2022 CRF450R setup help

DD325
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DD325

Great bike to ride... terrible bike to race especially late motos.  Unpredictable, headshake for days, lots of vibration.  Never had this problem with our 22 CRF250R.

We've screwed with the suspension, torque values, etc with no results.  Tried the 23.5 offset Ride engineering clamps and that did nothing.  Any help would be appreciated. 175lb A rider.  

Had 3 riders essentially pull out of the last moto last weekend, all on new Honda 450's.

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SoCalMX70
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SoCalMX70 7/4/2023 3:32pm
7/4/2023 3:32pm Edited Date/Time 7/4/2023 10:59pm

What do you mean by "screwed with the suspension"? Definitely make sure it's completely revalved by a reputable tuner. The stock fork valving is especially terrible. A good ECU tune also helps keep the bike in line. Smooth/broad power is key.

Other than that I'm surprised the RE clamps didn't help... Those were a massive difference in feel for me on my '22. The head shake and harsh mid spike in the stroke was basically eliminated.

Edit: One other thing I did was run a 14/53 gearing setup with 118 length chain (iirc). That moved the axle almost all the way back and there's something to be said for getting some of the tension off of the swing arm.

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DD325
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DD325 7/4/2023 4:56pm
7/4/2023 4:56pm
SoCalMX70 wrote:
What do you mean by "screwed with the suspension"? Definitely make sure it's completely revalved by a reputable tuner. The stock fork valving is especially terrible...

What do you mean by "screwed with the suspension"? Definitely make sure it's completely revalved by a reputable tuner. The stock fork valving is especially terrible. A good ECU tune also helps keep the bike in line. Smooth/broad power is key.

Other than that I'm surprised the RE clamps didn't help... Those were a massive difference in feel for me on my '22. The head shake and harsh mid spike in the stroke was basically eliminated.

Edit: One other thing I did was run a 14/53 gearing setup with 118 length chain (iirc). That moved the axle almost all the way back and there's something to be said for getting some of the tension off of the swing arm.

Sag from 100 - 105.  Moved the forks up and down in the clamps.  Went stiffer on fork compression to lessen dive as most of the headshake is off throttle.  As I said, the clamps did nothing.  It may have lessened the fork knifing in the softer corners but that's about it.

I understand the forks aren't great out of the box, but you would think they would be at least rideable in race conditions.

 

crc245
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crc245 7/4/2023 5:01pm
7/4/2023 5:01pm Edited Date/Time 7/4/2023 5:02pm

I penned this article last year on the CRF450R:

https://www.dirtrider.com/story/tests/honda-crf450r-long-haul-review-20…

 

Lots of little updates help the most, with suspension/tires/gearing/23.5-24mm clamps/Evo bars and good grips at the top of the list. Learning to ride them smoothly and efficiently is also a good tactic; Very difficult bike to simply “manhandle” around! Best of luck and please keep us updated with what works, as well as what doesn’t: Good for future readers and owners to reference. Cheers

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SoCalMX70
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SoCalMX70 7/4/2023 6:17pm
7/4/2023 6:17pm
SoCalMX70 wrote:
What do you mean by "screwed with the suspension"? Definitely make sure it's completely revalved by a reputable tuner. The stock fork valving is especially terrible...

What do you mean by "screwed with the suspension"? Definitely make sure it's completely revalved by a reputable tuner. The stock fork valving is especially terrible. A good ECU tune also helps keep the bike in line. Smooth/broad power is key.

Other than that I'm surprised the RE clamps didn't help... Those were a massive difference in feel for me on my '22. The head shake and harsh mid spike in the stroke was basically eliminated.

Edit: One other thing I did was run a 14/53 gearing setup with 118 length chain (iirc). That moved the axle almost all the way back and there's something to be said for getting some of the tension off of the swing arm.

DD325 wrote:
Sag from 100 - 105.  Moved the forks up and down in the clamps.  Went stiffer on fork compression to lessen dive as most of the...

Sag from 100 - 105.  Moved the forks up and down in the clamps.  Went stiffer on fork compression to lessen dive as most of the headshake is off throttle.  As I said, the clamps did nothing.  It may have lessened the fork knifing in the softer corners but that's about it.

I understand the forks aren't great out of the box, but you would think they would be at least rideable in race conditions.

 

The forks are not raceable out of the box in my opinion. The stock mid-valve is stupidly stiff. I had never experienced soreness in my hands on any bike I had ridden in recent years. The Honda was a first (extremely jarring, almost felt like I was bottoming half way through the stroke) and I pretty much took the suspension off immediately and got it out to my tuner. Night and day difference once I got it back, though he went a bit too soft and we had one more revision in the valving before we got it right.

Sag 105mm, Fork height at 5mm with the 23.5 clamps.

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DD325
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DD325 7/4/2023 7:05pm
7/4/2023 7:05pm
SoCalMX70 wrote:
What do you mean by "screwed with the suspension"? Definitely make sure it's completely revalved by a reputable tuner. The stock fork valving is especially terrible...

What do you mean by "screwed with the suspension"? Definitely make sure it's completely revalved by a reputable tuner. The stock fork valving is especially terrible. A good ECU tune also helps keep the bike in line. Smooth/broad power is key.

Other than that I'm surprised the RE clamps didn't help... Those were a massive difference in feel for me on my '22. The head shake and harsh mid spike in the stroke was basically eliminated.

Edit: One other thing I did was run a 14/53 gearing setup with 118 length chain (iirc). That moved the axle almost all the way back and there's something to be said for getting some of the tension off of the swing arm.

DD325 wrote:
Sag from 100 - 105.  Moved the forks up and down in the clamps.  Went stiffer on fork compression to lessen dive as most of the...

Sag from 100 - 105.  Moved the forks up and down in the clamps.  Went stiffer on fork compression to lessen dive as most of the headshake is off throttle.  As I said, the clamps did nothing.  It may have lessened the fork knifing in the softer corners but that's about it.

I understand the forks aren't great out of the box, but you would think they would be at least rideable in race conditions.

 

SoCalMX70 wrote:
The forks are not raceable out of the box in my opinion. The stock mid-valve is stupidly stiff. I had never experienced soreness in my hands...

The forks are not raceable out of the box in my opinion. The stock mid-valve is stupidly stiff. I had never experienced soreness in my hands on any bike I had ridden in recent years. The Honda was a first (extremely jarring, almost felt like I was bottoming half way through the stroke) and I pretty much took the suspension off immediately and got it out to my tuner. Night and day difference once I got it back, though he went a bit too soft and we had one more revision in the valving before we got it right.

Sag 105mm, Fork height at 5mm with the 23.5 clamps.

Appreciate the input. 

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