Headstay?

[freak400]

I see when you buy a coolhead you can get it with or without the mount for the headstay. Can you run without it safely with the stock head?

[deathman53]

yes, if you are using a stock frame, put the head stay in anyway. It can use the extra lateral support. Lots of guys, use the headstay and don't put the bolt through the head. Some say the headstay bolted tight can cause binding.

[mxduner]

get the headstay and use it.Mine didn't have one and i just broke the lower motor mount, then it threw the chain and busted my case saver and damaged my case:mad: and this is a stock gusseted frame

[atvmxr]

been runing mine for years without the headstay. removed them on my zillas too. supposedly helps slightly increase upper power and add a few hundred rpm to the max rpm...

i think as the aluminum cylinder and head expands with heat, having the head bolted down causes slight distortion to the bore, which increases drag on the piston. so not having the head bolted down reduces this friction and thus the slight increase in power and rpm. at least that was my interpretation of it way back in the 90z... :ermm:

[Rip_Tear]

The guy I got mine from didn't have a head stay and it got 2 broken motor mounts from it... I put a modified head stay in since it's been bored and stroked... I'd say keep it in...

[freak400]

Thanks guys, just good to know that I can run without it for a little while I guess until i find one.

[trx310R#24]

Originally posted by mxduner
get the headstay and use it.Mine didn't have one and i just broke the lower motor mount, then it threw the chain and busted my case saver and damaged my case:mad: and this is a stock gusseted frame


i know how it feels trust me:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

[All250R]

Sometimes physics and engineering appeal to common sense and then sometimes the disciplines seem to defy it. Science however is more trustworthy than intuition. That's just me being philosophical. lol

The way I've heard this summed up that I like the best is teh frame if it didn't have an engine in the middle would not be made with a big opening like it does. The swingarm places incredible load and flex into the metal and apparently tends to accumulate around the center of the frame.

Now the more metal is allowed to flex the closer it comes to extending beyond its elastic limit and the faster the fatigue will accumulate. Think bending a paperclip and what it takes to snap it.

Removal of the headstay will either place stress more in the frame and less in the motor or distribute more from the frame to the motor. You have to pick your poison.

One thing about gussets too. Chassis are meant to flex. Look at many of the Honda gussets and see how they aren't even welded all the way across the mating areas. Of course we know honda makes some of the best engineered products in the market, so we know this wasn't a manufacturing screw up or a money saving effort. If you strengthen one area, you're going to distribute the load somewhere else. If you don't know exactly what you're doing and why, you may wind up just sending cracks to another area of your frame. It's worth thinking about before change the load balancing properties of your frame.