Customization Questions?

[Quadjunkie]

1. What can I do to lighten my 2000 - 409ex?

2. At what point do I need to change from standard travel to long travel shocks?

3. What purpose does removing your parking brake serve?

[04TRX400EX]

1. Remove any unnecessary accessories/parts such as the headlight assembly, parking brake cable and perch, toolkit thing mounted by the rear grab bar, etc. If you really want to save weight, go with some Hiper carbon fiber wheels.

2. You would want to go to long travel if you want long travel. Ideal for MX, longer shocks mean more travel and more dampening ability. You can also run longer a-arms (like +3's) and still keep the appropriate shock angle.

3. Removing the parking brake does two things. First, it saves weight as mentioned above. Although it is minimal, every little bit helps. Second, it prevents the rear brake pad from rubbing causing it to wear out faster. Basically, the p-brake is useless anyways so why not take it off?

[Quadjunkie]

I appreciate the response very much.

I also noticed on your list of upgrades that you have a stage 2 cam on your quad. What does stage 1 / stage 2 etc all mean. I know it has to do with the lift of your valves and piston compression. Just unsure what the actual concept is.

[Bill Fuller]

I have never heard of a 409 EX:confused: I think you mean 406 EX.

[northwest Texas]

Unless you're a beanpole, you'll have more effect losing weight off your frame than sending the EX on a diet. I know I did.

I removed my parking brake because it was useless and needed lots of attention. It also felt like it was always dragging too. Seemed like either back it off where it didn't feel like it was dragging and have no parking brake or tighten it enough that it worked but dragged.

Visit HotCam's website and they had pretty good descriptions from what I remember that should give you enough detail.

[svahle]

There are many threads on what the different stages of cams do. Stage 1 is more for low end gains. Stage 2 is for mid and higher end gains. Etc. There is alot more to explain including selecting the appropriate cam for the piston compression, etc. Do a search and you can read for hours about this topic.

[Quadjunkie]

Now that you mention it, my quad does feel it drags, definitely doesn't roll freely.

The kid I bought the quad from says that it was a wiseco 409 high compression kit he had put in. Honestly, 6 over, 9 over, all seem like a waste of time to me. Why not just go for the 440 kit? Cost difference isn't that much.

Anybody want to pipe in on the long travel vs standard travel question? When should one change over?

[HondaEXrider22]

It all depends if you want to change over. There isnt a "specific" time to change. It depends what kind of riding/racing you want, looks, price, brand...ect...

[JOEX]

Originally posted by Quadjunkie
Now that you mention it, my quad does feel it drags, definitely doesn't roll freely.

The kid I bought the quad from says that it was a wiseco 409 high compression kit he had put in. Honestly, 6 over, 9 over, all seem like a waste of time to me. Why not just go for the 440 kit? Cost difference isn't that much.

Anybody want to pipe in on the long travel vs standard travel question? When should one change over?
Going to a 440 kit is quite a jump financially compared to going to a 406 or 416 sometimes 426. Sounds like either the kid you bought it from doesn't know the numbers or there was a misunderstanding.

As for LT shocks it's my understanding the biggest gain is more room for fine tuning, something that applies more to the 'pro' and 'A' riders. Has nothing to do with a-arm width, standard travel shock can be made for any width a-arms.

The stock PB is usually worthless. Removing it just cleans things up on the bars and swingarm.

[Quadjunkie]

What then is entailed with switching to the 440 kit?

[northwest Texas]

Buying a sleeve and having a machine shop install it.

Stock bore is 85mm 397cc
First over is 86mm 406cc
Second 87mm 416cc
Last possible 88mm 426cc
New Sleeve 89mm 440cc

That's pretty close anyway.

My honest opinion is unless you're racing, it's not worth my $$$'s to go to the long travel. Admittedly I've not ridden long travel so consider the source. Good quality shocks set up for you make a world of difference and make riding so much more fun.

I didn't really notice my 400EX was slow until I had the chassis dialed in for my riding conditions that then the chassis could handle more than the engine could provide.

[Quadjunkie]

Northwest Texas,

What do you mean that you had your chassis dialed in and it could handle more than the motor could provide?

Also, when you go to the 440 do you have to change your cam. In other words, in addition to having it installed are there any other musts? Obvious that jetting is excluded from the question.

[northwest Texas]

When I bought my EX off my b-i-l he had only installed a slip on. I wasn't overly interested in having the fastest quad so I concentrated on the chassis. I opted for comfort over power. The first things I did was widen it 4 inches by buying an axle, +2 arms(each side), and shocks, first the fronts, then the back. The fronts shocks made a huge difference and I came across a TCS rear for the right price and it was worth every penny I paid. By this time I could go over the rough terrain so much faster and smoother with more comfort as well. It was also so much less tiring and that made it much more fun. I have also gone with the 1 1/8" bars and longer brake lines up front too.

By this time, I could charge through whoops on the trails and terrain so much faster that the engine now seemed slow.

So last month I tore the top end down and sent the cylinder and head to Colby at C&D and he installed a new sleeve that made it 426cc so I can go to 440cc if I want with this sleeve. He also did a 3 angle valve job and ported and polished the head. I also had the piston moly coated for less friction and went with a Stage 2 cam. I was really more interested in more low end torque but I went with Colby's advice and did the Stage 2 (boy was he right)

Now I've only had one good ride on it but the power is unbelievable now compared to what I had before. I never had a problem hitting the rev limiter because I could feel the engine losing power before it got there and shifted. Now it gets there (rev limiter) so much quicker it's going to take some getting used to. I really noticed the difference in the sand I rode in. It used to be a load but she rips right through it now.

The reason I told you all that is I can't imagine riding the EX had I done the engine first. Sure it would've been great if I raced people, of which I don't and could care less, but it would be a handful in the trails because the engine was too fast for the chassis stock. I promise, if you mod, doing the suspension first will be the best way to go and then if you want later, go to the motor. I didn't really think I'd go into the engine but I had the chassis so tuned for my riding that the engine "got slow"

There's no point in going to the 440 without buying a cam. If you really want to do some engine mods, buy a cam first. It's simple enough to do it yourself. Most important is buy a service manual so you can do so. I did all the engine work for about $550.