has anyone here had to switch frames on a bike? is it relatively easy? or should it be left up to the pros?

im trying to save a friend some money by doing it "in-house"; but if its best done by the professionals, then so be it. any help is appreciated. thanks.

 

basically everything is bolt ons. but you need to know how to properly adjust things like bearings etc, but if you have some mechanical ability it is easy

 

so maybe a few hours? or a few days?

 

maybe done in a day... but if you want to take your time, I say 2-3 days

 

I did it on my old bike. It definently isnt fun but can be easily done without taking it to a shop. You will probably need a couple of friends to help you hold **** up. The most time consuming part is just taking everything off. Like Schu said just make sure you research all of the torque specs and so forth. It shouldnt take you more then a weekend tops. Goodluck

 

A service manual would be a big help here. Bring a few ziplock bags to organize the odds and ends when you disassemble the bike.

 

From my experience, the most important thing is not letting a lot of time pass between disassembling and reassembling the bike. Things disappear, memory fades away, etc.

If you can take detailed notes, pictures, and like marmaladeboy said, ziplock bag and label everything, you'd be okay. Also, you'll need a service manual for proper torque specs and don't lose your notes and pictures and stuff.

 

thanks all.

any specialty tools needed (2003 r6)?

 

Possibly a metric socket big enough to take off the steering stem nut. And a big enough socket wrench/torque wrench. Everything else should be available in a metric Craftsman tool kit (metric sockets, metric allen wrenches...)

 

Yeah pictures. Using pics I had taken as a reference helped me a lot when I was working on my other bike, putting it back together.

 

i ripped apart my 05 r6 and the only problem i had was getting the frame/engine adjusting bolts out, i had to drill a hole in the handle of a flat head screw driver and thread a rod through to get enough leverage to turn them. other than that, i had the whole thing apart in like a day by myself. putting it together is a whole nother story tho.

 

as long as you have a service manual, a weekend, some mechanical skill, a good set of tools, a friend to help and some patience. other than that its not too bad. just lay everything out the way you took it off and put it back on the same way.

for me the key is patience. some thing will take time to take apart or re install. just keep your head cool, dont drink to much and dont overwhelm yourself. other than that it should be pretty cake.