2008 Kawasaki ZX10-R
That's what the team start with, the awesome Ninja ZX-10R road bike. Keeping to the original spirit of Superbike racing, the team insist on picking many of their bikes from crates at random in the KMUK warehouse and then making these into BSB racing machines. As Nick Morgan says - "It may seem silly when there are all these exotic specials as starting points, but we firmly believe in the basic principle of Superbike racing which is that customers should be able to see a bike racing that could, and maybe did, start out at a franchised road bike dealer".
190 + Horse Power
This is a conservative figure drawn as an average of literally hundreds of dyno runs. Naturally, the team hopes to be able to add to this already prestigious figure, but brute horsepower is only one small part of a very complex racing equation.
According to Matt Proud, who does most of the MSS Discovery R&D.. "We have seen over 200bhp on development engines but they are peaky right now and unmanageable. What I focus on delivering to the team is an engine unit that can be fine tuned via our data technicians and rider feedback to suit the track we are riding on and the day we are riding. The ZX-10R base unit is the best Ninja yet in terms of its spread of linear and peak horsepower straight from the crate. All we are doing is refining something that is already good rather than going back to square one.
80 + Ft lbs of torque
Probably as important as power but always the bridesmaid in terms of headlines is torque, as Dean Harris explains. "When I am working with Matt on the dyno runs, we are looking at torque as a major factor. On the track this translates into the crucial ability to hold a gear through a long section or complex series of corners.. or even to roll the throttle open earlier on an exit to make up ground when driving out of a corner".
Weight 162 Kg
King of the brackets and first Lord of the Hacksaw, Chris has a love of making the bike lighter, even if it has the same effect on Nick Morgan's wallet!!
"You simply can't compare a road bike, with all its extra brackets, cables, lights and other bits and bobs with a full blown race bike. The first 5 or 10 kilo's are relatively easy, after that, any weight loss is the subject of long hours looking at the bike and working out if we can change that bolt for a lighter one and still conform to the strict rules of the BSB series."
Renthal Sprockets
"Off the shelf these are best there is" according to Dean. "We run from 38 to 48 teeth on rear sprockets and from 14 to 17 on the front. Most road riders use different sprockets for gearing change, but we also focus on squat reduction by changing the way the bike delivers its power and the tyre grips and pulls on the suspension units".
Tsubaki Chain
"Fantastic quality, I am amazed at what these chains go through. Not only do they handle 200bhp in acceleration but tremendous strain on the overrun on deceleration - let alone the stress of jumping the mountain at Cadwell... I am well impressed", says Nick.
SBS Brake Pads
"The rear brake is used far more to change traction characteristics and adjust the bikes general attitude than the pure act of braking", says Matt. "Both riders use it to control wheelies as well, but the pad material changes between Stuart who has a conventional back brake with a foot pedal and Billy who uses a thumb operated item."
Heavily braced and modified Swingarm by Harris
In its third generation of development according to Matt. "It starts life as a standard swinging arm, but is made slightly wider and receives loads of careful gusseting from Harris Performance to cope with nigh on 200bhp".
Marchesini Forged Magnesium Wheels
"3.5/16.5 and 6.25/16.5 are the sizes we use mostly" says Dean. "The wheels are awesome in terms of quality and are custom forged for MSS and our hubs and offsets".
Brembo 2 Piston
"No flex, no nothing" is Nicks considered opinion. "We use a two pad front caliper design which seems to suit the characteristics of the ZX-10R best".
Hel Titanium Brake Lines
"These are new to us for 2008" says Dean "During testing at Gaudix both riders were very heavy on the brakes and experienced no fade at all due to brake line expansion".
Air Filter Pipercross
This is an 'out of the box' part according to Chris - "Pipercross filters are so free flowing and yet effective at filtering that it's like there is no restriction on the inlet side at all so we can gain maximum flow characteristics. We love using them for their 'fit and forget' practicality".
Camshafts
"These are to our own spec", confides Nick. "We measure standard cam duration and go from there - there are restrictions on lift this year in the BSB rules so we can only play with a few degrees either way. That said with good cam timing, a good chain tensioner and cam chain and you are onto good reliable power - any deviance in this and power suffers. Our tensioner is a Kawasaki kit item but the cam chain itself if bog stock standard".
Plugs NGK
"The plugs are a surface discharge plus design, that means no electrode and a bigger fatter and stronger spark", according to Matt. "The plugs last well, really well - we've seen riders run with the same set of NGK plugs all year before".
Clutch
This is Kawasaki's very own standard ZX-10R Slipper clutch which is multi adjustable for slip and sensitivity to suit each rider.
"We test it on standard settings and then set it up for each rider", says Nick. "The rider decides how much slip they want and when it is introduced. The clutch is totally standard right down to the plates. In fact when we tested at Snetterton each bike did over a 12 simulated race starts on standard clutch with no ill effects".
Gearbox
"This is a totally stock gearbox currently, which is amazing as we are putting close to 200bbhp through it", says Ximo. "I will expect to start using more and more Kawasaki Kit gears in the near future when we start using more track data. We have a huge choice of Kawasaki Kit ratio's going right up to 'G Kit' and obviously starting at 'A Kit' gears".
MSS Kawasaki lightweight generator assembly
Based on a Kawasaki race kit generator, with a myriad of subtle and undeniably expensive mods, this represents the latest in terms of development.
"To be honest the Kawasaki kit generator is perfect for 99% of all racing applications", says Matt. "Our generator does have some small advantages but, that said, the cost of each generator makes them impractical for the average team or club racer".
SBS Brake Pads
"The rear brake is used far more to change traction characteristics and adjust the bikes general attitude than the pure act of braking", says Matt. "Both riders use it to control wheelies as well, but the pad material changes between Stuart who has a conventional back brake with a foot pedal and Billy who uses a thumb operated item."
Marchesini Forged Magnesium Wheels
"3.5/16.5 and 6.25/16.5 are the sizes we use mostly" says Dean. "The wheels are awesome in terms of quality and are custom forged for MSS and our hubs and offsets".
Brembo Monobloc Pinless Calipers
"No flex, no nothing" is Nicks considered opinion. "We use a two pad front caliper design which seems to suit the characteristics of the ZX-10R best".
Renthal Handlebar tubes
"We've never had a problem with 'em - top quality kit", according to Chris.
Kit Tacho
Matt reckon's this is a rider favourite. "It's clear, easy to see and with a dirty great shift light that's impossible to miss. It's an analogue tacho that is simple and reliable and, if it does get mashed in a tumble its hundred of pounds to replace rather than the £2500+ of an LCD dash".
MSS Kawasaki Steering Damper Mounting Kit and Quick Action Throttle
"Things like this are what makes the job so interesting" admits Chris. "We love designing and making stuff like this - it makes the long hours seem almost worth it!"
MSS Kawasaki Triple Clamps
"These are our own design that are adjustable with a certain degree of flex built in" enthuses Matt. "They are adjustable for offset & head angle so to quickly .change the offset, for instance, is dead easy rather than changing the whole fork assembly we just adjust the clamps".
Ohlins Gas Forks, Ohlins TTX Rear Unit, Ohlins Steering Damper
"We have a great relationship with Harris Performance who import Ohlins into the UK" says Nick. "It is top, top quality stuff, works well, responds really well to adjustment and it's a shame sometimes to fit it to the bike rather than just sitting there admiring it to be honest!"
Arrow Exhaust and Footrest Assemblies
"We get loads of specialist help from Arrow" confides Dean. "They make loads of development stuff for us when we are testing pre-season and they are not shy to make something for us to try on a whim. The road pipes are made in the same meticulous way and we rate them very highly. This is the first year we are using the footrests, but if they are half as good as the pipes they will be top quality".
Skidmarx Screen
"You'd think I would have little to say about a bit of plastic, but far from it", says Nick. "The most important thing is the transition from the normal shape of the screen to the 'double bubble' section - on most screens the optics are terrible, but the Skidmarx screen is really clear".
Venture Shield Protective Tape
"I wish we had found out about Venture Shield long time ago" admits Nick. "We spend a lot on paintwork and this film is better than anything else at protecting it from stone chips and abrasion".
Samco Silicon Hoses
"I'd give you a tenner if you could burst one of these", enthuses Dean. "Top quality kit that is ultra reliable".
Kit Loom
With only the wires and connections needed for racing, the Kawasaki kit loom is a byword for reliability according to Matt. "It may not have fancy connectors or anything like that but these kit looms are certainly well made. We see bikes still being raced that have been using the same kit loom since the late 1980's".
Kit ECU
"We love this", enthuses Nick. "Since the first kit ECU's this is the best ever evolution, a fantastic ECU that does everything we want, variations in ignition timing, fuelling, rpm, throttle position, addressing one or all the injectors at once, the list goes on. Another good thing is that it comes with base map to start with so, unlike other ECU's or engine management modules, it really is 'plug and play'. The launch control feature is really trick being multi adjustable while having the ability to automatically reset itself in the case of a race re-start. We can also use the Kit ECU to adjust the over rev shift, to dial in a pit lane limiter and adjust the spike control - and all of this using the ZX-10R's standard fuel injection system!".
2D Data Logging
"This is like a stock item for most MotoGP teams", says Bob "Although its complex it is clear and accurate and the service via the supplier, Datron, is perfect. We can use it to monitor loads of outputs from the chassis for machine set up as well as for things like oil pressure, temperature and even oil height."
Padded Cell Paintwork
"Pete has been around forever", according to Nick. "It's not simply a case of painting a bike green and black and pushing it out for qualifying. We are the official team of Kawasaki Motors UK and, to us, presentation is everything. Padded Cell are the best, it's as simple as that".
