due to ecessive bills and school, i found out that i canty afford a new bike after all , so i have decided to basically turn my bike into something its not. "chop" it essentially, lol. ok, so my idea is to take my 94 Suzuki GSX600F Katana and put on an early model GSXR 750 rear wheel (uses a 160 rear tire rather than a 140), revalved GSXR 750 front forks, and a GSXR 750 Engine. thats pretty much if for performance mods. i think i can make it out fairly cheap on that.

now, for the cool ****

as most of you know, the early model Katanas, are, well, ugly. i bought it as a learner bike, and now its all i can afford to have, so i might as well get it looking good, right??? i plan to modify my upper fairings and adapt in a newer model GSXR. will take some fiberglass and plastic welding i am sure, but with some minor mods, i think it will fit. and for the rear, im thinking 98-02 ZX6 tail section. they can be found a lot cheaper than the GSXR tail sections.


so, this is my plan so far. does anyone else have experience with doing mods like these??? i have checked a couple other forums, and some guys are doing it using mostly plastic weld.

and i know, i really just need to get a new bike, but thats unfortunately not an option right now

 

Putting a wider tire on the back often invites a host of problems with getting the tire to clear the chain. Often more trouble than it's worth considering it degrades performance significantly. To each his own though so if you really want to do it start looking at which swingarms will fit that bike because you will most likely need to replace that too. Super bonus points if you can get a Honda Hawk swingarm on there (single sided, cheap and plentiful).

As far as the tail goes that's a cheaper and easier project. Swapping tails on FZR's is probably the most popular with most people going for the tail from the R6. All that's needed is a dremel tool and lots and lots of planning.

If you really want to go rat bike, leave off the lower fairings and just run it naked with a new tail.

Good luck,
Sean

 

yeh i agree leave the fairings off and just run the new tail....katana ouch, thats rough, not only ugly but slow and heavy as hell

 

yea, i looked into the wider rear wheel. it takes some slight modding, but the older GSXRs are similar enough to the Katanas that changing the rear wheel is a suprisingly cheap and easy mod. i think the front forks will be the hardest part though. Ohlins has a local headquarters here in town, i am hopin i can get the hookup on some ohlins suspension parts for this bi-otch as well

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Mazdillac &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">yeh i agree leave the fairings off and just run the new tail....katana ouch, thats rough, not only ugly but slow and heavy as hell</TD></TR></TABLE>
it was DIRT cheap....

i rode it naked this week, and i hated it, my legs were rubbin ****, it was uncomforatable as hell, and talk about unstable at speed..... she's gettin the plastics back on her

 

Rather than go with fancy Ohlins front shocks, get progressive springs and heavier shock oil. You'll get 99% of the performance at 1/8th the price.

Springs + oil can be had for less than $75 in most cases and will dramatically improve the ride of your Katana.

Look into a Fox, or Progressive rear shock or even better an adjustable off a GSXR. Much cheaper than Ohlin's in this case too.

Cheers,
Sean

 

only reason i was thinkin of ohlins is b/c i know someone that works there that said they could hook me up

but yea, the GSXR rear shock will work

 

i have a ratbike..its a 78 honda 250 with all of the oil removed from the front shocks and the rear shocks and springs are removed and in thier place is a solid piece of steel tube cut shorter to slam the bike ....then i painted it military metallic green..and took the airbox off..yea it really sucks but it was fun as hell for me and some friends to learn on ..now im looking to get a 91 F2 very soon and not make it a ratbike

 

Good luck with this project, I doubt it will work... people have a hard enough time stuffing a 750 motor in a 600 gixxer, let alone waht ur trying to do

 

sounds like a lot of work to me.

 

It will still handle like a boat. Save all your money from that stuff and just get some good tires and save up for a better handling bike.

 

well, with any luck, today at 1230, i will be accepting delivery of an 03 GSXR 750 with no body work, tank, or subframe. gettin it at a steal..... its been wrecked, and insuranced payed him out for it, so now hes just gettin rid of it. looks like the Kat will be sold, and the gixxer will be the new project i hope..... the guy is supposed to bring it to my work today when i get off, i just hope he shows up

 

did it work out for you?

 

dude showed up at work without the bike, said it was at his buddies house, and he couldnt get a hold of him..... yea, i figured this **** was too good to be true

 

that sucks...if it sounds too good to be true it usually is