SV650.org - SV650 & Gladius 650 Forum - View Single Post

23-07-10, 08:08 PM

OK, to cut a long story short, I love riding fast and hard but modern sportsbikes (of both 600 and the crazy litrebike class) with their typically IL4 motors make it FAR too easy to find myself the far side of the ton on any short straight between corners. Now cornering is what motorcycling is all about for me, but being a MotoGP fan, I want a bike that looks like a sportsbike, not a supermoto (other obvious solution to the problem) or a naked streetfighter thing (*really* not my style).

As a new poster, I'm bound to get the **** ripped and the truism that the throttle turns both ways… and I'm expecting a mild flame roasting

But I seem to have a red mist generator in my lid - buy a new lid, and by the time I get it home the red mist generator has installed itself

So pretty much the ENTIRE UK market of sportsbikes had to be written off - I don't weigh much, and a nice lightweight CBR600RR with me on would be, ridden 'enthusiastically', too easy to end up way over the ton on straights between corners. I'm no riding God - nowhere near - but whilst I can handle losing my licence, I can't handle jail. I run a business and I'd lose my entire life if I was sent to jail for 110+ speeds, which has happened.

A bike that thrashes hard from 0 to 100 (ahem, 70, occifer) but doesn't disguise speed well, doesn't feel smooth and comfortable above 100, and makes 60 mph feel *fast* and exciting is what I want. After trying to make a Ninja 250 do this (don't bother, but you *can* ride your favourite twisty road in 6th with the throttle pinned and *never* change gear or brake), I swapped for an SV650S and I'm in love.

Yes, it's a 10 yr old curvy model, 24k miles on the clock, different tyres front and rear, front suspension clonky and utter rubbish, and initially-worrying front brakes (these have got better as I've ridden it harder). It's a black bike, other than the duff mismatched tyres and other maintenance items, a standard UK model. Not even a messed-about end can.

It's been used as a commuter, obviously, and the engine and box are sweet enough (for a V-twin... my first bike was a Monster 600 so I love 'em). However strong the engine is (and it feels strong), the rest of the bike is quite clearly tired.

Since my project means NO MORE POWER but much better handling and lighter weight, I came across BST carbon wheels. Ace, I'll have some of them. But they don't make them for SV650s. OK, a small setback.

However they DO make them for any combination of GSX-R made since the mid 90s. So... do people put GSX-R parts on their SV650s???

Oh yeah, they do... after finding these forums... I've decided that I've struck gold. Not only is the bike perfect, the power output perfect, the engine configuration perfect, but the crap bits can be swapped for proper sportsbike bits (as opposed to unadjustable budget commuter bits) and I can then slap on some carbon wheels and have a *slightly* lighter bike that should be a twisty road monster.

And all along the way, I can learn how to maintain and fix a bike. I've got tools and loads of enthusiasm, plus plenty of *theory* but little *practical* experience (never had a house with a garage, main reason). Still don't have a house with a garage but I now have a flat bit of tarmac in front of my house, two decent paddock stands and the ability to pop the bike up in the air for working on.

So (apologies for the long post) - what I'm aiming for is a 5.50" width rear wheel from a GSX-R of some sort (as that is replaceable with a carbon one) - will it fit the swingarm? Search time...
But a lot more importantly, I need to swap the entire front end, ball-race clonky wiggly forks and all, for GSX-R forks (preferably USD forks) with a GSX-R front wheel (which can be replaced with a carbon wheel).

There are some nice tutorials on swapping USD GSX-R forks onto pointy SVs but not the curvy ones. Is this a no-go (i.e. do I need to swap my curvy SV650S for a pointy one) or can it be done with a bunch of tools, some enthusiasm, some money, and a helpful bloke with lots of experience?

Apologies if someone has done this and photo-documented it here... in which case BIG apologies - I did do a search first but only got the newer pointy SVs. And, you know, it'd be a laugh to bolt wheels that cost more than the bike to a 10 year old tatty SV650S... and FWIW I actually like the look of the curvy bike more (so again apologies if that puts me in the 'bad guy' group).

At the end of the day, I reckon a black 10 yr old SV650S with shiny USD forks, black carbon wheels, new, properly set up suspension, new brakes, but the old engine and limited power would ride *brilliantly*. Great round the bends, fast between them, but no silly top speed. I'm not trying to do this on the cheap so advice would be greatly appreciated.

Cheeeers in advance!!!

23-07-10, 08:08 PM	#1
cyberface Guest Posts: n/a	Carbon Fibre Wheels. Insane project. OK, to cut a long story short, I love riding fast and hard but modern sportsbikes (of both 600 and the crazy litrebike class) with their typically IL4 motors make it FAR too easy to find myself the far side of the ton on any short straight between corners. Now cornering is what motorcycling is all about for me, but being a MotoGP fan, I want a bike that looks like a sportsbike, not a supermoto (other obvious solution to the problem) or a naked streetfighter thing (really not my style). As a new poster, I'm bound to get the **** ripped and the truism that the throttle turns both ways… and I'm expecting a mild flame roasting But I seem to have a red mist generator in my lid - buy a new lid, and by the time I get it home the red mist generator has installed itself So pretty much the ENTIRE UK market of sportsbikes had to be written off - I don't weigh much, and a nice lightweight CBR600RR with me on would be, ridden 'enthusiastically', too easy to end up way over the ton on straights between corners. I'm no riding God - nowhere near - but whilst I can handle losing my licence, I can't handle jail. I run a business and I'd lose my entire life if I was sent to jail for 110+ speeds, which has happened. A bike that thrashes hard from 0 to 100 (ahem, 70, occifer) but doesn't disguise speed well, doesn't feel smooth and comfortable above 100, and makes 60 mph feel fast and exciting is what I want. After trying to make a Ninja 250 do this (don't bother, but you can ride your favourite twisty road in 6th with the throttle pinned and never change gear or brake), I swapped for an SV650S and I'm in love. Yes, it's a 10 yr old curvy model, 24k miles on the clock, different tyres front and rear, front suspension clonky and utter rubbish, and initially-worrying front brakes (these have got better as I've ridden it harder). It's a black bike, other than the duff mismatched tyres and other maintenance items, a standard UK model. Not even a messed-about end can. It's been used as a commuter, obviously, and the engine and box are sweet enough (for a V-twin... my first bike was a Monster 600 so I love 'em). However strong the engine is (and it feels strong), the rest of the bike is quite clearly tired. Since my project means NO MORE POWER but much better handling and lighter weight, I came across BST carbon wheels. Ace, I'll have some of them. But they don't make them for SV650s. OK, a small setback. However they DO make them for any combination of GSX-R made since the mid 90s. So... do people put GSX-R parts on their SV650s??? Oh yeah, they do... after finding these forums... I've decided that I've struck gold. Not only is the bike perfect, the power output perfect, the engine configuration perfect, but the crap bits can be swapped for proper sportsbike bits (as opposed to unadjustable budget commuter bits) and I can then slap on some carbon wheels and have a slightly lighter bike that should be a twisty road monster. And all along the way, I can learn how to maintain and fix a bike. I've got tools and loads of enthusiasm, plus plenty of theory but little practical experience (never had a house with a garage, main reason). Still don't have a house with a garage but I now have a flat bit of tarmac in front of my house, two decent paddock stands and the ability to pop the bike up in the air for working on. So (apologies for the long post) - what I'm aiming for is a 5.50" width rear wheel from a GSX-R of some sort (as that is replaceable with a carbon one) - will it fit the swingarm? Search time... But a lot more importantly, I need to swap the entire front end, ball-race clonky wiggly forks and all, for GSX-R forks (preferably USD forks) with a GSX-R front wheel (which can be replaced with a carbon wheel). There are some nice tutorials on swapping USD GSX-R forks onto pointy SVs but not the curvy ones. Is this a no-go (i.e. do I need to swap my curvy SV650S for a pointy one) or can it be done with a bunch of tools, some enthusiasm, some money, and a helpful bloke with lots of experience? Apologies if someone has done this and photo-documented it here... in which case BIG apologies - I did do a search first but only got the newer pointy SVs. And, you know, it'd be a laugh to bolt wheels that cost more than the bike to a 10 year old tatty SV650S... and FWIW I actually like the look of the curvy bike more (so again apologies if that puts me in the 'bad guy' group). At the end of the day, I reckon a black 10 yr old SV650S with shiny USD forks, black carbon wheels, new, properly set up suspension, new brakes, but the old engine and limited power would ride brilliantly. Great round the bends, fast between them, but no silly top speed. I'm not trying to do this on the cheap so advice would be greatly appreciated. Cheeeers in advance!!!