"RACE" ENGINES

Is a 60hp race engine more difficult to ride? The heck kind of a question is that? Is a 1,300hp Corvette more difficult to drive than a Prius?

Paging Kzizok.....

Sounds like you should just put a Rekluse in it and be done with it.

Rekluse. Best investment you can make, regardless of riding ability.

I just installed my Radius CX this week.

I lost all love for rekluse when I had one blow apart and fill a brand new engine with metal shavings.

It sounds to me like the difference between your 2 bikes motors maybe throwing you off just a little bit. The stock motor probably resists stalling a little better and that might make you a little late on the clutch when riding the race motored bike. Hell it could even be that the bike with the race motor has "grabbier" rear brake pads or something simple like that. I've raced and ridden for over 20 yrs, I'm a vet B rider, close to advancing to A class. Maybe 5 years ago i started using a rekluse and absolutely love it. At my age (44) I am not able to ride as much as I would like and therefore suffer from arm pump and other fitness issues late in my 30 min motos. I find myself using the rekluse just like a stock clutch for most of the race but when I get tired and truth be told lazy, I stop using the clutch as much and the rekluse takes over. I know there can be defects with everything made out there, quality control is never 100% but in my experience I've owned 5 bikes which I've installed rekluse on and never had any problem. Loved them all. Good luck!

It shouldn't be stalling. It's either rider error or the pilot/fuel screw could be way off. I love my Rekluse, it's great and I highly recommend one but I would figure out why it's stalling first.

First of all, the 2008 Honda CRF 450 R is an awesome motorcycle. It’s a great choice for a rider of your size.
If the race engine has a high compression piston or a decked head, that can contribute to the stalling at idle.
However, that bike should not be stalling even with the stock clutch system. As MXD stated, the pilot Circuit and/or fuel mixture screw on the carburetor needs tuning.
Nothing against the Rekluse clutch, but that should be your third or fourth step to the solution.

sounds like your "race" motor has a cam with a lot of overlap(generally needed to get 60HP out of first gen unicam engine). Put a smaller cam in it while it's apart- like a hotcams stage 2, and it will idle better. You wont really notice the loss in peak power because I bet you're not really riding it up there. If the cam isn't that radical- most of the advice above is also sound.

flywheel weight

I went through a similar experience. I have an ex- Canidae/Pro Circuit bike (2009 KX250F) with a tonne of modifications, which I also fitted an Athena 290cc kit to. In both 250cc and 290cc form, the bike was difficult to ride; it wasn't happy unless it was being ridden like a 125 and had a habit of bogging and cutting out. It also liked a high idle and at one point, would overflow fuel at tickover. The thing was thrown back together with a mixture of OEM and race parts before it was sold - I have a spec sheet showing what was left in it and what was swapped out for new OEM.

I found as many of the remaining factory parts as I could which was made easier as the switch to EFI made the old carb stuff obsolete, and ended up putting it on a dyno to get the fueling dialed in as the carb had been bored and modified. I also started riding it more like it was intended, beating on it a bit more. I tried a Rekluse, which at the time was the version with the ball bearings and the bike really didn't like it and ended up frying the thing - blue plates etc, even on the aggressive most setting and stiffest springs. The new Rekluse clutches are way better though, so I wouldn't have thought you would have this problem.

I still own the KXF but I got fed up with it and bought a 2012 CRF250, a bike that is renowned for being slow because it is. Remapped it, added a pipe and I love the thing, so also still own it. The Honda is smoother and easier to ride, and my lap times are improved on it.

I know someone with a custom built race engine in a 250F and the piston has to be replaced every 10 hours and that race piston costs $400 for the special valve clearance piston.

Probably just need to practice riding more....

Jomamajoddyjobwdhedgranny wrote:

I am a 52 yr old novice rider (only 10 years riding), I weigh 220 lbs, and, I have 2008 CRF 450Rs that feel so good and balanced to me. On one of the bikes I have an engine that a famous engine builder created - close to 60 hp is my guess. I love this engine - with my size and weight especially. It has the flattest power curve of any type of car or bike I have experience with. It is being rebuilt now - it has MANY hours on it.

Here is the question (thank you for your thoughts on this). I have increased the idle to annoying levels (it annoys others around me), but, coming into tight corners, from high speeds (especially on race day) I stall this bike when the other identical bikes I have (except for the engine on the other bikes) do not stall.

I am thinking of putting a Rekluse clutch in along with the rebuild.

Do I need to learn how to ride better, and, dismiss this idea of a Rekluse?

Are highly modified, high horsepower engines more difficult to ride typically?

Thanks

No.
Yes.
Yes.

You are wondering why your race engine is hard to ride? I don’t think it’s the engine. And I love the guys at recluse and think thier tourque drive clutches are awesome. But like the earlier poster mentioned the auto clutches aren’t good enough for full moto especially with a high horsepower engine. Unless you are slooow

ob wrote:

You are wondering why your race engine is hard to ride? I don’t think it’s the engine. And I love the guys at recluse and think thier tourque drive clutches are awesome. But like the earlier poster mentioned the auto clutches aren’t good enough for full moto especially with a high horsepower engine. Unless you are slooow

I didn't want to insult anybody lol but you're absolutely right and even the guys at recluse will tell you the same thing.

ob wrote:

You are wondering why your race engine is hard to ride? I don’t think it’s the engine. And I love the guys at recluse and think thier tourque drive clutches are awesome. But like the earlier poster mentioned the auto clutches aren’t good enough for full moto especially with a high horsepower engine. Unless you are slooow

RCF wrote:

I didn't want to insult anybody lol but you're absolutely right and even the guys at recluse will tell you the same thing.

Sorry OP, I didn’t mean it as an insult.

Moto520 wrote:

flywheel weight

^^^^^^This. Easy and cheap DIY and won't change the characteristics of the engine you love that much. More manageable actually.

ob wrote:

You are wondering why your race engine is hard to ride? I don’t think it’s the engine. And I love the guys at recluse and think thier tourque drive clutches are awesome. But like the earlier poster mentioned the auto clutches aren’t good enough for full moto especially with a high horsepower engine. Unless you are slooow

RCF wrote:

I didn't want to insult anybody lol but you're absolutely right and even the guys at recluse will tell you the same thing.

Where are you guys getting that they aren’t up to the task for moto? Adam Entiknap runs one (or at least used to as of a couple seasons ago), and I’ve had no problems running one at a decent pace. You might have to adjust your technique a little bit to gain full advantage of it, but I don’t know why it wouldn’t be up to the task.

Getting it from personal experience. Doesn’t have anything to do with technique unless you mean ride slow to keep the plates from blowing into a hundred pieces.

Same as OB, they can't withstand hard-riding nevermind a 60 horsepower 450

ob wrote:

Getting it from personal experience. Doesn’t have anything to do with technique unless you mean ride slow to keep the plates from blowing into a hundred pieces.

Maybe I’m misunderstanding, you guys are running the auto clutch system correct? I just run stock fibers and steels with the auto clutch ring, and I’ve had 150 hours issue free, without so much as an adjustment. Are both of you using the full system or something, rather than just the friction disk?

Rekluse can't handle hard riding? Give me a break. I know TONS of fast dudes that run them. I'd bet good money they are faster than you spodes claiming a rekluse isn't for fast guys.

You guys who are too fast for Rekluse got more speed than top Pro off road riders? Please...

LungButter wrote:

Rekluse can't handle hard riding? Give me a break. I know TONS of fast dudes that run them. I'd bet good money they are faster than you spodes claiming a rekluse isn't for fast guys.

You guys who are too fast for Rekluse got more speed than top Pro off road riders? Please...

Show me some proof that top Pro Offroad Riders use rekluse automatic clutches, they may use the manual clutch but I guarantee they are not using an auto clutch. And like you said if spuds like us can break them sorry can't see them standing up to that kind of abuse.

Engines are designed by the engineers to be reliable, efficent, smooth, easy to ride etc. Change the cam, put a high compression piston in and advance the timing a bit and you will have more power sure, but it's probably not gonna be as smooth and easy to ride as it once was.

It could be as simple as a carburetor or valve clearance issue as well, I'd maybe start there.

ob wrote:

Sorry OP, I didn’t mean it as an insult.

OP doesn’t care because OP is a bot. Check his profile. He starts 1 thread a year and doesn’t respond. #fakenews

If OP is a bot the other bots must be jealous because the ‘08 CRF450R is a nice bike.

RCF wrote:

I didn't want to insult anybody lol but you're absolutely right and even the guys at recluse will tell you the same thing.

ob wrote:

Sorry OP, I didn’t mean it as an insult.

Jmicmoto13 wrote:

OP doesn’t care because OP is a bot. Check his profile. He starts 1 thread a year and doesn’t respond. #fakenews

Lol dang it

RCF wrote:

Show me some proof that top Pro Offroad Riders use rekluse automatic clutches, they may use the manual clutch but I guarantee they are not using an auto clutch. And like you said if spuds like us can break them sorry can't see them standing up to that kind of abuse.

The 2018 Kenda Full Gas Sprint Enduro season kicked off in Blackshear, GA. Ryan Sipes took the overall win in the Pro Class, winning 7 out of the 12 tests aboard his RadiusCX equipped FC350.