Flat Track "Framer": Racer and Builder Explain

To support the channel: PayPal [e-mail]
What makes a Flat Track motorcycle different? What is a "framer" and why do they exist? Mike Beland, a professional race engine builder, Top Fuel drag racer, and former Flat Track racer helps break it down.
To support the channel with a donation: go to PayPal and use [e-mail] to send. Thanks!!
Merch: FTF Tri-blend Tee printed on sleeve, front, and back | PayPal $45 to [e-mail] with your size and address.
Music Credit:
Title: DC Love Go Go
Artist: Silent Partner
Music from KZbin Audio Library [Aka YAL]
Music provided by RFM: • Video
Disclaimer: These videos are a demonstration for entertainment and should not be seen as a guide on how to modify, manufacture, operate, or alter motorcycles. Anyone who uses them as such does so at their own risk. Motorcycles can be dangerous. Consult a professional mechanic and/or obtain professional mechanical/operation education if you are unsure of your ability to maintain, modify, adjust, operate or otherwise perform mechanical work to any machinery.

[@Monocog007]

As the owner of a DTX bike, looking to buy a framer, this video was immensely helpful. I had no idea all the adjustments that were available. The one ride I took on a friend's framer was mind blowing. Traction is unreal with the shorter swingarm and different geometry. Glad I subscribed!

[@FlatTrackFactory]

There is a good deal of variation from framer to framer as well. As with most things, preparation and maintenance is very influential to the result. Let us know what you find. Glad you found the channel!

[@zztop7306]

I got an ol 75 champion framed bultaco 360 Astro and a 76 factory bultaco 360 Astro. Love that folks are still building frames for flat track.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

That's a nice collection! Are you still racing them?

[@zztop7306]

@@FlatTrackFactory next year I'm planning to attend a couple Running of the Bulls, you may have heard of it. Get the ol compression release goin once again.

[@mrDCunningham]

Not to take anything away from the great riders that race DTX bikes. I think flat track bikes should all be framers. I guess I am old school.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

I'd have to agree.

[@stewartmckinley7639]

Lets just take the front brakes off a 600 supersport. Maybe then it wont be boring

[@jprenst4]

Thanks for a great video guys. Very informative.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@johnmccready4695]

Another great video...full of insight and knowledge only learned through a life time of racing...I'm also building Framer TT500...and because of the vast amount of information you've shared with us...I have a clear understanding of which direction to go....tractable power and...seat time....lots of seat time.. Thanks again for sharing...

[@FlatTrackFactory]

That is awesome!

[@oneofmany1087]

I have an SR 500, Man I love the Yamaha 500 Great bikes

[@skycaptain224]

Just found your Channel! Great stuff, please don’t stop! 👍🏻

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Welcome aboard! More to come.

[@bryanwhitton1784]

An old flat tracker here. I used to race a Harley Sprint ERS then one day at the races I was "helping" Mert Lawwill unload his bikes at the San Jose 1/2 mile and I asked him how to make my Sprint more competitive he said get a Yamaha. So I purchased a Champion framed Kawasaki Bighorn with an F81M close ration gearbox and 38mm Mikuni carb on it. Then took the whole thing to Jeff Bratton to have it ported properly. That was so much fun. This was my first video of yours to watch. I have subscribed and look forward to future videos. Thank you for the memories.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Very cool story! Thanks for sharing. I watched him in On Any Sunday about 100 times.

[@bryanwhitton1784]

@@FlatTrackFactory Yeah, me too. I raced District 36 so Fremont Raceway, Hayward Speedway,, San Jose, Lodi etc. Later in life I raced CMRA road racing with a TL1000. 1998 won the heavy Weight Twins Novice class. 11 wins, 1 3rd and I had to work one weekend. The 3rd was on a Honda 650 Hawk as my TL broke a chain in the endurance race on Saturday and broke the cases. So a good friend loaned me his Hawk for my race. I thought I had 2nd wrapped up so I backed off on the white flag lap and got passed. Nearly got him back before the checkered. My favorite flat track track was Fremont Raceway. I raced all the ovals but like 1/4 mile the most. Even though the speeds are slower the racing is closer and for me I loved coming in after the race with tire marks on me and my bike. 😆

[@johnb4183]

Great information , very interesting. Excellent video

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@attheflattrackraces4662]

Excellent, thank you for the great video.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@randysiler7458]

Very cool info. I never new they were called framers. Even though I know of a lot of XR750’s had aftermarket frames. 👍👍

[@Dan-qp1el]

The "long/short" points were interesting. As a non-racer, I was really amazed at that trick, and the amount of impact it has on traction.

[@jasonduplantis6442]

Excellent Video

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@fjp3305]

Great video, learned a lot.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@tinymotogarage]

New sub - getting more interested in FT. Saw a YT show recently that said about the sport "it's easy to go round in a circle, but that means it's easy for everyone - which makes it very difficult to do it better than anyone else" - interesting. Nice channel - thanks.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Awesome! Thank you! That comment on the ease of going around in a circle is dead-on. Check out the newer vid with Dale Quarterley where we chat about exactly that.

[@supercuda1950]

great explanation and video.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Glad you liked it!

[@erikmhartley]

Great video

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Thanks, man!

[@jcatsby]

This video was awesome. Thank you

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for checking it out. Had I known it would get pushed by KZbin, I'd done a better job!

[@jcatsby]

@@FlatTrackFactory You did a great job as-s! I'll definitely be tuning into more of your content!

[@slimmerik1]

Very nice content!

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Glad you think so! Thanks for the visit.

[@gb-bp1me]

Great video!

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Thanks for the visit

[@davegoldspink5354]

Absolutely brilliant video. It’s funny hearing these fellas talking about flex personally I started riding as a little tacker in the late 60s and even now days I still prefer the older styles of bikes that have old tube frames and wire wheels.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Thanks for the kind words! Glad you enjoyed our bench racing session. Cheers!

[@davegoldspink5354]

@@FlatTrackFactory was the first of your videos I’ve seen and even though we don’t have flat track racing here in Australia that I know of I still found very interesting and informative specially after my years of racing both on and off-road a very long time ago. Am looking forward to viewing more of your work. Thanks and cheers.

[@MrSupertysken]

Sooo good video🙌

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Thank you!! 😁

[@harrisonbosley6812]

My vintage RD Yamaha framer has First Class Glass on it, I bought it directly from Jack Warren. I was running some vintage races in Michigan and used to see Jack almost every weekend. He was fun to watch on his Triumph twin, he is a very skilled rider.

[@rader1175]

Jack Warren was number 82 when I was young he was one of my favorite riders. Remember one blue Norton he rode . Watched him on the Ohio tracks in the sixties, he Ronnie Rall, George Roeder Sr. were tough to beat for awhile.

[@harrisonbosley6812]

I believe Jacks Triumph carried the number 82 when he was running District 14 here in Michigan, that would have been early 1990's. At that time we had quite a few old timers riding some very fast Triumph's riding the circuit, the Wertz brothers riding for Saginaw Cycle were impressive too. I knew Ronnie Rall well and he was impressive even in his senior years. I took a hard crash in Ashland Ohio in 2001 during AMA vintage day's, busted my hand and and other injuries. A few months later at a benefit race here in Upper Michigan I tried to ride my RD and my hand was not up to the task and Ronnie said he would ride my RD, he went out and won his heat on my RD but the race was called because of rain so they gave out the trophies according to time in the heats and Ronnie was given the second place trophy, he gave it to me and I still have it. Good old day's for sure.@@rader1175

[@OnoSata]

Go round in circles.. :D 1959 Pulled into the pits(Atascadero) My 2 year old son says "Daddy go round in circles"

[@peterdouglas4073]

Stumbled across your channel today. 👍👍 I'm in Australia and while there is flat track racing, build info is scarce. I've converted my sportster to a dirt bike. The goal is to have a low maintenance tourer that can do high way and big distances off road. With good handling 1st and 2nd then power. I have been playing with rear wheel position for a while and swi g arm angle. I like the idea of the insert in the triple clamp, definitely going to look into that. I currently working on getting the footpegs low. Which I hope will help with weight transfer from side to side. But the exhaust is in the way of that will have to change. And the rear break is a bit vague so I might try and fix that at the same time. I am looking forward to going back through some of your past videos.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Thanks for commenting. Keep us updated on your build!

[@OldMotorbikeMan]

One sweet ironhorse, no matter what or where its for, cool video also

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Yes! Thank you!

[@alanleighton8148]

Awesome Guys, here in the UK flat track is growing, as we use Speedway shale tracks but much smaller.. Do you.show a flat track build from scratch please?

[@timothyturner9134]

would any daily ride this ... i love the style

[@mikeskidmore6754]

Allow a Motocross bike ? I thought the idea of using Motocross bikes was to avoid the cost of a Custmer Frame bike RIP Champion and Red Line ...

[@edquier40]

Love the framers! I enjoy my Champion, Trackmaster and Knight framers, sold my Lazer and regret it!

[@goldcountrystorage]

Don't forget Panther, made here in BC!

[@lawrence471]

My brother had a td2 twin flattrack verry few made. Bent the frame at a half mile.

[@9rjharper]

Just a friendly heads up. Chromoly weighs the same as mild steel, it’s just stronger so sometimes you can use less of it.

[@teamgonzo9289]

I don't want to set up my XS-650 with a swingarm, and new forks. Redline/ Champion/ you know!?? 4130 chrome moly chassis. I am a few hours from Reno. Found a good source of material. Got a great citified welder, does mig welding at low temps. so it doesn't take away the strengthening priorities of the metal. Now all I need is a pipe cutter. Someone who can match the different size diameter tubing together, perfectly, like a puzzle. Have three XS-650s I want to build three different versions of this bike. A "street tracker" A "cafe' racer" And a "scrambler", for my daughter. Right!??? But I'm paranoid, I'm in the ballpark with the numbers. Steering head rake and trails, Wheelbase . But putting a DR swingarm on them, has great looks, but not where I want the center of gravity to be. The frames are old and heavy, rusty and done. Looking for a little help, maybe just pointed in the right direction. I hear registering new frames is a real headache especially here in California. Thank you for your time. I love your video and subscribe to your podcast!!! 👍 I will share with others✌️

[@bartverstijnen2346]

I’ve ridden a dtx bike here in europe for 4 years, but bought a Knight framer last year. I’m especially curious how it will handle on the pea gravel/marble like speedway tracks we run here. Bought it without the rotax engine it was made for, and i’m putting a Honda XR600 engine in it now.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Congratulations on your new race bike. Assuming the chassis is straight and bearings are well maintained, you should have a strong base to build a pea gravel ripper! As you probably know, chassis settings to get ride heights and angles in the proper range, then fresh forks/shock rebuilds, and good tires (with a proper cut, if allowed!) are some other things to work on during the winter. I've never ridden a proper speedway track, but I like to watch those races. I think the XR 600 will give you nice, tractable power delivery. Let us know how it goes.

[@bartverstijnen2346]

If you’d like to get to know the european flat track scene, look into the DTRA in Britain, Hells race in Holland, and Krowdrace in Germany. If you search any of those three names on youtube, you’ll have a few hours of video to enjoy. Hope you like what we’re doing here.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

I checked out those series you mentioned. What a great vibe! Any Euro sponsors interested in bringing an American Flattracker and his Rotax over for a few rounds? If so, send me an application!

[@dawsonangell1884]

THIS IS MY DREAM FOR MY DAILY RIPPER BIG 2 STROKE PRO TAPER BARS FLAT TRACK FRAME TANK AN ME THATS IT

[@lawrence471]

Chromybydnem tubing is verry rigid but cracks when bent.

[@jeremylucy8836]

Set-up for traction......hmmm, I would say so, saw those screws in the rear rim 😉 Have you ever spun the rim on a tire before?

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Yes. Hence, the screws 😁😁

[@williambarrus9299]

Nice overview. No, it wasn’t too long. 😊

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Glad you liked it!

[@barbworden8612]

Would a framer be better than a motorcross frame for TT or vis versa?

[@Monocog007]

DTX bikes typically handle TT tracks better, or at least the jumps, just because of the frame and suspension are built and designed primarily for motocross. Watch some singles/twins AFT races at Peoria and you'll see what I mean.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

The laptimes I found from Peoria have the Twins just slightly faster. The jump was recently reduced in size, so that is a factor to some degree. Peoria has a pretty long straight, which is another factor. Track surface (rough or smooth) is a factor. Twins are heavier and more taxing, so it's not hard to imagine a situation where a single would be faster. Fun to think about!

[@AlcatrazloveAugutha]

Why the engine have no top mount?

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Some feel it allows a little more flex, thereby possibly supplying a bit more grip in some scenarios. The design of this particular chassis doesn’t allow that top mount to do much anyway.

[@boycottjews]

Twin might be worse, but they look right to me.

[@boycottjews]

Sweet video. So adjustable

[@terryperrott8567]

What's the difference between a retex motor & a " Speedway " motor

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Great idea for a video! I'll see if I can get my speedway buddy to have me over and I'll ask.

[@FlatTrackFactory]

Did you see our latest video answering your question? Cheers!