Yamaha R6 Forum: YZF-R6 Forums banner

Shedding weight 2003 R6

4K views 23 replies 8 participants last post by  4yamahas 
#1 ·
hey all. how goes the battle? i currently have a foot of snow on the ground and im already going a little bit crazy so its time to start thinking about the winters build list.

recently ive been thinking about shedding some weight from my 2003 r6. it is my dedicated track bike and has the usual done to it. ohlins rear shock, braking front rotors, vortex clipons, aluminum front fairing stay, vortex rear sets, aluminum case covers, no fans, limited switch gear, akra stainless exhaust, race bodywork and i run limited fuel during races. i am by no means a fast guy but i run mid pack in intermediate at my home town race track.

i was looking into getting a lighter rear brake disc, and was wondering what most of you are using? the rear doesnt get used so the lighter the better, haha.

do you guys know what the lightest front brake disc is thats on an affordable level?

was also thinking about getting a ballistic or some other light weight battery. im not a fan of how you have to balance the cells in most of them but i guess thats something you have to deal with isnt it haha. i had an idea to instead of running the battery during the race, just make pigtails coming from under my seat and using the battery to start the bike then removing it. would the stator be able to keep up? i know when my last battery was on the frits my gauges would flicker and turn on and off, even though the bike seemed to run fine. i never ran it on the track though in that condition so im not sure if it would work.

i have also looked for a lighter rear subframe, but havent found much. anything i did find wasnt in stock anyways! haha.

have any of you eliminated the starter all together on your r6's? that would be a decent about of weight when you remove all of the heavy wireing aswell. i know of a guy who has done this on an r1 and i believe he removed his stator aswell. in that case would you have to run a battery and charge it between races then? as the bike wouldnt have anything to charge the battery?

i know the best thing you can do is reduce rotating mass. i usually use pirelli red stripes for practice and superbikes for races. they are the tires that seem to work best at our track. i just have a hard time spending 2gs on new wheels on a bike i got for less than that. lol.

anything else you guys are doing to lose weight? i have to sort of weigh the price vs weight differences out of course. i know the best weight loss is myself, but i am a prety light weight guy already. i am about 6' 155lbs or so. i have been bulking for a month now and will be cuting down in spring before the season starts. i hope to be back around 150 or so with much less body fat.

anything else you guys and girls would suggest?
 
See less See more
#2 ·
it is my dedicated track bike and has the usual done to it.
Slide stops, velocity stacks and ignition advance rotor?

i was looking into getting a lighter rear brake disc
Crazy light:



E-mail: mikeymotos@gmail.com

Works sweet on my bike, still locks her up for tech:




do you guys know what the lightest front brake disc is thats on an affordable level?
$380 for the full fronts, crazy light, super strong, from the same guy:



was also thinking about getting a ballistic
Get a Shorai.

im not a fan of how you have to balance the cells
I've never had to balance mine, starts crazy strong every time.

anything else you guys and girls would suggest?
I assume you're already running 520 and light sprockets, etc.

Lighter rims? Either CF or Marchesini.

-Jamie M.
 
#14 · (Edited)
Slide stops, velocity stacks and ignition advance rotor?

Crazy light:



E-mail: mikeymotos@gmail.com

Works sweet on my bike, still locks her up for tech:




$380 for the full fronts, crazy light, super strong, from the same guy:



Get a Shorai.

I've never had to balance mine, starts crazy strong every time.

I assume you're already running 520 and light sprockets, etc.

Lighter rims? Either CF or Marchesini.

-Jamie M.

that rear rotos is exactly what i needed! have you used the front? im a little worried about warping them and ending up on my face. the rear doesnt matter so much because nreally you only tap that in a holy shit im going in too hot moment to bring her in a bit more.

how long have you used your shorai for? do you think my idea of just starting the bike with the battery and removing it would work? i may have to try it on a track day one day.

lighter rims are too rich for my blood, haha. unless they are used! im not a fan of the CF, but i would go forged aluminum if the price was right.


Go with MOTYdesign (http://motydesign.com/)

There are a huge amount of people that use them on the track and have absolutly no problems.
ill check them out too, thanks!

Will do. Mine is the one with the volt meter on it and it shows this one pair of cells being lame. A quick jump in the AM and it'll start and run all day no problem, but I'm still sad about it since it's only been in use for a couple thousand miles.

I'll contact him to repair it so it's not a paperweight. I've got a couple 4 cell speed cells coming to me soon anyway. I'm over all the cheap alternatives. I need a reliable battery in my bike. Especially when it's on the grid for a pro event. I was biting my fcuking nails ALL weekend over this battery. Thank god I've got the 8 cell or I woulda been high and dry and looked like a real awesome sponsor at the AMA rounds I spent every dollar on. :laugh
you sponsor an AMA team!? thats legit!



You really could shave weight by sanding down non structural components. I.e. all the way at the end of the sub frame where the tail light used to be.

Big ticket items, light weight wheels. Snip unneeded wiring, titanium bolts it all comes down to money. Magnesium is lighter than aluminum.
i have been considering knocking off all non essential mounting brackets and things aswell but i dont have the room for a tear down. two bikes in a single garage with shelfing doesnt leave much haha. does anyone make a race harness for this thing? i know yoshi makes one for the gixxer. whats with the huge hole in the frame? that worrys me. ive never seen that before at our local track, haha.

most weight savings for the $ and time, is a Ballistic Battery.. but deal with the extra 1/2 pound or whatever and get an 8 cell not a 4 cell. They are still CRAZY light compared to an OEM battery and in over a year in both my bikes, i have never had to put a charger to them.

The rest is gonna be more money than the bike is seriously worth.. little things as noted in the post above? . have at it. knock yourself out :)

be warry of advancing the timing.. that should be determined by what FUEL you use, and how it performs on the dyno. With MR12 or most of the oxy fuels, you will find MORE power retarding the timing at higher rpms, NOT advancing. Just fyi. Yes, advance could help, but talk to a good tuner about what fuel benefits that ignition timing.

Slide stops. For sure. a must on this bike. as is a good tune.
my bike is tuned to run on race gas, but i never asked which one. hahaha. i just run pump gas for now. im tacking weight because thats an issue, where as horsepower isnt. i need to figure out my tire strategy better for next year as i kept spinning my rear up a lot. it makes for a very expencive race, lol. thats something that if i were to go that route i would have someone do it for me, haha.

MR12 is such low octane that advancing 4 degrees could lead to detonation easily. I'm sure that's why you make more power retarding it. It allows you to take advantage of the more flammable fuel that is also jam packed with oxygen. While I've seen plenty of bone stock newer higher compression R6's run it, and pickup a 2-4 HP from MR9 alone, I would never advise on a 4 degree advance running it.

And I'd buy anything other than a ballistic battery IMO. Preferably something that isn't ridiculously marked up and less quality to allow the HUGE margins parts unlimited requires... I'll make far less margins, if any selling speed cell anyday over ballistic. And I do this solely on the premises that I sell what I stand behind.
i know a little about batteries, and i know a cheaper batter is usually just as good as long as you take care of it. of course there is always a bad apple, though. ill look into all of them and weigh out what i figure will work best!

yes! and don't just read the motor octane of MR12 on the website.. (go to the SPECS sheet!) that is a rating most of us are NOT familiar with. The octane rating by what most of us recognize pump gas by, R+M/2 is 93 ..87 octane shown on the VP site is a different method of octane rating used in race fuels.

i honestly could care less what the markup is on a Ballistic battery.. they are comparable in price to other lightweight batteries, and work. :) not saying others don't, but I know these do the job. One of the biggest issues with people having issues with l.w. batteries, is using a regular charger on them overnight or way too long. You don't charge these more than 45 minutes.. ever.
im an RC guy aswell, so i know a bit about charging batteries. =) you just have to have a good charger that knows when the battery is full. how often have you had to charge yours? your bike doesnt recharge it? or have you removed the stator?

I've also seen them come and go from more than one local shop with nothing but trouble. Despite the extra 5% incentive on them, I have no interest and won't recommend them, neither will the reputable places in my area either. I'd send someone to Shorai first and I don't even push them.

The only person who has had such spectacular luck on them is Isaac. I wouldn't be surprised if it was cause it's warm where he was, and cause the 06-07 has less compression..

My .02
thanks for the info! i havent had a chance to use any of these so its good to know beforehand. i had a sponsor offer one up but as time was tight i diddnt have a chance to get in on it before the deadline.
 
#7 ·


You really could shave weight by sanding down non structural components. I.e. all the way at the end of the sub frame where the tail light used to be.

Big ticket items, light weight wheels. Snip unneeded wiring, titanium bolts it all comes down to money. Magnesium is lighter than aluminum.
 
#8 ·
most weight savings for the $ and time, is a Ballistic Battery.. but deal with the extra 1/2 pound or whatever and get an 8 cell not a 4 cell. They are still CRAZY light compared to an OEM battery and in over a year in both my bikes, i have never had to put a charger to them.

The rest is gonna be more money than the bike is seriously worth.. little things as noted in the post above? . have at it. knock yourself out :)

be warry of advancing the timing.. that should be determined by what FUEL you use, and how it performs on the dyno. With MR12 or most of the oxy fuels, you will find MORE power retarding the timing at higher rpms, NOT advancing. Just fyi. Yes, advance could help, but talk to a good tuner about what fuel benefits that ignition timing.

Slide stops. For sure. a must on this bike. as is a good tune.
 
#9 · (Edited)
most weight savings for the $ and time, is a Ballistic Battery.. but deal with the extra 1/2 pound or whatever and get an 8 cell not a 4 cell. They are still CRAZY light compared to an OEM battery and in over a year, i have never had to put a charger on it.

The rest is gonna be more money than the bike is seriously worth.. little things as noted in the post above? . have at it. knock yourself out :)

be warry of advancing the timing.. that should be determined by what FUEL you use, and how it performs on the dyno. With MR12 or most of the oxy fuels, you will find MORE power retarding the timing at higher rpms, NOT advancing. Just fyi. Yes, advance could help, but talk to a good tuner about what fuel benefits that ignition timing.

Slide stops. For sure. a must on this bike. as is a good tune.
MR12 is such low octane that advancing 4 degrees could lead to detonation easily. I'm sure that's why you make more power retarding it. It allows you to take advantage of the more flammable fuel that is also jam packed with oxygen. While I've seen plenty of bone stock newer higher compression R6's run it, and pickup a 2-4 HP from MR9 alone, I would never advise on a 4 degree advance running it.

And I'd buy anything other than a ballistic battery IMO. Preferably something that isn't ridiculously marked up and less quality to allow the HUGE margins parts unlimited requires... I'll make far less margins, if any selling speed cell anyday over ballistic. And I do this solely on the premises that I sell what I stand behind.
 
#13 · (Edited)
if ya don't wanna sell Ballistic, no problem! but they work, and i don't think you could point out any single SMALL business that has not had growing pains, and customer service issues. Especially like a lightweight battery where 1/2 the issues or more are due to people improperly charging them.. Sure, there are other good lt wt batteries, but Ballistic does a good job. If they were suggesting a 4-cell for 600's early on? that may have been a mistake. But too many get caught up with the whole "i gotta save that extra 1/2 pound" LOL.. and don't get the "better" choice.. 8cell.

and the compression ratio of the 06-07 vs. the 08+ would have nothing to do with how well a battery cranked. We are talking 12:7 vs 13.1 to 1 ratios. Not significant.

but i'm with you. if you had a bad experience with em, it's no wonder you are not gonna pound the drum for them.. i and many others just have had good experiences, and the batteries DO work. Yes, i am aware of and have had personal and business dealings with the principals of Ballistic and Alien Batteries :)
 
#16 ·
another WEIGHT saver, if you are going to go with an aftermarket SHOCK. is the JRi shock. Do some google searching. They got a start in F1, and in nascar are on over 1/2 the cars there. Tim Godshall headed up an effort to do roadrace stuff, and the technology has spilled over to make a shock that weighs 3 pounds.. It is stupid light when you have any other shock in your hand to compare. The smaller body design is not only light, but makes for less internal seal drag. this provides better response to high speed bumps. (not fast mph high speed, small bumps that make the shock work up/down fast).
 
#21 · (Edited)
seriously? you don't think it has one? lol.. guys, it's not a shock the size of a steering damper, it's just 30% lighter than an Ohlins or Penske shock. :) the size difference of the body is noticeable in this photo. it's smaller. BUT YES, it has a remote res. It's basically a 3/4 scale of the popular ohlins or penske shocks.
If you look around the AMA or local ccs/wera paddock, these shocks are quickly finding favor with many riders/

Not a "good" shock? LOTS of national championships were won on them at this year's CCS Race Of Champions and WERA GNF .

Is Ohlins a good shock? heck yes.. but so is the JRi , and it weighs considerably less. That was the original posters question right?? how to shed weight?? well, here is a very good way to do it. :)
If you are gonna get an aftermarket shock anyway, why not consider a shock that is as good as an Ohlins but weighs 30% less??

The guys that started JRi spun have decades of experience from Penske and Fox shock companies .. so they know somthing about shocks. The JRi company got it's start in nascar, and half the cars/trucks in nascar are on jri shocks. They only recently ventured into motorcycles, but are quickly gaining favor with riders.

here is some info on the company if interested https://www.facebook.com/JRiShocks?fref=ts

 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top