Well after having a bad ending to my intro into racing (final 3 races at RACE) where I spun a rod bearing then taking an intake valve shortly after the repair on my 2008 GSXR 1000 sbk, I decided it was time to cut my losses. I picked up a shiny almost new ZX10 with 1700km on it to turn into my new love. I know this is not a cost effective way to get on the track but after having two motor failures, any bike I picked up would have a full rebuild before it hit the track (roughly 3-$4000). This way I start fresh and can mod to my desire and make the bike my own.
I started off riding the bike home (roughly 200km) and felt fairly comfortable with the ergo's right away. Once I got it home and found a couple safe backroads I wanted to see what all the hype was with this bike. Needless to say it was impressive but not what I was expecting. These bikes come heavily restricted from the factory so after a little research I found out by grounding a wire from the ecu it puts the bike into a neutral map where the secondaries don't close at higher rpm, so by day two the bike had already had its first "mod". One quick jaunt and the bike showed what it was really made of! It pulls extremely well past 10,000rpm and if I dare say wouldn't give up much to my GSXR that was built pushing 180whp on U4.4.
I started getting the build under way by removing all the nice shiny painted bits and unnecessary street parts (beside the kick stand).
I picked up a few parts that I knew I would change right away such as Vortex rearsets
Fairing stay with a bigger ram air intake from the UK (http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/181680345840?nav=SEARCH). You can also see the Lightech remote brake adjuster, ProTaper adjustable clutch perch and my homemade rad guard.
And a few bling parts.
I also removed the OEM wiring harness and ECU. By the time it added the cost of a quick shifter to a piggyback system the price was within a couple hundred dollars but this way I have much more adjustability.
Old harness
Race harness and ECU
After removing the OEM harness there was plenty of room to add a set of block off plates so I took the opportunity to get it done while I was there.
Started a bit of the race wiring to keep everything where it's suppose to be.
Installed a new FMF apex exhaust and carbon fiber hanger
I found a great deal on a set of Hotbodies bodywork off the forum and even though I heard how bad they are I decided to see just how bad they could be. Well they're all that and more! I had to trim the oem undertail 1/2" to get the tail section to slide foreward far enough so that the recess lines up on the subframe. I also had to cut and shape the front of the seat pan to get it to fit and the recesses are still extremely crooked that mount to the tank but it'll have to do for now. This will become my spare bodywork later in the season.
I've been having a hell of a time trying to decide what I wanted to run as far as suspension goes until I was lead to a great deal on a set of K-tech 20DDS fork cartridges. Originally they were out of the budget and I was undecided if going with a gas charged fork was really worth the extra expense. This deal made my decision for me. They'll be paired up with the K-tech 35DDS rear shock.
If go for another set of bodywork, consider the Armour Bodies set. I've had the same set on my race bike for 2 years, going on 3 now. Been through 2 highsides and a lowside (repaired of course). Fits great and light.
That's what I had planned on using but this was almost 1/3 of the cost but my time and aggravation just fitting it was not worth the savings never mind the prep that I need to do now before I can paint it.
The front didn't go as bad as the tail. Took roughly an hour to get it on and drilled but I have to do some trimming again and the bracket they use to attach the belly pan is part of the kickstand so I'll have to fab somthing up there
If go for another set of bodywork, consider the Armour Bodies set. I've had the same set on my race bike for 2 years, going on 3 now. Been through 2 highsides and a lowside (repaired of course). Fits great and light.
Lol sure did! I was on the fence between the regular K-tech forks and shock or AK-20 gas forks and Penske rear. For the price the AK/Penske setup is hard to beat.
I'll be in it for more than that. I scored the cartridges off ebay for $1050 shipped brand new and then whatever the shock costs. I'll install the shock/linkage but have the forks done by my tuner.
Probably the one from Kyle racing. It was developed by John Cornwell and he's at most of our national rounds. Unless I find another smoking deal on a different one.
There's a few different linkages with good reviews, without being able to try all of them I wouldn't be able to pick which one I prefer. If I stick with one of those options I'm sure it'll will be more than good enough for me right now.
I've got the Kyle Racing one (of course), but the new TTX-GP shocks won't be in until later this week so I have just been looking at it sitting all lonely and shit on my counter. I'd be very interested in hearing any real world rider reviews of it before I start my testing process.
I have the DK link and the TTX valved for it. I had to go to harder valving than what Dan initially installed.
When going to the link I went from a 110 spring to a 105 spring.
I found that the bike held itself up in high G corners better. It would hold a tighter radius and finish corners. It feels very stiff when you first sit on it but works perfectly once at pace. My tire wear was better once it was dialed in however I found that the sweet spot for grip/tire wear is narrower once the link was installed.
Best part about buying the DK link is having Dan as a resource if you need help getting setup.
Well I think I'm going to have my tuner chat with K-tech and see what they've used. This way I hopefully just have minor adjustments to make instead of valving and spring changes.
Speaking of chain and sprockets! I just installed my new DID ERV3 with lightech aluminum nuts. The sprocket is just a cheap JT that I spray painted (I know it won't last but I want to take pics of the bike finished before it hits the track) and until I figure out what gearing I want I'm not going to buy my renthals. Went -1 +3 to start with, might be a wheelie machine lol.
Speaking of chain and sprockets! I just installed my new DID ERV3 with lightech aluminum nuts. The sprocket is just a cheap JT that I spray painted (I know it won't last but I want to take pics of the bike finished before it hits the track) and until I figure out what gearing I want I'm not going to buy my renthals. Went -1 +3 to start with, might be a wheelie machine lol.
If you didn't already, make sure you use some loctite on those sprocket nuts. I had a set of driven nuts, torqued them down to spec, and they still loosened up on me and chewed my swingarm a bit before I could notice.
Yea I agree 100% on that... Actually if those are the type with the heli-coils inside the nut I wouldn't use them at all... I've seen some of those come apart more than once and anything on a race bike that is subject to failure can put you at serious risk.
Don't worry, they're the LighTech nuts with nylon lock washers built in. I had the same ones on my Gsxr and never had any issues. I specifically bought these ones because of that.
I also blue locktite just about everything that isn't race wired when doing my final assembly. Most of the bike has to come apart again to install the shock and linkage. While that's going on I'll remove the swingarm to grease the bearings. I did the steering head already when I was bored.
I was expecting the rear wheel to be much more of a pain to install but it went pretty smoothly. The stand the bike is on is very low though so well see what happens when it's on a proper one. I do have a small trick I've seen on another bike to make wheel changes easier that I'll post a pic of tonight
So when doing rear tire swaps usually the last thing that can screw you up is your rear brake pads being stuck together or cockeyed. Putting a tiny spring between the pads gives you one less thing to fight with.
Well, a very nice package arrived at my door today! They come with 3 different spring rates (.95/1.0/1.05) and all the necessary tools to swap them out. Pretty excited to try these puppies out. I'll drop them at my tuners for installation.
I wish I'd had the opportunity to have the ohlins gas cartridges I was riding on last year setup properly. It would be nice to try a few different setups before committing to one but my bank account is too small.
I've finally got all the bodywork mounted and %99 ready for paint. I installed a tank cover because I didn't want to deal with the oem pieces and wanted to somewhat protect the tank itself. The fit was ok but there's no support on the sides of the tank. I ended up siliconing a few pieces if blue styrofoam insulation to the tank so when I clamped my legs on it the cover didn't break on the tank mounting bolts.
I've also order the remaining parts to complete the build which should be here in a few weeks. I'm not sure if they'll all be here before my first race but the suspension will be which is most important. I dropped the forks and cartridges off on Friday and order one of these on Monday. Hopefully I can pick it all up with my linkage before the end of the week.
I plan to paint it similar to my avatar but viper blue. I may even have a chance to paint it this weekend which will really help move things foreward.
I'll have it on the Dyno shortly after I get the suspension done so we can compare some numbers boosted. I've only got a slipon and the race ecu so I'm assuming I'll be close to your numbers seeing as how were using the same Dyno and tuner.
Fantastic build dricked. Nice little trick on the brake spring. Cant wait to see her finished.
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