CBR600F Hurricane advice

I have been poking around a good bit looking for a track bike to learn on instead of my ZX6R that I did my first couple track days on last season. I have been reading alot and trying to make an educated choice. I like the concept of "start on the slowest/smallest bike you ego will allow". I have ridden a 250R and SV650 in anger and can understand the benefit of starting on a bike that doesn't make 100+ rwhp and is easier on tires.

Now that being said, people want a comparative arm and a leg for a new 250R track/race bike (i discounted previous model due to the 16 inch wheel rubber selection) and while the SV is a good option all my friends ride an SV and I don't particularly want one (nothing wrong with it, they are great bikes to go racing/tracking on). So I started looking at F2/F3 v7 bikes. Most ex-racebikes can be had for $2500-$3000 and are setup well enough. Now I know an F3 setup can make enough power that its getting away from my initial concept.

I just found a CBR600F Hurricane for sale for a couple hundred bucks. It doesn't have a title and no plastics, and needs a new rear tire but runs and is cheap. The orginal CBR makes SV type power, and is far less focused than a newer 600. My question is for $350 is this worth it. Will any of the newer F2/F3 suspension/brakes work as upgrades? any advice is appreciated.

 

Here is a thought for you. I just bought my second FZR400, so I need to make some room. I'm considering selling my race ready MZ Skorpion for considerably less than $3K.
Plus, I'm only an hour and a half away from you.

 

Sorry, it's actually about 2 1/2 hours.

 

while the offer is tempting, if I buy something in the $2-3K range I am gonna have to wait until later in the season next year. The only reason I was considering the Honda in the post above was because it was cheap and would give me something to work on/towards in the off season.

So that becomes the question I guess. Is a CBR600F in the condition above worth $350 and can it be turned into a decent track/race bike or would I be better off sitting out another season and buying somthing else.

 

The F2 /f3 is very compairable to the sv650. Most people only look at just Hp on a bike. but when you factor in weight, and handling, the sv is actually a better bike capable of faster laptimes even at the bigger tracks. ( thats compairing stock to stock).


The Hurrican is a turd. It would prob. be a decent choice for a few months, but youll want something faster, and better handling soon. Pick up a nice f2/f3.

 

The main thing I would be concerned about is the title. I almost bought one before I got my f2. An f2 or f3 front end should be pretty easy.

 

Its a direct bolt on.

 

We raced a F1 in the AMA ebc endurance series for 2 years and we had a ball with the bike. Never broke, handled good, and had great brakes. I don't see how you could go wrong with it.

 

If 2 grand is gonna delay your racing. I am afraid the Hurricane won't help you even if it's free. Just guessing here, but:
Bodywork will be $750, brake lines and pads-$150
Suspension, even it's just a refresh and oil and springs - $250
Tires (even one set of BT45s) $250
Chain and sprockets, gearing etc, $200
....setting a street wreck up as a track bike is more epensive than buying a track bike. I have done it both ways. Bonus to buying track ready was that I raced it a half hr after buying it.

BTW- My 1st sportbike when I was 17, was an 89 CBR600. It's still my favourite sportbike of all time, if only looking at aesthetics.

 

well I have no plans of going racing this season, that is perhaps in the future. For at least this year it will only be track days again. If I were to buy it I would track it sans fairing for this season, and since I already have some money put back for buying a track bike next season, maintenance items you have listed are well within budget (minus bodywork). Tally it up and your probably right, to do all the above on the F1 would be around $2k as you listed it above with the cost of the bike. I could pick up a newer ex-race bike for around $2k. The difference is I would spend next season on the F1 learning it and setting it up, rather than on my '07 6R risking cracking her up and not spending the time on the lower power bike learning on something slower like I mentioned before.

I do greatly appreciate everyones insight, please keep it coming.

 

Title?
You don't need a tile for a "track only" bike, just a VIN.
Have the guy write a bill of sale & sign it if it's the legal part that concerns you.
I like your plan: learn incrementally the setting up & riding of a bike.
V7 is a great class to race in (eventually), you have some fast guys in that end of the country.

 

IMO that's bad advice. Title is the only proof of ownership.

 

I think I was the next to the last guy to actually race one of these in WERA. Im almost positive for the SE region anyways. And my son the next season raced the same bike making him the last one I remember seeing on track.
A plus on the Hurricane is you can just about take it bone stock as long as the suspension isnt bad and have a blast on it. You cant compare it to an SV though. Horsepower or not the SV is a much better race bike. The hurricane I would say will last longer dime for dime though. You cant kill them. Ask my son cause he crashed his/mine 20 times in his first season and the thing just kept going. Plus you can race it in V6hw though that class is SUPER FAST and nothing you can do to a hurricane 600 will touch these big V6 guys. It will be fun in the 7mw class cause well some guys like me are just slow and power doesnt really matter. My f3 is alot of power and I still suck.
As for bolting f2/3 stuff on it. Dont try. Fix the hurricane's parts because for that bike they work better than the other stuff plus its not exactly easy to make the swap and then set the ride height and rake to make the bike handle well. Believe me if you fix its stock parts it handles great even if it alittle heavier than some of the other bikes. I will tell you that I still have a couple parts for the hurricane if you need anything or any help just let me know. We have built these things many times and I have a go kart right now with a hurricane 600 motor on it. I did it over the f2/3s which I have more parts for because the engine is so tuff. But you will outgrow it fast. Its a fun little toy bike but you will want more. And it would suck to spend all your money on a hurricane and building it when you can invest the same money into a nice FZR or F3 or SV.Plus there just arent many Hurricanes left out there so getting help at the track would be a nightmare cause no one has any. F2/3s and ect.. those are bikes youll grow into and really some of us never outgrew. By choice or by speed we still ride the vintage bikes for our safety, the good people and good fun.
But all this being said, the Hurricane was some of the most fun I ever had racing on. Skwid and I had some great ol battles in the day of my Hurricane and his ZX10. Its a great learning bike and if dont right you cant go wrong, youll just wish for more. So if you need anything for that bike let me know and if I dont have it I can tell you were right now 4 or 5 are sitting. Some parts bikes some complete.

Pic from GNF 04

 

the next season when my son raced in 05

 

Threadjack warning!
Did you see where this is a $350, 20+ year old bike?
If this was an '09 GSX-R 1k with a scratch in the frame & busted street plastics you might have a point.

 

Threadjack warning

Ok so you have a bill of sale on a 20 year old bike, if it was stolen do you think the guy you bought it from will bail you out?

 

Huh?! Do you mean provide an alibi or do you really mean post up bail?

 

The bottom line is that without title you have no rightful claim to the property. If it gets stolen from you you will not be able to file an insurance claim because you don't rightfully own it, and you will not be able to recover it if it is ever found because it's not yours. Finally, if the person who does have the title (there is a 99% chance it is titled to somebody somewhere) finds out it still exists, they can file a stolen property report as it is their rightful property and get it back, and you go to jail.

 

Hahaha...spoken like a man from New Jersey!

Many many people are doing trackdays and such on bikes without titles. It's a basic risk assessment problem. The hazards are what you've named, but what is the risk that any of that will happen? Most people judge that to be quite low. None the less, you are correct that those things could happen. Will they? Not likely.

Most bikes get sold along without a title because the title holder has lost it and doesn't want to go through the hassle of getting a new one for a POS bike he just wants out of his garage/basement/storage.

 

Doh, forgot to post up a pic of my Hurricane. A buddy raced it back in the day and a few years ago decided to put it back on the street. Has an F4 swinger and 900rr forks and a whole lot of other goodies. Sweet riding machine. Mmmmm..hmmmmm.