Hey guys! I shared this over on WT and since I really enjoy the forum here I thought I would share this here, even though this is a 919 so please forgive! :)

Pardon my chest thumping but I finally have the bike I've always wanted. For me, it is the perfect combination of form and function. I'd still like to re-finish the gauges to black but that's another day. So, there have been a few mods (!) over the Winter so without further ado...

2006 Honda 919 Mod List:
- PAIR system block off plates
- powdercoated passenger grab rail
- Clear Alternatives rear clear lense and LED board
- Rear fender eliminator / Steve's license plate bracket
- Power Commander III
- Targa Mini Arrow front turn signals
- Dominator dual front headlights
- SSR black race gas cap
- Sargent seat
- Renthal Ultra Low bars
- CRG Hindsight bar end mirrors
- Sato titanium slip-ons
- Pazzo levers
- Motovation frame sliders
- Circuit 1 side cover (waiting for install)
- Sato rear sets (deferred)
- Jet-Hot treatment on headers (deferred)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/keboyer/Vehicles/CB900F/919motorcyclemods2007003.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/keboyer/Vehicles/CB900F/919motorcyclemods2007007.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/keboyer/Vehicles/CB900F/919motorcyclemods2007008.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/keboyer/Vehicles/CB900F/919motorcyclemods2007009.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/keboyer/Vehicles/CB900F/919motorcyclemods2007004.jpg

The bike looks amazing. I really like that gold bar with the red paint.

I'd really like to hear how your jet hot experiance goes. That will be my next winter mod if you give the nod.

That really is an amazing bike. How well do the headlights work compared to stock?

That really an amazing bike. How well do the headlights work compared to stock?
+1 Enquiring minds wanna know...

Wow, great job Ken! I LOVE the bug eye headlights! Where did you get those? I think I want them... BAD!

Thanks guys. I'm really pleased with how it's coming along. These pictures really having me itchin' to replace or paint the gauge outer cover with a black one though! Ah well, the list keeps going!

The new front lights are Dominator Dual Headlights. They are available here and there, mostly in the UK. But I was able to find a good deal on them here in the states at Fly-N-Cycle (http://www.flyncycle.com/acatalog/Dominator_Twin_Headlights.html). They are just as bright as the stock setup and the brights are better IMO. Nice addition - love the look - it's a form and function improvement with these lights.

Here's another angle of the front:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/keboyer/Vehicles/CB900F/919motorcyclemods2007006.jpg

Great job ken!!! Must have those headlights!!! You're killin' me :lol:

I imagine it was a pretty easy install????

I imagine it was a pretty easy install????
The lights are plug-n-play and snap right in where the stock light mounts. However, the dome of the stock headlight holds a bunch of wiring and connections which need to be protected and hidden if you want to do it right. I covered the connectors with large heat shrink tubing, wrapped the wiring in split tubing to clean it up, pulled some of the excess through the forks and under the tank, and then zip tied everything behind the new lights. it took about two hours from start to finish (minus the 3 trips to Home Depot for materials!).

Ken, looks great. I really digg the look of the twin head lights and the dual clocks. Works for me and I've always been jealous of those chromed ones compared to the plastic ones on the 599.

And yes, if you can take some shots of your headers, I too am interested in the Jet-Hot and want to see how it holds up. Were yours very tarnished when you sent them in?

Thanks for sharing those photos, I don't think some guys really appreciate how subtle style can be. Looks just right :thumbsup

Now go get that thing dirty! :lol:

Ken, looks great. I really digg the look of the twin head lights and the dual clocks. Works for me and I've always been jealous of those chromed ones compared to the plastic ones on the 599.

And yes, if you can take some shots of your headers, I too am interested in the Jet-Hot and want to see how it holds up. Were yours very tarnished when you sent them in?

Thanks for sharing those photos, I don't think some guys really appreciate how subtle style can be. Looks just right :thumbsup

Now go get that thing dirty! :lol:

Don't be jealous - it's plastic chrome :) I'm ordering the outer gauge cover for an '02 since that one is black.

The Jet-Hot treatment hasn't been done yet. That's a Winter '07-08 project. When I was riding an ST1300, I had Jet-Hot do the headers (for heat problems) and they turned out great. Jet-Hot has quoted $200 (incl shipping) to treat the 4-2-1-2 headers of the 919 in either black or gloss black. The finish lasts forever, it dissipates heat faster, and they are MUCH easier to clean. Watch here at this time next year for an update! :)

Also, there is a place in CT that does the same type service and gets good marks. If anyone is in CT, that'll cut down on shipping costs since they'll let you drop off / pick up.

The Jet-Hot treatment hasn't been done yet.
Ahhh, "deferred"... my reading comprehension leaves something to be desired. :lol:

Again, looks great! (a bit disappointed to hear that they are just plastic chrome but guess I'll survive :wink: )

I love those headlamps! Anyone know what they would look like on a 2006 model 599 with the flyscreen? Id really like to buy them!

Looks great. As a fellow 919 owner, i really appreciate some of the more detailed touches you've done. If i wasn't planning on selling mine i would definately look into doing a few of those mods myself.

One thing i did do, that i think would look good on your bike, is paint that little silver triangular side cover flat black. I, too, wanted to 'dechrome' my bike, replacing the bars and mirrors and such. I really wanted the black guage covers, too...and those headlights are awesome. I'm not really into the dual headlight look, but with the black casing it really looks great!

So good job there, Ken. Keep it up.

We're on the same page jmd. I had the passenger grab rail powdercoated black satin. I like it so much I'm planing to do the same to that side triangle piece you mentioned and the headlight brackets too.

BTW - my dealer has a black gauge outer cover ('02 gauges were black) that I can get pretty cheap. That should blend in much better.

Totally awesome, you must get some double takes!!

Sweet job, man! A great looking bike, no doubt. 8)

Hey Guys/Gals (in any)

I Don't post much here but i'll give a quick back-story. I ride a 2001 Suzuki SV650, but my wife rides a 2004 599. I just did the Dominator headlight swap on my SV and it went very well and thought I would chime in. I was on here to see if anyone had done the swap on a 599 or 919. Here are a couple pic's

http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/8789/img3854uj9.jpg

http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/3313/img3856ij1.jpg

http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/8205/img3859cq1.jpg

I bought them from Fly n Cycle also, good service.

Quick question for you, any reason you're still running stock brake lines with race levers?

If the question was directed at me, I'm not using race levers, they are stock. At some point i'd like to switch to SS and different levers though.

thanks

Nice lookin SV dude. How long did it take to swap the lights out for
you?

If the question was directed at me, I'm not using race levers, they are stock. At some point i'd like to switch to SS and different levers though.

thanks

No, I was asking the OP. He's got a set of Pazzo's fitted, but still has the stock rubber lines.

The headlight swap took all of about 30 mins to complete. Pretty easy, my wife is still trying to decide if she want me to do here 599.

I know some of the other 599 owners have swapped out the headlight for duals, and I think the swap can look kind of cool. BUT I have a caution. That headlight is designed to act as a fairing. The glass is shaped specifically to break the air properly at the front of the bike, and it works very well, at least for me. I would be concerned that by changing the headlight, the rider would lose some of the "clean air" benefit of the stock headlight.

Perhaps someone who has done a dual headlight conversion of a 599 can comment on this.

I know some of the other 599 owners have swapped out the headlight for duals, and I think the swap can look kind of cool. BUT I have a caution. That headlight is designed to act as a fairing. The glass is shaped specifically to break the air properly at the front of the bike, and it works very well, at least for me. I would be concerned that by changing the headlight, the rider would lose some of the "clean air" benefit of the stock headlight.

Perhaps someone who has done a dual headlight conversion of a 599 can comment on this.

HAHAHAHAHA! :lol: Dude, I hate to break it to you, but that headlight isnt providing any wind protection for you.

I'm not talking about "protection" - I'm talking about a lack of turbulence. Clean air. Big difference. I hate turbulence around my helmet and body with a passion. There is none with the stock headlight, and it was designed to eliminate turbulence.

And don't call me "dude."

I think you may be overestimating the design of the bulb. It's age old and I'm pretty sure they were doing wind tunnel testing when this bulb dome design came on the scene. And air coming off of it is largely broken up by the gauge cluster.

Possibly so, but my question remains - is there a noticeable difference when the stock light is replaced?

could have bought the pazzos just for looks and possibly for the adjustability on both of them that you dont get with the stockers :thumbsup

Possibly so, but my question remains - is there a noticeable difference when the stock light is replaced?
Not on the 919. But my answer isn't clean either since I had a Honda flyscreen with the stock setup and no flyscreen with the dual lights. I can say for certain that I'm getting cleaner air / less turbulence without a flyscreen and with the dual headlights.

I've always had trouble with turbulence from flyscreens and fairings also.

I'm not talking about "protection" - I'm talking about a lack of turbulence. Clean air. Big difference. I hate turbulence around my helmet and body with a passion. There is none with the stock headlight, and it was designed to eliminate turbulence.\

Wow! That is exactly what I've been trying to put to words ever since I tried riding a faired bike, or bike with a windscreen! I don't mind the wind from any naked bike I've been on, but having the turbulent air jostling my head around gets me angry in no time. I thought it was the concentration of wind aimed directly at my lid's chinbar and up, but I think it's just the "dirtiness" of the air.

Chalk up another rider who prefers clean air. :)

This is one of those things I haven't been able to figure out, yet. :oops:

How do you know when you have "clean" air? I rode for some weeks with no mods at all on my 599. Eventually, I put on the Givi A305 screen. Doesn't seem to make much difference until I'm going around 55mph or faster. Then it relieves some of the blast quite nicely.

Seems to me that the stock guage housing on the '06 isn't the most aerodynamic thing I've ever seen. But I haven't got a wind tunnel handy, so I'll leave it up to others.

If your helmet is frequently buffeted around, or if you have a lot of noise that is alleviated by raising or lowering your head as you ride, your head is in dirty air - the buffeting and noise comes from turbulence.

By the way, one of the things I wanted to suggest is that the instrument binnacles are not likely to cause turbulence that affects a rider's helmet. It might look as if the binnacles would be in the air flow if you look at the side of the bike -- the headlight is not very big, and if the wind were to flow directly over the headlight then the wind would certainly get all battered about by the binnacles, it seems.

However, when wind hits an object, it doesn't slide over the object's surface smoothly. There's a little thing called friction. The air piles up on the outside of that surface. To demonstrate I found this picture (it demonstrates why golf balls have dimples), but the point is that there is this "laminar boundary layer" that hugs the object, and a wake that follows it.

http://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/Articles/Sources/Sharkoon_Silent_Eagle/images/golf_airflow.jpg

So, what happens with that headlight is that the actual area "cleaned" by the headlight is much larger at speed than the headlight itself -- the wake probably covers most or all of the area of those binnacles. But the clean flow above the separation is where your helmet lies, and that is why it is so comfortable to ride without a screen on this bike.

If your helmet is frequently buffeted around, or if you have a lot of noise that is alleviated by raising or lowering your head as you ride, your head is in dirty air - the buffeting and noise comes from turbulence.
OK, that makes sense. I haven't noticed any buffeting or change in noise by moving my head, other than turning to one side.

I'm otherwise fairly aware of how aerodynamics works, though my days of studying physics are long behind me. Wound up majoring in English and Music. Turns out I can run a mean frialator. :wink:

Anyway, looking at the housing, it's got different edge profiles, curves, and angles of rise. It may not be large, or even directly in the primary air stream, but I'd guess there's at least some turbulence behind that upper edge. Maybe I'll do a little experiment one of these days to see if there's anything noticeable.

A few more minor cosmetic changes -- gauge cluster painted satin black (from faux chrome), side panels painted satin black, headlight wiring cleaned up with larger split hose. Just a couple things left to do -- Galfer brake lines and Circuit 1 side cover.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/keboyer/Vehicles/CB900F/919004.jpg

Jeez Ken, you're killin' me with a butter knife!! I'm tryin not to spend
money right now but every time i see your 919 my wallet gets hot.
I really like the headlights!!
Is your rear tire a little low on air or is it just the angle??

I'm sure it's just the angle, or possibly a shadow. I check them at least once a week, and always before any rides more than a couple hundred miles - 36 front / 42 rear.

I love the headlights too - definitely one of my favorite mods - mostly for looks and that's OK, they give the bike the streetfighter look it deserves.

Abso-friggin-lutely!!! 8)

I'm sure it's just the angle, or possibly a shadow. I check them at least once a week, and always before any rides more than a couple hundred miles - 36 front / 42 rear.

I love the headlights too - definitely one of my favorite mods - mostly for looks and that's OK, they give the bike the streetfighter look it deserves.
They look ok to me.

Now, about those chicken strips . . . . :D

LoL! There's not as much strip as the gravel dust would lead you to believe. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! :P

Does anyone know if those dominator lights ship with mounting brackets? Or what's needed to use the stock mounts?