Performance Bikes — March 2018

52 PERFORMANCEBIKES.CO.UK | MARCH 2018

F COURSE, part of the reason Paton go racing is
to sell road bikes. But even without the halo effect
of a TT win, Paton’s S1-R Lightweight is a
compelling machine. In a sportsbike world that’s
all-but given up on developing small bikes, the S1-R stands
out as a beautiful, high-end sportsbike of middling capacity.
The S1-R Lightweight road bike is pretty much the same
spec as the racer – the frame, forks, brakes and wheels are
identical and while the exhaust looks the same it has
enough silencing to reduce the risk of burst eardrums.
Performance is impressive. At 158kg, it’s 50kg lighter
than the ER-6 donor bike it takes its motor from, and this is
augmented by some mild tuning. Paton offer three levels of
tuning for the road machine: from a spec akin to a
full-factory racer, to this bike, which is mildly
breathed-on with subtle head work, Pistal pistons
and a quickshifter. It’s enough for 80bhp and a very
broad spread of power.
It makes for a lovely road bike, with enough power
to keep things interesting and a chassis that has the
ability to out-turn anything else on the road. There’s
an undemanding nature to the bike which makes it
easy to have fun with and exploit.
Cutting through the Fen-like roads of the northern Italian
flatlands is a heady knee-to-knee joy. The steering of the
road bike is wonderfully light; it makes mincemeat of any
direction changes and has the same wonderful neutrality
of the TT machine. The ride quality is particularly
impressive, too – Paton have judged the spring and
damping rates for road use perfectly.
The build quality also shows up well – the fairing fits
perfectly, the welding on the frame and swingarm is
exquisite, there’s enough steering lock, and even the mirrors

The road-legal version of the TT racer is just as good...

ONE FOR THE ROAD

work. The Paton is a flexible bike, too, with fuelling

that works at low rpm, a big enough tank for 130

miles between fill-ups, and full of the confidence

brought about by using one of the toughest

powerplants in motorcycling. It’s almost like Paton

forgot to read the ‘The Italian Low-Volume

Manufacturer Handbook.’ All of these things should be

rubbish, yet they’re not.

Of course, there are always going to be a few pistachios in

the panettone. The first for me are the clocks – the stock

ER-6 display looks cheap and doesn’t suit the bike. It

deserves some kind of Veglia-style faux analogue unit. The

other is the price – at £25,300 it is pricier than a V4 Panigale.

But if I was rich enough none of this would put me off.

This is a proper, crafted sportsbike, proven in a race that’s

defeated much bigger firms. Few machines are as exclusive,

handle as well and make you feel as good.

THE STEERING IS

WONDERFULLY LIGHT;

IT MAKES MINCEMEAT

OF ANY DIRECTION

CHANGES’

Damping and

spring rates are a

perfect match for

road riding

Road bike shares

its racer sibling’s

dinky cut-out lights

Whack a few

stickers on, lose

the numberplate,

and nobody would

know this wasn’t

the racer