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Fairings For Track


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Hi Guys,

 

Hoping for a bit of advice. I want to get some track fairings for my CBR600rr 07. This is my road bike too and I've already binned it on the track once - luckily the R&G crash mushrooms did a great job and I only broke a foot peg - but I know it could have been wayyyyy more expensive!

 

As I'm planning on doing loads of track days this fine (:lol:) British summer I thought I'd better come up with ways of limiting the cost. I'd convert the bike to track mode, line up a load of days over a few weeks, then change it back to road. Then repeat, a month or so later, if you see what I mean.

 

So I see loads of cheap fairing serts on ebay....then I see more expensive things (sharkskin I hear about a lot?). I take it the expensive ones are good woven fibre class and can be repaired, whereas the cheapest ones will be a bugger to fit and then break on first impact?

 

Any thoughts on the best approach /things to look out for? Is there a happy compromise of best bang per buck, so to speak ;)

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I have never used anything but Sharkskinz. The fiberglass is thick, good quality and the fit is spot on.

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Totally hear what your saying.....but on the sharkskin website ,cost of a full set using stock seat weighs in at 1000 USD, with import tax duty that's going to be £756 plus delivery from US. So say 800 GBP minimum.

 

Or I look on ebay and see stuff like this

 

My link

 

Which seems to make out like it's something special and has woven 280 fibre glass (not chopped) which I assume is a good thing? - yet for £360 - less than half the price. This isn't the cheapest I've seen, there are cheaper.....

 

Is this one of those things where you always get what you pay for?

 

I hear about race teams having different crash protection strategies. Some put crash bungs everywhere, whereas others don't bother and rely on top quality fairings....is that when shark skins really pay off?

 

R and G crash bungs aren't cheap, but I've seen first hand they can let you escape from a crash, albeit a lame ass low side, with not a scratch on your fairings. I'm sure the same can be said for the sharkskins....may need a few new stickers though :o)

 

I'm struggling to decide on the right tactic. :blink: The more money I have left over, the more CSS days my wife will let me go on! :D

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All the race fairings that I have seen personally , have all been woven cloth fibreglass - I would be cautious of any seller who claims they're selling top-notch goods but won't name the brand, and throwing FUD at other sellers. Oh, and they're claiming they are not a business(!).

 

Many race fairings are actually produced in the Eastern Europe, so don't hesitate to at sellers from, say, the Czech republic or Slovakia, like Sebimoto

I stumbed across TRS fibreglass on ebay - looks OK on my screen :)

I went for CRC Fairings - UK dealer is www.crcfairings.co.uk

 

I have noticed two major differences between the fairing brands: fit and thickness/weight.

The lower-quality fairings will exhibit a poor fit between panels, so you'll have to work the edges in order get the to fit properly. Oh, do take care on whether they come with DZU's pre-installed or not. Those that pre-install usually also promise you that any replacement panel will fit whatever you had from before.

Thickness and weight: I am in no way convinced that a "thick" race fairing will save your your bike from damages. After all, the fairing is maybe 1/20th of an inch thick, which is not enough to have the required strength. So I'm personally in the crash bungs camp :)

 

A final thing that you only addressed indirectly: are you planning on riding on the roads with the fairing on? Some fairing have cut-outs for headlights etc, which will be very handy for road-use.

 

Good luck,

 

Kai

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Thanks khp. At £510 delivered, CRC could may well be the happy compromise I'm after?

 

How did they fit? Don't suppose you have crash tested? :P

 

Oh and no I wasn't planning on road riding with track fairings on.....then again it may give an easy life?

I am very satisfied with the fit - they fit much better than the Sebimoto I had on my old trackbike.

I have only crash tested the old fairings with two lowsides . It's a b**ch to get the panels to the right shape again.

Oh, I can definitely recommend carbon or kevlar covers for the lower casings. My friends laughed when I mounted kevlar covers on my old R6, but they made sure that the oil stayed inside the engine during both lowsides, although the alternator kevlar cover was expired by then (both low-sides were on the right for some reason).

 

Edit: I bought covers from Motorcycle Carbon Components on ebay.

 

HTH,

 

Kai

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R and G we are using now, their gear is solid.

 

Armour Bodies has done well for us on the fairings, not sure how the shipping would work out for you.

 

CF

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R and G we are using now, their gear is solid.

 

Armour Bodies has done well for us on the fairings, not sure how the shipping would work out for you.

 

CF

 

Thanks for the replies so far.

 

Just had a look at the armour bodies stuff and it does look very imprerssive. They apparantly use a form of plastic originally designed for kayaks, so resistant to high impact. Unfortunately the import tax and shipping puts it in the sharkskinz price bracket, so can't push to that.

 

I'm either going to go with GB racing crash protection which have been recomended by some club racers. I quite like the look and can get their casings cover set for £165. Or R & G's equivilent is cheaper at £144 and I do have their mushrooms!

 

Is it necessary to have a sharks fin? They stop the chain flying off presumably? Are they only required if you remove the standard mudguard?

 

I just need to decide on some rear sets (I have little legs and need to raise my knee/tank position) and I'll have everything for my basic track bike. Oh and some stompgrips of course :)

 

Should hopefully get it all sorted for £1000....

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Slobdog, something to consider...

 

Good race fairings are designed to not just survive reasonable well in a crash, but also to be as lightweight as possible (both those goals are at odds hey!) plus provide less panels and faster removal, and have a catch pan to catch fluids like oil/water as per the regulations. All that comes at a cost!

 

What of those design requirements does your bike need for the track on trackdays only? How about buying scratched OEM panels, and make the job of swapping to track mode easier (read: faster).

 

That's exactly what I did with my older CBR1000RR, I then wanted a cleaner look so did a home respray job and it looks fine, but if you don't care for a few scratches then leave them as you buy them off eBay!

 

Cheap, 100% perfect fit, less mucking around with changing of brackets, just remove the headlights, mirrors, tail and indicators and you're a go!

 

How many CSS's can you then buy with the cash you'd save? Would the skills you gain then follow you to any newer bike instead of being left behind in a racefairing if/when you sell the CBR? Just a thought.

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Slobdog, something to consider...

 

Good race fairings are designed to not just survive reasonable well in a crash, but also to be as lightweight as possible (both those goals are at odds hey!) plus provide less panels and faster removal, and have a catch pan to catch fluids like oil/water as per the regulations. All that comes at a cost!

 

What of those design requirements does your bike need for the track on trackdays only? How about buying scratched OEM panels, and make the job of swapping to track mode easier (read: faster).

 

That's exactly what I did with my older CBR1000RR, I then wanted a cleaner look so did a home respray job and it looks fine, but if you don't care for a few scratches then leave them as you buy them off eBay!

 

Cheap, 100% perfect fit, less mucking around with changing of brackets, just remove the headlights, mirrors, tail and indicators and you're a go!

 

How many CSS's can you then buy with the cash you'd save? Would the skills you gain then follow you to any newer bike instead of being left behind in a racefairing if/when you sell the CBR? Just a thought.

 

Jason, you talk a lot of sense! I'll give that some serious thought. I did see a lot of cheap OEM copy stuff on ebay - it got good reviews too, so the fit can't be that bad....Sure it will probably crack if the panels hit the deck, but there's always duct tape! and if it's cheap enough, it's not that big of an issue to replace!

 

Maybe I was getting a bit carried away? I'll compare the price of cheap OEM with the CRC and see how it stacks up.

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Cool stuff, just to be sure of the suggestion, OEM being the actual original equipment, true Honda stuff... So call up local bike shops or even better, drop into their service departments and ask if they have scratched up panels, usually they have stacks hanging around the rafters... if you speak to the right person high up enough in the chain of command (or low enough) you can grab a few panels for the price of a few beers on a Friday afternoon :D

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  • 2 weeks later...

I concur with Jason, just get on Ebay or wherever and you'll find cheap fairings that someone has already gone to the trouble of scratching for you. if you really care about the colour then you can spray them or find a complete set. I've done the same and you should pay around £20-40 a panel depending on what you get, so you'll have plenty of change from a grand for more track days!

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I have been looking at Nice Cycle plastic fairings on the internet. They look pretty good, and I've read a number of forum threads elsewhere indicating they are a pretty good product. Anyone here have any experience with them and more specifically as track fairings?

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  • 2 weeks later...

So, after weighing it up and getting the green light from the wife, I have ordered the CRC fairings, as recommended by khp.

 

After finding out that a shark's fin is useful in preventing your foot/leg mangled by the rear sprocket, I've also ordered a gbracingcrash protection set :)

 

And most importantly I've booked my place on CSS level 4 at silverstone stowe on 23rd april. Hurray!

 

Before then I'm definately going to get some stomp pads and stainless steel hel lines for the front brakes. I'll probably see how the stomp pads help before buying some adjustable rear sets.......I think I will need them, but we'll see.

 

Thanks everyone for your help B)

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Excellent stuff Slobdog! Make sure we get to see a picture of your bike after you fit it all up.

 

P.s. Level 4 rocks! So much track time and dedicated staff to work with you!

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