Not sitting tall in the saddle myself, I went through the touching-ground thing when I rebuilt my Mk3 last year. I had a Combat in the early 70's and remember the discomfort I felt every time I came to a stop: do I ground left side or right side? This time round, I was determined to avoid the problem, and I'm happy to say that I ground firmly with both boots at every stop. Here's how I did it:
1. I bought a Corbin Gunfighter, but had them shave 1/2" off of each side. Corbin is happy to do this, and it really makes a difference, This seat is MUCH more comfortable than the original "loaf of bread" roadster seat. The Corbin is a bit wider than the OEM seat, so the shaving down is an important part of the process.
2. I installed 12" shocks (Dommi shocks) which lowered the rear of the bike 0.75 inches. This has the effect of increasing the front rake by 0.75 degrees. I can't feel the effect at all, but if it exists at all, it stabilizes the ride on the straight, and slightly reduces the side-to-side quickness of the bike. A very minor change in handling yielded a major improvement in rider confidence, at least for me.
3. I installed an 18" wheel on the rear, but increased the tire size slightly, so that the rolling diameter was pretty much identical to the OEM front tire. This change made, in the end, little change to my ability to ground at stops, but improved, IMHO, the appearance of the bike by avoiding that weenie rear tire.
I'm enjoying this bike far more than the Combat.
