“Fast, Faster & Holy Toledo!”
The Busa Trilogy - Part 1
Click here for Busa Trilogy-part 2

I recently posted a topic in Dragbike.com's discussion forum on the subject of “What would you do to a Hayabusa knowing what you know now?”  I wanted to share some of my findings.  I have explored just about every Hayabusa board and chat room I could find.  I have read through thousands of postings on just about every subject a person could have regarding what has been done, installed, modified and experimented with.  I have visited almost every web site on the planet that has a part, an assembly, or some type of gizmo for a Hayabusa.  These tried and true modifications, parts and accessories are just that, they have been tried and some of them are true.  So take what you like and throw the rest away.  Believe what you will and don’t blame me if you feel I missed something that isn’t in this article.  I’m sure that at this very moment someone out there has just come up with another new dooflodgette, whizgidget or another way to overcome the speed limit controls.  I am listing the topics, modifications and gizmo’s that are out there and being used by some, by others and by myself.  I have purchased, performed and installed most of these on my 2001 Hayabusa myself.

First things first though. If you own a 1999 or A 2000 Busa and you haven’t done this modification, then wake up and smell the repair bill before you destroy your motor.  I’m talking about the recalled, recalled and further recalled cam chain tensioner.  Get rid of that Suzuki self adjusting (so they claim) cam chain tensioner and install either the Suzuki oil pressure cam chain tensioners or a manual one.  There are a few on the market to choose from and after careful consideration I chose the APE billet cam chain adjuster for best value and application.  You can catch them at www.hayabusazone.com and check out Jay’s entire line of trick Hayabusa stuff. Any one of the manual cam chain adjusters found out there are just as effective, I just happen to be partial to APE’s quality and service after the sale. 

The next thing to consider is the kickstand.  My new Busa has almost fallen over twice and scared the bejeezuz out of me when it happened.  The stock Suzuki kickstand does not (in my opinion) swing out far enough to allow the bike to lean over far enough.  You put the stand out with your left foot (you hope) and start to lean the bike over and ….uh…oooooohhhhh. The kickstand wasn’t out far enough????  What gives here?  More aluminum eye candy... that’s what.  I found the perfect replacement for my taste and you won’t find a slicker setup.  Telescoping length of foot and a large foot face allows you to confidently lean your baby over and know it will stay put.  You can buy this very trick, slick, and shiny adjustable aluminum kickstand from Schnitz Racing and Schnitz Racing also has most of these items for Kawasaki’s too.

Since we are performing major surgery on the Hayabusa this year, I thought it wise to inform everyone what it is we are going to do.  With the help of my cousin Mike Caputo, Pro-Modified Suzuki Rider and owner of Maximum Performance in Toledo, Ohio, we are going to transform, not 1, not 2 but 3 Hayabusa’s into very wicked street machines.  We are going to transform a 1999 Black / Gray and a 2001 Black / Silver into Identical bikes.  Both bikes will receive the same of everything except for the performance exhaust system.  We will also turn a 2000 into a Street Bike Shootout monster that will have everything the 1999 & 2001 will have except it will get a Schnitz Pro-Street II controller, carburetors and a 1 piece tail section.  Here is a shopping list that we have been collecting so far these last few months for this project: 

I started this fall back in October while the rest of the lower half of the nation (the warm part) was still out enjoying their rides and the sunshine.  I had to begin thinking about what to do with the frame and deciding the best course of action.  The Hayabusa has so much power and I hate doing wheelies with my bike that I decided to lengthen it.  I talked to one of the best bike engineering shops here in my home state of Ohio, McIntosh Machine & Fabrication owned by Terry McIntosh.  After a few minutes of explanation of what I wanted to do with the Busa, we decided that the best thing was to rake the front end an additional 2 inches and install a 4” over chrome swingarm for the 2001 and the same for the 1999 except it’s swingarm will get a built in air tank (available on request) to the rear giving us a total added length of 6 inches and lowering the front end for both the 1999 and the 2001.  This would not only give me the best chance of quicker launches, but also allow me to keep more control of the front end wanting to go skyward whenever I twist the throttle hard in 1^st thru 3^rd gears. I didn’t need an air tank in the swingarm for the 2001 because it will be using a Muzzy Air shifter system (more on that later).  For the 2000 SBS we decided to do a rake job and make a new 8” over Chromed (of course) swingarm with a Nitrous bottle holder and air tank. 

Front End Rake (click for larger view)

McIntosh Swingarms (click for larger view)

The 1999 & 2001 swing arms are way too cool and they still look stock at first glance.  Terry takes your stock swingarm and adds his magic touch to it.  He creates beautiful pieces which you would be as proud as I am to own.  The results of raking the front steering neck is the front end is now lower to the ground with out having to strap the front end down and it lengthens the bike without having to add a huge amount to the swingarm.  Of course I had to add just a touch more chain to the longer wheelbase and we always keep a roll of both Tsubaki 530HD and 630 Drag chain on hand at Maximum Performance.

A couple of last final steps while we are at McIntosh Machine and Fabrication, the front forks and the dogbones.  We still had to modify the front forks so that we removed the 1.25” of fork sprung length.  Let me explain, when your bike is sitting on the ground and you pull up on the front end, the forks will expand about 1.25” before the wheel starts to lift off the ground.  We don’t want that if we are trying to get the most weight transferred to the rear wheel as soon as possible, so Terry modifies the shocks to remove that 1.25”.  Now when the front end wants to come off the ground, it has to start pulling harder, sooner, making it more difficult to lift off the ground.  When drag racing, wheelies are not what you want, you want immediate forward momentum.  This modification DOES NOT shorten the forks or make your bike any closer to the ground, it only removes that unsprung distance when lifting up on the forks, big difference.

The McIntosh dogbones are for raising or lowering your swingarm to the desired height you want your bike at.  When at the track, you simply turn then until you are lowered enough so that your tire does not hit your rear taillight when you launch.  When on the street, raise it up so that you can take your favorite backseat rider with you.

Did I mention that all work performed on our Hayabusas is being performed by Pro Modified drag racer, builder and tuner, Mike Caputo of Maximum Performance in Toledo, Ohio.  Yes I know, we have the same last name.  Mike is my cousin/brother, can’t remember which after all these years.  Maximum Performance is a small, highly specialized performance shop where we build, race, tune and install just about anything you could ever wish for.  We have a full polishing and chrome service shop (which comes in real handy for myself) operated by Phil Tinsley who also rides the Maximum Performance Street bike Shootout Hayabusa.  We have a stable of over 20 Busa’s to play with and you will always find at least 4 or 5 Hayabusas or ZX12’s in some state of performance building.  Yes, yes I know, ZX12’s.  And why not?  ZX12’s, 9’s and 6’s are also a big part of Maximum Performance.  I can tell you with all sincerity that the ZX’s are very fast bikes.  They are always flying when I pass by them on my Busa (snicker).

The frame, forks and all chrome work are being performed by Phil Tinsley of Maximum Performance where they are now a full service performance shop.  Meaning, they can do it all for you. Whatever you need, we can get it done and in a timely manner.

Well that’s it for this edition of the “The Busa Trilogy”. Parts 2 and 3 will be here soon.  I’m waiting for everything to be assembled and put back together so that we can start on the motor.  That’s where the fun begins.

 McIntosh Machine & Fabrication
937-687-3936
New Lebanon, OH.
Terry McIntosh – Owner

 Maximum Performance
419-531-0300
Toledo, OH.
Mike Caputo - Owner

Until Next Time, Safe Racing to All

Guy Caputo can be reached at Guy@Dragbike.com

Click here for Busa Trilogy Part 2 

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