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View Full Version : Opinons on Diamond J Customs



Honda10
06-30-2007, 09:24 AM
I am thinking about geting a +4.5 in front widening kit, and 2 inch rear wheel spacers for the rear for my 05 250ex. Both from Diamond J Customs. I would like ur opinions about if they hold good.

JBacon
06-30-2007, 09:58 AM
well, I dont have one. But from what "ive" heard, there not good at all. sounds like nobody likes them for some reason.
someone else will tell you on here...

tedwilley
06-30-2007, 03:42 PM
I don't have the kit either, but I've read just about every post that mentioned them. I am still considering the kit.
Two opinions on this forum:
From people that don't have them - 98% hate them
From people that do have them - 98% love them.
Check out mak400ex's 250ex with the set up you thinking about, read his opinions!

coolkid91
06-30-2007, 04:34 PM
i say go for it man,all the people that acually have the kit love it so "do it"

honda4life02
07-01-2007, 10:49 AM
Originally posted by JBacon
well, I dont have one. But from what "ive" heard, there not good at all. sounds like nobody likes them for some reason.
someone else will tell you on here...


well i dont have it , but there is a guy at the race track that has one on a 450r and he does preety good on the tt track:macho

ALEXANDERJASON
07-20-2007, 05:18 PM
I'M NOT A BIG FAN OF THE DIAMOND J WIDENING KIT. FOR THE MONEY I THINK IT MIGHT BE WORTH A SHOT. IT COULDN'T DO MUCH HARM, AND YOU COULD ALWAYS GO WITH NEW A-ARMS IF IT DID NOT WORK OUT FOR YOU.

HOWEVER, I WOULD STEER COMPLETELY CLEAR OF WHEEL SPACERS UNLESS YOU ARE HANDY AT REPLACING BENT AXLES!! YOU ARE BETTER OFF GOING WITH A WIDER WHEEL/TIRE COMBO THAN A SPACER. TRY THE 9X9 ITP T-9'S WITH THE 3+6 OFFSET AND 20X11X9 INCH TIRES. THEY WILL NET YOU ABOUT THE SAME RESULT AS 2" REAR WHEEL SPACERS, AND THEY ARE MUCH MORE STABLE!!

coolkid91
07-20-2007, 09:52 PM
no ,going with bigger offset wheels to make it wider is harming it the same as the wheel spacers.its the leverage on the axel that would bend it.i run spacers and get alot of air ,never any trouble.the spacer will never break.as for as wheels stick with the stock or beadlocks.maybe think before you post.your welcome

ALEXANDERJASON
07-20-2007, 09:56 PM
YOU COULDN'T BE MORE WRONG. THE SPACER MOVES THE ENTIRE WHEEL/TIRE OUT, AND PLACES EXTRA STRESS ON THE AXLE/HUBS. A WIDER WHEEL WITH THE SAME INNER OFFSET AS STOCK, BUT GREATER OUTER OFFSET WILL NOT AFFECT THE GEOMETRY THE SAME WAY A SPACER DOES.

coolkid91
07-20-2007, 10:02 PM
um yes it does,your still making it come out futher from the axel

ALEXANDERJASON
07-20-2007, 10:09 PM
UMM, NO IT DOESN'T.

THE INNER OFFSET IS THE SAME, AND THEREFORE THE WEIGHT IS DISTRIBUTED THROUGH THE AXLE AT CLOSE TO WHAT THE STOCK WHEEL GEOMETRY IS. MOVING YOUR ENTIRE WHEEL OUT WITH A SPACER INCREASES THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE CENTER OF THE WHEELS GEOMETRY AND THE WEIGHT IS DISTRIBUTED TO MORE OF THE OUTER EDGE OF THE AXLE.

BUT WHAT CAN I TELL YOU, YOU ARE OBVIOUSLY A ROCKET SCIENTIST.

coolkid91
07-20-2007, 11:21 PM
dude what ever im not gona keep on arguing with you,your still puting more leverage on the axel.its the same as wheel spacers.thanks im glad you think im a rocket scientist

mx825
07-20-2007, 11:23 PM
AJ is correct. running wheel spacers is basically putting an extension on your axle putting more stress on the axle itself. a longer axle with the same durability would make bending it a whole lot easier. A wheel with a different offset would not put as much strain on it as a spacer would, but i think it would have some effect.


I also do not like the Diamond J kit. I'm sure they're safe and they're not going to break on you, but they just wouldn't work for the more serious riders.

If you're an average rider, and you don't plan on taking your skills any farther than they are, then go for it.

tedwilley
07-21-2007, 09:51 AM
I agree with all of you...partially.
MX825 is right, the wider wheels will still put strain on the axle, just not as much. Both methods will change the geometry by slightly different degrees.
The reality is that many people on ALL sizes of quads run rear spacers and/or wider wheels. If the actually rate of bent axles attributable to widening alone were that great, we'd all be reading a lot more posts about it. Not saying it doesn't happen, it does.
Your riding habits have more to do with the potential to bend an axle than the wider rear track does alone.
If you are pushing the limits of your quad, you are pushing the limits, whether your have spacers, wider wheels or a stock rear end.
With cars and trucks, wider offsets wear out the wheel bearings faster, and I suspect that is a more likely result an quads as well.
That being said, I have 2/1/2 spacers and love the handling.
It's worth the trade off of axle and bearing reliability.
Most mods do carry a trade off for reliability, ease of maintenance, etc.

Honda10
07-21-2007, 07:48 PM
Thanks guys for the help, but just for the record i am probably going to go with rear wheel spacer for the fact that they are cheaper and i dont really hit big jumps to often. But thank u anyways.

450rJam
07-28-2007, 07:17 AM
spacers, or wheel offsets,


both increase the measurement from the lug nuts to the farthest point of contact with the earth.

duh ?

A.J. TRY CLICKING THE CAPS LOCK KEY AGAIN

as far as the diamond j kit, I havnt heard of anyone who got it who wasnt happy with it. so their testamony holds more weight to me.

it is obvious that it will increase bump steer but you can always add a stabilizer to help

tedwilley
07-28-2007, 09:38 AM
I can finally offer my first hand observations, as I just installed a +6 (3" each side) Diamond J front end kit on my 250.
BTW, I also replaced my stock tires with 19" Holeshots all around, so you would think bump steer would increase, but it had NO effect.
I can state this because the closest riding areas here in Central CA are in old mining areas and have lots of 4-8" rocks, both loose and embedded. There dirt areas as well, thank God!
I rode for two hours without ever experiencing any bump steer issues, and I purposely hit as many obstacles a possible so I would know how the kit and tires were going to work.
I am NOT an mx'er but I do like to run the practice tracks, and wow this kit and rear wheel spacers (2 1/2" each side) made all the difference in steering and handling which = confidence.
I am sure the Holeshots made a big difference as well.
I am very pleased.

Honda10
07-28-2007, 10:08 AM
Would u recomend the +6,0r+4.5 from dimond j. for a 250ex.

Honda10
07-28-2007, 10:16 AM
I was going to go with the +4.5 widening from dimond J. and +2 durablue spacers in the rear. I didnt want to make it too wide beacause i ride in the woods and in some places it is a very tight squeeze. Please give me ur opinions?

450rJam
07-28-2007, 10:33 AM
thats exactly what I would do also, maybe the 2 1/2 rear spacers
(I think that puts it closer to the same width rear vs front)

tedwilley
07-28-2007, 12:44 PM
Here is how it looks:

tedwilley
07-28-2007, 01:00 PM
From the rear:

tedwilley
07-28-2007, 01:02 PM
From the front:

450rJam
07-28-2007, 01:28 PM
looks like it changes the angle of the shock a little, do they feel a bit softer ?

Im sure it feels alot better sliding through the corners

tedwilley
07-28-2007, 01:43 PM
Yeah they are softer. There is adjustment for height, also. I have them on the lowest setting, I may raise it. It can go 1" or 2" higher depending on the mounting holes used.
I think the biggest reason for not increasing bump steer is the steering angle index (SAI) stays the same as stock, i.e. the angle of the upper and lower ball joints on the a-arms in relation to the wheel. Front spacers throw the SAI way off, hence they make steering harder to control.
I also have the preload on the 400ex shocks at the next to the lowest setting, I may tune that a little better, too.

coolkid91
07-28-2007, 08:19 PM
dude super nice,is the bike lower in the front

Honda10
07-28-2007, 08:36 PM
tedwilly , r those 400ex shocks on their now? Would recommend staying with stock 250ex shocks when going wider in the front or get 400ex front shocks?

450rJam
07-29-2007, 06:46 AM
400ex shocks on the front would take some fabrication

the 400ex shock fits the rear on the 250ex

(this is all info found on here, I have not installed myself)

tedwilley
07-29-2007, 07:39 AM
Yes, it is about an inch lower right now. I can go level or up one inch by using the three different sets of holes in the shock mounts.
Yes, they are stock 400ex shocks. The kit I bought includes a shock conversion kit that allows the use of longer shocks, they bolt right up.
If you go to their website, they list the different shocks that bolt up.
The kit can be purchased with or without the conversion kit, if you want to use stock shocks. But, using stock shocks it will be lower, and there isn't any height adjustment.
Let me add that I looked at this for months, debating how reliable it was based on pictures, here and on the website. The pictures don't do it justice. It is very sturdy (1/4" laser cut plates)and in person you can see that it is not going to get bent. You would total the stock a-arms before the kit components would fail. All the nuts are nylock, so you don't need Locktite or lock washers. Best of all everything fits perfectly, no drilling or cutting of anything. I will say some of the supplied bolts are 1/2-3/4" longer than needed, but at least they weren't too short!
You can purchase the conversion kit by itself also, to adapt different shocks to the stock front end. I tried to fit the 400 shocks before buying the widening kit, but they are just too long. Other slightly shorter shocks would bolt up though.
The rear wheel spacers are billet aluminum and like the front end, your stock components would fail before they would.

450rJam
07-29-2007, 08:01 AM
thanks for all the info tedwilley, its good to hear first hand knowledge on improvements like this, instead of all the bashing by people who have never seen or used the product.

how much $ and time you have installing the front end?
shocks/diamond j/ everything

Honda10
07-29-2007, 08:42 AM
yea man thanxs for all the advise tedwilly, i have decided to for the diamond J widening kit.

tedwilley
07-29-2007, 01:19 PM
Dj widening kit w/shock conversion $215 shipped
Used 400ex Stock shocks $ 93 shipped
Extra hardware $ 0.00

Total approximate $308:cool:

Same width and shocks with new a-arms $700+.:eek2:

Labor about 4 hours. I did need an extra set of hands once in awhile (my son) but just for convenience. Other than that, it is basically a one man job.
Other than the front suspension, only the front bumper needs to be removed to install the parts.
The brake lines just barely fit, but they do fit. You will need to reroute the brake lines. The following picture is how I did it.
Make sure you support the quad on something solid, not just a floor jack. You will need to use a lot of leverage removing and installing the front end. I torqued the bolts to 50 ft lbs.
The instructions are down loadable from DJ's web site. They are not detailed but easy to figure out, with very clear large photos.

tedwilley
07-29-2007, 01:24 PM
Here is how I rerouted the brake lines. I fliiped the outer brake line bracket around ( had to bend the tab flat) and re-installed the bracket. It looks tighter than it actually is, there is plenty range of motion.

tedwilley
07-29-2007, 01:27 PM
Here is a close up of the height adjustment for the shocks.
Where the new shock mounting brackets are located there five 1/4" steel plates counting the two brackets. Where the old mount was there are three plates plus two washers.

Honda10
08-01-2007, 08:18 PM
Does anyone have the +4.5in. widening kit from Diamond J on their 250ex, if so please post a picture. I am thinking about getting them.