I found a company in NY that makes robust aftermarket “stunting” frames for the CBR600RR and even includes a title to make the bike street legal.

Has anyone here swapped frames or engines on a CBR600 or similar motorcycle?

How many hours would you expect such a job to take?

I’ve been reading about the difficulty of such a job and many people on the CBR forums claim it isn’t a terribly difficult job as long as you are organized and keep track of the parts. The electric wiring is really the only part I am worried about. Is that a valid concern?

Yes, it is heavier than the alloy frame but damn if the CBR600RR doesn’t look interesting with the steel tubular frame.

I would think the electrics could get a bit tricky requiring slight mods to the new frame (Screw holes for components etc.). I've stripped, sandblasted, and painted a Honda stock frame. Wiring "reinstall" was pretty straight forward. I did take a lot of pics but that may or may not help with a different frame. It took me a weekend to pull everything off and two weekends to reinstall. You'll probably find a a few repairs that you'll want to make on the original harness and cleanup any grime depending on the year. Looks like you'll keep everything but the original frame? Out of curiosity what does this frame offer for "stunting" that the original doesn't?

The electrics would be daunting for me, especially if the bike has a CANBUS system. And I would want an entire set of electrical connectors, in case the old ones are broken or found corroded during disassembly. And are there specialty, Honda only tools needed? I would also want a pro grade motorcycle lift/workstation. Its do-able but quite a project!

It’s cool looking kinda giving it a Ducati esq look but being heavier it would be a no go for me.


Now if your other frame is damaged or you plan on doing some stunt riding I could see it. If it’s designed for stunt riding do they offer bolt on bars to protect the cases.

You need a hobby because you’ve got way too much time on your hands.

I’ve swapped motors in an FZR600 and stripped my ZX9R to almost the frame and put it back together.

It don’t remember it being particularly difficult. I didn’t take the wiring harness out, but it wouldn’t have been a big deal at that point as there’s nothing left connected to it. The good news is it will be the last thing you remove from the old frame and the first thing you put on the new frame, so it will be fresh in your mind.

I wouldn’t be too worried about it if it isn’t a daily driver. So what if it takes a few weeks longer than having a shop do it. You have an interesting project that you can do. It’s just wiring. Take lots of pictures and even draw a map of where each set of wires will go on the new frame.
Plus there’s the internet and YouTube, so if you get in a jam, someone else already has, filmed, and uploaded the solution…

That looks lie a lot of work (and money you'll never recoup). If you like tube frame bikes what about a Ducati Monster?

https://www.facebook.com/marke...ba-9dea-e3ff05577974

You’re gonna need to buy another 10mm socket.

Didn't frame swap but have swapped out the engine and trans a few times on my 00 Heritage

Depending on your skill level, confidence and having all the tools, could probably do it in a weekend, Friday to late Sunday if you have manuals and are not going to do a deep clean, and if you don't break any connectors or don't lose any bolts/screws, etc

Be well organized, bag and tag anything that comes off, baggies at wal-mart are cheap insurance, and a marker or two.

Pictures before, during and after are key, especially if half way through you get called
out for something that keeps you away for a week or more, tag the connectors with labels too since some will be similar type connectors.

Most of the electrical components either land in the tail section, or in the front fairing behind the headlight/instrument panel, so if you leave all of it intact there (in one or the other location depending on what makes sense), it's probably not that big of a deal.

I've swapped an engine out of an '86 Ninja 1000 (Cylinder Head and Exhaust Cam replacement) as well as a '90 ZX-10 (External Shift Mechanism Cover Gasket that can't be replaced w/ the Engine in the Frame) and while a big project, NOT daunting at all.

Take lot's of pics, and make sure you a variety of Tie Wraps. I'd probably use twist ties of some sort temporarily until you've got all the electrical laid in the way you want it, and then Tie Wrap it all down. That way you've got some slack to work with until you're satisfied with all the routing, especially if you want it to look 'Professional'.

Also, you may find (probably?) that the 'Trellis Frame' doesn't hide the factory electrical harness as well as the OEM Frame though...Just something to consider.

And, you don't say, but I have to ask ask...Exactly WHY do you want to do this?

The reliability of the Honda in the frame of a Ducati. Interesting moving art. Absent skill and experience stunting the machine I would not. I can’t imagine stunting. Of course the K1600 GT requires a different style of stunting.

Thanks for the input everyone.

I got this CBR in a trade a few years ago.

I had planned for it to be a track bike as it is wrecked and doesn’t have a title. Something to have fun on and not get too upset if I crash it on a track day.

Then I stumbled upon the steel stunting frame and was surprised to see they provide a title. With one of these frames I would be able to get the bike back on the road legally and assemble an incredibly unique looking bike.

I have no interest at all in stunting but I do LOVE chromoly steel trellis frames almost as much as KTM CEO Stefan Pierer (context : Stefan & KTM’s thoughts on steel frames )

The company that makes the frames will make them in any color you can think of. I’ve been wanting to build a unique custom sport bike for a rather large local motorcycle show.

A CBR600RR with a trellis frame sporting moto2 or MotoGP style fairings would be so neat to build.

Assuming you're not adding or subtracting any electronics should be 1:1 in getting them plugged back in.

What color frame are you gonna get? Yamaha Blue?

A friend who buys storage units just for the motor cycles, got a low milage black CBR600RR and a low milage R1 last year from the same unit. No titles for either bike. He wrecked the damn R1. He generally hunts Harleys but has come home with smaller road bikes like a Yamaha Route 66 in pristine condition but it had sat in storage for 8 years. The untitled Harleys get sold as parts on line.

quote:

Originally posted by FenderBender:
Yamaha Blue?

Suzuki blue. Rizla/Suzuki blue or Triton Blue….The bike was made in Hamamatsu Japan so Suzuki colors make more sense.

Cool project!

Is the geometry of the ‘stunt’ frame exactly the same as the stock frame, like the rake angle of the fork for example?

Slight and nominal variations of frame geometry here and there could result in unexpected and unpleasant handling surprises at speed (not that you would ever exceed the posted speed limit by 2x or more).

Rob

OK I forgot to reply about this thread. Here goes. I race motorcycles. Sadly you end up swapping stuff all the time (I wish it was as easy for collarbones and ribs).
On a race bike like an RR we can do an engine in a couple of hours (two people). In an emergency could do a frame at the track meaning limited facilites in 8 hours (again more than one person).
Now a race bike has a few advantages in that most of the silly road stuff is gone and you don't have to disconnect turn signals and all that nonesense. And its worth noting that all of this assumes you have any special tools needed (often engine mounts need something), power tools (air or battery) and some knowledge of what your doing.
On my own can go from a full street motorcycle to a bare frame in a day. If I just had to put it all back (that's not what you do) back I could do that in a day as well. There's a bit of flux in that depending on how dependent you are on the factory manual to decide what to torque etc.
But in any case you are handy (see your prior posts). This is a weekend project or less. Double check if you need any special tools. Make sure you have a good set of tools. Make sure you know how to do things like set the headset.
Easy. Assuming the new frame actually fits!

Thanks hrcjon and everyone for your input.

What special tools are required? I have a big torque wrench I purchased when I replaced the sprockets on my Raptor 700R.

The frames are pretty good quality and reviews seem positive so I don’t foresee any fitting issues between the engine and new frame.


My plan have a friend who is a motorcycle master mechanic assist with the build seems to have imploded. He has a nice shop with a lift and any tool I’d need so it would likely be a much faster process with his help. Long story short, due to illness he isn’t wrenching much and doesn’t even have his shop anymore.


I don’t think this project is beyond my skills but I know one bolt that won’t loosen or the lack of a specialized tool to remove something could add time and frustration to the project. I once made the idiotic mistake of trying to remove the crankshaft pulley on my Honda Civic without using the special tool. 24 profanity laced hours later I found the tool I needed and was able to remove the damn pulley. I learned that while improvised tools can work sometimes there are occasions when you absolutely need to find the stupid special tool to get the job done.

You need to grab the honda CBR600RR manual for your bike. In the front will be a list of the special tools. You probably won't need most of them since you aren't tearing down the motor. I can't tell you personally since Honda are not competitive in 600's and its been since the F4 days that I actually raced and maintained one. But in just about every bike I've raced over the years you need a special tool for the swingarm removal and the frame/engine mounts. Sometimes you can fabricate them by hacking up a generic socket (like SV frame parts) but mostly its just easier to buy the right part.