Lighter & Lighter & Lighter

[DCRacing]

Hey i am trying to make the old Gixxer a lighter affair, no not a heating instrument, but to remove a bit more of the fat that is on it.
i am looking at titanium bolts and aluminium fairing brackets, also going to use carbonfibre for the fairings.... yes i know fairings mentioned in a streetfighter thread but i need them for the class that i race in.
But i am looking for any other ideas that might help me to lighten the old gixer, it is a 90 model 7/11.
i have a few radical ideas like getting a carbonfiber frame made up, carbonfiber rims and using titanium rods and internals.
so what ideas do you all have?
Any lighter rims from different models that i could use?

[Deano]

magnesium wheels.
520 chain conversion with alloy rear sprocket.
take out starter motor, alternator and assoiated drive gearing
mill out the top triple clamp
put in a smaller 7amp battery with alloy holder.
rewire and simplify wiring as you now don't have an alt or starter.
fibregalss or carbon front gaurd, and remove the steel reinforcement inside the guard.
smaller brake res on front
convert to cable clutch
chop off the back of the subframe that is not been used as you a running race fairings.
use just a small piece of brake hose with a bung in it for the rear brake res.
fibreglass/carbon fuel tank. (i got a fibreglass on and it is 2.5kg lighter).
alloy wheel spacers

then if you are real keen,

lighten the crank
spend 4k on tit rods.

but before i do any of the things that cost money i would invest in an ohlins rear shock valved and sprung to your weight and rebuilt and valved front forks.

and also before i even were to touch the engine i would spend my money learning how to ride what i already have to its limit. my bike has gone around Phillip island 8 sec faster than i have and it weights in at about 190kg and that was back in the day when in was a 750 not a 7/11 as it is now.

long story short is the bike can out ride me therefore the bikes weight or power is not holding me back. I am holding the bike back.

you will get a small advantage in extra power or better handeling but then your talent will stop you from going faster.

i am in the middle of putting my 7/11 on a diet but really it is not needed as i am slowing the bike down not it holding me up

my 2 cents

[ozkat]

I think its BST that are doing CF wheels at the moment for late model GSXRs at about 4.5k per set, Ti rods if you can get them to suit will cost around 4k like Deano said, i play around with CF a fair bit and reckon a one off CF frame will cost you 30k at least. I dont think anyone makes one for the bike your talking about.

[Deano]

Ti rods have a service life as well. i would find it hard to pull a set out of a motor throw them in the bin and replace them with another 4k worth of rods

[DCRacing]

hmmmm yes believe it or not things i have allready thought of, but i am trying to look outside the square.
as far as the bike mods already done i am at a total loss ignition with revalved and setup suspension, motor is an ex drag race motor with lightened crank and head work, yoshi close ratio 6 sp gearbox, and 520 chain & sprockets, aluminium front fairing bracket, only trouble with that is it also an extra oil cooler, good to have but extra weight again.

[DCRacing]

The reason tha i am talking about the whole carbon fibre thing is that there is a company in town here that is doing vacum heat and compression cf work, i haven't had a chance to have a good talk to them yet but they basically said bring down an old frame and the will look at taking a mould of it and making a new one out of cf to the specs that i require.they thought they they would also be able to do the rims. but as i said they haven't had a good look at the things i want made yet. i was also looking at titanium headers or does anyone know if you can do a cf header. the mob in town here thought that they might be able to.

[DCRacing]

Oh and i know i am holding the bike back at the moment but i want to get another 2 secs a lap, not huge but achievable, and being the fat lazy bastard that i am, i am looking to pull it out of the bike not myself. there are a few good ideas that i haven't though of which i will put into place, but i think that we then hit the wall unless i move into some pretty radical stuff. thanks for the ideas any others are going to be appreciated.

[DCRacing]

i guess i am not looking for more power as such as the motor has heaps at the moment it can out strip nearly all the bikes i am racing at the moment, and under brakes i am pretty reasonable, it is just the corner speed whic i am trying to pick up on. ok better lines and more knowledge of a track will help that but also a lighter bike will make a huge difference in corner speed.

[devo]

[:0]

[Large]

A lack of self preservation is supposed to be worth about 30hp

More practice and training......that will carry over to anything else that you ride.

[DCRacing]

oh yeah the personal training and gym work is also in the program, the motard was for training as well but now a lack of places to ride it has restricted me a bit on that side of the training.
and yeah Devo look at what you have started..... i have now got another 3 bikes that i am turning into race bikes 2 89 750 NE1 and another L model 7/11 NE2.

[devo]

:D On the issue of the weight , Robbie Phillis was giving me some advise and he was saying that horse power and minimal weight means squat if you don't have a bike that can brake and handle. Never a truer word said, His bike puts out around 130 horses not alot considering but it handles and brakes that is the most important thing. Then knowing where to brake and where to gas is important.
The lunch break line is what I would call it.
We are all the same , be it Rossi , me and even you james it is just our lunch break lines are differernt, Eg Rossi line into breaking for a turn and punching out is say this long ------- mine would be this long ------------- this is where the times mean something late break and early punch is something learned just my input hope it helps.
So all these blokes that chase horsepower and think it will win them a race are pretty much dreaming , remembering that the more horsepower you try and squeeze out of your engine the less reliable it will become.
Rider A with 180 HP and shitty handling will be beaten by Rider B with 140 HP but more superior handling ( based on rider ability ofcourse )
Anyways James when you get a chance give us a buzz , be good to nag to ya.
Devo.

[devo]

Another way to get another say 5 hp is to use the same oil the superbike teams use , cheapest way to get an 5 hp they say is to a 2.5 weight oil but change it after every race [:0] , must be good to have all that oil hey ;).
Good luck in the saving weight department , don't know how far you guys want to go but just remember we ain't racing for that 14 million dollar pay cheque , soooooo if you want to loose a little weight take a dump before the race may loose another 500 grams :D

[Pommy Chopper]

We can make anything in Ali or Carbon Fibre for your bike!!!!
Have moulds for guards and huggers.


Cheers'en.

[Stocky]

I've removed over 40Kg from my K2 GSXR1000.

By far the best mod I did was the BST Wheels.

Stops, Accelerates, Turns, Rides BETTER !

Should have been the first thing I bought.

If you are serious about loosing weight , have a good read through Durban's web site and get some ideas (even Li batteries)

www.durbahn.de

[pt]

quote:Originally posted by Stocky


www.durbahn.de


OMFG Stocky has revealed his secret![:0]

Thanks heaps now i won't be able to get away from the screen for a week!:([}:)][:p]

[Stocky]

Yeh just be prepared to bust out some serious cash LOL

Or use the ideas and make a heap of stuff yourself and be relentless about it.

It's the 100 little things that make the real difference.

I've got some "big ticket" weight savings but they are only half the weight I've saved.

It's the 40g here and 60g there that add up to the rest.

[ralph]

Couple of things I thought of that you might not have tried yet.
Donate a kidney...
donate a lung.
Cut your legs off and use them for carbon fibre moulds.
Get a frontal labotomy..Only saves 25 grams but it could be worth a couple of seconds.
Drill your helmet(you will need a backup lid for scrutineering.)
Hope I have been some help[:X]:)

[DCRacing]

Ralph you are just too helpful, and why didn't i think of that before....
and Devo i am constantly crapping myself on race day, so i end up lighter anyway. And mate i know about the good rider bad rider thing, i just want to give myself every chance i can, I have given up on relying onthe blokes in front to crash, so i am looking at putting a crash bar on the front of the bike and just T boning them of the track now ;)
i have to win if i am the last one out there........don't i

[ralph]

I wish you well in your racing. Just venting a bit of humor.Sorry to screw with your thread, its totally inapropriate.My next suggestion was gonna be removing your brakes but I should just keep that to myself. Good luck I hope you win

[DCRacing]

Its all about BLAT racing
Brake Late And Turn

[DCRacing]

and all the humour is welcome considering i take myself so seriously......i race for teamlosers.
i am worried tho, they said they would kick me out if i ever got a trophy

[Azrael]

Hey DC, Ive never raced road bikes so im probably not qualified to comment on this but i have 25 years of dirtbike riding and racing behind me and i dont really like giving advice or telling people what to do but i will say this, whenever im racing and someone is in front of me ive never been held back by the power or weight of the bike, i have only ever been held back by two things, appauling conditions (dust, mud, poor vision etc) and my want or need to get past that person. I have spent most my time riding well out of my ability and riding extremely aggresively to over come both of those and most the time its paid off.. Could just be a healthy combination of total disregard of personal safety(diagnosis NAFOD) and a few cans of confidence..who knows..
I am not mad..

[DCRacing]

Azrael, i have thsat problem when i get behind someone, the worst case i had was a drift with both wheels through a corner on the tar, and at that stage having relatively little expierience with sliding and the bike moving around under me i was fairly rattled, but the upshot of it was that i got past the bloke in front, the downside was that i the stuffed up the next2 or 3 corners trying to calm down and he got past me and gapped me.
I don't know what happens but when the race starts i seem to pickup about 1-1.5 sec a lap quicker, and then make passes that i didn't think i could do. It is a huge buzz tho and once you get a taste for it, it just keeps dragging you back for another go

[DCRacing]

Since i had the motard it has helped a lot with riding fast and getting used to things getting a bit loose, running slicks and on a loose sand flat track plus racing my brother with him on knobbys & a CR500 makes for a bit more fun.
he leaves me for dead but it only makes you try harder.

[Buggzz]

On the oil subject, running half a litre less can be good for about 5hp, but once again needs to be changed more often.