Why I sold my R6 to build a GSXR 750 track bike from used parts | Day one
GSXR-750 Frame - The foundation of a Stage 01 Track Bike
Letting go of my 2017 Yamaha R6 track bike wasn’t an easy call. It definitely raised a few eyebrows among friends and family.
Work has been challenging the past couple of years, and it’s clearly affecting my mental well-being. This influenced me to either step away from the sport or switch things up to keep it exciting and perhaps less expensive.
With work picking up and visiting a local track day as a spectator giving me goosebumps and a strong urge to get back out there, I decided to set myself a challenge: could we build a budget-friendly track bike and help others? 🤔
Building a Stage 01 Track Bike
Working with Grant
I’ve grown close to a few people at the track, and one of them is Grant. We met back when we were both moving up from the Novice ranks. Grant’s not just a skilled rider—he’s got an engineering background and a knack for wrenching on motorcycles.
He’s the kind of person who loves taking things apart to understand how they work, stripping away the mystery.
Grant has built bikes before and is our go-to guy at the track whenever there’s a mechanical issue. He’s also the first to raise his hand to help anyone—he’s that person.
When Grant tossed the idea of building a GSXR 750 over the winter, I jumped at the opportunity.
I’m a noob to building motorcycles starting with just a frame, but with Grant’s experience leading the project, I’m confident we’re going to achieve our goal. Keep reading along join our journey.
What’s a stage one build?
The goal is to create an affordable track bike for anyone looking to get into the sport or enjoy a budget-friendly, capable option—whether as a rental or to own—as a track day enthusiast without breaking the bank.
Once this milestone is reached, the plan is to offer stage two builds and track accessory packages.
My role in the build: The look
I want the idea of an “affordable track bike” to be more than something that looks like it’s been sitting behind a garage.
These bikes must look as good as they perform.
My role is to handle the design—from initial concepts to creating and applying vinyl and stickers on the race plastics.
To get started I generated an AI render of what the bike could look like. It won’t look exactly like this, but it helps set the tone of the build.
From frame to the engine starting, 5.5hrs.
On a rainy fall day, I arrived at Grant’s garage to kick off the assembly of the first Stage One - Build. Coffee in hand and my 6-year-old son excited to dive in, we got started.
Together, we reviewed the project plan and outlined our goals for the day. The mission: to reach the milestone of “proof of life.” This meant getting the foundational components assembled and bringing the engine to life for the first time.
Proof of life has been accomplished!
Now that we’re confident the thing has a pulse, the next steps are to button up a few more things to get to the next milestone, “Proof of good health.” This is tested when we transport the bike over Win Racing in Naperville to get it on the dyno.
After the bike is run through the paces on the dyno, we’ll feel confident to move to visuals and the ancillary parts to complete the Stage One package.
Me and my son standing in front of the Stage One build.
In conclusion the next steps
With the bike starting to take shape, the plan over the next few months is to meet about once a month to continue working on the build. Next up, we’ll attach the exhaust, new chain, sprocket, and rear sets. While many of the parts come from previous bikes, we’re prioritizing investment in key areas like braking, chains, sprockets, and the stabilizer.
I’m deliberately holding off on upgrading the suspension and going full exhaust with this build for now. These areas are getting attention, but keeping them moderately stocked at the start saves $2-4k. The goal is to complete Stage One, get the bike on the track, test it, take notes, and then upgrade the suspension and exhaust later to move to Stage Two
Stay tuned for the next build update!