Custom TRX450ER

    A few months back I traded up this bike as a used 2007 Honda TRX450ER, at that time this bike had been rode very little and had not been abused but the starter clutch was out and it had been sitting for several years so it needed some work. At that time My Plan was to get the bike running and ride the wheels off it and for the first few days I did just that but after the first good trail ride I found I was not in the shape that I once was and that the ride quality plus the power band needed a little work so I decided to pull it back in the shop and give it a thorough inspection.  After a deeper inspection I found several issues with bearings and what not that needed addressed.. So with me being me I made a "SMALL" list of issues and parts that were needed to fix those issues but as I started tear down I found several more items that needed attention mostly due to lack of maintenance so even more parts started to fly and my "SMALL" parts list started getting "BIGGER". Now nearly six months later this bike is back together and almost done and better than new.

This bike began its life as an 07 Honda TRX450ER purchased by a friend of mine and was rode for about a year before the starter clutch went out and he parked the bike. After 4 years of sitting he decided to pull it back out of retirement and get it running. While the bike was in pieces I traded for it and if you know anything about these bikes I am sure you know that one of these that does not run can be had pretty cheap so needless to say I think I got a real good deal on this bike.

After spending a little time with this bike and getting it running and before the big tear down here is a few photos of this bike.

With the bike half way tore down  and the a-arms and shocks headed to GT Thunder for modifying I decided to pull the bike completely apart and give the Frame a fresh Black powder coated finish.  After getting the shocks and modified A-arms along with the XC rear  linkage back from GT Thunder I sent the a-arms to be coated black to match the frame.

After getting the a-arms back it was time to start reassembly with all the new components.

I assembled the frame, sub-frame, and steering stem first with a new QuadBoss Steering stem bearing+seal kit.  Then I assembled the GT Thunder modified a-arms with the GT Thunder ball joints and the QuadBoss bushing kits. From here I completed the front end by installing the GTT re-valved shocks, Race Driven rotors, calibers, hubs, and brake lines.

Next I rebuilt the swing arm carrier with all new seals and bearings from Quadboss along with a Durablue Eliminator Axle, Durablue billet sprocket hub, Durablue billet brake hub, and their Posi Lock nut then the Pro Taper 37 tooth Sprocket.

Next I went to work on the engine, I popped out the old seals and installed all new Quadboss Oil seals along with the Boyeson Super cooler kit, then I pulled the clutch cover and installed the Barnett clutch components including their Billet clutch basket, Billet pressure plate, Dirt Digger CF Clutch Kit, and Billet clutch cover.

With the clutch ready to go I pulled the valve cover to give it a good fresh black coat and to check the valves while it was a part. To my surprise one of the valves was cupped beyond adjustment so I pulled the head and shipped it to Moto-X-Perts where they did their XC Port work and ground the valve seats to accept stock intake and a plus one exhaust valve. Upon getting the head back I assembled it using Stainless steel valves from CV4 Products, stock 04-05 TRX valve springs, an 06 crf head gasket, and a new Wiseco 12:1 piston kit along with the Wiseco cam.

With the engine together I installed the FMF power bomb header and their powercore exhaust. I also installed the Pro Armor Bull horn bumper, Revolution nerf bars, and Grab bar! Along with the Ricochet skids, Maier front fenders, the Flex Bars, the Boyeson Flex Grips, Pro Taper hand Guards, and the original wheels and tires so I could see what kind of stance it was going to have.

By this time the bike was getting close so I pulled the carb apart to give it a good cleaning, installed the Genuine Honda HRC jet kit, and the Boyeson Quickshot 2. I picked up an assortment of pilot jets and main jets so instead of using the 162 main included in the HRC kit I upped it to a 170 main to give me somewhere to start. I then ran all the wiring, bleed the brakes, installed the bikemaster battery, the AMR Racing Monster Coil, the AMR Racing CDI, the Pro Design intake kit, and the Pro Taper XRC chain.

At about this time my new GBC  XC Master Tires had arrived. I went with 21" up front and 20" in the rear. If you notice my tires do not have a hot stamp, it is because I ordered one of the first sets and they did not have a hot stamp on them..

With everything else pretty much complete it was time to install the rest of the Maier black carbon fiber plastics, the IMS extended capacity fuel tank, AMR Racing Carbon X Graphics, and the SDG tall seat.

With this bike assembled I found the stock starter would no longer perform its duties when the engine was warmed up, it just did not have enough power to spin the engine over. So I picked up a QuadBoss starter and with it the bike fired right up.

My First impressions is this bike is nothing short of amazing.

    The ride quality is by far improved so it rides more like a Cadillac than  the log wagon it was before. The bike sits almost a couple inches lower than it did stock due to the GT Thunder shock setup and the addition of the GBC tires so the handling is greatly improved, it slides more predictably,  and it feels much more stable in the corners. The seat offers a lot of cushioning for a much better feel when sitting on it in those strait lines and for most of my riding but when I decide to run hard and fast I can confiscate for the the higher center of gravity added by the extra cushion of the seat by simply sliding off the seat to hang a corner. The Flex Bars and Flex grips absorb a lot of the impact from those hard hits so my hands and body take less abuse so I can ride longer than I could with the stock setup.

   As for power all I can say is wow! I built this bike with simple bolt ons and keep the bike with stock bore and stroke so I was expecting a little gain but nothing like what was achieved. With a stock 12:1 compression Weisco piston I did use an 06 CRF head gasket to raise the compression about a half a point for just a little extra ump. And with Wiseco's cam, the Moto-X-Perts port work, Pro Design intake, AMR Racing coil, AMR Racing CDI, and FMF Full exhaust I was hoping for a little more low end so I upped the gearing from 13/38 to 13/37 with new sprockets from Pro Taper. What I found is I actually lost just a little low end but Mid to upper is greatly improved so I think I am going to try a 12/37 gearing and see what that does for my low end.

After a couple hundred miles I have changed the oil in both the engine and trans a couple times and I pulled this bike back in the shop and found everything still tight and ready to ride. Stay tuned for more info and photo's.

Here is a list of Products used on this build so far:

QuadBoss:

1. 41-3599 Tie-rod upgrade kit

2. HID-336 HID kit

3. 41-3305 x2 front wheel bearings

4. 41-4039 rear bearing upgrade kit  

5. 41-3531 swing arm bearing kit

6. 41-3100 steering stem bearing and seal

7. 41-3534 linkage bearing and seal kit

8. 41-3498 a-arm bushings

9. 41-3458 Shock bearings

10. Tire sealant

11. Oil seal kit 822312

12. Top end Gasket kit

13. starter

Pro Armor:

1. Revolution Nerf Bars w/ Heel Guards

2. Black Bull Horn Bumper

3. Pro Race Rear Grab Bar

4. universal shock covers

Ricochet Offroad:

1. Complete Skid Plate Set (P/N 5136)

GBC Motorsports

1. 21" XC Masters front

2. 20" XC Masters Rear

IMS Products:

1: 3.7 Gallon Fuel Tank IMS PART #: 122230 / 222230

Boyesen:

1. SuperCooler Kit 

2. QuickShot3 and Quick shot 2

3.  FlexGrip

Pro Taper

1. 13 tooth front sprocket 02-2512

2. 37 tooth CS4 rear sprocket  02-3310

3. Gold XRC chain       PT520XRC

4. Hand Shields vlm-026 Black

5. Oversized bar mount

Bike master

1. Front Brakes 96-1488

2. rear brakes  96-1546

3. battery  mg7z-s

GT Thunder

1. shocks revalved

2. shocks resprung with dual rate

3. Ball Joints all four a-arms

4. XC rear link 06-002

FMF

1. Powerbomb header

2. PowerCore 4 Muffler

Dura Blue

1. Eliminator Axle 20-1169P

2. Posi Lock nut    20-1628s

3. sprocket hub  69sps

4. Bullet axle nut 20-1818

5. Spindle nut front Bullet 20-1821

6. brake hub

TM Design Works

1. Chain roller

2. Chain slider

MSR

1. Attack Gloves XL 331746

2. Impact XL Chest Deflector 330294

3. Axis pants 34        334271

4.Elite boots white 12      337877

5. Dominator ATV brake lever polished 341906

6. Pro Raptor adj Clutch 341963

7. assault helmet    359259

8. The Resolve Google     350269

9. Axxis jersey xl   334361

CV4 Products

1. Blue Radiator hose kit   sfsmbc71ab

2. Blue 3mm vent line kit  sfsvt3-3b

3. Radiator Cap cv715-31m

4. intake and exhaust valves

Fasst Company

1. Flexx Bars Quad Racer 14 degree, 31" blue pad   FL-1003-14-31

2. Brake pedal return spring 8mm shaft blue            BC-IRS-8

3. Rear Brake Clevis Black                                            BC-107H

Race Driven

1. Front Brake rotors

SDG USA

1. Tall Seat 87299

Barnett Clutches

1. Billet basket- 321-35-01012

2. Billet pressure plate- 361-35-01004

3. Dirt Digger CF Clutch Kit- 303-35-20024

4. Billet clutch cover- 341-35-01005

Pro Design

1. Pro Design Intake

2. Case saver

Maier Plastics

1. Front Fender (Black Carbon Fiber)

2. Radiator scoops (black Carbon Fiber)

3. Rear fenders (black Carbon Fiber)

4.  Stock style hood (Gloss black)

5.  Frame covers (Gloss black)

WiseCo

1. Stock Bore 12:1 Piston kit

2. Cam kit

AMR Racing

1. Carbon X Graphics kit

2. Monster Coil

3. CDI

Moto-X-Perts

1. XC portwork

2. valve job with +1 exhaust

Feel free to e-mail me with any questions: Neil@mudandgutsoffroad.org