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BD444
05-02-2009, 06:46 PM
I am new to modding my quads, but i want to make my new to me 2000 400ex a trail monster. It already has a white bros pipe, dynajet kit (junk), kn filter with prefilter and lid removed, and.......elka shocks. What else should i get for it to up my performance for cheap. I am more concerned with reliability than absolute performance. I am thinking that sparks ignition key and a rev box.....but u guys know more than me. I got some money to spend and am ready to make it perform. I definately want anything that will make my throttle respond better like the 09 EFI Z400.
Thanks guys.

brian76708
05-02-2009, 06:55 PM
try the sparks key maybe the 450r carb the rev box's is a waste of money IMO unless your quads built because you stop making HP after a certain RPMs.

BD444
05-02-2009, 07:03 PM
thanks buddy
I am definitely looking into a 450r carb.
The sparks key is cheap so ill get that. I got holeshot XCRs all the way around and a set of GBC X-Rex's brand new in my garage all on stock rims. PMR skids for the belly and swing.

monkeyballs
05-02-2009, 07:22 PM
I just did these mods and its a torque monster AWSOME FOR TRAILS. Will beat any 450r stock out of the hole..

Yosh pipe full system no sprk arrestor
hot cam stg 1
wiseco 11:1 wiseco light weight piston
Bored out to 416
Light port and polish
K&n air filter w/ pre charger, dyno jets..
Next mod (2 months from now) 450R CARB! And she will torque even more..
Keep stock gearing

AWSOME BUILD! And it should be reliable..

From what I hear you dont need hd studs, thought if I was you I would change my low end bearings just to be safe. Thought ask around you probably will be able to get away with it.. Make sure there is no play and mesure the end play.. Make sure its up to spec. Finally all this is not to hard to do just do it by the book and STAY ORGANIZED.


Take care

monkeyballs
05-02-2009, 07:27 PM
Originally posted by monkeyballs
I just did these mods and its a torque monster AWSOME FOR TRAILS. Will beat any 450r stock out of the hole..

Yosh pipe full system no sprk arrestor
hot cam stg 1
wiseco 11:1 wiseco light weight piston
Bored out to 416
Light port and polish
K&n air filter w/ pre charger, dyno jets..
Next mod (2 months from now) 450R CARB! And she will torque even more..
Keep stock gearing

AWSOME BUILD! And it should be reliable..

From what I hear you dont need hd studs, thought if I was you I would change my low end bearings just to be safe. Thought ask around you probably will be able to get away with it.. Make sure there is no play and mesure the end play.. Make sure its up to spec. Finally all this is not to hard to do just do it by the book and STAY ORGANIZED.

One last thing, dont waist your money on a rev box or a 450r carb or the sparks ignition. I am not saying those things are pointless but they are mostly ment for the end.. The carb will for sure make a big enough diff but 150.. Spend that on a new piston.. Rev box will change your timing curve but it wont give you much more power. Then sure it revs higher... But you should also spend that money on a hot cam.. lol... Then the sparks timing key is realy cheep but might not work to well with 11:1 comp.. lol I think im going 2 look into that..


Take care

brian76708
05-03-2009, 12:42 PM
Originally posted by monkeyballs


you can get a 450r carb for like 50 or 60 if your patient. not sure it will make much difference but in the future when you go in the motor it will have a bigger effect. i have personaly never used the sparks key but from this site i have herd many good things about it and its realy cheap so you caint go wrong.

once you start going in the motor esp if your going to bump compression its going to start to cost. you shouldn't just slap a 11 to 1 piston in and call it good. you should replace the cam chain, chain tensioner, get it honed, and then probably should redo your head to. so this would not be something to do cheaply.

puTTs
05-03-2009, 04:29 PM
I'd say the sparks key would help a bit from what I've read. If your building a "monster trail" machine you "NEED" the stock lid and snorkel on the airbox. I went riding at Bear Creek close to Canton Ohio yesterday. There was one section of the trail that was flooded out 1-2ft deep about 15ft long. It was like New York city during rush hour...must have been 5 quads on the other side with the riders waving there air cleaners around to dry them out...another 5 quads stuck in the water dead...none of them had stock lids. 2 of them had the outerwears lid. Some had the k&n some the uni filter with outerwears. My ex is stock, air filter and all. I hit the water 2nd gear wide open and tore right through it no problem. Later in the day I hit another small lake that was a little over my waist with no problems either. The entire back of the bike was under the water up to about the back of the gas tank, I just motor boated across. The trails were flooded every where. After riding all day I had to pull the qork to drain the airbox about once an hour. :D If you want to do serious trail riding you NEED the stock lid and snorkel.

BossHogg420
05-03-2009, 04:52 PM
not all trails are wet!

puTTs
05-03-2009, 05:02 PM
Maybe, but I would think a "Trail Monster" should be able to handle some water. From the pile ups I seen yesterday, it doesn't take much to kill a bike with no lid... And back to the original post "I am more concerned with reliability than absolute performance." I say lid on is more reliable then no lid in all riding conditions.

Snipe
05-03-2009, 07:06 PM
If your quad was up to about mid way up that gas tank your stock snorkle would had been under water as your snorkel runs under the gas tank.

BD444
05-03-2009, 07:10 PM
I posted trail monster as a way to get looks. I have my snorkel cut to the box already....but i have a new stock snorkel and a lid with holes drilled and one stock one.
Thanks for everyones help.

puTTs
05-03-2009, 07:25 PM
Originally posted by Snipe
If your quad was up to about mid way up that gas tank your stock snorkle would had been under water as your snorkel runs under the gas tank.

The snorkel is mid-front under the gas tank. Water was up to the back of the tank with the rear in the water and the front up. If you've ever been in deep water you and the rear of the bike sink while the front stays up. That's why it's called motor boating :)

400man
10-31-2009, 06:15 PM
wow, I think i'd have to cut me a new trail instead of crossing a water hole that deep.

im surprised no one had suggested a bigger gas tank :confused: ? Im planning on getting the clarke 5.5 gallon tank here soon. it makes trail riding so much more fun when you can got on longer rides without haveing to worry about running out of gas.

tri5ron
11-01-2009, 05:09 AM
Originally posted by BD444
I am new to modding my quads, but i want to make my new to me 2000 400ex a trail monster. It already has a white bros pipe, dynajet kit (junk), kn filter with prefilter and lid removed, and.......elka shocks. What else should i get for it to up my performance for cheap. I am more concerned with reliability than absolute performance. I am thinking that sparks ignition key and a rev box.....but u guys know more than me. I got some money to spend and am ready to make it perform. I definately want anything that will make my throttle respond better like the 09 EFI Z400.
Thanks guys. This is basically what I have built my quad to be, A decent reliable good performing trail quad.

A Sparks key, and a properly tuned 450r carb will wake your quad up quite nicely, with your higher flow intake and exhaust. You will be pleasantly surprised and very impressed.
(mine is now putting 32+ hp,... on the ground,... with a Stock piston and cam,... Thanks to Pro Shop Dyno Tuning)

Next you might want to consider dropping one tooth on your primary sprocket. This results in a Serious Improvement, in torque delivered to the ground. That, combined with a new pair of rear "meats"...
(get ready to have your arms yanked out of socket)

Another highly suggested accessory, is a good steering stabilizer,
to compliment your front shock upgrade. Bye-bye Bump Steer...
(get ready to have your quad go, straight to where you point it)

If you ride rough, rocky, rutted, wooded, types of trails,
then you will want to upgrade AT LEAST the swinger skid, with a .250 thick aftermarket skidplate, and it cant hurt to add full frame/a-arm skids too.
(these are fine at .190 thick)

Nerfs are a good idea, a Temp Guage in the oiltank is nice, Good Hand Guards are a must, and if you want to REALLY want to go off the "deep end" in the your quest for a **Trail Monster**, there are Rear Racks, and Cargo Bags that can be found to fit your 400EX too.

If your trails are tight and technical,
and you do alot of 1st/2nd gear riding....
You might want to think about a spal fan mod too.

These mods and accessories will all be good for a Trail Monster build. Heres a pic of mine with all the above listed goodies,...
(this pic was taken prior to my new Holeshot HD 6 plys)
http://i111.photobucket.com/albums/n148/tri5ron/Pinnacles%20ride%207-04-09/IMG_9947.jpg

If your going to be riding trails with friends, it's also nice to have in helmet speakers and mic, and a gmrs 2 way radios. Mine is set up with a PTT button on the handlebars, and they are good for about a 2 mile range for clear communications between bikes. (the mfg claims 18+ miles, LOL, and that may be true,... in the vacuum of outer space !, but down here on Earth, 2 miles is pretty darn good for a handheld 2 way radio).
My radio's ride inside my padded tankbag, along with my camera, first-aid kit, snake bite kit, etc. I have found it nice to be able to warn my wife of upcoming obstacles, or changing directions on upcoming trails etc.

Good luck with your build, ride hard, ride safe, and keep the rubber side down.

honda400ex2003
11-01-2009, 08:55 AM
he is also outfitted for ww3 just in case. That thing looks awesome tri. I like my setup in my sig for trails. I ride around 20 miles an hour on average and it does great. Steve

matts27
11-01-2009, 01:42 PM
Now that I've gotten my LTR shocks ( front rezzies ) and ridden 'em, get some better fronts. It'll make you ride longer and straighter to say the least. Also, I've gotten quite a bit of water in my airbox from just smashing through trails but the outerwears filter has never let me down. And +1 for the 14 tooth sprocket, we ride mostly on rough rocky, ledge, loose trails and all this combo has made each ride better. Skids are definetly a must, my PRM swinger is almost done but I keep banging it back, just waiting for the day it shreds! Hope this helps, Take care

MtnEX
11-01-2009, 02:34 PM
Airbox w/snorkle & lid
PRM skids
6 ply tires, or at least 4 ply
14t front sprocket
Sparks Key
Suspension upgrades
Jardine RT5 exhaust, Uni-filter, Keihin jetting

Sparks Key "OK" compression @ rebuild
Stage 1 or 2 Hotcams also




Honestly though, just protect it and ride it a while to see how it is going to be mechanically before going nuts.

MtnEX
11-01-2009, 03:10 PM
Originally posted by monkeyballs
I just did these mods and its a torque monster AWSOME FOR TRAILS. Will beat any 450r stock out of the hole..

Yosh pipe full system no sprk arrestor
hot cam stg 1
wiseco 11:1 wiseco light weight piston
Bored out to 416
Light port and polish
K&n air filter w/ pre charger, dyno jets..
Next mod (2 months from now) 450R CARB! And she will torque even more..
Keep stock gearing

AWSOME BUILD! And it should be reliable..

From what I hear you dont need hd studs, thought if I was you I would change my low end bearings just to be safe. Thought ask around you probably will be able to get away with it.. Make sure there is no play and mesure the end play.. Make sure its up to spec. Finally all this is not to hard to do just do it by the book and STAY ORGANIZED.


Take care


Nice nice build it sounds like.

But you are full of chit on the BOLD part.

I have everything but the piston and stage 1.

It's not even close...
A cam, compression and a few cc's isn't going to do it.

My stock Kawi 450R made more torque than a 416 makes in HP.


It takes like a CT Racing 440 build, or a 440 stroker to get in the neighborhood of a stock 450.

And even then, those still will not rev to the power as fast, and they fall on their face fast after peak.


If this were not true, I'd shove my 450R up Kawi's arse sideways and pick up an '05+ 400EX with the reverse and build... or get an '05+ bottom end for my 2000 to build up on.

...And that you can take to the bank because my 450 lacks some of the stuff I love about my EX....

stever25
11-01-2009, 04:27 PM
+1 for skid plates. I wore right through DG aluminum skids for the swinger twice before I bought Pro-tect stainless. Good luck and keep it pinned!!!!!!:blah:

Ba9801
11-01-2009, 05:27 PM
Stock air box lid and snorkel with K&N and Outerwears
Properly jetted carb
Frame skid pad .190
Armadillo swing arm skid pad .250
6 ply Holeshot HD's
450R front shocks w/gt thunder conversion
CCP steering stabilizer
sparks +6 key
Warn RT15 Winch
Rear rack

These have all made my bike a great trail bike and keep me from getting stuck. Also be sure to have a decent tool kit with you just in case something does go wrong.
I carry a tire plug kit and small air compressor that runs off the battery. An assortment of hand tools... Screwdrivers, pliers, wrenches, etc...
A good tow strap is also very handy in the event you cant get the bike running again.

And if you ride at night alot like we do I have wired up a backup light. This is great on dark narrow trails when you need to back up and dont want to fall off a cliff. Also be sure to carry a reliable flashlight.

My wife has a rear rack and tank bag as well so it is a bit easier to carry extra tools on her bike. I made a PVC 4" tube behind my front bumper to hold my main tool kit and spare spark plug.

Hope these ideas help.

tri5ron
11-01-2009, 06:24 PM
if you DO decide to keep the snorkle removed,...
you might be interested in this thread as a idea for carrying extra tools, a tire plug kit, tow rope, or whatever floats your boat !
enjoy...
http://www.exriders.com/vbb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=410335&perpage=10&highlight=fuel&pagenumber=1

We'll discuss the flip out machine guns, and laser guided missle launcher, at a later time,...
LOL!!!