How much does it cost to build a stuntbike? It’s a question we get a lot and there is no easy answer – it varies. But for the sake of everyone who has this question weighing on their mind, I’m going to break down two cost scenarios to give you an idea of what to expect.
To build your own stuntbike, starting with a relatively stock motorcycle OR to buy an already setup stuntbike?
Thibault "TiboStunts" Torchy has rebuilt his Honda 600rr into a stunt beast! With the help of shop-stunteam.com and jokeriders.fr, plus some home-garage ingenuity he should be rolling legit in 2013. We get many questions about stunting the 600rr, since it's rather rare to see one at the stuntspot, but Tibo loves his. "For me cbr rr is ideal stuntbike (it's my second rr), the motor is solid, easy for two-wheeled riding and easy for endos," Tibo says.
It’s a common misperception that any old, shitty, motorcycle is a good stuntbike. People always hit us up with questions about stunting Katanas, older Gixxers or any other random sport or semi-sport bike. While it is cool to only invest $500 into a motorcycle you’re going to flip down the parking lot, here are some reasons why springing for at least a Honda F4i or 03-04 Kawasaki 636 is a better idea.
This isn’t big news, but stuntriding is hard on a motorcycle. While it’s not shocking, some people still seem to be upset or surprised when they spend just about as much time in the garage as they do at the lot.
Building a stuntbike can be confusing and unfortunately it's something you should do before you start to stunt. A good place to start with a stock bike is by removing the fairings - you can always put them back on after you get the hang of wheelies.
A “Kleen Air Modification” for a stuntbike is meant to kept over-flow oil from running out the engine into the air box and eventually getting on the throttle bodies. Essentially, you remove the two hoses connecting the front and back of your engine to your air box and run one, longer hose between the two. Now if your bike ends up upside-down during stunting or crashing, the oil stays in the motor, not the airbox.
Setting up a stunt bike can be confusing and frusterating, we have lots of modifications and specialized parts to keep our motorcycles running strong at 12 o'clock and through crashes. The common stuntbikes like the Kawasaki Ninja 636 or the Honda F4i have been troubleshooted through just about every problem and it's pretty easy to find information on how to setup them up right! As the Yamaha R6 rises in popularity among stunters, lots of riders are finding a host of problems under the tank when it comes to getting these bikes stunt-ready. We caught up with Yamaha guru Dave Cutler in Florida to have him lay out the basics on stunting an R6.
You’ve probably noticed gixxers are a rare sight at stunt spots, for good reason; they are an extremely challenging bike to stunt. Still, as we always say, anything is possible so we hit up XDL 2012 rookie and Northeast Chill rider Nick “Sick Nick” Karipis for some insight on stunting a Suzuki GSX-R600.
Clearly everyone can’t have BOTH a streetbike and a stuntbike and if you’re not willing to completely retire to the lot, setting up a dual purpose street/stunt bike might be in your future.