removing head for port and polish and installing piston

[quallerd]

I was wondering how difficult it is to remove the head on an 04 450 so that I can send it to Rage ATV to have Dee do his recreational port and polish on it. While he had it I was also going to have him replace the intake and exhaust valves as well as the valve springs so that when I got it back all I had to do was bolt it on. I also figured that since the head was going to be off anyways this would be a good time to install a new piston.

Is this a difficult job (removing/re-installing head and installing new piston), because I hate to admit it, but, I do not have any experience with this. Are there any special tools I need (besides a nice torque wrench)? Are there any tricks or potential stumbling areas that I should be aware of? I do have a shop manual that I was planning on following step by step.

I just wanted to avoid having to spend a ton of money to take it to a local shop to have them do it. I also do not know of any one local who can do decent port and polish!

Thanks for any advice and help you can provide!!!

[305400ex]

http://www.rockinhorseweb.com/ has a real good guide on how to install a hi-comp piston. It has pics and all.

[quallerd]

Let me ask everyone if this makes sense for somebody like me:

What if (in order to save money and learn a little bit about this motor) I removed the head myself using the Honda shop manual and the excellent link posted above. I could then send the head to RageATV and have him port and polish it, install the intake and exhaust valves, valve springs, etc and send it back to me. I was thinking about then taking it to a reputable local Honda dealer and having them install the new piston and put it all back together for me. This way I could ensure that it was all being done correctly and that I didn't make a novice mistake that could potentially wind up costing me allot of money and time.

Does that seem to make sense to everyone, or would it be to difficult to package everything up to take it to the Honda dealer to have them put it back together once I got the head back.

One last question: a three angle or five angle valve job is completely different from a port and polish correct!?!?! If so, should this be done at the same time? So in my instance, should I have Rage ATV do this for me while he is porting and polishing and putting back together my head?

Thank you very much for your opinions; I appreciate them!!!! I'm just trying to figure out what the best way to do this is!!!!

[DirtDevilBT]

First: don't worry about the valve angles, the guy that puts the valves in will cut those and most likely blend the seats into his portwork, he should anyway.

You can take it apart using the manual easily. I highly recommend doing so just to learn a bit more about your motor. Not only will it save you a little bit of money but more over you will get to see the inners.
Just because you have a dealership put everything back together doesn't mean it will be done correctly. You will get a little insurance if something were to go wrong down the road but be prepared to hassle with them. They are not installing stock replacement parts, they are putting aftermarket parts they are not familiar with--with no warrenties unless you can prove it to be their miss installation. If something fails, they can easily blame the part.

If you are not handy with this kind of stuff or your tools say "Fisher Price" and are not equiped to take on such a project then you might leave it to the pros.

If I were to have someone put it back together for me I'd have family do it, or someone I very much know and trust to do a good job. That is, my family if very mechanically enclind.
For someone else though, I'd take it to an independant that works on these types of motors. The more knowledgable the better, try and find a shop that does custom work and engine modifications. Dealers don't always check clearances and like to think everything is just "drop in".

Last note: I had fun with my build and did all the work except porting. I am quite mechanically sound however, but then again everyone has to start somewhere. Maybe you neighbors lawn mower.:p

[leadfoot_52]

I work at a Motorcycle/ATV/Snowmobile shop, and we hate nothing more than having machines and engines come in to our shop in pieces. The customer ends up saving money by bringing in either the whole machine, or engine. I would suggest Taking in your whole machine with no plastic on it, an let them take it apart so there are no lost parts in the transaction of you giving them your engine in pieces. Believe me, It is more of a hassle to figure out where everything goes on an engine in pieces even when you have the service manual. It only takes 1 hour's worth of labor to tear down the top end of a 450r anyway. I would let them take it apart, then pick up your head, send it where you want to, then have them re-assemble it. It will save not only you, but them time. It will usually cost you less, because they will not charge you for all the time to organize and find out where all of your pieces go. Lets put it this way: would you rather fix an engine that comes in as a whole and take it apart yourself and know where everything goes, or would you rather put together a box full of parts and pieces that was someone else's project that they couldnt finish? You decide.

[DirtDevilBT]

^^^ good point but it depends on whether he trusts his dealership to do any work period. I find it hard to trust dealerships with aftermarket parts and doing premium work like measuring all the clearances. That's just me, sorry.

Depending on how many hours you have on the bike, you might need a new cylinder or replate. Will the dealership find that or will they slap it together and not bother spending extra time to make sure it's done right. If anything happens later, they can always blame the piston.

Sorry to be the fuddy dud.

[quallerd]

Originally posted by DirtDevilBT
^^^ good point but it depends on whether he trusts his dealership to do any work period. I find it hard to trust dealerships with aftermarket parts and doing premium work like measuring all the clearances. That's just me, sorry.

Depending on how many hours you have on the bike, you might need a new cylinder or replate. Will the dealership find that or will they slap it together and not bother spending extra time to make sure it's done right. If anything happens later, they can always blame the piston.

Sorry to be the fuddy dud.

That is kinda where I'm coming from DirtDevil. I don't really trust the dealer and I don't really trust myself either. Because of that, I think I might just have to suck it up and shell out the money to get the work done by someone who really knows what they are doing!

BTW, does anyone in here know how much just the motor of the 450 weights? I considering just sending the whole stinking thing to Dee at Rage ATV so that he can do the port/polish, valve job, valve train, etc all at once.

[DirtDevilBT]

It's a heck of a pickle you are in. Are there no performance places around you? Maybe I'm spoiled, I have hundreds here in the Los Angeles area. The weight question is a good one, take it out and check for us lol. It would be completely pulled out of my a.ss if I guessed. Maybe 65-70 lbs? Lol I don't know.

[quallerd]

Originally posted by DirtDevilBT
It's a heck of a pickle you are in. Are there no performance places around you? Maybe I'm spoiled, I have hundreds here in the Los Angeles area. The weight question is a good one, take it out and check for us lol. It would be completely pulled out of my a.ss if I guessed. Maybe 65-70 lbs? Lol I don't know.

Nope, there are no real good performance places in new mexico that I'm aware of. Maybe, by chance, someone else knows somehting that I don't though!?!?!

Nobody seems to know what the thing weights, not even the Honda dealers. I did find in another forum though that somebody said the thing weights exactly 34.7KG or 76.8LBS...without oil or any fluid in it.

Dunno...

[DirtDevilBT]

Well if that's right I was pretty damn close if I don't say so myself. Booya Grandma! lol

If you ship it to them you will need to crate it. Bolt the motor to the crate and cover it with thin plywood. I might be a pretty penny to send, I say close to 70-100 bucks FedEx with insurance and the items value.