The Hugger and a stock tail fender

Gohot229

Gohot229

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Contrary to alot of riders of the FZ Gen. 1 who want to lean out the look of the rear by cutting, moddifying or altogather removing the rear fender, I happen to like the rear fenders looks and functionality. It could be vastly improved upon with the addition of a hugger however. The time spent always cleaning under the tail area gets to be a pain, and at relativly short interval's. But in my opinion, it seems to go with the look of the fender, one should use a CF unit or a Black one, as a painted to match seems to work best with a removed or moddified fender. The thing I see the most is someone trying to follow more the form of an outright sportbike, thusly the fender gets chopped with a fender eleminator liscense plate holder and sometimes turn signal mount substituted. The quest to go sportbike still seems to find something lacking so chin farings or the full farings are added, and it still dosn't look sportbike enough. Face it, it will never have the looks of an R1. Back to my thoughts about the rear of the FZ, I like the cosmopolitan look of the rear fender, it looks like a modification that some would have paid to get, it fits the bike, it has something of a sophisticated look to it, thus I want to keep mine, but I also want to eleminate the grime and mess with an undertail hugger.
 
I definitely do not miss the look of the stock fender. I do miss the functionality of it on my GenII. It is rare that I ride in the rain but when I do, without the fender, I have a beautiful chicken stripe splattered right up the middle of my back from road dirt and debris. lol
 
Based on that post, I've got to think that your rear fender isn't stock. From the factory they're hideous. That said, I've kept my hideous fender. One afternoon dodging rocks from a friend's fenderless VFR made me change my mind. I can just imagine the stripe he gets when we ride in the wet.

Hideous or not, they have a function. I'm all about function over style.

My stock rear fender (taken two days after I brought him home):

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I guess what I'm getting at.....look at picture #2... it has a look of something a European tourer would order for their bike, I guess I lack words to describe it, it's BMW'ish, it is a monied look, contenental, sort of like the frumpy Mercedes look, do you get me? Never the less, this with the addition of an under-tail fender for the swingarm would suit my needs perfectly. That and the turn signals in stock form, or mabe irrideum lenses.
 
Dry climates

theWolfTamer said:
I like the look of the undertails too. I just think I'd miss the functionality of the very ugly stock fender to replace it or cut it down.
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For day trippers or dry climates the complete lack of fender rarely would be an issue. For those of us that prefer function over form (at least for the fender's protection) and ride in all kinds of weather, the lack of the fender would get tiresome. I have rode bikes without a fender in the rain and can't say it was a pleasant experience. Now if the fender was on a quick disconnect that would interest me.
 
Oldschool said:
For day trippers or dry climates the complete lack of fender rarely would be an issue. For those of us that prefer function over form (at least for the fender's protection) and ride in all kinds of weather, the lack of the fender would get tiresome. I have rode bikes without a fender in the rain and can't say it was a pleasant experience. Now if the fender was on a quick disconnect that would interest me.
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I agree with oldschool. I took a trip through Yosemite on my way to Sturgis for the bike rally. I had “trimmed” the rear fender on my BMW because the stock one is hideous. Sections of the roads through the park were torn up for repair and it rained periodically. By the time we made a pit stop for gas, you couldn’t see my license plate or taillight. Thank god I had a Givi trunk otherwise I would have had a mud stripe up my back I’m sure. I would definitely consider a quick disconnect. That sound like a great idea....hummmm

Oh the things we do for looks over function.:stupidPC:
 
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You are right. I've ridden with guys who don't have the fender and I hate riding behind them. They seem to throw extra rocks at you. Never know when a thundershower is gonna pop up here in the south and I have a tendency to ride through them.
 
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You know how it goes..... you get to seeing undertails, and get to liking the 'look'. As for the designed pourpose, they clean up the tail, but.... don't do much to keep the rear clean with the roostertails of rain or just crossing wet spots in the road. Then too.... it's what your trying to get in the looks department. As I said above, I like the look of the stock tail fender arangement, but the addition of a fender hugger would give just that much more towards keeping the tail from all the muddy water stains. The one thing additionally that would be of interest would be some sort of shock-sock or an extention for the stock under-plastic to cover against the debree flung onto the shock itself, it can't be good for the piston-rod of the shock getting all the abrasives/dirt on it, galling and scratching the rod.
 
bought mine with the eliminator kit already installed, so i did'nt have a choice in the matter.

i belive the stock fender is uglier than me in the morning before coffee. Yet cant shake the fact near the end of the season i was caught in a small squall on my way home and had so much water spray down my back it ran down onto the seat and obviously my ass....if it were a cold day and i was in the middle of nowhere i dont think it would take long for hypothermia to set in.

perhaps something that slides down through tracks like a trambour door but made of flexible plastic not sections of wood, the piece could slide out like a shutter cantelivered out from the track on either side. *sorry i am a woodworker and tend to think of things in carpentry terms.*

both jacket and pants had to be hand washed afterward...fun.
 
Zortak said:
bought mine with the eliminator kit already installed, so i did'nt have a choice in the matter.

i belive the stock fender is uglier than me in the morning before coffee. Yet cant shake the fact near the end of the season i was caught in a small squall on my way home and had so much water spray down my back it ran down onto the seat and obviously my ass....if it were a cold day and i was in the middle of nowhere i dont think it would take long for hypothermia to set in.

perhaps something that slides down through tracks like a trambour door but made of flexible plastic not sections of wood, the piece could slide out like a shutter cantelivered out from the track on either side. *sorry i am a woodworker and tend to think of things in carpentry terms.*

both jacket and pants had to be hand washed afterward...fun.
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:th_smiley_rotfl2[1] :wow:

There needs to be a spitting smiley too.

So did you go out and buy an OEM replacement? I probably would've after that!!
 
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