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HOTBODIES NOVEMBER 1/2 PRICE SALE ???

Discussion in 'Tech' started by Cobalt Coupe, Nov 2, 2017.

  1. Cobalt Coupe

    Cobalt Coupe Well-Known Member

    I've been shopping for a race body kit for the 2nd gen SV 650 I'm putting together for next year. Was planning to buy an Armor Bodies kit if I didn't come across anything decent used , but now Hotbodies has the 1/2 price sale going on.
    Soooooo, the question is for those of you with more race body experience is this ;
    Are the hotbodies kits as poor quality/ inferior ( some say flat out junk ) as I have heard / read about ???
    If I was gonna spend $700 I'd definitely buy armor bodies, but at $350 the hotbodies are hard to pass up BUT if they are really as bad as I have heard, I don't want to end up regretting trying to get out on the cheap.
    Are the hotbodies kits decent enough at $350, or still not worth it ?

    Thoughts / insight please ..............?
     
  2. Chako

    Chako Well-Known Member

    i dont understand why the r6 bodywork has so many side panels
    they did the same on early versions of the 08 stuff yeesh
     
  3. Chango

    Chango Something clever!

    My understanding is that Hotbodies has made a massive improvement in quality in the last 5-10 years or so and their stuff is actually acceptable these days.
     
  4. stangmx13

    stangmx13 Well-Known Member

    i think fit and finish is very dependent on which mold/model/bike u are getting it for. ive seen good and bad from them for fitment. their fiberglass seems to very stiff these days, for better or worse.

    i just mounted their SV-R kit on a 2017 SV650. it was alright and ive def seen worse. the tail lined up as did the sides of the upper. the lower rear holes didnt seem to fit anything. their fairing stay wasnt straight, which made for some interesting holes in the upper. the windscreen holes didnt line up and some trimming of the upper was required to get it OK. the adjustments were on par with what i expect for the price.
     
  5. Riders Discount

    Riders Discount 866-931-6644 ext 817

    Are you having the bodywork painted, or doing that yourself?
     
  6. Cobalt Coupe

    Cobalt Coupe Well-Known Member

    Ive been thinking about getting the 2017 SV kit for my 2nd gen mostly because I think the hotbodies 2nd gen SV kit is almost as bad as the 1st gen SV kit = fugly !!!

    I've been told the 2017 kit is not too bad to make work on a 2nd gen, other than the tail which really takes some modifying, either that or seems that the 2006/2007 GSXR 600/750 kits are pretty popular on the SVs, and look much better than the SV kits do.

    The 2nd gen SV armor bodies kit is ALOT better looking than the hotbodies SV kit is, IMO..........................
     
  7. Cobalt Coupe

    Cobalt Coupe Well-Known Member

    I'll paint it myself, nothing real top dollar or too fancy....................probably 2 tone, maybe 3 color scheme at most.
     
  8. Riders Discount

    Riders Discount 866-931-6644 ext 817

    The reason that I ask is that the last set of HB that I painted myself took 8 hours additional prep over a set of SharkSkinz (painted the same time). If you were paying to have that done it's not worth it.
     
    JustaNobody and ekraft84 like this.
  9. mike-guy

    mike-guy Well-Known Member


    I'm in the same boat thinking I'd rather buy new then repair again and for $410 shipped to my door your saying it's well worth it?
     
  10. stangmx13

    stangmx13 Well-Known Member

    I'm not saying anything like that. Just giving a review of my recent experience w the SV-R bodywork. It wasn't even my bike and I didn't pay for the bodywork, just helped mount it.

    TJ is right about the finish. It was bad. But this set was colored and the owner has no intention of painting it.
     
  11. metricdevilmoto

    metricdevilmoto Just forking around

    Makes you wonder why Armour Bodies and Sharkskinz don't run this deal...

    Because they don't have to.

    There are a lot of companies in the motorcycle industry that make their money on the uneducated consumer who shops only on price and then gets exactly what they paid for and then never buys their products again. Then, there are companies that put out a good product at a reasonable price and retain customers.

    My shop will not even offer Hotbodies as an option when people ask us for bodywork. If you insist on Hotbodies, you order it, you get it painted and you mount it so you know the fresh hell you've introduced into your own life. I won't make it part of mine; not for any profit or otherwise. I'm not going to add 4 hours of labor for bodywork install and then have a customer bitch because we had to trim and make mounting brackets and so on. I don't need the hassle. We decided it simply wasn't worth it years ago and never looked back. If you want to us to install bodywork, it's AB or Shark or you're doing it yourself.
     
  12. metricdevilmoto

    metricdevilmoto Just forking around

    Not in my experience. See my above post regarding my policy on selling it new and I still get a few bikes a year in the shop with HB bodywork and it just doesn't fit.
     
    JustaNobody likes this.
  13. Cobalt Coupe

    Cobalt Coupe Well-Known Member

    I have been thinking exactly the same,................................
     
  14. neckbrace

    neckbrace Well-Known Member

    I've fitted Armour Bodies, Sharkskinz and HB to the same bike, a 2013 ZX10. Armour Bodies was the easiest, Sharkskinz was a close second and HB was a pain in the ass.

    I never did get the HB tail section to fit 100% and wound up giving up on the whole set out of pure frustration. Just gave the whole mess to the next owner in a box and told him good luck.

    I'm sure that a skilled bodyshop guy could cobble them together and have them look respectable. I had to make brackets to mount the upper and lower, which isn't hard to do, but its an annoyance that isn't necessary if you buy Armour Bodies or Sharkskinz. For the shade tree types (myself and most racers included) it's just not worth the hassle when the other brands practically fall together in comparison.
     
    JustaNobody likes this.
  15. Cobalt Coupe

    Cobalt Coupe Well-Known Member

    After all this input, i'm really leaning towards spending more money and getting Armor Bodies. I just don't want to deal with the aggravation of the crap stuff AND I think the SV specific Armor Bodies kit looks pretty decent style wise compared to other brands so I could save even more work compared to putting a GSXR etc. kit on the SV..........
     
  16. Focker

    Focker Well-Known Member

    I would only run HB on a B/rain bukr that i didnt care what it looked luke and would likely pound into the ground
     
  17. Cobalt Coupe

    Cobalt Coupe Well-Known Member

    The kit will be going on this bike, it's nothing great, but it is a clean and tight bike like all of my stuff is, so I really don't want to end up with some crap PITA trying to save a few bucks. AND the older I get, I'm realizing my time and aggravation is not worth the money I'd save either.

    [​IMG]
     
  18. DWhyte91

    DWhyte91 Well-Known Member

    My HB upper/lower for great on my current Zx10 and on my 11. The tail....fuck that. I didn’t even try and install it on the 16, just bought another one from the same place I bought the tank cover. I had to carv up my battery tray and the the tail to make it fit on the 11, never really figured out how the HB stuff mounts on the 16. I got the colored stuff and with 20 min of polishing it looks like paint. It crashed well and for the price it worked for me.
    [​IMG]
     
  19. Lavana

    Lavana The coming

    If you are considering painting it yourself and you are not a painter I would say its fine. I've gone through a couple of sets for an r6 and if I was going to paint it myself I would just go with hot bodies. If I was going to pay someone to do a nice paint job I would want the nice bodywork.
     
  20. Riders Discount

    Riders Discount 866-931-6644 ext 817

    You answered your own question here. Buy Armour Bodies or SharkSkinz.
     

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