Untitled - Hawkworks.net

W
err
oft
tie
allowsair to flow through adjustablevents
the front, rearand sidesof the helmet. . . plus
chin
lockingfaceshield,quick release
a multi-position
plush
interior.
Many
of
these
same
and
strap
features,
aswell as the Fulmertwo year
warranty,
arefound throughoutthe
entireline.
Fulmer
sportglasses
are availableat half pricefor a limited
Fulmerdealers.
of any of our helmetsat participating
timewiththe purchase
WF,X
Seeyour participatingFulmerdealer.
ningup the coast tor the weekend twoup with a set of soft luggage.
But even the competent, do-it-all
Hawkcan use some help. lt offers little
windand weatherprotection.lts suspensionis on the soft side,especiallyfor riders on the far side of 200 pounds, and
the tires could stick better and offer
morefeedbackat the limit.We hooed to
improvethe bike's overall abilities,not
focuson one of its areas of expertiseat
the expenseof others. The Hawk handles almosteverythingshort of trail riding,and we wanted to keep it that way.
The Hawk's lack of fairing is perhaps
its most obvious limitation.so that was
the logicalplace to begin. We wanted
the fairingto match the bike's personality and lines closely. lt needed to be
lightweight,functional and aesthetically
pleasing.We'd award bonus points for
e a s e o f i n s t a l l a t i o na n d r e a s o n a b l e
price.
When the folks at Targa showed us
theirnew Tsunamifairing,we wondered
if they'dread our minds. Constructedof
fiberglass
and utilizinga nifty three-point
mountingsystem, the lightweightand
stylishTsunami seemed perfect. The
unitmountssimply;one V-shapedbracket attachesthe upper portionof the fairingto the bike'stop tripleclamp usingan
rubber plug, while a pair of
expanding
clampssecure the lower portion to the
fork tubes.The paintworkand attention
to detail of the Tsunami are excellent,
but the paint match with the Hawk's metallic-bluefinishwasn't exact.
The Tsunamiworkswell,shieldingthe
r i d e r ' s t o r s o a n d s h o u l d e r sf r o m t h e
windblast.Most riders'heads remainout
in the breeze,but the wind anglingoff
t h e s l o p i n g ,s m o k e d w i n d s c r e e ni s n ' t
overlyturbulentand nevercausesundue
amounts of bothersome noise. At
$269.95,wind and weatherprotectionin
the form of the Tsunamidoesn't come
especially cheap, but we regard it as
moneywell spent.
ln our road test we reported that the
saddle was tairly comfortablefor short
hops,but registeredcomplaintsabout its
forward-slopingshape, solt foam and
relatively narrow width. For a replacement we went to Mike Corbin.Corbin's
Gunfightersaddle was simple to install
and quite a bit more comfortablefor long
hauls than the stocker because of its
f i r m e r c o n s t r u c t i o na n d f l a t t e r , w i d e r
perch.We picked a solo versionfor aesthetic reasons,althoughthose planning
two-up trips can get identical comfort
with Corbin's Gunfighterand Lady version. Both are available directly from
Corbin or Targa.
A few thousand miles of use sacked
our Hawk'sfork springs,and the bike's
I
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P.
o
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o
=
o
m
handling
went with them. To freshenthe
fork's innards,we replaced the stock
springs
witha set of Lockhart'sPro Rate
forksprings,made to Lockhart'sspecs
by ProgressiveSuspension.The Lockhartspringsare slightly longer than the
stockersbut use shorter preload spacers. After installing the coils with 10w e i g h tK a l - G a r df o r k o i l , t h e H a w k ' s
frontend resistedbottomingbetter than
thestocksetupyet still offered a ride almostas plush as stock during less aggressveuse.
We also installedan S.T.D.fork brace
to givethe front end a bit more rigidity,
thoughthe 41mmtubes are fairlystiff unbraced.The S.T.D. Superbrace,which
we didn't receive until after our photos
weretaken,is a beautifulpiece,made of
h i g h l yp o l i s h e d6 1 6 0 a l u m i n u ma n d
clampedto the sliders with No. t hardn e s sa l l e n b o l t s . T h o u g h t h e S u p e r -
Though louder, the stainless steel SuperTrapp exhaust provldes more midrange
punch than the stockerand ls llghter.Metzeler MEI rear tire stlcks tenacloualy.
Lockhartfork springs and a Metzeler
CompK Laser tire offer a taut ride and
morc front-end feedback. The stock disc
anclcluahplstoncaliper pertorm admirably.
brace'spresence between the tubes
wasn'tobvious,the front end did feel
moresecurelyplantedat the limit.Unfort u n a t e l yt,h e S . T . D . - b u i lS
t uperbrace
smacked
the undersideof the Targafairi n go v e r l a r g e b u m p s o r d u r i n g h a r d
PHOTOS:
MIKEBANXS
braking.Fortunately,a fix is just a few file
strokes away for those planningto use
both products.Simply removinga small
amountof fiberglassfrom the fairingbottom allows the brace to pass by without
incident.
Thoughracerswill want to replacethe
Hawk's rear damper,the stock unit performs well enough for the majority of
street use despite the fact that it offers
only preload adjustability.lts soft, compliantspringmakesit idealfor freewayor
around-townuse, and only the heaviest,
mostdemandingriderswillfind it lacking.
Only Ohlins currently offers a replacement damper for the Hawk, and though
it no doubt workswonderfully,most folks
will find the stocker adequate. As increased mileage tends to soften the
spring considerably,Hawk owners not
willing to plunk down $500 for a new
shock might check out the possibilityof
installing a slightly stiffer replacement
rear spnng.
We finishedoff the chassismods with
a s e t o f M e t z e l e rt i r e s . a 1 1 0 / 8 0 - 1 7
il
I he lack of
fairingis the Hawk's
biggestlimitation.
Targa'sTsunamiwas
just what we
ordered.
ME33Comp K Laserup front and a massive 160/60-17ME'l in back. The original-equipmentBridgestoneExedrasthey
r e p l a c e d p e r f o r m e dr e l a t i v e l yw e l l i n
most situations,though the Metzelers,
which grabbedtop honorsin our November '87 sport-tireshoot-out,offer more
stick, more rider feedback at the limit
and, perhapsbest of all for a street rider,
seem to wear like iron.The Metzelersoffered more neutral steering and though
pricey are well worth their cost.
pur final mod, prompted by aesthetic
and weight considerations,was to swap
the stock exhaustsystem for a two-intoone stainlesssteel SuperTrappunit.The
SuperTrappwas an obvious choice for
our project since the system's external
tunabilityallowedus to gain some potenMOTORCYCLIST/APRIL
198951
The Hawk's stock seat is good, but Corbin's Gunfighter is better. We chose the
solo versionfor its looks,thougha two-up
saddle is available.
The Targa faiilng channels air directly at
the rider's head and shoulders, though it's
not turbulent enough to cause major noise
or comfort problems.
Targa's Tsunami tairing helped considerably. lt's well made,easyto installand adds
wlnd and weather protection.The mounting bracketcould be less obtrusive.
tial oomph in the lower reaches of the
rev rangewithout havingto rejet the carburetors.a task we wantedto avoid.The
system also cuts roughly 10 pounds off
t h e H a w k ' sw e i g h t ,h a s a r e b u i l d a b l e
muffler assemblyand a lifetimeguarantee against rust. With six muffler plates
installed (SuperTrapprecommends between four and eight), the Hawk carbureted as well as with its stock system,
seemedto gain a bit of low-endand midrangepower,was clearlymore ridableas
a result,soundedbetter-and only slightly louder-than stock and definitelyimprovedthe bike's looks.The Hawk's rear
wheel still won't come off without removing the pipe, but with the SuperTrapp only the muffler must come otf,
not the entire system as with the stocker. The system is available from most
dealersand mail-orderoutfits.
With these simple, bolt-on modificat i o n s , o u r H a w k w a s s i g n i f i c a n t l yi m proved. The suspensionand tire mods
gave the bike a more stable,surefooted
feel at speed, and because the tauter
be riddenthroughcornersa gear higher
than a stocker, since the engine pulled
harder at low engine speeds.
The bike'saround-townand long-haul
manners were better as well. The seat
g a r n e r e dh i g h m a r k s , a n d t h e f a i r i n g
made freewayjaunts aboard the bike far
less tiringthan on a stock Hawk. With a
set of soft luggage,this bike would have
n o p r o b l e mw i t h a s t r i n g o f 5 0 0 - m i l e
days. In fact, the only negative aspect
for full-boretouringis the bike'ssmallish
3.2-gallonfuel capacity.
Ask us and we'll tell you Hondadid a
fine lob with the Hawk GT. lt's one of
those rare motorcycles that does iust
about everythingwell, from sport riding
to touring to commuting. lt's comfortdurable,a fine hanable, good-looking,
fork and superb Laser tire offered more dler,fairlyquick,light,easy to ride and,
front-end feedback, our modified Hawk perhapsbest of all, unique.For those
theirHawks,it's
was more confidence-inspiringto ride who wishto personalize
quicklythan the stocker.Ridersfelt the good to know there are a number of afpipe improved midrangepower; the Su- t e r m a r k e tg o o d i e s t h a t g i v e t h e b i k e
ll
perTrapp-equippedHawk could usually added function as well as flash.
[l
I hesemods
improvedthe Hawk
GT as a sporter,a
commuterand a
tourer.
SUPPTIERS.LIST
coRBlt{
123 C Lee Rd.
Watsonville.
CA 95077-1562
(408)728-01
69, (800)s38-703s
(Californiaonly)
(800)662-6296
saddle,$179.95;
Supplied:
Gunfighter
Gunfighterand Ladysaddle,$189.95;
optionalbackrest,$96.00
LOCK|{ART COI{SUnER
PRODUCTS
991 CalleNegocioSt.
San Cfemente,CA 92672
(714)4S8-9090
Supplied:Pro Rate fork springs,$55.95
TETZELER
4520 107thst.
Everett,WA 98204
(206)348-4000
Supplied:tires-front, 110/80-17ME33
Comp K Laser,$'115.41irca(,
160/60-1M
7 E 1C o m pK , $ 1 5 1 . 3 0
s.T.D. EilTERPRISES, lllc.
5842 McFaddenAve.,SuiteO
HuntingtonBeach,CA 92649
(714)894-2994
Supplied:Superbracefork brace,$90
SUPERTRAPP
3910 SeaportBlvd.
Sacramento,CA 95691
(916)372-5000
Supplied:stainlesssteelexhaustsystem, $269.95
TARGA
ACCESSORIES, ll{C.
23561RidgeRouteDr.
UnitF/G
LagunaHills,CA 92653
(t14)472-1022
Supplied:Tsunamifairing,$259.95;
HawkGT side panels,$39.95
)
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