Convert road bike to track bike?, or sell mine and buy track bike?

[rapid van cleef]

Hi

Well i no longer ride on the road as i tend to ride to enthusiastically for my own good. So I am weighing up whether or not to convert my 8 yr old 1000cc sports bike into a track only bike. My bike has braided lines, radial MC, and thats it at the moment. This would mean i would be spending around $1500 on suspension upgrade( i have discussed this with suspensions specialists), fairings and a set of rims with wets on.

Or, sell it as a stock road bike and buy a track bike with all the work done upgraded suspension etc. Surely there are pitfalls there, such as unknown engine issues(mileage for example), possible crash damage and bent frame etc.

I cant afford to ride on the roads, rego fees etc and do track days and buy tyres regularly etc so Id rather focus on getting my buzz on the track.

I would like to consider racing in clubmans level in the future.......thats pie in the sky at the moment. I dont really fancy the bucket scene as the acceleration and power of the bigger bikes give me a buzz. I am not going to chuck a ton of cash at a 'competitive racing superbike' Im just in it for fun and could not afford to do so anyway.

So, spending 8 k or so on a track bike would be ok. I have been consideing the merits of actually owning a 1000cc bike given the tracks in NZ tend to be quite short, so maybe a 600 would be better suited to my needs? R6, zx6r, cbr maybe.

What are peoples experiences and opinions etc?

Oh and yes, I do know its an expensive hobby.

[Grant`]

Well you can spend a heap converting a bike, just depends on where you are happy to leave it.... Track Fairings, Suspension, Rims, Tyres, Crash Nobs, adjustable rearsets the list goes on that you could do to your bike.

OR you buy something already done that could come with a spares like your second set of rims etc you get mechanically tested and confirm prior to purcashing has nothing wrong with it (but any bike is prone to breaking down you just have to make sure you cover all bases when buying someone elses)

Either option works just depends on what you want to spend really, or you spend nothing and ride it like it is and just have fun on it as is and work out what its weakness' are upgrade as you need to.

[jellywrestler]

best entry level bike i reckon would be a 650 twin. something that doesn't intimidate you as there a few people in our country who are better than a 1000cc bike. cheap too then you can progress to a 1000cc machine when you've mastered the smaller ones

[DEATH_INC.]

I'd sell it and go 600. Or like suggested above look at a 650, good way to try the racing lark out without spending a fortune.

[mossy1200]

Sell your road bike and buy a 4 year old 600 thats race prep already or a protwin.

I paid 4k for my posty and spent another almost 15k on it by the time I was happy with it.
Its not as simple as wheels,susp and fairings.

Its dyno,development,spare wheels,stands,warmers,more development,ecu,slipper clutch,rear sets,damper,more development plus weight savings and exaust system. When you decide its not quick enough for its class because its 8 years old you will sell it for 6k and spend more monies.

Get a top players well built and maintained bikes that has got to old for him/her to compete at nationals level with all the tasty bits on it.
A bike that spent 600km on the road getting run in then converted to a race bike and had a service every event is what you want.

[The Pink Panther]

I would get out to your local track on a club day and have a good old chin wag with all the guys and girls racing club level, riding two classes means more track time bucket and whatever ...

[tigertim20]

what bike do you have currently exactly?

Look at what the market will offer for your current ride, then look at what that kind of money (plus the extra 1500 you intend to blow of suspension etc) would buy you in the way of a dedicated track bike thats already set up.

Another option is to buy an insurance cosmetic write off from turners, and put one together yourself at a low cost - lots of coins can be save on a good bike that way if you are so inclined.

[Dave-]

I made exactly that decision 2 years ago, and finally managed to get into it just over a year ago.

I sold my 04 r6 and bought an 08 r6 race bike for 8k and race in clubbies, never looked back.

I can tell you right now you wont need to do suspension upgrades, but a service of your standard suspension will go a long way.

Save your money and buy crash protection and get the bike mechanically perfect

Or sell and buy a prebuilt 600