weight reduction ?

jmcgowan

XS650 Enthusiast
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I searched for this term and NOTHING came up. Assuming you are not building a bobber, what can be done to reduce weight ?
 
Dude, I'm 6'1 and and 215lbs...I refuse to diet !

I was thinking:
-swapping a front rim onto the rear
-removing center stand (but it's so handy!)
-removing junction box from front brake line (replace whole stock setup with a braided stainless line)
-fiberglass tank
-fiberglass solo seat
-plastic number plates (instead of stock side covers)
-aftermarket pipe
-aftermarket drilled brake rotors


That's what I've thought of so far. Are the spoked rims really lighter than the mags ? Damn I wanted to run mags...
 
Yes the spoke wheels are lighter. I don't think it's a huge difference but it all adds up. I don't think going to the braided front line will save that much weight but it sure will help with the brakes. I think you pretty much covered it as far as weight savings other than going with a permanent magnet charging system to get rid of the battery.
 
If you lace up a set of aftermarket wheels to your stock hubs, it'll be lighter than the super heavy stock mags. Sun Rim, Excel.

Go to lighter brake rotors will shave a pile of weight, but you will have to make adapters or spacers. The dual disc setup Im using with spacers weighs less than one stock rotor.

Radian Swingarm

Batteryless

FZR forks and clamps

Aluminum Handle bars

520 chain conversion (custom machined and lightened sprockets)

Titanium bolts from Pro Bolt (where applicable)

The sky is the limit bud, or money anyways. All of these things Ive done minuis the 520 chain kit. I'm using a aluminum tank though. Good luck

Bishop
 
Hey Travis. I see your from good ole Wi!!!! I'm from southwestern Wi.

Must be at least 4 of us from cheese country on here. Got to love beer, brats, and cheese if you're from Wisconsin! :cheers:

Good ideas for losing weight by the way. Do you know how much weight a 520 chain and sprocket setup will save?

- and then start drilling - think swiss cheese

Even inxs has cheese on his mind.
 
- grew up milking cows, never was a tit-man myself...more than a mouthful is a waste...

- do like cheese tho...some local wi. ones that come to mind are...
-carr valley...benedictine, mobay​
-roth kase...gran queso, grand cu gruyere​
-decateur...muenster​
-black river...gorgonzola​
-maple leaf...english hollow cheddar​
-hollow family farms...mariekes gouda​
-exclusively wisconsin...raw goats milk cheddar​
 
Cheese and Sausage washed down with beer makes me hungry! Yumm!.

Travis like I mentioned Ive never done the 520 conversion. I should have when I had Gary Poh machine me out the custom offset sprocket. Oh well. He can machine them in a few days but takes a few weeks to get them heat treated. I got mine 1/4 offset (max you can go without spacing outer cover out) to retian stock appearence and still allow a 160 tire. I'm building my bike based off from a few of the Mules. I'm going to try and run Titanium exhaust also. I think I can get away with buying a used R1 header (09 and newer are Ti) and peicing from the R1s for tube design to make two. The trick to Ti is in welding it. It has to be in a complete oxygen free enviroment. Something like a chamber filled with Argon. The oxygen contaminates the weld. So I'm going to try and if I fail miserably I might just go stainless. I race MX and Enduro occasionally so most my seat time is aboard CRF450 which has Ti exhaust and I love the look of it, very "factory".
 
- Ivan Hoey at work
- race engine...56.8 kg no oil, carbs, left side case off​
- std motor...68.7 kg...edit..no oil, carbs, left side cover off​
- 11.9 kg saved​

568_kg.jpg


race_engine_270.jpg


rollerkickshaft3.jpg


- check out the kick start shaft roller bearing
- in case...HK2016​
- in sidecover...KH2516​
 
I don't know how much all of those little dimples really saved.. I would image most of the difference is from not using a left side cover... Unless the standard weight listed was also without the side cover?
 
may have to us the dimple look on my next xs engine project :thumbsup:,i think it would look cool ,:shrug:even maybe have the dimples the same color as the bike
 
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