Topic: GSXR Ignition on a CB550

[KV41]

So after reading through hundreds of threads I have come to the conclusion that I amongst some all stars in the world of vintage racing. I truly enjoy everything on this site and the funny and some times comical banter between what seems like long time racing buddies.

After ready Bwallers thread twice I have decided that I am going to give the GSXR Ignition a try on my CB550 Track Bike project.

I picked up two complete bikes and a ton of extra parts for $1,000. A deal I couldn't pass up...even though I don't need another project lol.

At the moment I have my crank at A.P.E and have sent an email to Mriek to have him massage the head into giving me a little more HP. I'm very excited about that. Wiseco is making me a set of pistons with 10:1 compression although standard size and not a big bore and I have already ordered a CB650 Oil pump and will be making the modifications to the pick up as suggested by Bwaller.

My next order of business is getting the GSXR ignition sorted and to be honest I am not sure where to start. I am looking to hear from some you guys on how to get this system working with the CB550 and maybe some tricks and tips you may think I should know before taking on the task.

I've built many bikes and engines over the years but haven't really touched anything modern except for some current dirt bikes and with those it's mostly bolting on parts!

Looking for some input and I greatly appreciate any help!

KV

[Rocketman]

KV41 it looks like you are well on your way to a sweet 550. The ignition mod was pioneered by Turboguzzi. For a through discussion see the following thread. http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php/topic,145739.0.html

[bwaller]

KV are you racing your 550? I laughed out loud about the vintage racing all-stars, but actually Martin and Kevin truly are... plus still race, so the shoe fits in their case! This ignition mod is not easy plug & play, but I found it to be completely reliable, and that is priceless.

I see Dyna 2000 systems all around the pits. I secretly wonder if I was just unlucky. In my case with this mod and total loss ignition, a battery also offered much longer runtime, a big deal considering potential delays dues to red flags and re-starts etc. I gave my D2K system to a guy in our club and explained the trouble I experienced. I never heard another word, and he still races. I don't get it.

Good luck.

[KV41]

Thanks for the link!

Bwaller, I won’t be racing this bike and my intention is to do track days every once in awhile. This is more of a project bike for a video build series I’m working on, so no class restrictions and I am willing to try things that wouldn’t be allowed. I come from the professional MX/SX race world and looking to venture out into the street stuff as a sort of side project. I love testing and trying different set ups so I think this will be a fun bike to build.

I will be putting together a thread on this build as I get some more things solidified…but in the mean time. Can I ask you… what do you think about jumping to a 650 Head with porting and polishing would do in terms of HP? Is this a better option than trying to do it with the 550 head? What are somethings you wish you could do without class restrictions? I appreciate it your time!

Thanks,

KV

[bwaller]

Without trying to sound smug, this engine performs well enough and reliably at 75hp. One lad in my class used a 650 head and welded it to use a 550 valve cover, and a Hindle 4-2-1 header. This is fine but to do the correct job with any head, pistons have to be made to match tightly for best power. There are aftermarket pistons for this 650 head, however its a "one size fits all" situation. For a street bike they may well be just fine. To be streetable I think 26mm carbs would be best. The 550 chamber is small but more efficient, but Mike correctly states the 650 ports are infinitely better. A M.Rieck ported 650 head, Dynoman 60mm pistons, a good cam and 26mm carbs should make 65hp, not sure, but guys on this forum have done it and showed dyno reports.


I had plans to build a short stroke, long rod true 650cc with 64mm pistons. Plan was to weld in the 650 chamber, build pistons to match and increase the intake valve size while straightening the intake ports. Mr. Rieck had a good plan to build a killer head, and we were positive about 85hp. My racing efforts are cut short so probably won't happen.

[Ramrod_Racing]

KV are you racing your 550? I laughed out loud about the vintage racing all-stars, but actually Martin and Kevin truly are... plus still race, so the shoe fits in their case! This ignition mod is not easy plug & play, but I found it to be completely reliable, and that is priceless.

I see Dyna 2000 systems all around the pits. I secretly wonder if I was just unlucky. In my case with this mod and total loss ignition, a battery also offered much longer runtime, a big deal considering potential delays dues to red flags and re-starts etc. I gave my D2K system to a guy in our club and explained the trouble I experienced. I never heard another word, and he still races. I don't get it.

Good luck.

You're all too kind. Knock on wood, my D2k has been trouble free but I know one of the other AHRMA VSB guys had issues with his right out of the box early last year. Seems yes there's just a certain unlucky few out there.

[Don R]

 I've read that some of the Dyna systems are temperamental about input voltage. Just a thought. 

[Ramrod_Racing]

I've read that some of the Dyna systems are temperamental about input voltage. Just a thought.

They seem to work fine right up until they just quit all together because you tried to go one too many sessions without recharging the battery on your total loss system (ask me how I know!)

[Don R]

I've read that some of the Dyna systems are temperamental about input voltage. Just a thought.

They seem to work fine right up until they just quit all together because you tried to go one too many sessions without recharging the battery on your total loss system (ask me how I know!)

 When our dragster was total loss, we had the battery mounted behind the axle. When we went a lot of rounds, I'd take the battery out of the car trailer and swap them, leaving one on the charger while running on the other one. We pitted near the finish line and tried to only run the fan and water pump while it was on the charger.

[RAFster122s]

Running a voltage buck that regulates the output to battery nominal voltage even when it drops below that voltage would be a good idea on the Dyna it sounds like...to protect the unit from failure.

[C317414]

They seem to work fine right up until they just quit all together because you tried to go one too many sessions without recharging the battery on your total loss system (ask me how I know!)

That's not unique to Dyna.  Boyer Bransden are the same way.  The ones made in the 80s had a fairly high cutout voltage, so a slightly discharged battery would result in no spark.  Newer ones will operate at much lower voltages.

[turboguzzi]

Brent, correct me if im wrong, but i believe that i built the first iteration of gsxr ignition in a 500, right? it all started with me working on a shoe string and procuring the ign. box, rotor and coild of an air/oil gsxr was really cheap. simple as that...

only when i started racing I came to realize that unlike other ignitions, this one simply had zero reliability  issues and consumed very little A/h from battery. I could run quite a few sessions with a stupid small 2.4 A/h batt before needing a recharge. Dynas and all the rest on other bikes kept frying and needed twice as big batteries if run as total loss.

another interesting option are the programmable ignitech.cz TCIP4 ones. Riccardo (cant remember his nick) used it on his 750 and was quite happy, re programming them with a pc is a piece of cake. of course, at 140 euro not as cheap as used ebay GSXR igntion box.

tips? youll need to make on the lathe some sort of collar to locate the GSXR rotor on the sohc 4 crank end. easy to figure out. the other tricky bit might be locating the pickup on the points plate. my thread "cb500 racer marches on" should have some pics of the install.

[bwaller]

Twice my Dyna 2K failed on my racebike. Dyna repaired the first time and refused to after the second failure. I bought two Dyna units at the same time and installed one in my 750, replacing a simple Prestolite that I installed in the mid 70's. The Prestolite was flawless, the bike never ran as well with the Dyna, sometimes wouldn't even start.

I haven't ridden the 750 since I quit racing, but will this summer again. I'm going to re-install the Prestolite, and short of that go the GSXR/Katana conversion.

Turboguzzi, that mod was a stroke of genius. I agree run time nearly doubled over the Dyna system and in all these years racing, have never experienced ignition problems. But as I said, I see most GSXR's and Katanas in the pits with Dyna 2k ignitions, it makes me wonder. LOL

[turboguzzi]

But as I said, I see most GSXR's and Katanas in the pits with Dyna 2k ignitions, it makes me wonder. LOL

Guess they look faster