V&H vs. Kerker vs. Supertrapp exhausts

[Billy Ricks]

Q,

I planed down an old countershaft sprocket to about 1/8" thick and about 2" in diameter to use as a spacer to move the countershaft sprocket out for better alignment. I used the Gixxer caliper on a Katana 600 hanger to grab the Gixxer rotor. The torque arm is under the swingarm now. Just knock out your stock bearings and use them in the GSXR wheel. You also have to use a Katana bearing support in the sprocket carrier and your stock bearing support plus a small piece of steel tube the right size to equal the length of the Gixxer piece in the hub. Katana spacers on each side of the wheel.

To make the swingarm work I had to cut off the stock peg mounts on the frame and weld small plates to the outer edge of the frame for Gixxer rearsets. I'll have to flycut the frame where the pivot bolt goes through since the pivot point on the banana swingarm is about 1/4" wider than the stock swingarm. I can use my stock bushings and pivot bolt. The bushings will have to be shortened to fit the Gixxer unit. Then I'll have to weld on shock mounts for the new shock since the linkage for the GSXR is on the bottom of the shock. Swanny used the old centerstand tabs on the frame as a starting point for his lower mounting point. The top is no big deal.

[Anonymous]

Sorry to break your bubble, the stopping of inspections only applies to cars. If the bike is over 10 years older or from out of state, it has to be inspected. Had to have my 85 done.

I had to have my '76 Honda CB550F inspected last November, so I fully expected to have to do the same with the GS. But if you check out the CT DMV website, you'll see that they've changed the rules:

The following types of vehicles will no longer be required to undergo a safety inspection: Light duty trucks with a Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of 18,000 lbs. or less, trailers that are 10,000 lbs. or less GVWR, motorcycles and passenger vehicles.
http://www.ct.gov/dmv/cwp/view.asp?a...NavCtr=|#30243

[Anonymous]

I was wondering, just for sh*ts and giggles....does anyone know if you could fit a full system, say a Yoshimura, designed for an early GSX-R 1100 to a GS1100? Even if the header does bolt up directly to the engine, would peg clearance be an issue and force you to go to rearsets like on Billy's bike?

Speaking of those rearsets Billy, did you buy them specifically for the bike and bolt 'em on, or was custom fabrication necessary?

[Billy Ricks]

Speaking of those rearsets Billy, did you buy them specifically for the bike and bolt 'em on, or was custom fabrication necessary?

They were stock GSXR pieces. I had to cut off the old flanges on the frame and weld on small 1/4" plates to bolt the rearsets to. Probably shaved 4 or 5 lbs off in the process. The shift pattern is now upside down like on a GP bike. That helps provide more positive upshifts. Takes some getting used to though.

[Anonymous]

The shift pattern is now upside down like on a GP bike.

Billy, I was meaning to ask you - Doesn' t the pattern (up or down) depend on how the linkage is hooked up? Is there room to reverse the shifter arm position so that it would have a normal shift pattern?

I'm looking at some rear sets now and although I would not mind having the reverse shift pattern, I think it would bite me sooner or later since I have more than one bike.

[Billy Ricks]

Steve,
At least on my bike there's not enough room between the shaft for the linkage and the bottom of the countershaft cover. I didn't have any choice. The way the shift lever is angled down the reverse pattern works better anyway.

[Bert Patterson]

Billy, I'd like to have that done to every bike. Never even considered it until recently. I had several old Triumphs that all shifted on the right, which I'll always prefer, but the coolest was my Commando. It was only a four speed, but it shifted on the right with a one-up, three down pattern. So much quicker that way. It took me a long time to adjust to the standard set-up. I still think it's clunky.