I have had Yamaha's over 40 years.
Starting with a Yamaha 80cc dirt bike and then a 1968 YR2 350cc, RD350's & 400's and then a 1979 XS1100 which I still have.
I have over 20 XS1100's in my hoard of over 70 Yamaha motorcycles
9 of those are FJ's of which 3 are FJ11's and 2 FJ12's.
I'm too old to road race. At 61 you break not bounce.
But I would like to drag race or sprint race.
I have been looking for a former XS1100 drag bike.
But nothing has shown up that is reasonably priced.
I want to go and have fun.
I am a graduate Mechanical Engineering Technologist and have a well equipped shop.
Question;
Do you know of any available Yamaha drag bikes?
Price is a consideration since I am from Canada and $300 Usd is $400 Cdn.
Thanks for reading my life story. :hi:
Granite
Welcome Granite, FJ drag bikes pop up once in a while. Just keep using the standard searches. Or build your own since you have a well equipped shop. We have a few drag bike builder/racers on this forum that might offer advise and or parts.
Paging Chris....
Welcome Granite....just a play bike? What kind of track rules do you have up there?
For example, do you need a special certification or license if you break into the 9's?
How quick do you want to go?
Too old at 61???
I must be doing something wrong. I track my '13 GSXR 750 and my '18 GSXR 1000R. I'll admit I'm not as fast as I was but I'm still mid-pack with the fast kids. As they say, "age is just a state of mind".
Granite,
Search eBay Canada, and eBay USA for a Yamaha drag bike.
Not sure if Canada has Craigslist as such, but you can search all of Craigslist USA from this link:
http://zoomthelist.com/ (http://zoomthelist.com/)
Personally (I know, you didn't ask), I ride for fun.
Bones can get brittle with age, and the mind can't change that fact. Calcium citrate might help, of course.
Drag racing a bike does not seem safer than road racing, to me. Naturally, the EMTs *would* be closer though.
I have reached the part of my life when I want to see how long it will last,
and not how fast it will go.
:biggrin:
Best wishes.
.
Probably start out at 10's-11's and go down.
Probably stock.
Need to do more research.
Would prefer a class if it exists, of no aids or assists.
No air shifter
No light reader
No button pushing start
No automatic transmission.
A riders race.....
I can understand using a lot of the technology to go as fast as possible for the top end bikes.
But I think a class that I suggested would do well with the street wanna be's.
Who knows maybe thats where the next Top Gas & Funny Bike racers come from.
Me, not so much.. I just want to go out & have fun..
Not finding any project or complete bikes.
But I am thinking of replying to the parts ads for Bits n Pieces to build a ride.
Having bikes is a state of mind.
When I went entrepreneurial I sold all my dirt bike stuff since I didn't have the guaranteed income of my (union) job.
I was way too competitive.. :dance2:
It is exactly that (61) state of mind you lose when in the heat of a race you think you are 21 again.
Not fooling anyone. If I said I was only going out to have fun. :mocking:
maybe Vintage class is good for me....
Why not start with one of your existing FJ's? Save some money.
Why spend it on a used drag bike of unknown providence?
Do some light engine work, oem XJR rods, cams, valve springs, convert to shim under bucket, a set of Keihin FCR or Mikuni TMR's, new shift forks, undercut transmission gears, Barnett coil spring clutch with green or red springs, Dyna ignition, get a 4 into 1 header of your flavor, etc...get an 8" extended swing arm and a 17" GSXR rear wheel on the back and some lower forks for the front (with a stubby windscreen) and go have fun.
With practice and good tuning on a healthy motor....that should get you into the solid 10's...
I would worry about wasting my money on someone else's clapped out drag bike.
If you are feeling frisky, a good upgrade path is Curt Andrew's 1412cc big block cylinder kit for our FJ's.
For drag racing I would include the high end Carrillo H Beam rods on those big 84mm pistons along with bigger valves and some headwork......it's only money....
http://andrewsmotorsports.mybigcommerce.com/cylinder-kit-yamaha-fj-1412cc-84mm-ross-piston-cylinder-kit/ (http://andrewsmotorsports.mybigcommerce.com/cylinder-kit-yamaha-fj-1412cc-84mm-ross-piston-cylinder-kit/)
Add a light 50 shot of giggle gas and you're now into the high 9's...
Paging Chris...reality check please....
Of your list above, maybe 2 items are available, everything else is new & hugely more costly than in USA (even with a NY address).
My thoughts were to get more bike than motor & work my way into it.
If it was a Suzuki or Kawasaki and maybe even a Honda there is lots of projects and or parts available.
Not so much for Yamaha.
I recenly participated in an online auction of a local Custom Bike shop.
Bought up 84 of 281 lots
Not a single piece was Yamaha specific. But am hoping some will fit (maybe with a bit of massaging)
There is a sidewinder exhaust. Keihin carbs, Enkei rear rim, +4 swing arm, frt forks, 4 cyl barrel(pistons vanished), :( nitrous kit, Hoosier tires,
I also want it to support my Ontario Yamaha Group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/143617379501780/ (https://www.facebook.com/groups/143617379501780/)
(Soon to add TX, FJ & FZ as well)
On Sunday I pick up a lathe. Milling machine next..
Planning on offering XS1100 Big bore 1200cc kits, sleeves included.
So a 1380/1400 FJ not out of the question.
NB. IF going quick & fast was my only interest & motivation.
I would get a couple of 2017-2019 R1's or GSXR 1300's from the Insurance auction for 1/4 of what a Yamaha 1100/1200 project will cost.
Agreed, going quick on a FJ will be more money...absolutely. Isn't that the fun?
Look at the description on this beast.
http://sell.dragbike.com/detail.asp?id=2382&n=FJ1200-StreetStrip (http://sell.dragbike.com/detail.asp?id=2382&n=FJ1200-StreetStrip)
".....My partner & I had this bike put together years ago as a money-maker to relieve "young guns" riding & racing Hayabusas and ZX-14s of thier ching. Hey, after all... it's an old school air-cooled Yamaha that looks basically stock - unless you're into drag racing and know why it's scraping the ground, looks kinda' longish and sounds kinda' funny....."
(http://sell.dragbike.com/uploaded/2012-11-7/ef864fc62D90ce2D47a72Da67c2D110f8b81dc7e201224.jpg)
".....The old motor with smaller cams and 1314 pistons with 10.25:1 compression and stock rods and mild cams ran 9.60's at 155mph with 100 HP nitrous shot and me aboard at 230 lbs. This new setup should go 9.0 on the funny stuff with a heavy rider like me and no bars...."
"....This bike is: 1) not for beginners, and is, 2) for those who enjoy tinkering, as something is always in need of adjustment which is necessary to maintain an old aircooled bike in such a high state of tune, and 3) not for the weak/faint hearted who are looking to pose. This bitch will kill you!....."
How could ANYONE say no?
I used another photo of it in my search for a bike.
Never got an answer what happened to it.
If it sold & or where.
Nobody came forth as to where it was.
I found an XS1100 with a chain drive mod & 1380 cc motor.
Hadn't run in years (20)
Needed a total overhaul/refit.
Out of my price range..
There will be another show up.
In the meanwhile, gotta find something to throw a leg over.
Something "dangerous" of the two wheel variety.
The two leg variety, while "dangerous" as you put it, require way more maintenance and are more tempermental than caused by just changes in weather.
I'll keep an eye out for you...
What's your budget?
Just went over to Cycle Trader .com and it's strange to see no FJ1200's available nationwide.
Perhaps they will return in the spring.
There are a couple local Craigslist ads that might be relevant to this thread. One includes FJ parts of varying vintage.
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/mpo/d/san-jose-yamaha-fj-fjr-85-honda-vf1000r/6998435071.html
The other includes most FZR1000 parts. To the OP, a stock FZR1000 is a 10 second bike. They are nearly dirt cheap as no sport rider wants them. They are too heavy for younger motorcyclists at 520#.
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/mpo/d/san-jose-1990-yamaha-fzr1000-parts/7018052392.html
Pat, that's an insane FJ brother. Your balls must be so big you carry them on a luggage rack! :biggrin:
Joe
Quote from: Tuned forks on November 15, 2019, 08:45:16 PM
Pat, that's an insane FJ brother. Your balls must be so big you carry them on a luggage rack! :biggrin:
Nope, not my bike....although I would love to give her a rip...I would need a proper seat for support.
Welcome!
Toronto area? Surely you know and have met CanDman (Kev)!
Are you looking to do 1/8 mile of 1/4 mile?
As long as you are looking to have fun a stock-ish FJ is great on the drag strip. If you want to be beating people, it'll be slow! 600 cc sportbikes (even 10 year old ones) have enough HP advantage to blow by you after the 1/8 mile point.
That said, here's my advice to having fun and going fast without breaking the bank.
Use an air shifter with a good kill box — this is to keep from bending the shift forks and rounding off the shift dogs. If not, you MUST get the gears under cut first! (and should even with an air shifter).
Chassis set up - strap the front forks - great drag strip mod and doesn't compromise streetability. Keeps the forks from acting like a slide hammer and "yanking" the front end off the ground at launch.
Don't worry about an extended swing arm for a while. FJ chassis is long enough it's not critical until you get a lot faster - and can cause traction problems unless your suspension setup is dialed in really well (this is what kicked my butt!).
I would do a 17 inch rear wheel conversion to have better selection in tires. Won't need to go to a shinko right away - a lot of madden tires are sticky enough for the FJ - especially if the surface is somewhat prepped.
Add a second spring to the clutch - and swap in new plates.
CHANGE TO OIL OFTEN!!!!! Slipping the clutch for launch adds a bunch of clutch material to the oil - major cause of spun bearings in any bike that is drag raced (been there, done that).
Before taking a bike to the track, drop the oil pan and clean out the oil pump pickup screen (good thing to do on ANY used FJ...you'll be shocked how much crap you'll find blocking half the screen or more.
I had a lot of warnings about breaking crankshafts on drag bikes. I've never had an issue — I think it becomes an issue with high rpm clutch drops on car tire slick/wheelie-bar bikes. If you are on a street tire launching hard. It still having to "ride it" I don't think you'll have any issues.
Look up Barry Edwards old fjmods UK site - Dan Doran on there ran a setup very similar to what you are looking to do.
It is a lot of fun taking the FJ down the drag strip - and very rewarding. It is easy to make progress at first - it will reward you riding improvements with measurable gains initially. And easy setup improvements on the bike show good gains too. After that, like most things, you have to fight harder for those improvements!
Good luck!
Chris