Pimp My Ride

[Whosthedaddy]

I have been toying with the idea of having a track day bike for a little bit of fun for a while now.

With the powers that be wagging a pointed finger every time I seem to touch the FZR, it may never get round to being on the open highways again, so may be the ideal candidate. It'll also give me an excuse to look for a better road bike

The question being, apart from removing the road legal bits and pieces:

what mods are worthwhile to get the bike set up for a track use and what mods are better left for a while?
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Current : MSX 125 Past : CBR 900RR Monkeybike : c50 LAC : ZXR750 H2 : FZR600 : ZX7R P3 : YW100 : TRX850: Trophy 900 T309 : GSXR 600 L0: Monkeybike : XJ6S Whosthedaddy

[Keir]

i have been toying with this idea too. Although id have to buy another bike (what a shame!) as mine all have their individual uses.
I would be inclined to leave the bike as standard until im good enough to use the bike to its full potential as it is and then progress. Id feel silly getting all trick bits for my track bike and going out only to be beaten by a better rider on a lesser machine!

edit: actually... decent tyres would be my choice.
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Current : '08 Yamaha FZ1s
Previous: '99 Honda CBR 600FX, 03 ZX636 B1H, 99 Fazer 600 (red), 02 GSX-R 600 K2, 00 SV650s (red), 2008 ZX10R, 97 Bandit 1200N, 04 ZX6RR K1H, 04 GSX-R 1000, 98 Fazer 600 (gold), 05 Madness 110 Pit bike, 04 CR125R, 00 SV650s (black), 06 KTM 625 SMC, 99 SRAD 600 track bike, 03 SV650, 98 Bandit 1200N, Bandit 600SY, 03 GSX-R 600 K3, 01 GSX-R 600, 01 Fazer 600 (black), VFR 400 NC30 x3, 78 Honda Dream, 00 Speedfight 50

[Whosthedaddy]

All show and no go

I think that would happen anyways, my arse pouts too much I think.

A decent set or a set of used scrubbed in tyres is probably the most basic and sound bit of kit for any rider
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Current : MSX 125 Past : CBR 900RR Monkeybike : c50 LAC : ZXR750 H2 : FZR600 : ZX7R P3 : YW100 : TRX850: Trophy 900 T309 : GSXR 600 L0: Monkeybike : XJ6S Whosthedaddy

[Bendy]

Good tyres and get the suspension looked at - if it's a track only bike then you can set it up for the track without making any compromises for road use.

Some trackdays have a suspension guy there, for £40-ish he'll fiddle with your bits all day long if need be.

[Keir]

£40 for a guy to fiddle with my bits?! Id rather do it myself for nothing.
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Current : '08 Yamaha FZ1s
Previous: '99 Honda CBR 600FX, 03 ZX636 B1H, 99 Fazer 600 (red), 02 GSX-R 600 K2, 00 SV650s (red), 2008 ZX10R, 97 Bandit 1200N, 04 ZX6RR K1H, 04 GSX-R 1000, 98 Fazer 600 (gold), 05 Madness 110 Pit bike, 04 CR125R, 00 SV650s (black), 06 KTM 625 SMC, 99 SRAD 600 track bike, 03 SV650, 98 Bandit 1200N, Bandit 600SY, 03 GSX-R 600 K3, 01 GSX-R 600, 01 Fazer 600 (black), VFR 400 NC30 x3, 78 Honda Dream, 00 Speedfight 50

[Whosthedaddy]

What suspension would be recommended?

I've seen Ohlins for sale at £400+ That seems a little expensive or would it be money well spent?
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Current : MSX 125 Past : CBR 900RR Monkeybike : c50 LAC : ZXR750 H2 : FZR600 : ZX7R P3 : YW100 : TRX850: Trophy 900 T309 : GSXR 600 L0: Monkeybike : XJ6S Whosthedaddy

[Bendy]

Just get the stock suspension set up for you first (I'm assuming here that it's fully adjustable?). Wouldn't bother upgrading anything until you actually can't go any quicker because of it... eg. spend that £400 on trackdays and I bet you'd get faster on your stock bike than you would with a magic gold shock and no practice.

Just taking the CBR from stock settings to generic track settings from a magazine made it handle about 200% better. Then, after buying replacement forks of dubious history and it all feeling a bit odd, I spent £40 to get Mick Grant to tweak it on a trackday at Cadwell - he sorted it all out to a baseline first, then would change something, I'd go try it, come in, try something else... we ended up changing pretty much all the adjustable bits and dropping the forks a little as well.

[Whosthedaddy]

[Whosthedaddy]

To put the bike on a crash diet, what is feasibe to shed?

headlights, brake lights and indicators
mirrors
horn
pillion pegs

All go without saying, but what about the dials and dash? Is there an alternative to the large radiator and fuel tank?
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Current : MSX 125 Past : CBR 900RR Monkeybike : c50 LAC : ZXR750 H2 : FZR600 : ZX7R P3 : YW100 : TRX850: Trophy 900 T309 : GSXR 600 L0: Monkeybike : XJ6S Whosthedaddy

[Cillit-BANG]

I'd stick with the simple things unless you have plenty of time and cash on your hands. You'll need that large radiator to keep things cool, track time in the summer can be pretty hot. There are specialist race rads, but it's likely to cost well over a grand and I suspect it may be somewhat difficult to get one for your bike.

My nc30 has got out of hand, it has now lost-

All lighting, mirrors, pillion pegs, rad fan, speedo, starter motor, starter clutch, alternator, 90% of the wiring loom, all diodes/rectifiers/regulators/relays and I'm currently fabricating a new subframe which will do away with all pillion potential and all tail fairings, oh and most of my overdraft :-/

It's a slippery slope, but an enjoyable one

[Zimbo]

All good advice here. Leave the engine alone, unless it's not fueling right - a dyno run may not be a bad idea so you know exactly how it's running. Service - synthetic oil, check valve clearances, balance carbs.
Spend time and money on tyres, suspension and brakes.
Tyres - if you can find a set of race scrubs, use them, nice cheap rubber, avoid slicks though as they need warmers etc. If you're buying new ones, something like Diablo Corsas or Michelin Pilot powers are great fast intermediate tyres that will cope with a range of temperatures and conditions.
Brakes - braided hoses, strip and clean the calipers, new fluid (race fluid if you can) and decent pads - I use performance friction, outstanding braking with no fade. road pads will fade when hot as a rule.
Suspension - change fork springs for linear rate ones rather than progressive, K-tech is your best bet for value, otherwise Ohlins from someone like Harris Performance. Robsom racing does both. Change fork oil, refill to correct air gap, then adjust damping if necessary.
Rear - your standard shock is likely to be fairly low quality and knackered. Ohlins are great but pricy, there are others out there too, technoflex are excellent, as a budget alternative consider Hagon, not as good as Ohlins but miles better than your current one! Keep an eye on ebay as well.
Last, invest in a good tyre pressure guage!
Good luck, and enjoy!!!

[Whosthedaddy]

Thanks for the advice, most of it is common sense but its always nice to have it confirmed

Suprised about the radiator, thought I might be able to remove it as would be flying round the track and not stuck in traffic, but the fan will go Should I change the cooling fluid to water/water as some race specs and criteria auggest or just leave alone?

Used scrubbed tyres, are they easy to come across or am I to go to a race meet and barter with a team
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Current : MSX 125 Past : CBR 900RR Monkeybike : c50 LAC : ZXR750 H2 : FZR600 : ZX7R P3 : YW100 : TRX850: Trophy 900 T309 : GSXR 600 L0: Monkeybike : XJ6S Whosthedaddy

[Zimbo]

Radiator - the reason ACU rules require only water to be used is that antifreeze is slippery, if it gets on the track it will probably cause others to come off too. They like you to use just pure water. This applies to all race series, there is no requirement to change to plain water on trackdays.
As for race scrubs, ask on a few of the club race forums ( motoforum.net , plus bemsee / new era / derby phoenix)

[Cillit-BANG]

Couple of Q's regarding the coolant-

Does using plain water (I presume de-ionised is best) alter the boiling point and therefor cooling efficiency?

Does using plain water without rust inhibitors have a detrimental effect in any way?

Is it worth it if your not racing?

[Whosthedaddy]

Deionised water in theory should have a higher boiling point, not sure how this would affect the cooling og an engine
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Current : MSX 125 Past : CBR 900RR Monkeybike : c50 LAC : ZXR750 H2 : FZR600 : ZX7R P3 : YW100 : TRX850: Trophy 900 T309 : GSXR 600 L0: Monkeybike : XJ6S Whosthedaddy

[G]

Plain water is better at cooling. Add some 'water wetter' in and it should help prevent rust a bit I believe and help it work more better at cooling as well.

[Bendy]

It's considerably better at freezing solid and fucking up your engine in winter... so do remember to drain it.