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17" wheel conversion for 1st gen GSXR's.

11K views 5 replies 5 participants last post by  Long_av8r 
#1 ·
This is one of the most frequently asked questions about mods to the oilers. The reason for this is painfully obvious... tire choice. Simply put, there isn't much in terms of 18 inch radials, and if you have a 750 with that skinny rear wheel, there is nothing available that will work. I know a lot of people have mounted a 160 on the back of thier 1st gen 750 with a 3.5 inch wide wheel, but the fact of the matter is, that 160 squeexed onto that small of a rim isn't as wide as it would be if it were on the proper size rim, and the profile is crowned which means dangerous handling

The whole idea behind this swap is to give your bike new rubber, and in some cases wider rubber. In all honestly, have always thought that a 160 rear is plenty on a stock or lightly modded street ridden 1st gen 750, but for those that want to go wider, you can mount a 180 back there with slightly more effort than what it takes to do a 160.

Most often this swap is accompanied by a suspension and brake upgrade in the front, but changing the forks is not entirely necessary though you will have to change the brakes.

For the simple 17" wheel conversion using a 160 rear you will need the following:

1) 17" Wheelset from a 88-89 GSXR 750 (these had the 4.5 inch wide rear). Get these as complete as possible because you will need speedo drive, cush, brake rotors and all of the spacers.

2) New bearing set for the front wheel (I forget the size so I'm going to have to look it up and update this later, but if memory serves me right its a 47x17x14).

3) 1st gen 1100 front brake calipers.

The rear is a simple bolt on deal. Take off your old rear and using the spacers from the 88-89 model and the brake hanger and disc from your 1st gen, bolt it all back into place. It may fit kind of tight and you might need someone to help you "spread" the arm slightly, but it will go. No other modification is necessary.

The front is a little more complicated because you have to remove the wheel bearings first. Once they are out, you put in the new bearings (a good source is www.vxb.com), and the rotors (if they aren't already on). Do not mount the wheel yet.

Next thing is the calipers. The 750 calipers were made for a smaller diameter disc, so they won't clear the new rotors. As luck would have it, the 1st gen 1100 used larger rotors, so the 1st gen 1100 calipers bolt right up to the 750 fork. So, remove your 750 calipers, and then install the wheel. Once the wheel is in place you can mount the calipers. They will fit close, and if you have a tall bleader screw, you may have to switch to a lower profile one, but they will go on.

And there you have it, the easy as pie 17" conversion. If you have any questions, or if some of you others that have already done this see that I left something out, just post it here.

I'll write up the suspension swap in another thread, and I'll post the info for the 180 rear a little later in this thread. Hey, I got a life outside the internet you know!
 
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#4 ·
17 " Water cooled rear wheels work on the 1st gens. The 93-94 1100 directional spoke or the 95-98 straight spoke, 5 " . I believe the W.C 750 is the same. You will need the sprocket carrier,brake hanger & spacers. The rear rotor is a bigger rotor for the W.C rear wheel. I know i took a little material off the backside off the brake hanger & made a custom spacer for the brake side.
 
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