Looking for track bike advice | GTAMotorcycle.com

Looking for track bike advice

murdlem

murdlem

Well-known member
I am looking to buy a track bike for next season. I was wondering what are some of the key things I should be looking so I don't end up with a lemon.

Here is a couple links to the kind of bikes I am looking at:

http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-cars-veh...Kawi-track-bike-race-ready-W0QQAdIdZ410510808

http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-cars-veh...R600RR-Low-kms-Clean-Title-W0QQAdIdZ399534677

I am nervous about buying a race bike but I think that it is cheaper to buy one that has already been modified. Does anyone know of any bikes that might be ideal for a novice starting out?
 
I know the owner of the zx6,but I don't know the bike. He's a well respected rider of this board. That's not saying there's anything wrong with the 2nd bike.
When buying a used track bike, it's good to find a third party who can also vouch for the bike.

Figure out your budget and go from there. Genny, tire warmers, track day fees etc etc.
 
The only advice I can give you is to buy something that has all the modifications you need.
I recently bought a track bike and I was stuck on something with a clean title.
I didn't want a wreck and I didn't want something that was torn apart and put back together by God knows who.
Ended up getting a sweet deal on a low KM 2005 CBR600RR, pretty close to stock and it's getting freakin' expensive to do all the things I want.
But, It's going to be done the way I want it with the things I need, it's all about compromising.
If I could go back, I wouldn't do it any differently.

As Jay already mentioned, you need to take other costs into consideration.
Generator, canopy, warmers, etc.
 
Last edited:
About a lap, depending on the track.....at Calabogie a week ago with nice weather it was half a lap but Im in no rush to win the trackday on my first lap :)
Thats with Bridgestone R10s.......unless ofcourse the OP is running slicks :)
 
Last edited:
Mina said:
How many laps would it take to warm up your tires to proper temp?
Click to expand...

Mina, cold tear and increased tire wear by not using warmers. Spending all that money on a bike, why would cheap out and risk going out on cold tires. Warmers are cheaper than bodywork.
 
Mina said:
How many laps would it take to warm up your tires to proper temp?
Click to expand...

As a noob you don't need race tires. A hypersport street tire is more than sufficient, and it would take 1-2 laps to get them to a temp where they'll work relatively well.

If you progress to a level where you end up using race tires (either DOTs or slicks), you will NEVER get them to proper operating temp without warmers. Just an FYI.
 
Jayv said:
I know the owner of the zx6,but I don't know the bike. He's a well respected rider of this board. That's not saying there's anything wrong with the 2nd bike.
When buying a used track bike, it's good to find a third party who can also vouch for the bike.

Figure out your budget and go from there. Genny, tire warmers, track day fees etc etc.
Click to expand...

I know the owner of the second bike funnily enough. In fact, I'm in the background of the 4th picture, taken at Mid Ohio this year. Genuine guy and I know the bikes strong and runs great. I've never ridden it though. He's just bought a gixxer 1000 from another mate of mine so he's upgrading. The RR sounds a nice package but a bit pricey compared to the ZX6R.

As Jay says, decide your budget now. But also compare what you're getting for your money. In this instance the rr is better loaded and has a clean title, but is it worth an extra $2.5k? But that doesn't mean the ZX6R doesnt have it either. Sometimes owners forget upgrades so ask questions.

Also ask questions about when shocks were last serviced, when motors were last serviced etc etc. All costs you may be running into down the line. Then consider availability of spares for the future. I went down the gixxer route partly because my mates rode the bike and theres always tons of spares hanging around the pits.

Either ways both bikes would make great track bikes. Both for starters and for seasoned riders.
 
both of these would be excellent rides. Adding parts to a clean title bike gets expensive pretty quick. Race bikes are basically free, you just pay for the # of "fun" parts on them. Its definitely the way to go for track only. Track day fees, brakes and tires are where things get expensive. Also have an idea of how you plan to get the bike to the track (trailer/truck, etc)

As caboose said, if your just starting out on the track, you don't need race tires/warmers, a performance oriented street tire is sufficient, I'm a fan of Q2's, GPA's, or Diablo Rosso Corsas if your using a street spec tire on the track, you can ride any of them surprisingly hard. They are also less expensive than race tires. Only buy what you need. Check out the motorcycle show in Jan for tire deals and talk to pro6cycle, if you sign up for a track day or 2, they will give you a deal on tires.
 
kellen said:
yep great guy/bike
Click to expand...


Thanks for all the input I really appreciate any help I can get. I emailed a couple days ago about the 05 R6 and it is sold. It makes me feel much more comfortable having people who can give their opinions on some of the bikes out there.
 
murdlem said:
Thanks for all the input I really appreciate any help I can get. I emailed a couple days ago about the 05 R6 and it is sold. It makes me feel much more comfortable having people who can give their opinions on some of the bikes out there.
Click to expand...

That was his street bike and yes it's sold. But he also has a fully race-prepped 04 r6, track only, which is also available in the same ad... that's the bike I was referring to earlier in this thread. It's still available as far as I know.


edit: my apologies, I just talked to him and both his street and race bike ARE in fact sold. Sorry about that.
 
Last edited:
caboose483 said:
If you progress to a level where you end up using race tires (either DOTs or slicks), you will NEVER get them to proper operating temp without warmers. Just an FYI.
Click to expand...

Never? At track days where its 25+ and sunny i'll generally run the warmers before the first session and not bother for the rest of the day. Takes me about 1 lap to get up to a temperature that i feel comfortable pushing, and i'm not fast enough to notice any difference. I might just have to buy one of those surface temperature guns to see what sort of temps i'm getting without warmers.

As a side note last TD i was out for i ran pilot power 2ct tires for the first time since i've switched to race tires. Running low 1:24's at tmp (on a bad setup, gotta throw that out there lol) the big difference i noticed was less grip trail braking with the front, i wasn't getting any sliding at all out of the rear. Until you're running a fast enough pace around the track that you're starting to trail brake hard into fast corners just stick to street tires, they've got tons of grip and last a lot longer. They also give you a ton more feedback at medium pace, you need to be pushing the limits of a race tire to make it slide predictably.
 
I get to over 180 F without warmers. Some say thats just the surface temp....im sure its cooler below the surface but it works for me.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom