Weight loss?

[Nerobro]

Newer sportbikes have aluminum frames. Not much you can do to remedy that with a GS.

Aluminum isn't inherantly lighter. Look at bimota, ducati, and other neiche mfgs. Steel can be very very light. The RF600 and RF900 were within a few pounds of their competition, and they used steel frames. Same for the first two generations of GSXR.

Aluminum's advantage comes from being thicker for the same weight! It's easier to form materials when they're thicker. For really light tubes, shells, and other shapes, steel is gets frighteningly thin. The other option is to use smaller diameter tubes, again I"ll refrence ducati, bimota, and many home builders. The big reason for abandoning steel frames is manufacuring. Aluminum is easier to form, and requires use of thicker sections for the same strength. That also lets you use wider tolerances in section thickness.

Have you picked up a bare frame? They really are quite light. It seriously gives you the he-man thing when you grab a bare GS frame. On the frame, you can probally pull off half a pound to three pounds depending on how much your'e willing to remove. (tabs, excess frame length, passenger pegs and mounts, swingarm, aluminum or hollow tripple trees, I could go on....)

*blah blah* billet *blahblah&* slop and lose weight! *blahblah* then you could use whatever wheel/tire you want.

Beware, unless it's REALLY special, billet anything tends to be heavier than built up, or hollow peices. Tubular, thin wall, and box section peices tend to be stronger. The stock bearings on the GS's are one of their strengths. The swingarm uses roller bearings which is the hot ticket if you want a long lasting swingarm bearing. Yamaha used plastic, Honda used rubber or bushings.

though.. getting the choice of swingarm width would be nice. But then you're still limited by sprocket offset, and eventually the side of the frame gets in the way. It'll sound funny.. but I've considered going to narrower tires at the back.

 

[duaneage]

A bare 650G frame weighs about 45 LBS. Your not going to save much total weight even if it was made from aluminum, 15 lbs if your lucky.

Inside the modern engines they have lightened many things, Some even have TI connecting rods. Where the GS used solid bits many parts today are hollow. A water cooled engine has no fins so it could be lighter. With water colling the engine the wall thickness can be less and water weighs less than metal.

 

[Nerobro]

As weird as it sounds, water cooling is MUCH lighter. YOu can make the engine narrower, because you can space cylinder closer. that leads to a ligher block, narrower crankcase, smaller crankshaft, smaller camshafts, lighter carburator rack, better temprature control so you get more horsepower.

don't take that as me saying that you can't trim a ton of weight off of these bikes. And we can.