Vale, some tips on the RC vs Mille.
The Moriwakis are VERY good pipes, but expensive to replace, I would put on something cheaper for the track/racing. The absolute kings are the Sato pipes, no question, but then the Moriwaki LOW MOUNTS (high mounts are still awesome, but low mounts provide better power) and the Harris are also very good, closely followed by others like Leo Vince, HMF, Yosh, etc.
Make sure you have a Power Commander on that thing, the factory mapping is next to useless at the track due to the abrupt on/off during delicate throttle applications.
visit
www.rc51.org for a complete set of top notch maps for the bike.
The biggest difference you'll notice is how much more IN the bike you sit as opposed to on top of it like on the Mille. The immidiate effect will be that you'll notice the slower turn in on the RC. Most of us lift the rear 4-6mm at the shock, some even drop the front 5mm, I only do it because I run Pirellis and the have 5mm taller profile than the stock Dunlops that come with it.
The rear shock is useless, toss it for an Ohlins, while you at it, add the Moriwaki or Dan Kyle (
www.kyleusa.com) rear link, it adds the 5mm rear height while leaving the shock at stock height, but it's real purpose is to help with rear traction when applying throttle coming out of the turns, the RC tends to step out bit under throttle when ridden HARD, the link fixes that by changing the rear swingarm travel/geometry, the height increase is a side effect.
Re-valve the forks, of course, but look into the proper spring rate, the RC is almost always the wrong rate, and most benefit from a 10mm insert in order to set sag properly at the front. See Dan Kyle for that as well, he has done more RC forks than most suspension shops have ever even seen.
Re gear the thing to. The stock gearing is way too tall for most, the popular choice seems to be 15 front 41 rear, and we all go to the 520 chain while at it since you're in there already, save some weight. Some go with the 16 front 42 rear, but this sometimes cause clearance issues when running a 180/55 rear, which is also highly recommended instead of the stock 190/50.
I've been running soem of the new 190/
55 from pirelli and some 190/
60 from Dunlop with great results to, but the 190/60 was tight, I went with one extra link on the chain for it.
Other than that, you will love the thing, not the mid-range pop the Mille has, but when it does hit a bit higher in the Rev range, it hits like a frikking freight train all the way to 10K. No worries, plenty of bottom end and mid range, it is a twin after all, am just comparing to the Mille.
I think you will find the RC much more stable (it's almost silly) and it holds a line better, in fact, it holds it so good that unless you really push the issue, it won't change, so keep that in mind.
Go to
www.rc51.org and look around in the "MODS" section, lots of info on free mods that really add ponies, like the soft rev limiter removal, flapper valve removal (you'll notice a "clicking" noise when you crack the throttle if yours still has it on), pair valve removal (it will "pop"/backfire if you use aftermarket pipes with the pair valve still on), stock filter mod (don't use K&Ns/BMCs, waiste of $$ on V-twin Hondas, all), etc.
oh, yeah, welcome.
and BTW....the 2000 and 2001 RC51 came with Metzlers from the factory, and some came with Dunlop D207s, so that RC probably has the factory rubber still on, not rare, just that RCs don't come with them anymore.
The 2001 RC did not come with swingarm spool provisions, all other years do, WHY? nobody knows, very weird, but that's the deal, so get a pit bull stand that lifts from the swigarm, I have one
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