6 lbs isn't much, pull the rear caliper brake mechanical and cable and assoc parts and that's 2lbs. Stock pipe and muffler is an easy 5/6 pounds.
I think it's more about better rear shock workings and perhaps better geometry. I still believe that weight is secondary to strength. If all it was is weight we would have seen a lot more aluminum, titanium, and/or beryllium frames, regardless of toxicity. Aluminum is more rigid then steel but if Honda really wanted to, they could have made their own "race" frame, in limited production runs. Honda builds a lot of aluminum frames for other units, they have the technology and processes. It's hard to say how Honda justifies production changes or numbers, if they had continued production past '89' things might have been different, but we'll never know. I don't think Honda predicted the continued popularity of the 250r some 30 years later.
desertR
