, and about $2k into a $500 95 Accord wagon. The only one I can justify is the $5k into my free 95 Caprice Classic, (inheritance from my grandparents R.I.P.) that car ACTUALLY deserves the restoration and upgrades. Everything else is just a toy. And yes, all 3 of my vehicles are almost 25 years old. I just simply cant leave things alone. I've been building and modifying cars for well over 10 years, and work on them for a living. I've never even ridden a motorcycle, but would love to get into them, I think this will be a great start for me to learn to ride and work on them. It's probably time for me to just buy a bike and get to tinkering. I'm sure those will end up being added to my list of famous last words.

Megadan · 03-29-2019, 04:02 AM

I Wouldn't say you were ever expecting too much, but maybe expecting something different. I never once saw you say you wanted to be able to do 80+mph cruise speeds, which would be expecting too much.

In truth, with the right choices in parts and a lot of your own work, you could turn a Hawk into a pretty good machine. Port and deck the head yourself, decat the stock head pipe and clean up the welds while also swapping the factory muffler out with a straight through unit from ebay (about $60) or buy the whole ebay exhaust most of us use for $100, buy a 30mm smooth bore carb, socket style intake, and pod filter from Aliexpress ($55-60), put in a good spark plug, and get it dialed in then you would have a Hawk that can easily carry a big guy like me to 75mph repeatably, or a smaller guy to 80 or more (I believe Jerry recorded a top speed of 86 at one point). I do believe if I dropped down to a 33 tooth rear I could hit 80mph flat out on flat ground, but I like the extra pulling power of the 2.70 ratio. My last Hawk (unported head and Mikuni Clone with a 2.50 ratio combo) would struggle to hold more than 62-63mph with the throttle pegged up a particularly steep hill on my way home from work. My current Hawk will hold about 70 up that same hill, although it is also pegged doing so. Realistically, the cost for such an improvement, even if you had to buy the rotary tool, burs, bits, and sanding rolls to port the head and had a machine shop mill it down comes out to about $250. If you already have the tools to do said port work, even less. Toss in whatever it costs for sprockets and that's all it takes as far as the performance goes. If you can score some good deals here or there it gets even cheaper. Jerryhawk250 has the original muffler from my stolen Hawk's ebay exhaust with an extension he welded on and a decatted stock head pipe. His exhaust setup is about as budget friendly as it gets and it performs just as good as the full system most of us buy for $100.

**JerryHawk250** · 03-29-2019, 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Megadan

(I believe Jerry recorded a top speed of 86 at one point).

86mph ???? Let me do my own exaggerating.

It was 80mph going down an overpass lol
But the mods Megadan listed do make a big difference in performance. I don't have to twist the throttle wide open just to cruise 60-65 mph. At those speeds the engine is purring along at 6000-6500 rpms. I can easily hit the rev limiter at 8500 rpms 1st through 4th gear.

Megadan · 03-29-2019, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JerryHawk250

86mph ???? Let me do my own exaggerating.

It was 80mph going down an overpass lol
But the mods Megadan listed do make a big difference in performance. I don't have to twist the throttle wide open just to cruise 60-65 mph. At those speeds the engine is purring along at 6000-6500 rpms. I can easily hit the rev limiter at 8500 rpms 1st through 4th gear.

At least you didn't need a tail wind? I was going off of my not so great memory of a post I read long enough ago that I forgot most of it.

I think you do point out a key difference between the way we have our bikes geared. For you 5th acts like a tall overdrive to get the revs down. I went the other direction and decided to make 5th a fully utilized gear in regards to the RPM range of the motor, but sacrificed some of that lower RPM hum in the process.

**JerryHawk250** · 03-29-2019, 08:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Megadan

At least you didn't need a tail wind? I was going off of my not so great memory of a post I read long enough ago that I forgot most of it.

You were probably thinking of Azhule.

03-28-2019, 11:07 AM	#18
Emerikol Join Date: Oct 2016 Location: Carrollton, GA Posts: 1,465	I have had the 17/39 setup on my Hawk pretty much from day 1. I rode it stock just long enough to go up and down my street a few times and get the oil warm. Then it went right back into the garage and got the oil changed, carb tune, exhaust, digital speedo, sprocket, and everything else done to it all at once. For the way I use the Hawk, 17/39 is great, as long as I don't want to do over 60mph. I'm 5'9"ish, and tip the scales at about 170lbs. If I really tuck in tight, have a nice tailwind, and the planets align, I can get the bike up to about 70. I don't like it all, and to say that I don't feel safe would be something of an understatement. I have all the top speed I need for the roads I ride, and I wouldn't dream of attempting even a single exit jump on the highways out here. I think that once I wear down the stock knobbies and shoe on some more street-oriented rubber I'll be a little better off, but time will tell on that. The bottom line is this: These bikes are endlessly customizable for anything you want to do. On the one hand, you have a really cheap platform to get started. On the other hand, it's really easy to look up one day and discover that you've spent more money turning this platform into, say, a DR250 or other comparable bike, that it would have made more sense to just go out and pick up a new bike from the big four. I think that if you have time to tinker and a welding bent, you could easily swap in a Ninja 300 engine and get this bike to do everything that it seems you want. On the other hand, if the bike is just a putter around rig, it doesn't make sense to do a lot of mods and upgrades apart from the things that make it more comfortable and useable on the street. Hope this helps. __________________ First Rule of Aviation: -Never Pass Up The Opportunity to Pee I was struggling to get my wife's attention; I sat down on the couch and looked comfortable. That did the trick! My wife says I only have two faults. I don't listen and something else... If at first you don't succeed, try doing it the way I told you to... The Stable: 2005 Yamaha V-Star 650 - SOLD 2015 Suzuki DR 650 2015 RPS Hawk 250 - SOLD 2016 Ural Gear Up
	2

03-28-2019, 11:08 AM	#19
Sochin Join Date: Jul 2017 Location: Montucky Posts: 209	I still run a 17/50 here in the Rocky Mountains, has worked well for me. __________________ 1983 Honda Xl600R 2016 Ducati Multistrada 1200S DVT
	1

03-29-2019, 04:02 AM	#23
Megadan Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: Omaha, NE Posts: 8,042	I Wouldn't say you were ever expecting too much, but maybe expecting something different. I never once saw you say you wanted to be able to do 80+mph cruise speeds, which would be expecting too much. In truth, with the right choices in parts and a lot of your own work, you could turn a Hawk into a pretty good machine. Port and deck the head yourself, decat the stock head pipe and clean up the welds while also swapping the factory muffler out with a straight through unit from ebay (about $60) or buy the whole ebay exhaust most of us use for $100, buy a 30mm smooth bore carb, socket style intake, and pod filter from Aliexpress ($55-60), put in a good spark plug, and get it dialed in then you would have a Hawk that can easily carry a big guy like me to 75mph repeatably, or a smaller guy to 80 or more (I believe Jerry recorded a top speed of 86 at one point). I do believe if I dropped down to a 33 tooth rear I could hit 80mph flat out on flat ground, but I like the extra pulling power of the 2.70 ratio. My last Hawk (unported head and Mikuni Clone with a 2.50 ratio combo) would struggle to hold more than 62-63mph with the throttle pegged up a particularly steep hill on my way home from work. My current Hawk will hold about 70 up that same hill, although it is also pegged doing so. Realistically, the cost for such an improvement, even if you had to buy the rotary tool, burs, bits, and sanding rolls to port the head and had a machine shop mill it down comes out to about $250. If you already have the tools to do said port work, even less. Toss in whatever it costs for sprockets and that's all it takes as far as the performance goes. If you can score some good deals here or there it gets even cheaper. Jerryhawk250 has the original muffler from my stolen Hawk's ebay exhaust with an extension he welded on and a decatted stock head pipe. His exhaust setup is about as budget friendly as it gets and it performs just as good as the full system most of us buy for $100. __________________ Hawk Information and Resource guide: http://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=20331 2018 Hawk 250 - Full Mod list here. http://www.chinariders.net/showpost....62&postcount=1 2024 Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 https://chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=34124
	3

03-28-2019, 09:55 PM	#22
Weazler Join Date: Mar 2019 Location: Columbus, OH Posts: 12	Thank you everyone for all the info! Seems like I may just be expecting too much for too little, as I commonly do. I have the same condition as OneLeggedRider, I'm over $3k into a $900 95 Corolla, and about $2k into a $500 95 Accord wagon. The only one I can justify is the $5k into my free 95 Caprice Classic, (inheritance from my grandparents R.I.P.) that car ACTUALLY deserves the restoration and upgrades. Everything else is just a toy. And yes, all 3 of my vehicles are almost 25 years old. I just simply cant leave things alone. I've been building and modifying cars for well over 10 years, and work on them for a living. I've never even ridden a motorcycle, but would love to get into them, I think this will be a great start for me to learn to ride and work on them. It's probably time for me to just buy a bike and get to tinkering. I'm sure those will end up being added to my list of famous last words.
	2