Thoughts on R1 Front end swap

[jpcarneal]

Hello fellow Fizzers,

I found an entire R1 front end, including wheel, etc. It's about 1 inch shorter than my current setup (unloaded, so probably 1.5-2 inches shorter loaded). Also, the delta distance between triple trees is about 2 inches. But the springs are probably stiffer, which will cut the effect somewhat.

Usually, a shorter fork will drop the front end, which steepens the steering angle and reduces the trail, both resulting in increased "flickability" and decreased "stability."

1) Any thoughts on how this would affect steering geometry?
2) Would I need to similarly upgrade the rear shock for balancing the suspension?

FYI, I've seen the WIKI on front end swaps. Didn't really talk about handling though.

Thanks for the input. Cheers.

[yamaha_george]

Hi,
suggest if you realy want to know how much difference to the steerability the R1 front end will make you could go to Tony Foale's site where he has programs for comparing such things.

PS please put your location in the details area it helps when / if you need parts or a source of parts at any time :-}

[shredex]

5 words

AMAZING

[cad600]

Usually, a shorter fork will drop the front end, which steepens the steering angle and reduces the trail, both resulting in increased "flickability" and decreased "stability."

Do you race? I ask because I think those are the only people who will notice the negatives with a swap like this. I've put the '06 R6 forks on mine and love it. It did help with tip in and flickability, but I think it increased stability. I had the stock forks set up for my bike before I changed and love the R6 set up much more. I would go ahead and find an upgraded shock for the rear as that will help as well.

[yamaha_george]

Usually, a shorter fork will drop the front end, which steepens the steering angle and reduces the trail, both resulting in increased "flickability" and decreased "stability."

Do you race? I ask because I think those are the only people who will notice the negatives with a swap like this. I've put the '06 R6 forks on mine and love it. It did help with tip in and flickability, but I think it increased stability. I had the stock forks set up for my bike before I changed and love the R6 set up much more. I would go ahead and find an upgraded shock for the rear as that will help as well.

Hi,
well if you do go for another front end for the bike be aware that steering stem changes are a very easy if you use the old racers trick of rod front ends rather than special steering stems or re-pressed steering stems .

see the following threads :-

viewtopic.php?f=19&t=2596&p=28628&hilit ... ems#p28628

viewtopic.php?f=30&t=1950&p=27679&hilit ... ems#p27679

viewtopic.php?f=30&t=1674&p=17366&hilit ... ems#p17366

HTH

[mrfreeze5]

I just did it for looks

[shredex]

I just did it for looks

guilty here too.
but the difference is awesome

youll love the usd forks

[fzraudun]

Is there anyone here who makes custom upper triples for conversions? Since the fzr stem will be a bit skinny for a R1 upper and it will move when braking etc. At least I had that problem with my gsxr forks and just wrapped the stem with some thin metal, but I'd like a better fix.

And go for USD forks! They look great!

[yamaha_george]

Is there anyone here who makes custom upper triples for conversions? Since the fzr stem will be a bit skinny for a R1 upper and it will move when braking etc. At least I had that problem with my gsxr forks and just wrapped the stem with some thin metal, but I'd like a better fix.

And go for USD forks! They look great!

FZRAudun
If you read my last post in this discussion you will find the answer to your problem of movement under braking with the wrong steering stem . I can assure you that NO racer would allow any such movement on the steering head which is why that solution is so good. Nerd

[cad600]

Is there anyone here who makes custom upper triples for conversions? Since the fzr stem will be a bit skinny for a R1 upper and it will move when braking etc. At least I had that problem with my gsxr forks and just wrapped the stem with some thin metal, but I'd like a better fix.

And go for USD forks! They look great!

Yes, but the top triple can be handled with a simple bushing. I had the bottom triple custom made to take the FZR steering stem and the R6 forks. Modking did the work for me and he is capable of making top triples as well. The other option as George pointed out, is to use a threaded rod method. A couple of bushings need to be made to take up slack at the bearing and the rest is available at most hardware stores.

[mrfreeze5]

I just did it for looks

guilty here too.
but the difference is awesome

youll love the usd forks

I was totally kidding . I got them black just for looks, everything else was an upgrade.

[shredex]

I was totally kidding . I got them black just for looks, everything else was an upgrade.

im still guilty.

[yamaha_george]

I was totally kidding . I got them black just for looks, everything else was an upgrade.

im still guilty.

Yes so the Sherrif said LoL

[cad600]

I was totally kidding . I got them black just for looks, everything else was an upgrade.

im still guilty.

Yes so the Sherrif said LoL

LOL2

Thanks George. I haven't laughed like that in a long time now.