Author Topic: Bike prep for a newbie racer (Read 8718 times)

Kickstart · « **on:** May 29, 2013, 08:41:29 PM »

I was hoping to get some suggestions and advice on what (and how) to prep on my 1975 CB750F in preparation for race school and a novice vintage race, as I've never done this before.

I decided to sign-up for the August 2 AHRMA race school during the upcoming American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association Festival this summer (August 2-4) at the New Jersey Motorsports Park.

http://www.njmp.com/6713-2.html

I've read through the AHRMA handbook and have even been in contact with Cal Lewis (Chief Technical Inspector) on what's required, but I have no previous experience with prepping a bike for race.

If anyone could share pictures and/or suggestions on the following, I would really appreciate it:

Oil catch pan - do most people fabricate their own, or is there a good source to purchase these from? I know with the CB750 it only needs to hold about a quart since we have a dry sump - can it be placed between the case and the exhaust, or do these usually go under the pipes?
Lock/race wiring - how do you lock wire the front axle?
Any pictures or suggestions on general race prep

I plan on attending the school, and if that goes well I'll participate in the Novice Historic Production Heavyweight race.

Oh... am I making a mistake taking my 20k road bike to the track (I don't think I'll have my build ready in time)? I'll swap out my tank with something I wont be too upset if it gets dinged up. I mean... am I asking to blow up my engine?

Thanks in advanced for the help!
Chris

gschuld · « **Reply #1 on:** May 30, 2013, 02:12:32 AM »

Unfortunately, I have no useful information for you. I'd like to know the answers as well though. Please keep us posted on any info you do get. I'm in NJ and I'd like to go to the event to at least watch some. I'm not sure if I want to be tempted to push my K0 that hard though...

George

bear · « **Reply #2 on:** May 30, 2013, 02:18:35 AM »

Welcome to the racer's fold Chris.
Nice to have another RR to balance all those mad drag racers.

Can't see any problem using your road bike at the race school.
I don't see why you would need to flog your bike to get the most out of the school.
Just short shift it and you should be right.

Cheers,
Brian

Tintop · « **Reply #3 on:** May 30, 2013, 04:31:00 AM »

+1 on Bear's advice. You don't need to beat it up to do a race school.

re belly pan - something like this will do the job, although you may have to do some cutting at the back for exhaust.
http://www.airtech-streamlining.com/vintage/vintagebellypan.htm

Also buy your self lock wire tools (& SS wire), you'll never stop using them. You need the pliers ( http://www.harborfreight.com/6-inch-safety-wire-twisting-pliers-45340.html ) I would hightly recommend a jig for drilling the hole(s) in nuts & bolts. It will save a lot of broken drill bits ( http://www.ebay.com/itm/310362702598#ht_963wt_1091 ). As for what to safety wire, or cotter pin just about anything. Anything carrying fluids, brakes, suspension components.

turboguzzi · « **Reply #4 on:** May 30, 2013, 07:26:43 AM »

ask for dutch at airtech, to a certian degree i was the one that originally asked for that belly pan top be made but eventually went with an ally pan between case and exhaust solution. tell him turboguzzi sent you, you will make up for my missing purchase...

honeslty, fitting one like airtechs is much less painfull, just dig some flat straps, bolt to some non important bolts and hang the thing bellow, cutting the pan as you need.

Many will disagree but I am for wire locking just what is specifically required, as far as i know AHRMA only asks for fule lines, oil lines and drain plugs but i could be wrong. seven season so far and never had stuff come loose. its a japanese bike not a british vibrator

if there is one area i wouldnt overlook is tires, tires, tires. youll be leaning much further than ever (hopefully) and sticky stuff gives confidence. BT45's are a very good and cheapish fit

last, i hate the way its written (as if adressing people with IQ of 90 max) and much of his technical reasoning doesnt makes sense, but keith codes books are good initial guidance.

Tintop · « **Reply #5 on:** May 30, 2013, 05:10:37 PM »

Quote from: turboguzzi on May 30, 2013, 07:26:43 AM

.......its a japanese bike not a british vibrator ..........

last, i hate the way its written (as if adressing people with IQ of 90 max) and much of his technical reasoning doesnt makes sense, but keith codes books are good initial guidance.

My XS is Japanese TG, and it could shake fillings loose.

Re lockwire - I wire or pin anything that if it came loose would cause a loss of control / crash, plus all the normal fluid things that are asked for.

+1 on Keith Codes books though.

turboguzzi · « **Reply #6 on:** May 30, 2013, 05:55:25 PM »

that's a japanese bike speaking in japanese english for you

told him people will disagree, last time the topic was raised at least Mec agreed with me and he raced for quite some time

walk the pits of major league racing and youll be surprised by how little lock wire is used.

and just think about it, if it was really needed, endurance racing teams would do tire changes in 15 minutes rather than 30 seconds

it's all quick release there

Kickstart · « **Reply #7 on:** May 30, 2013, 06:18:02 PM »

Thanks for the welcome, feedback, and recommendations.

I'll try to post pictures as I make progress, and if I run into anymore questions.

I think my biggest challenge will be the stock exhaust on my F0, as the muffler doesn't allow enough lean clearance on the right side. I'm not sure if I can just replace the muffler with something that will give me more clearance while not disqualifying me from the Production Race category.

Which of the Keith Codes books do you guys recommend?

Thanks!

Tintop · « **Reply #8 on:** May 30, 2013, 06:45:16 PM »

"A Twist of the Wrist II' - everything that's in the 1st one +.

TG if I had a million dollar race budget I'm sure I could come up with a 30 second tire change as well. F1 does 4 in less than 5 seconds, but then they have an even bigger budget.

I lockwire oil & fuel line connections, drain plugs (x2 on XS), brake caliper bolts, rear lower shock bolts, brake line banjos, & throttle cable @ grip. Cotter pin rear upper shock bolts, swingarm bolt, front shock bolts (Earl's type). Oil filler has a wire that is hand twisted (easy to undo). 'Hitch pins' on the axles for fast removal.

If I have to remove any of this, removal of the lockwire is the least worry, and there's not a lot of it.

bwaller · « **Reply #9 on:** May 30, 2013, 08:31:06 PM »

TGwe are asked to do a crazy amount of wiring, honestly the wiring isn't so bad but drilling is nuts!

A friend who raced Superbike in the 80's laughed at the miles of wire on my little docile vintage bike.

Good luck Kickstart, I'm at the racetrack right now, it can be a lot of fun... Maybe look for a Kerker or the like &save your stock exhaust. Lighter and better clearance.

I find Codes 1st book hard to read and maybe a bit simple. You'll learn alot in the school. I'll send wiring pics when I get home. My belly pan is under the pipe because I didn't leave room. Made it out of taped together cardboard first, then bent &welded aluminum.

I lock wire the axle clamp nuts together.

Tintop · « **Reply #10 on:** June 02, 2013, 05:12:04 PM »

Quote from: bwaller on May 30, 2013, 08:31:06 PM

I lock wire the axle clamp nuts together.

+1 .......forgot I do that too.

Kickstart · « **Reply #11 on:** June 13, 2013, 07:43:34 PM »

OK... so I wired the fork oil bolts and the fork axle nuts.

Pictures attached.

Looks a little sloppy to me (maybe this will get tighter with practice.) I didn't have a safety wire pliers as my not-so-local dealership said they had one available when I called... but when I got there they couldn't find it. So I ended up doing these with regular dykes and pliers.

When you guys wire the caliper bolts, do you drill a hole straight through the bolt, or do you just drill the hole at an angle between to connecting sides of the bolt? Drilling straight through seems easier (like I did with the fork oil bolts, but I wasn't sure if that was the right way to do it.)

Thanks,
Chris

Tintop · « **Reply #12 on:** June 14, 2013, 04:32:44 PM »

Here's a pic of the safety wired front caliper on my sidecar. Couple of different versions used.

Kickstart · « **Reply #13 on:** June 17, 2013, 07:42:38 PM »

Thanks Tintop... that helps

Kickstart · « **Reply #14 on:** June 29, 2013, 01:57:45 PM »

I safety wired the caliper bolts (and the ones bolting on the swingarm).

Do I need to safety wire all the brake banjo bolts?
It's not really clear in the AHRMA handbook if those need to be done.
I assume I don't need to wire the bleeder valve or the connections on the hard pipe brake line peice.

Thanks,
Chris

Tintop · « **Reply #15 on:** June 29, 2013, 02:07:01 PM »

All my banjo bolts are wired (see pic) as per VRRA, not sure about AHRMA requirements.

bwaller · « **Reply #16 on:** June 30, 2013, 04:11:43 AM »

I breezed through the AHMRA rulebook and didn't notice mention of banjo bolts. That said, the rule of thumb is that any fasteners that will leak fluids should be lockwired. It takes a long time drilling everything but you only have to do it once.

Kickstart · « **Reply #17 on:** June 30, 2013, 10:44:07 AM »

Thanks... I guess I should error on the side of overdoing it and lockwire the banjo bolts as well.

TinTop, did you wire the bleeder valve? I can't really tell in the picture (did you just lop it around it?)

Thanks,
Chris

Tintop · « **Reply #18 on:** June 30, 2013, 10:46:42 AM »

Didn't do the bleeders, just wrapped it around the back with some tension.

freedomgli · « **Reply #19 on:** June 30, 2013, 03:29:22 PM »

Bend the pigtail ends of your safety wire inward 180 degrees so there isn't a sharp edge to get snagged on.

Kickstart · « **Reply #20 on:** July 11, 2013, 05:55:34 PM »

Does the belly pan not have to cover the full width of the engine?

The airtech ones are only 11.5" wide, but if you measure from the outside edge of the alternator to the points cover... our engines are a lot wider than that.

11.5" inches is just wide enough to span the frame tubes.

Tintop · « **Reply #21 on:** July 11, 2013, 06:23:25 PM »

Majority do go from outside frame rail to outside again. Alternator & point's end(s) stickout (unless modified

). Check out the one in bwaller's build. Same coverage just in 'glass.

Kickstart · « **Reply #22 on:** July 11, 2013, 08:06:02 PM »

OK... thanks.

I might go the cake-pan route then... if I can find one long enough. This one might fit nicely:
http://www.wasserstrom.com/restaurant-supplies-equipment/Product_6009246

JohnN · « **Reply #23 on:** July 11, 2013, 09:21:16 PM »

Chris:
Do you have a sheet metal brake? Rather than the cake pan you could bend a pan to fit your frame rails without too much effort. I bend mine out of .025 aluminum and fasten with aircraft rivets and is much stronger than it would appear. You could get by with pop rivets. I secure it with cable ties and it has survived abuse from crash truck ramps and worse!
John

Kickstart · « **Reply #24 on:** July 12, 2013, 09:17:19 AM »

I don't have any metal tools (except for sheet metal snips).

I was thinking about trying my luck at bending some sheet metal, but I assumed it needed to be water/oil tight.
If I can get away with pop rivets and silicone at the seems, then I might give it a try.

I suspect the seams don't matter much if I put some oil absorbing pads in there... BTW, where do you guys get those oil absorbing pads from?

Thanks!

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Author Topic: Bike prep for a newbie racer (Read 8718 times)