My next gearing change on the zx14 will be @ 17/44 with a 190/55 tire.

Hey Mass...I've been thinking about what you were saying about liking 16/42 but wanting to go to a 17T front, so you've decided to go to 17/44 next.

Wouldn't you actually want to go to 17/45? In my understanding (and maybe I'm wrong!), 16/42 is smack bang between 17/44 and 17/45 equivalent. Is there a reason you would want to go on the lower side for final drive ratio? Maybe to give you a bit more speed in each gear for the sake of slightly less torque?

As far as (approx) final ratio...

42/16 = 2.625
44/17 = 2.6
45/17 = 2.65

I'm not so worried about top speed (I prefer corners to straights) but would love a litte bit more torque than what I'm feeling with 16/41 (55 profile rear).

Not wanting to second guess you own personal preference, but am trying to work out what my best move is (without wanting to buy a bunch of sprockets).

Romans - I believe you have 17/45...do you run a 190/55 rear tyre?

Aussie, I just need to take into concideration my current set up.
My bike is roughly 100 lbs. lighter than stock. My power add ons are
on the serious #s as well. Even with stock gearing my power/ weight
ratio is greatly improved and the bike has far more pull through the gears
than a bone stock bike with the same gearing.
The switch to BST wheels could best be described (as far as riding
experience) as + 20 rwhp- there's a noticeble increase in pull
through the gears at open throttle.
My front end is much lighter too and keeping the front down is a struggle.
The Speedcell battery, BST front, cf zx10 fender, no mirrors, no horn,
the Vortex aftermarket bits and pieces... the front is just very difficult
to keep down under acceleration being so light.
My current 16/42 gearing at stock wheelbase is a handfull even for a power
wheelie junkie like me. With the slight drop of temperatures outside and the
bike sucking that colder air it only gets trickier as it wants to go even
more.

I guess the moral of my story is that 16/43 (or 17/45) might be way too much for some
applications. But as always- to each their own.
Best way to go about it as to try a few gearing set ups and decide what
suits your riding style best.

Retaining the 17 front will preserve the silky smooth feel of the zx14.
The 16T oem will take away just a little bit of that IMHO.
But it's all individual and let's not kid ourself with this bike- it has
more than enough with stock gearing.

Hope this helps.

Yeah great reply Mass - thanks mate!

I had forgotten about your extensive weight reduction...I can imagine that makes keeping the front down when powering out of corners a bit more tricky, even with stock gearing.

I've found you are spot on about even the 16T KHI front making more noise/whine then the stock 17T. Actually when my tyre guy was installing the 16T for me (got him to do it while he was replacing my tyres) he said "hmmm...16T eh...more teeth the better I reckon...". Makes sense I think. The smaller the radius of the sprocket, the tighter the turn the chain links have to make.

I'm not going (read: can't afford) to do mods like you've done, so I think I'll go with 17/45 next with a longer chain.

My goal is more zip down low. I ride (crazy) in traffic every day, and when zipping off from the lights to get clear of the cagers is when I want that extra kick.

Also, our local track only allows around a 155mph top speed and on the street I'm a cornering freak, not really into the straight line stuff.

Thanks Romans-hope you're doing fine there.Good to see ya on the forum here.So..........I've got the 16/42 right now.Can you give me a comparo to the 17/45?

Blue, I'm probably not the right person to answer this question, but, I will do my best. It would seem every rider wants something different out of gearing. In the end, it will always come down to personal preference. Some guys want top end, some are after gas mileage. Like Mass states above, it's about how the bike responds on the track. For me and my style of riding it's all about how the bike feels. If the bike struggles to get rolling, the gear ratio # is to low; if the bike spends to much time up on motor, reving needlessly, gear ratio # to high. Both ways indicate to many shifts. Once again this is based on my style of riding. After all this being said, what I can tell you about 17/45 is that it is SMOOTH. With this taller sprocket out back the chain is lifted off the ware bar, thus less noise. On off throttle noise from the chain is also reduced and I for one Love being able to listen to the motor with out the distraction of the increased noise of the 16T sprocket. Blue, the gear ratio# of the 16F/42R is 2.63 and the ratio# of 17F/45R is 2.65. So I'm not sure how much of a change you will notice in straight line performance but there does seem to be a big difference in how the bike behaves. I was very lucky to have two other ZX-14s to compare my findings. I ran a couple of rolling resistance tests early on but after my switch to ceramic bearings the tests became useless. I can tell you this 4 sure, if you run your bike up in second gear, then go into neutral, then shut the motor off and coast, you will see the difference between 17 tooth and 16 it's quite noticeable. I hope this helps in some way. I know the majority are running 16T out front but it's not for me. Cheers.