Is this a good idea? Or am I off my perch?

[Biker_Billy]

Righto...

My pointy will need new front discs pretty soon...they are down to about 4.2mm, which I understand is 0.2mm from the minimum wear limit. Firstly - any ideas how long that is in term of mileage? The bike has done approx 20k, and I'm guessing that these are the original discs...?

T'other thing is that I'm tempted to change the fork oil and springs. I'm about 16.5 stone with my riding gear on, and even though the bike has more ability that me, I prob should look at, at least changing the oil.

I'm thinking of killing as many birds with one stone here, and my thinking last night (after a few pints I should add) was...why not get an ultra trendy gsxr front end conversion with decent discs, and the money that it would cost would be offset by not having to buy new discs for the SV.

Only thing is that worries me, is that I could end up with a gsxr front end which would require discs, and springs, and oil, and I'd be throwing the money away...

I suppose I'm looking for a bit of a reality check and guidance as to what your thoughts are...i.e. what would you do? What are the realistic costs of a front end swap? What are the pitfalls? etc... I intend keeping the SV for a couple of years at least, if not forever, as I've become kinda attached to the old girl...

Am I off my tree?

Ta peeps.

Billy.

[DarrenSV650S]

Discs and oil are a hell of a lot cheaper than a gsxr swop. I'm in the middle of a swop and its costing a lot more than I first thought. Plus you would have to buy gsxr discs anyway wouldn't you?

[Biker_Billy]

Discs and oil are a hell of a lot cheaper than a gsxr swop. I'm in the middle of a swop and its costing a lot more than I first thought. Plus you would have to buy gsxr discs anyway wouldn't you?

Ahhh...the pitfall of my ingenious plan:)

Knew I came on here for a reason! Mind you, should add that the front tyre is goosed so that needs replacing too.

Awww, really wanted some of those nice shing USD's:(

[hovis]

but then you sell your SV front end and get most if not all the money back?

so other people have posted

[Biker_Billy]

but then you sell your SV front end and get most if not all the money back?

so other people have posted

Ah well done Mr Hovis...and it will come with the most desireable component of all...a pointy silver mudguard!

[hovis]

Ah well done Mr Hovis...and it will come with the most desireable component of all...a pointy silver mudguard!

our good freind phil has just done the gixxer swap, & hes not far from you is he?

see how much it all cost him

i guess the hardest bit is finding a good nick gixxer front end.

why not sell the sv and get a honda:smt045

[dirtydog]

but then you sell your SV front end and get most if not all the money back?

so other people have posted


I think that is the case if you shop for your gsxr front end carefully and it may take a bit longer to get. If your SV front end is in good nick ie the forks aren't corroded you can get some good money for them e.g I sold a pair of forks that had corroded badly and then been resprayed they had also cover about 40k and still had original oil. I sold them for £120.

[Biker_Billy]

our good freind phil has just done the gixxer swap, & hes not far from you is he?

see how much it all cost him

i guess the hardest bit is finding a good nick gixxer front end.

why not sell the sv and get a honda:smt045


Good thinking, will do..

Dont want a Honda...love the SV thanks.:)

[Biker_Billy]

I think that is the case if you shop for your gsxr front end carefully and it may take a bit longer to get. If your SV front end is in good nick ie the forks aren't corroded you can get some good money for them e.g I sold a pair of forks that had corroded badly and then been resprayed they had also cover about 40k and still had original oil. I sold them for £120.

Forks are pretty good really, as is the wheel. suppose I could budget getting at least 100 back for them...

[andyb]

When I did the front end swap I spent about £700 on GSXR parts and got about £500 back for the SV front end, so thats £200 all in. Northwind actually made a profit I think (apart from he spent money on powder coating things) but it just goes to show if you shop carefully and aren't in a hurry to sell the SV stuff you can spend very little money on a great upgrade.

HTH
Andy

[Biker_Billy]

Thanks for that Andy. I think I need to do a search and get together a list of all the parts I need.

[andyb]

Thanks for that Andy. I think I need to do a search and get together a list of all the parts I need.

What bike have you got, pointy or curvey? if it's a curvey i've got a full list with prices I paid etc. Theres also a thread I created about a year ago with stupid questions on and includes a full list. If it's a pointy you're best asking phil24_7 or Stu as they've both done it.

EDIT: Just re-read your original post - Pointy. I THINK a K series GSXR front end more or less fits on but don't take that for gospel, costs should be roughly the same as mine as I used K series forks. It depends how bling you want to go. If you want gold forks and radial brakes you're going to pay a bit more whereas if you go for early K series forks (still USD) they are a bit cheaper.

Take a look at this: http://forums.sv650.org/showpost.php?p=1018797&postcount=10 don't know how reliable the info is though but it was the same as thought.

[Dualcyclone]

I was looking at doing this upgrade myself on a pointy... Probably not for a little while mind you (I'm modding my bike and renovating my house so probs should wait until I have a spare monkey sitting around!)

Parts with prices would be great if anyone is willing to share their knowledge :)

[andyb]

I was looking at doing this upgrade myself on a pointy... Probably not for a little while mind you (I'm modding my bike and renovating my house so probs should wait until I have a spare monkey sitting around!)

Parts with prices would be great if anyone is willing to share their knowledge :)

I can do curvey if that helps? I wouldn't imagine prices to be hugely different.

[Lozzo]

Dont want a Honda...love the SV thanks.:)

Be greedy, have both ;)

[Red Herring]

I'm in the middle of doing the swop at the moment. I haven't even ridden the SV I bought, a K5 with 4,000 miles on it. The entire front end is immaculate so the plan is once I've completed the swop to try and get good money for it to offset the cost of the GSXR parts. I'm told they are in demand due to the minitwin race series. The alternative was to hang on to it and then if and when i go to sell the SV put it all back and sell the GSXR front parts instead.

[Lissa]

[QUOTE=Red Herring;1379233] I haven't even ridden the SV I bought, a K5 with 4,000 miles on it. QUOTE]

Wow...................how can you bear to have a bike and not ride it?

It must be a bit like having a w*lly and never having a sh*g:p

[Dualcyclone]

Wow...................how can you bear to have a bike and not ride it?

It must be a bit like having a w*lly and never having a sh*g:p

I've had my SV for over a month now... only done 125miles... and its already in peices in my garage!!

I guess blokes just have to pull stuff apart just because they can! Doesnt necessarily mean it'll go back together exactly the same - my scottoiler box is full of nuts and bolts i've taken off my bike - whoopsie!

As for your last comment... no comment! :D

[Red Herring]

Truth is I bought it for a specific project, got it home in the evening on the trailer, and was so keen to start that I just ripped it to bits without waiting for a chance to ride it. I've ridden tricked up SV's before so I've got a rough idea what I'm getting into. At the moment it is a frame and engine, no front end, no back end, no nothing. Fortunately the pile of bits arriving to go on is almost the same size as the pile going out, still haven't decided on exhaust system yet though.

[Lissa]

I've had my SV for over a month now... only done 125miles... and its already in peices in my garage!!

I guess blokes just have to pull stuff apart just because they can! Doesnt necessarily mean it'll go back together exactly the same - my scottoiler box is full of nuts and bolts i've taken off my bike - whoopsie! :D

We've got boxes of boxes, so know what you're saying:D

[Lissa]

Truth is I bought it for a specific project, got it home in the evening on the trailer, and was so keen to start that I just ripped it to bits without waiting for a chance to ride it. I've ridden tricked up SV's before so I've got a rough idea what I'm getting into. At the moment it is a frame and engine, no front end, no back end, no nothing. Fortunately the pile of bits arriving to go on is almost the same size as the pile going out, still haven't decided on exhaust system yet though.


I presume you'll be going for a full system? Would be a shame not to, with the effort you're going to.

[Red Herring]

Yes I will. Spoke to James at JHS and he is reccomending M4 pipework married up to a Leo Vinci can. He customs makes a link pipe to sort out the diameter change. My only reservation is that with any one off replacement can be an issue, especially if I need it in a hurry and exhaust systems are always vulnerable to crash damage. My problem is I need a high level system that must also be road legal, they are really tight on noise limits in France, and Belgium is going that way.

[northwind]

andyb's spot on, mine would have made me money if I'd not blown the budget on luxuries like powdercoating, a new master cylinder, stuff like that. But I made good buys on the new parts and good sales on the old. The real danger is:

"Only thing is that worries me, is that I could end up with a gsxr front end which would require discs, and springs, and oil, and I'd be throwing the money away..."

All it takes is one damaged part and that's the budget out the window. And the problem is that it might take you some time to put the bits together, so if you (for example) buy a wheel today, but don't notice it's bent, and then finally do the swap in 2 months time it'll be too late to sort the wheel.

It also depends a bit on your weight, I was lucky with the K3 front end in that I'm very light and suited the stock valving extremely well, so I had no real need to upgrade or modify the forks. With the K4 ones, I'm actually too light :rolleyes: but not badly. But if you weigh 20 stone or similiar, the GSXR forks will need set up just as much as the stock ones did, you can compensate a wee bit with damping but there's no replacement for a rebuild.

[phil24_7]

Billy, just do it, you know you want to!!

Have a look here for a list of parts that fit:

http://gregmli.blogspot.com/search/label/DIY

And look here for parts:

http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=gsxr+forks
http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&dfsp=1&from=R10&_trksid=m37&satitle=gsxr+wheel&sacat=-1%26catref%3DC6&a6=-24&a39=-24&a39702=-24&a10244=-24&alist=a6%2Ca42078%2Ca39%2Ca41%2Ca39702%2Ca10244&pfmode=1&reqtype=1&gcs=2364&pfid=3480&pf_query=gsxr+wheel&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D3&sadis=200&fpos=PL3+5DU&sabfmts=1&ga10244=10425&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=&fsop=1%26fsoo%3D1&coaction=compare&copagenum=1&coentrypage=search
http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&dfsp=1&catref=C6&from=R10&_trksid=m37&satitle=gsxr+yoke&sacat=-1%26catref%3DC6&a6=-24&a39=-24&a39702=-24&a10244=-24&alist=a6%2Ca42078%2Ca39%2Ca41%2Ca39702%2Ca10244&pfmode=1&reqtype=1&gcs=2364&pfid=3480&pf_query=gsxr+yoke&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D3&sadis=200&fpos=PL3+5DU&sabfmts=1&ga10244=10425&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=&fsop=1%26fsoo%3D1&coaction=compare&copagenum=1&coentrypage=search&fgtp=

etc!!

[petevtwin650]

The Gixer front end does seem a good idea, but only if you're lucky IMO.

So many rubbish bits out there that could soak up the pounds, unless you source a front end like Phil did. Now that was lucky.

I'm sticking with the original front end but with better internals and better braking components. Not that that plan is going too well either:(

Get some Braking Wave or Galfer front discs and springs and oil.

[phil24_7]

Me, lucky, I dunno what ya mean. ;-)

[Biker_Billy]

andyb's spot on, mine would have made me money if I'd not blown the budget on luxuries like powdercoating, a new master cylinder, stuff like that. But I made good buys on the new parts and good sales on the old. The real danger is:

"Only thing is that worries me, is that I could end up with a gsxr front end which would require discs, and springs, and oil, and I'd be throwing the money away..."

All it takes is one damaged part and that's the budget out the window. And the problem is that it might take you some time to put the bits together, so if you (for example) buy a wheel today, but don't notice it's bent, and then finally do the swap in 2 months time it'll be too late to sort the wheel.

It also depends a bit on your weight, I was lucky with the K3 front end in that I'm very light and suited the stock valving extremely well, so I had no real need to upgrade or modify the forks. With the K4 ones, I'm actually too light :rolleyes: but not badly. But if you weigh 20 stone or similiar, the GSXR forks will need set up just as much as the stock ones did, you can compensate a wee bit with damping but there's no replacement for a rebuild.

I think if I wasn going to do it, then I'd may as well get the new front end set up for my weight properly, otherwise, not much point in doing it - especially since I'm at the heavier end of the scale!

One question tho, would SV discs fit onto a gsxr wheel? Just thinking if I bought new discs for the existing front end, then changed it at the end of the summer - could I use these discs with the new front end? (if that makes sense?)

[Biker_Billy]

Billy, just do it, you know you want to!!

Have a look here for a list of parts that fit:

http://gregmli.blogspot.com/search/label/DIY

And look here for parts:

http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=gsxr+forks
http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&dfsp=1&from=R10&_trksid=m37&satitle=gsxr+wheel&sacat=-1%26catref%3DC6&a6=-24&a39=-24&a39702=-24&a10244=-24&alist=a6%2Ca42078%2Ca39%2Ca41%2Ca39702%2Ca10244&pfmode=1&reqtype=1&gcs=2364&pfid=3480&pf_query=gsxr+wheel&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D3&sadis=200&fpos=PL3+5DU&sabfmts=1&ga10244=10425&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=&fsop=1%26fsoo%3D1&coaction=compare&copagenum=1&coentrypage=search
http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&dfsp=1&catref=C6&from=R10&_trksid=m37&satitle=gsxr+yoke&sacat=-1%26catref%3DC6&a6=-24&a39=-24&a39702=-24&a10244=-24&alist=a6%2Ca42078%2Ca39%2Ca41%2Ca39702%2Ca10244&pfmode=1&reqtype=1&gcs=2364&pfid=3480&pf_query=gsxr+yoke&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D3&sadis=200&fpos=PL3+5DU&sabfmts=1&ga10244=10425&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=&fsop=1%26fsoo%3D1&coaction=compare&copagenum=1&coentrypage=search&fgtp=

etc!!

Thanks for the info Phil, really useful stuff there. I think unless I can source a good front end (worried about buying some heap of poo on fleabay), I might just stick with what I've got for now. With a new oil, and the forks properly set up, it will probably be more than enough for my abilities.

I'll keep looking though - its something I'd love to do if I could get hold of the parts. I was just trying to work out the costs based upon the fact that I will need a new front tyre and discs very soon...

Ta muchly!

Billy.

P.S. Dont want to copy you Mr Phil!

[northwind]

One question tho, would SV discs fit onto a gsxr wheel? Just thinking if I bought new discs for the existing front end, then changed it at the end of the summer - could I use these discs with the new front end? (if that makes sense?)

The bolt spacing might be the same (I forgot to check) but other than that nothing'll line up, they're small and dished while GSXR ones are all larger and flat, unfortunately.

[Biker_Billy]

The bolt spacing might be the same (I forgot to check) but other than that nothing'll line up, they're small and dished while GSXR ones are all larger and flat, unfortunately.


Thanks Northwind....soooo, if i get new SV discs, I cant use them on anything else - if I was to do the conversion I'd have to sell them.

Thats a plus point to doing the GSXR conversion then:)

[northwind]

The Gixer front end does seem a good idea, but only if you're lucky IMO.

So many rubbish bits out there that could soak up the pounds, unless you source a front end like Phil did. Now that was lucky.

I'm sticking with the original front end but with better internals and better braking components. Not that that plan is going too well either:(

Get some Braking Wave or Galfer front discs and springs and oil.

Hmm, I don't think you have to be lucky, you just have to be careful. Most parts can be evaluated reasonably well, and buying from good sources helps too. The big problem is if, like I say, you put the bits together over a long time so you can't fully test them for some time- yokes, frinstance, are hard to check any other way than assembling them in a bike for most of us, though luckily GSXR yokes are pretty sturdy. Discs too. You can test wheel runout and forks easily though, wheels seem to catch a lot of people out but I've never understood why.

The price of a new set of wavy discs should more than pay for a GSXR front though, unless you get very unlucky or careless. And there's no comparison between springs and oil and a GSXR front. You can upgrade the SV front end to a higher spec than standard GSXR with parts like the Traxxion AK20 cartridges, but it's a huge expense by comparison. Emulators are a good compromise between price and function but again, if you do the GSXR front right they're more expensive.

[Biker_Billy]

Thanks Northwind. I'm not really in a rush to do the conversion - happy to spend a time getting the right bits at the tight price.

I'd banked on discs and pads being 300 quid with another hundred for springs and oil (give or take), and although I need new discs, I've still got 0.2mm of depth left - anyone any ideas on what mileage that will give me? My SV isnt used for work, and I would expect to do maybe 5k miles over the next year. If the discs will last that long, then I can make do with the existing front end, and go a gsxr conversion, say next Autumn. That sound like a reasonable plan?

Thanks again,

Billy.

[phil24_7]

I'll keep my eye open for bits for you Billy and with my nose for a bargain, we should see you stock piling quality parts, ready for the Autumn!

[Biker_Billy]

Cheers mate...now I expect the whole lot to be no more than 50 quid...ok?:)

[petevtwin650]

I'd banked on discs and pads being 300 quid with another hundred for springs and oil (give or take), and although I need new discs, I've still got 0.2mm of depth left - anyone any ideas on what mileage that will give me? My SV isnt used for work, and I would expect to do maybe 5k miles over the next year. If the discs will last that long, then I can make do with the existing front end, and go a gsxr conversion, say next Autumn. That sound like a reasonable plan?

Thanks again,

Billy.

Don't use the front brake. Good practice for "Forward Planning" :D

My Wavys must've done 50,000 miles by now.

I'm still not convinced of the advantages of a gixer front end over a properly modded Sv one. Mind you, I would say that. :)

[phil24_7]

It's all about the bling baby!

[phil24_7]

http://search.ebay.co.uk/_W0QQsassZdavidp20v

[phil24_7]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/gsxr-600-sv1000-forks-and-yokes-gsxr600-sv-1000_W0QQitemZ200192729990QQihZ010QQcategoryZ10534 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Freakin bargain if ya don't want/need USD forks!

[John Burt]

Thought the Sv1000 were GSXR 750 forks, not thta it matters that much in this case