Cycle News

PATON S1-R LIGHT WEIGHT TRACK TEST R I D E R E V I E W P100 little momentum while cranked over in a turn, the Paton doesn't sit up on you and head for the hills. It's a bike you feel totally in charge of at all times, which turns so easily yet has a balanced, pre- dictable response. There's great feedback from the front suspen- sion which inspires you to use lots of lean angle in taking advantage of the grippy Metzeler Racetecs in maxing out momentum in bends. Even turning a little tighter to avoid a slower rider won't faze the Paton. This is a very sweet handling motorcycle. PATON S1-R LIGHTWEIGHT TRACK TEST—OUT INTO THE WILD With its track-day credentials firmly established I had the chance to ride the S1-R briefly on the road, where the riding position is roomy enough. The wide bars are high enough for low-speed riding and the Ohlins suspension offers an ideal mix of good ride quality and excellent compliance. The fueling works perfectly from low rpm, and the Rizoma mirrors are more useful than on any Ducati sportbike. The Paton S1-R is also a lot smoother and less tiring to ride than any four-stroke Paton GP racers ever were, thanks to the Kawasaki motor's gear-driven balance shaft which completely removes any trace of tingles, even at higher revs. In fact, even though the ultra-linear power delivery continues to hold after it peaks at 8500 rpm, there's no real need to rev the punchy little motor anywhere near its 10,900 rpm limiter, only if you want to hold a gear between turns to save a couple of shifts. Short- shifting at 8000 rpm gives you intoxicatingly satisfying perfor- mance, because even though the actual numbers may be small, the fact you're now back in the fat part of the torque curve peaking at 7000 rpm with 47.2 lb- ft on tap, gives you just the kind of sweet drive you're looking for exiting a turn. The Paton S1-R Lightweight is living proof that the sportbike world's obsession with power is a blind alley, and that less can indeed be more when it comes to ultra-enjoyable real world rid- ing, with a handling package that delivers the goods, as this one does. It's a sweet little bike, both to look at and to ride, and while it certainly isn't cheap, the Paton order book shows that there are customers out there for a sport- bike with accessible performance, capable handling, no concerns about engine servicing or reliabil- ity, that has heritage in spades, and looks a million dollars, but costs significantly less—just one- fifth of the price of the eight-valve Paton Classic racer which it in many ways closely resembles. More manufacturers should make a road-going lightweight 650cc Supertwin—and with Pa- ton, CFMoto, Kawasaki, Yamaha and Suzuki about to be joined by Norton and Aprilia in doing so, this looks like the kind of bike we'll be seeing a lot more of in future. And that's a very good yh- ing….CN S P E C I F I C A T I O N S PATON S1-R LIGHTWEIGHT ENGINE: .......... Liquid-cooled, DOHC, eight-valve parallel-twin four-stroke with 180-degree crank- shaft, offset chain camshaft drive & single gear-driven counterbalancer BORE X STROKE: .............................. 83 x 60 mm CAPACITY: .................................................... 649cc MAX POWER: ........................ 82 hp at 8500 rpm MAX TORQUE: ..................... 64 lb-ft at 7000 rpm COMPRESSION RATIO: ..................................12.5:1 FUELING: ............Keihin electronic fuel injection, dual 38mm throttle bodies, and single injector per cylinder TRANSMISSION: ........... 6-speed with multi-plate oil-bath clutch CHASSIS: .... Tubular steel open-cradle spaceframe with engine as semi-stressed member FRONT BRAKE: ..................Dual 295mm TK steel discs with four-piston radial Brembo Monob- lock M4-108 calipers and 19 RCS radial master cylinder REAR BRAKE: ............220mm TK steel disc with twin-piston Brembo P34C caliper FRONT SUSPENSION: ..... Fully adjustable 43mm Ohlins FGRT 204 telescopic fork, 4.7 inches wheel travel REAR SUSPENSION: ...................Febur fabricated aluminum swingarm with twin fully adjustable Ohlins TTX30 shocks, 5.1 inches wheel travel HEAD ANGLE: .................................................... 25° TRAIL: ............................................................ 4.1 in. WHEELBASE: .............................................. 54.7 in. WEIGHT: .......................................................348 lb SEAT HEIGHT: ......................................... 31.8 inch FUEL CAPACITY: .................................... 4.2 gallon FRONT WHEEL/TIRE: ...............3.50-in OZ Racing Piega forged aluminum, 120/70-17 Metzeler RaceTec RR K3 REAR WHEEL/TIRE: ................ 5.00-in OZ Racing Piega forged aluminum, 160/60-17 Metzeler RaceTec RR K3 TOP SPEED: ....................................Over 135 mph MANUFACTURER: ............................ www.paton.it

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