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2013 CRF450R supermoto conversion

70K views 103 replies 25 participants last post by  jeremy96121 
#1 ·
Hey guys, now since the husky is gone, I hope you didn't think that I am gone also. Here is my new build. This time it will be a pure racing machine.
Went the 450cc way, plenty of power with a serious weight advantage.
In the beginning of this summer I bought this:



First things first, all the rubbish stickers have to go.



It is only logical that before even start the conversion, one has to properly test the thing. ..both pigs looking for mud :)





A quick comparison: 2013 model was excessively regarded as the best CRF up to date. So here is my opinion,
It might really be true, but nevertheless 2008 was still a blast, it might handle not as good but the raw power it delivers with a built head and carb was enough to leave the twin piper in the dust while at wide open throttle. But never fear, the potential is all there, it just needs some work.
The chassis handled really well, indeed like it has been regarded to. The bike felt balanced and delivered the power really smoothly.
I hope this conversion succeeds!

To be continued...
 
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#5 ·
So once everything is tested, here follows ToDo list:
- clean and service the shock absorbers and prepare them to supermoto spec
- check all the suspension bearings
- get rid of all the old parts scheduled for replacement

And the disassembly follows:












A few things I did not expect, one of the front shocks was leaking, as it later turned out, it had a slight dent, and also one of the twin pipes was a bit hit.
All the other stuff was minor..
 
#6 ·
So the shocks went to my buddies shop for servicing and supermoto spec configuration, while so, I decided to service the rear linkage.








All the bearings looked fine. Seals fine, no rust, only minor wear. Everything lubed and assembled. Did not touch the main fork bearings because in most cases it is not necessary, they are usually fine. However after reassembly there was still a slight play somewhere in the linkage bearings. It is most likely the three way rod, which will be completely rebuilt after this season.

While the shocks are being serviced, its time to gut the pipes.









Requires some special tools for taking care of the exhaust.
 
#7 ·
Alright, back to the pipe!! All the special tools have been made, check out what's been done.





Here only a part of the process is visible, but it should be enough to give you the idea behind it.













Splendid!! The main work has been done, pipe has regained its prior form. Do you see the UFO?



To time advance to the next level.















And finally, the finished product! As good as new.



 
#13 ·
Now, about some a bit more shiny things,
Here's most of the parts saved up for the build except for the slipper clutch which is being awaited.
- FaBa wheels kit
- Beringer front brake system
- EK Chain + JT sprockets
- Mitaka clutch basket
- FaBa triple clamps (adjustible)
- Revalved, serviced OEM suspenison



The triple clamps first.


















These triple clamps give you the ability to adjust the front fork angle in boundaries of +- 1.5 degrees which translates to approximately +- 15mm of wheelbase change, it also changes the trail. It also gives you the ability to place the handle bar in several different positions both closer or farther from the seat. It has the standard offset 16mm in the middle position. It can be changed in boundaries from 22 to 10 mm. This offset change suits perfectly for MX also. The width between fork centerlines is 200mm. The manufacturing quality looks good enough, pretty robust joints and all other critical areas. We will have more opinion on this once we start to ride it.
 
#14 ·
Here the triple clamps are in place with the handle bar mounted.
Like I already mentioned earlier, one of the front shocks was damaged on the back side, apparently the previous owner had crashed it during a race and someone ran over or into the bike hitting the backside of the shock cylinder. This however has been fixed with polishing and done so well that you can't even visually find the dent anymore, hence it's useless to try and take pictures :D
Polishing is widely used for fixing various stem damages that don't have sharp edges. That's the best way to go.







 
#35 ·
Sweet bike! I have to ask. I bought a '13 CRF450R at the end of the year, rode it once on the track, and am going to overhaul it some this winter (Minneapolis). Was the triple tree worth the investment? Is there anything you wish you'd done differently? How about the clutch? The Adiago comes standard on the KTM SMR but it's a slipper clutch. Is yours a slipper clutch as well? Mine has a Hinson on it now, seemed like it worked well but I'm nervous if I ever get to the point where I'm "backing it in" to a corner...

Would love to hear any thoughts or recommendations from you. The guy I bought it from is a Class A Supercross rider so suspension will be redone, bearings, rotors, new plastics, steel braided lines... Leads me to another question - my brakes felt pretty good, stock with new pads. I know the Beringer is badass and Magura is also sweet, but those are about $1K...
 
#15 ·
The clutch!! Part one..

So why Adige APTC?
Unfortunately it proved to be very difficult to find a rider that is actually racing the clutch, so obviously we didn't. It is hard to get accurate feedback in this case because most of the riders only use or have used one clutch and have their opinion about it. That is why it is useless to try and compare it to something else.
After an extensive investigation we have finally decided to choose adige. First of all because it was relatively cheap, second the tech behind it lightens your lever a bunch. And third, the construction idea is completely different from all other manufacturers though simple. It functions basically like a screw and a nut (the engine cranks a screw, and the wheel is connected to a nut, spin it in your head and see what happens.) It may not have such good looks because it is cast and has a silly first impression look, only three springs. That might be the reason why not so many people choose it over something else.
The downside however is that the only compatible discs are adige themselves.
And so, the I.t.a.l.y. begins here, after four tiresome weeks, the clutch finally arrived :D





Whoah!! What a box!! You'd expect something like this from JohnDeere instead



Let's see whats inside the belly.



Gotta pull the old guts out first.





Judging by the look of this, the previous owner had REALLY raced this thing hard, what an animal..





 
#16 ·
Continuing with the "disassembly" of the stock raped clutch and it's successor. (Mission clutch part 2)





Thought I'd press it out with a vice. Believe it or not.. That was the only way to do it :D
Honda engineers have done an outstanding work to screw with the business of aftermarket clutches...



Here's why:









Pressed the gear in the MITAKA basket using a hydraulic press. Looks nice enough!









Hahaha!



































 
#19 ·
Time to throw together some stuff that has been cleaned/fixed. :)
The mysterious substance used in the video I posted earlier was SODA, but most of you probably noticed that already. These the parts!





















Had to come up with some kind of spacers, as much as I was able to pull the pipes apart, the idea is for the rear wheel to fit between them during landings or other serious situations. Looks like a tight fit, but it should do!!







 
#22 ·
Had to make a few corrections/adjustments for the front wheel for the wider triple clamps to take the brake set :)
So why spacer and not bushings under the brake support? The thing is that every bushing requires longer support screws and this adds leverage making it easier to bend them which results in the support floating under load. The spacer on the other side has special lips that help this issue. Even if the crews become loose, the disc will remain centered on the hub. Most spacer manufacturers don't cut them.



























You can see here that the brake disc is located almost perfectly in the middle when compared to the caliper.

 
#24 ·
Today was the first track day, have to admit, it was my first sumo track day as well.
Heres a good picture of the track itself, location - very close to home :D (about 5km straight)
This is one of those tracks that stood as far back as the soviet times in here.

http://rullitis.lv/?project=sporta-un-atputas-kompleks-rullitis/



Did a total of 4 sessions, each 6 - 7 laps long.







Back home after an exhausting day in a Vanucci oven.



 
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