| Author | Message | ||
     Thefleshrocket |
I decided to port my '91 Honda CBR600F2 over to track duty. It's got upgraded suspension and brakes, and I figured it would make a decent replacement for the '01 GSX-R600 track bike that I binned a few years ago. I had the Metzeler Racetecs from the GSX-R as they only had one track day on them--a 120/70 and a 180/55. The CBR only came with a 4.5" rear wheel and a 160/60 tire, but later F3s came with a 5" wheel. I figured that since a 180/55 works well on a 5.5" wheel, maybe it would be decent on a 5" wheel, so I bought one. The profile looked a little pinched, but not bad. I took the CBR to its first track day at Autobahn in Joliet, IL this weekend. Being that it was my first track day in a few years, on a new-to-the-track bike, and that I'd never ridden Autobahn before, I started out taking it easy. I felt like a total newb, mostly being a back marker in the Intermediate class. But my familiarity grew and I picked up the pace a bit, even though the bike didn't feel "right". It didn't steer consistently--steering effort changed throughout the lean, and it felt like it wanted to fall in. Then, in one corner, the back end slid out a bit. I dialed it back and pitted after two more laps. I checked the back tire, and sure enough, I'd gotten it over to about 1/2-3/4" of an inch from the edge. That last little bit was pinched at a sharper angle than the rest of the tire and must not have made good contact with the track. I swapped the rear wheel out with a 4.5" wheel I had with a 160/60 Dunlop GP-A track tire and had no more issues with inconsistent steering or traction. My point? Some people have discussed or even installed 190s or 200s on their stock 1125 5.5" rear wheels. If you're one of those riders who's got a 1" chicken strip on your rear tire, an oversized tire will probably not be any noticeably different from stock for you. But if you are a bit more aggressive in the corners, you might find yourself with insufficient traction out back when the pace picks up. | ||
| Thefleshrocket |
Also, there was someone there with an 1125R. I was too busy trying to get my F2 sorted out to go find him and chat, but hopefully he had a good ride. | ||
| Smoke4ndmears |
Good post. I recently grafted the rear wheel and complete front end from an F2 onto a VF500. |
