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FJ's on the race track

Started by Motofun, July 11, 2022, 08:02:42 AM

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Motofun

I was coaching this past weekend for N2 at the Pitt Race complex.  A kid shows up (I say kid because they're all kids to me) on a really nice stock '85 FJ1100.  I mean it still had 16" wheels and stock brakes.  We were riding in the novice class but I can tell you he was making that bike fly.  It almost makes me wonder why we ever made all the modifications to the original FJs.  I followed him for an entire session and he was upper quartile for the group.  I think better brakes would have helped as he had to initiate braking a bit early to get bike ready to turn.  In any case I had the most fun that session just reliving the past.   :yahoo:
'69 Honda Trail 90
'75 Honda CB400F
'85 Yamaha RZ350
'85 Yamaha FJ1100
'89 Yamaha FJ1200
'09 Yamaha 125 Zuma
'09 Kawasaki KZ110 (grand kids)
'13 Suzuki GSXR 750 (track)
'14 Yamaha FZ-09
'18 Suzuki GSXR 1000R (track)
'23 Yamaha Tenere 7
SOLD: CBX,RZ500,Ninja 650,CB400F,V45 Sabre,CB700SC,R1

Bill_Rockoff

I'm no track expert, but I did a C.L.A.S.S. at Road Atlanta on my FJ when it was stock 24 years ago. (That was the time Reg Pridmore yelled at me - about my rear tire, which was visibly not-new.)

My FJ had the 1988-and-later 4-piston calipers and bigger rotors, and I had good tires and good brake pads, but the bike was not always reassuring to brake and corner even at my Novice group pace. With the stock brakes and suspension, I never got quite what I was expecting out of braking, or leaning in for a corner, or standing up exiting a corner. I had to leave a big margin, because I was never sure how much of it I was going to use.

The stock brakes always had a soft lever and not-quite linear response since new. I just thought "that's what modern motorcycle brakes are like" until I tried a VFR700 and it felt fantastic and stopped effortlessly. My favorite part of the FJR brake system on my FJ now is the lever feel, it's two-finger light and it's firm and reassuring and predictable, and I'm sure that would help. (I NEVER got the hang of braking hard on the stock set-up, and even that was probably miles better than the two-piston ones on the pre-1988 bikes.)

Cornering with the stock suspension was always work, and that "kink" on Road Atlanta's back straight that barely even registered as not-straight at 110 mph in a Miata was a big ol' scary curve at 135+ mph on a stock FJ. I rolled off the throttle most laps because I just couldn't mentally acclimate to leaning, straightening, and then braking downhill and setting up to corner hard for 10A. I really didn't want to wind up in the gravel outside 10A like that 900SS guy did, and I didn't want Reg to yell at me again, and I couldn't reliably modulate my braking and my corner entry turn-in accurately enough to be sure I could keep from sliding the front, or braking too little and running wide.

The higher ride height in back that I get from the Penske could have probably been gained from different dogbones, but with the stiffer fork springs and appropriate damping, it turns in more predictably and holds a line mid-corner more easily. The bike feels like it's 100 lbs lighter, and it does what I expect this way, within the limits of how I can ride it.

It's not that it's "faster" this way, it's that it feels better to me to ride this way and I feel more comfortable going faster on it - the limited speeds I can ride it are slightly less-limited.

The way it's set up now, everyone who has ridden both prefers it to the 998. I did a track day at Barber on the 998 a few years ago and I agree with everyone else who has tried both, "the FJ with the Penske / Racetech works better than the 998 does." If I get another track day this summer, I'll take the FJ.
Reg Pridmore yelled at me once


Millietant

A very successful FJ on the race track (but obviously not stock  :sarcastic:)

Dean

'89 FJ 1200 3CV - owned from new.
'89 FJ 1200 3CV - no engine, tank, seat....parts bike for the future.
'88 FJ 1200 3CV - complete runner 2024 resto project
'88 FJ 1200 3CV - became a race bike, no longer with us.
'86 FJ 1200 1TX - sold to my boss to finance the '89 3CV I still own.

fj1289

I haven't read any of their race reports in a while - thanks for the reminder!

bmart

I used to run my FJs at track days. They're very capable bikes with minimal modification. Low center of gravity. Easily managable power available through whole RPM range.

Other folks:
https://www.pressreader.com/uk/classic-racer/20210817/281638193269680

Serious race bike:
https://bikereview.com.au/classic-racer-t-rex-racing-fj1200/
89 Honda CB-1, 98 VFR800, 04 R6
2006 AMA R1 race/track only **FOR SALE**

RPM - Robert

One of our very own, Ron Oort has been out several times this year on his FJ. He has been making improvements to the bike after each outing.

Here are a couple of videos from early this year.
https://youtu.be/2GKHvCrsWAM
https://youtu.be/0eYk1Wssn7o

Keep an eye out for future posts from him and maybe he'll post the 2023 schedule of the events he's going to attend.


bmart

Very cool! I have no videos of mine. No pictures either, I think.
89 Honda CB-1, 98 VFR800, 04 R6
2006 AMA R1 race/track only **FOR SALE**