Mass is right on the comparo. The stock 14 is a faster drag bike for ametures and pros. They're equal drag bikes after mods. Seems like no matter what mods, the busa always makes a bit more peak hp but honestly, I don't feel it when riding. I look for it, but if it's there way in the top revs, it's not obvious whether it's for real or my imagination.
The gearing is dif on the busa:
Sprockets:
Front: 17
Rear: 40
^^I guess our 14s are actually geared lower stock. So slap a 16T on the busa and the 14, then see what happens. I guess you could keep one upping on the gearing until it was too much bike for anyone to handle anywhere.
I would like to put a thinner head gasket on the 14 this winter. I have to do some research on what effect the higher compression will have. I do not know whether it increases top or bottom end hp or all across the board. I suspect this could be the only real dif in engine performance between the two bikes. Seems to have done well for slowninja but you don't hear many other people using this mod.
The busa has a slipper clutch, but I don't have much use for it. I would rather control that manually and have the full decel when I want like on the 14. The busa has an electronic steering damper which is a very nice feature. I think an after market steering damper would be just fine for a 14 given how often anyone actually needs one on these bikes.
Looked to me like the busa had a built in antifreeze tester on the rad the last time I looked. Also has big strong scraper pegs, nicer sounding stock exhaust (IMO), shift lever linkage rod (like on the liter bikes and I think this is cool, radiator style oil cooler. It's little details like this that I find almost every time I look at the busa that reinforce my feeling that it has had a lot more thought put into the design than the 14.
Do you notice the known/reported vibration/"Busa Buzz" @ 4500 rpm and up or is this not an issue?
No. That's a load of crap. The busa is almost too smooth running for me below 6-7 K rpm. It vibes a bit from idle to 2K rpm and then it is smooth as glass on the street. The shifting is also incredibly smooth. There is little benefit to matching speeds between engine and transmission with a throttle blip. It clicks in easy no matter what. The only time I have had trouble is when I have rolled to a stop on the clutch without clicking down to 1. The busa gets stuck and I have to roll it around a bit to get it to shift. Same on the 14 though.
The 14 has more power and is more fun on the street and even at normal highway speed. That's the main reason it was sitting close to the door and ready to go. The busa feels more at ease at high rpm and I think I would feel more comfortable at really high speed.
The 14 is more of a bad boy bike. The busa is softer. A bit contrary to the busa image, IMO but that's the way they feel.
I was had started to take for granted the great looks of the 14 and really starting to like the look of the busa. Now that I have them both, I once again favor the more traditional look of the 14 with the high tail.
If there were a few of you guys around here and you wanted to take the busa for a ride straight down a highway, I would let you take it. I'm sure you would find it different, but you would see it's not better and it's not faster. Better at cornering -- I think so. Maybe cured/improved with suspension mods but based on what i feel at low speed, I think the busa will always corner better with equal mods.
The busa is smoother if comfort is your thing, but the riding position is slightly more forward too. I hardly notice the riding position change. The busa is a bit more demanding on the back if you like to sit upright on the highway. I can tuck my head about the same on both bikes. The busa has a higher windscreen but the 14 has that dip in the tank cover. The 14's stock windscreen deflects wind over my helmet better.
I was real enthused by the busa when I first got it but i am gravitating more back to the 14. It just feels more down and dirty. However, if I ever top out the speedo, it will be on the busa first. It's nice to have both. A smaller bike would be the way I would go next. I don't know which big bike I would sell. I'd probably have to keep all of them a long time.
* Last updated by: Rook on 11/11/2009 @ 10:32 AM *
'08 MIDNIGHT SAPPHIRE BLUE Now Deceased