Figured I would try to document the overhaul of my desert racer, now that I am going to start reassembly. This rebuild actually started back in December of last year when the transmission failed at the last race of the year, you can go here to see what happened:

http://www.trx450r.org/forum/index.php?sho...c=67966&hl=

A little background on the quad. I originally bought it at the end of 2004. Started building it into a desert racer at the beginning of 2005. Its first race was a local night race during the summer of 2005. After that my teammate and I (who happens to be my cousin) decided we wanted to race the Best in the Desert series (www.bitd.com). Our first BITD race was in January of 2006, since then we have raced every BITD race except two in 2007. We have only had two DNF's in that time, one engine failure in 2007, and the above transmission failure last year. The quad has raced pretty much unchanged other then normal maintanence and rebuilds since the begining of 2007, so it was about due for a total overhaul. I have attached a few pics of what it looked like before I tore it down below. (These pics are from last summer getting ready for Vegas to Reno, but they are the latest pics that I have.) The quads last race was the 2009 Parker 250 in January of this year. I had to pull the motor from my practice quad to use for this race, as the race motor was still sitting with the broken transmission. We ended up 6th.

I was actually pretty happy with the way the quad worked, but it HATED any type of square edge bumps. Big or small, it just would try to throw you on your head. I decided I wanted to do somthing differenet with the suspension. I really feel the problem was not with the Elka/Houser set up, but more that I was using a MX setup on a desert quad.

I am still waiting on parts for the suspension setup, but I decided to go with Teixeira Tech for the a-arms and linkage. Ed Teixeira is a desert racer that I actually raced against back in 2007. I really feel Ed is making some great parts for quads, and he is making some desert specific parts.

For shocks I am going with Motowoz. I have heard nothing but good things about them. Jim over at Motowoz has spoken to Ed and set up a rear shock a little different for the Teixeira linkage to get some extra travel out of it. I am really looking forward to trying it out.

Unfortunately, as we all know, it sometimes takes time to get these parts, so no pics yet, but I should everything by next week. In fact, the only real pics I have right now are how the quad has sat for the last three months. I know, it is sad.

Sweet ride, looks like you can take some deep whoops. The RaZr2's look so aggressive.

I am at close to getting the motor done, the bottom end is together. After the transmission failure, I had to replace everything in the transmission and one case half. I also installed a all new crank, along with new bearings and seals throughout the entire engine. Yes, it was NOT even close to cheap.

I ended up sending my new transmission parts to Moto-xperts of there transmission mod and ISF coating. I did not get any pics of it, I was just so happy to get the parts I assembled the bottom end before I could get any!

I bought a new Venom exhaust and had John port and assemble a new head along with all kibblewhite valvetrain components. I figured if all the bottom end was new, might as well be sure everything is new. Now you know the reason is has taken me almost five months to get this back together!

I run a big bore kit. (Not going to let the competition know the size! haha) few people seem to run them in the desert, but since myself and my teamamtes are, well, "big boned", we like the extra torque. (Yeah, it just means we are fat!) Piston is only 12.5:1 compression. I still run 100 octane gas, but I want the ability if needed to run pump gas. (Never now what kind of gas I will get if I need to borrow some from someone at a pit stop.)

I have attached a few more pics below. That is about all I have for now. I plan on doing some more assembly on Sunday, so should have some progress pics in a couple of days. I am hoping to go testing next weekend!

Thanks. I really hope after the suspension mods it will work better in those whoops!

I really do like the Razr2's. They hook up really well, but the rears wear kind of fast. (The fronts wear like iron.) I think we are going to still run the razr2's on the front, but switch to regular razr's on the rear, a little cheaper to replace. I actually bought one set of razr's for the rear to test and see if we like them.

Doug

Look like its come'n along!! That suspension is going to be bad a$$!!!!!

Got some more work done on Sunday, but not really much to show. Finished putting the motor together and bolted it into the frame. Pretty much just waiting on suspension. Shocks shipped today and arms, linkage and stem should ship on Weds. Should have everything together to go ride on Sunday.

The frame is stock with a Bare kit that was welded in back in 2005 and powdercoated gloss black at the end of 2006. At the end of 2006 the frame had one crack in it, but that was due to too short of a coil spring on the rear shock causing it to coil bind. Once that was fixed the frame has been fine for over two years. Even the powder coat still looks pretty good!

Doug, good luck with the build and post pics of the skidplate modification when you get a chance. I decided to go with the teixeira linkage and motowoz LT shock along with the new LSR frame and I had the engine rebuilt while it was apart. I am hoping all the parts will show up friday so I can build it and race it Sunday.

Mounted up the carb. It is a stock Honda carb off a 2007 CRF. This is a mod I just did and only have the one race on it, I really should have done it sooner! The throttle response with this carb is just incredible. Installed with a Noss machine adapter and I will be using the stock airbox.

Got some parts delivered today. First are the new Douglas wheels. Rokout front and G2 rear beadlock. Then I also got my shocks, just need to get a-arms, linkage and stem and I can get this thing together!

do most desert racers run aluminum wheels?

Yep, I have seen very few run Hipers.

Doug

Ah hah Doug, I knew that motor wasnt stock....LOL...

I hope the shocks run better for ya. Althoug I really like you old Fox Floats, thanks.

We will be out there at the pits at the Blue Water GP, (sitting on the boat drinking soda pops). I really do miss racing with you guys, but the car thing has really bit me.

Where are you getting the skid plates done, AC allready has the dimensions for a skid plate for the Ed Tex link that we designed with them. I also have 2 of them if you need me to bring em out let me know. The only bummer about the Ed Tex link is that the skid plate can only use four bolts, the middle ones get cut out. Use lots of red loc tite.....

That bike is going to fly, good race to debut it too as its shorter and tighter then most BITD races, and you will need the HP to pull those other quads. I remember it being pretty rough and dusty last year. I remember on the first lap a row of about 10 of use in 2nd gear bumper to bumper in a complete white out. No one wanted to pass or go any faster. Thats the race I went off the side of the mountain chasing Doug Stoff in the dust. Talk about soiling your riding pants..

Hurry up and get that thing done and break it in, the race is coming in 2 weeks.

from what ive seen hipers splinter and crack and of course steelies are just too weak. ive put BIG dents and dings into .190 aluminum rims and even rims with reinenforced rings like baja t-9's.

lookin good doug, wish i had some money to throw into the ole R, im still running the stock rear shock and linkage!

Hehehe, of course not! In 2007 I finally decided I had to do something because I was tired of the quad not being able to pull top gear going up the sand washes. This motor that I built is pretty much the same as what I have been running the last two years.

I spoke with Ed about the skid plates, he said it is possible to keep the middle two bolts. I have a brand new skid plate that I got just for this quad, so I am going to try and keep them, we will see how it turns out.

If you are at the GP stop by and say hello, I already sent the entry in so I know we will have a pit spot on the river. I just need the stuff from Ed and I can go out and start getting this thing dialed in!



Pretty much right with the hipers, they do not bend, they break, not easy to keep riding with a broken wheel, but you can ride on a bent wheel. Plus they are to expensive. I have four sets of tires, that would be alot of money in wheels.

I actually ran ITP bajas in 2006 and 2007. We probably bent at least one a race, if not more. (The last race of 2006 all four were bent!) At the beginning of 2008 I switched over to the Douglas Ultimate SC's (yellow labels). We have bent one wheel since. I am pretty much sold on the Douglas wheels.

Doug

I am excited to see this thing come together, finally. I was getting used to just seeing random parts spread out all over your garage. Hopefully you can get it together and run it Sunday. Like 5150 450r said, the race is only a couple weeks away. I know a good section out at Jean you can run the new Motowoz through

Doug,
According to the UPS tracking #, your parts should be there Monday.

I'm very curious to how your skid / rear shock /inkage works out because i'm ordering pretty much the exact thing very soon. how big did your rear shock end up being? 18"?

Thanks Ed!



Shock is 17.75" eye to eye and 5.75" of shaft travel. For comparison, my other 450R has a Teixeixa linakge and Fox shock. Same eye to eye measurement, but only 5.5" of shaft travel.


Well, little change of plans. Since the rest of the suspension will not be here untill Monday, and I am impatient, I swapped shocks with my other 450R so I can try the Motowoz. (My other 450R already has Teixeira arms and linkage, but I am using the Fox shocks on it.) Should be a good comparison, going to try it out tomorrow!

Well, I got to ride my practice quad with the Motowoz over the weekend, I am impressed, the shocks worked really well. I liked them better then the Fox shox. Only problem is I need a stiffer rear spring, I had a bunch of preload and still could not get the ride height to where I wanted, need to call Jim over at Motowoz and discuss with him today. Should have the rest of the suspension for the race quad today after work, hopefully will have the quad finished and able to go out and break in the motor this Friday! I will try and get pics up tonight of the arms, stem, and linkage.

Doug

devilish grin :) im workin nights, im getting ready to eat dinner. i will call you on my way to work doug.

So I got home from work and a box from Teixeira Tech was on my porch. Below is Teixeira Tech's desert a-arm kit. They are a true +3 and slightly forward, so width with 4:1 offset wheels right around 51". They are camber and castor adjustable. I also got the needle bearing upgrade for the pivots rather then the regular bushings. I also like the fact that the lower shock mount bolt is threaded at the back, you just use your stock lower shock bolts, no need for a nut on the back of the arm. These same a-arms are also made in a MX width and XC width.

I did not get any pics of the stem untill I installed it, I was just to excited and I forgot the camera inside the house! I also got a set of Harkor Engineering front hubs, these use a tapered bearing instead of the usual roller bearings. I also ordered a set of rear Hardkor hubs, but they are on backorder due to Hardkor trying to find a new machine shop. Hopefully will not be to much longer. I ended up getting the front end pretty much together, just need to tighten everything up.

Last thing for tonight is a couple of pics of the rear linkage. I can not get to far on the rear suspension as I need to wait for the stiffer rear spring from Motowoz, should have it in a few days.

Tick Tock Tick Tock.....Hurry up Doug, race is a week and a half away.

Just kidding, looks like the bike is coming together well. You and the Klines better kick some butt on that thing. I heard Robbie and Jay are running in the Pro class that race, which is good for all you experts, they are wayyyy fast.

I know, I know, starting to run out of time. Yes, I jumped for joy when I heard Robbie was running pro! As far as I am concerned, this race is all about getting a good start. Good start, you will be up front, bad, in the back. Race is to short to make up time on anyone. (I can not wait for Vegas to Reno! I really like the longer races.)

I had a little set back with the stem. I could not use Ed's clamp as he only makes them for 1 1/8" bars, and I run 7/8" bars to get extra height. (Teammate is 6'6" tall.) I was going to reuse my Houser clamp, but the sleeves would not work, to large. Called Ed and he is shipping his sleeves and bushings to me, (Thanks Ed!) then I can use the Houser clamp. Should be here Friday, so still going testing on Saturday. Still waiting on the rear spring also. Plan on putting what I can of the rear suspension together tonight.

Doug

If you go here:

http://www.trx450r.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=74414

I posted pics of the skid plates I cut up. The first one is without the middle two bolts that I cut over a year ago. The second is the one I cut tonight to keep the middle two bolts.

Doug

Yes, the start is the key. It reminds me of a D-37 GP. You need a good start and you cant make one mistake or you get passed. I was in traffic with other riders the whole race. I got a terrible start and was in the dust, running into wrecks and pile ups, it was a nightmare. My suggestion is just stab it and take the first left with your pants on fire. Once you make the quick right u-turn up front, you are good to go. I lost 5 minutes on the leader due to my crappy start.

I hope you guys do well, I be pulling for your team.

Thanks Neil. I plan on letting my teammate start, he is more agressive then me. I plan on riding either the 2nd and 5th, or 3rd and 6th, just depends on what my other teammate wants to ride. I am sure I will see you down there somewhere. You should at least bring your quad and ride the open race, will only cost you $50 plus $25 for a membership. You are driving all that way anyway, might as well get some riding out of it.

Doug

Can you post pics of the link installed..

That things coming out nice! Ready to see the final pics!!

This is the only one I took. I can get more after the weekend if you want them, I alreay installed the skid plate, not much to see now.

Doug

IT LIVES!! Not completely done, but the motor has been started and I rode it around the block a few times. I do not like to put the plastics on untill I start it, then if something is wrong, I do not have to take them back off again. Motor started thrid kick, always a good thing. The transmission feels real smooth, feels different with the mods that Moto-xperts did. Next pics I post it will be ready for testing tomorrow.

Doug

doug, can i borrow your credit card? your desert quads are always so much nicer than mine! lol

You guys dont have problems running nerf bars?....i had to ditch mine a long time ago bc they would catch rocks and when i hit big dips high speed i almost supermanned it one time bc they would dig in.

nice progress btw....noticed you got rid of your old elka setup??

Nope, sorry, no borrowing of the credit card!




Never had any problems running nerfs, I do seem to be one of the few that runs them though. I actually thought about taking them off, but about two yers ago I hit a g-out and the rear kicked and about bucked me off. (Actually the only part of me still on the quad was my hands holding on to the handle bars!) When I came back down I landed off to the side and ended up on the nerf bar. If the nerf bars were not there, I would probably have ended up in the hospital. After that, I decided they are staying.

Yep, the Elka's are gone. never really had any problems with them, I just do not think the geometry of my Elka Houser MX setup was matched to desert. (Not enough up travel.) I already like the new setup much better!

Doug

Its done! for now anyway. (I will explain the "for now" part in the next post.) Went out and put about a hour or so on it to make sure I have the motor fully broken in. Quad worked great, played with the suspeniosn some to get it dialed in. Going to take it out tomorrow one more time and let my teammates ride it, then on to final prep before the race next weekend!

Below is a sneak peak at the reason it is only done "for now". I have brand new plastics and grahics for it, but decided not to run them for this next race. This race is a short Gran Prix (less the 70 miles.) and has one water crossing and a couple of small mudholes. Did not want to put brand new plastic on, by the end of the first lap, you will not be able to see them anyway. Our next race after this one is in August, Vegas to Reno, the long way. (About 1,000 miles over three days.) This will be the biggest race of the year, so I want the quad to look the best, hence the reason for saving the plastics.

doug, i am speechless... damn i am lucky to be able to ride that beautiful quad. thank you.

nice bike man ! im working on mine!

Took the quad out Sunday for the last of the testing. Both teammates liked the new suspension, did not even have to change anything! To bad I forgot the camera. As far as I am concerned, the quad is done, at least until it is time to put the new plastics on, hopefully in about a month. I will post some more pics then.

I do need to thank all my sponsors. Ed at Teixeira Tech, Toby and Jon at Moto-xperts, Nate at Dirt Tricks, Douglas Wheels, and IMS products. Without their help, this would have taken much longer. All the help is greatly appreciated!

Doug

U HAVE FOX FLOATS SHOCKS ? AND U LIKE MOTOWOOZ BETTER?

Yes, I even liked my revalved/resprung Elka's better. Not alot bettter, but still liked them better. The Floats are good shocks, but I feel they are not perfect. (they did work better then the Elka's did as they came from Elka.) Over little stuff, (braking bumps, stutters, etc.) they are really harsh, but they work good on the big hits. If I make them work better on the little stuff, they did not take the big hits well enough. Both my Elka's and the Motowoz (The Motowoz are even better.) work great on the big hits and work pretty good on the little stuff also. I like the Fox shocks, but in my opionion, they are not the holy grail of shocks that everyone seems to make them out to be.

Doug

really cause I was thinking of getting the Fox Long Travel but I could get Motowooz for a much reasonable price!

a good ole' honda motor on a YAMALUBE box, whats up witht that crap, quad services should take custody fo that quad

looks awesome doug, nice job!!

Actually, I have ran Yamalube in this quad since I bought it back in 2004. Long story on why, but I have never had any oil related problems, so as far as I am concerned, it is good oil. Since I rebuilt the motor, I switched to Honda HP4M, only because I got a bunch for free and the Honda oil is cheaper then the Yamalube now. My other 450R still runs Yamalube, and my 250R runs the Yamalube two stroke oil. I have always used the Honda trans oil in everything.



Thanks Trent, how is your rebuild going? You will like the Motowoz/Teixeira combo!

Doug

That is the only one I needed. A picture is worth a thousand words...

Hahaha I have to say



I RUN YAMALUBE TOO!!!!


wooo lol those teixeira tech linkages are supposed to be amazing too nice bike

Thing looks great and ready as hell. See ya out there.