New to Foum, Help me choose some mods

[400notstock]

Hey guys,

I'm relatively new, and this forum has been great and very helpful about advice for working on my EX. But I was hoping for some advice about some mods i've been considering-

I got a 01' EX about 6 months ago and runs great and is in good condition so I threw new pro tapers, nerfs, an HFM slip-on and stage 2 CDI to eliminate some cut-out I had when riding steep dunes- and since have been having a ball.

For this winter project I took it all apart to get the frame sand-blasted and powder-coated black, and I figured since the motors out, it wouldn't hurt to throw somethin into it-

Since there isn't much price difference I was wondering if anyone knew the differences or any consequences of running a Stage 1 hotcam compared to the stage 2 hotcam, also I was considering the Sparks 6* key as well, would this combination be alright? Is it worth it? I'm not looking to like bore it out just a quick cheap add-on since i'm on a relative budget-but i figured stage 2 hotcam was more power for the same price considering I already have the stage 2 CDI. Will this cut down on reliability?

Any advice would be awsome, Thanks!

[bkelley]

You didn't mention an aftermarket filter. If you haven't got one, I would recommend getting that first.

I'm not all that knowledgeable with cams, I mean I know their purpose and what not, just don't know the differences between the stages. I guess the higher stages have more lift and duration than stock or a stage 1? I guess I'd go with a stage 2 since they are the same price, someone correct me if I am wrong. As for that CDI, it's probably doing a lot less than you think. There really isn't enough power left in the RPM range to make any difference. Also, the Sparks key will be fine with your setup as long as you don't decide to throw in a high compression piston sometime down the road, and if you do you could just replace it with a +3° key that a forum member (Wheelie) here makes. I would also consider a nice set of tires, +2 a-arms, 450 shocks, monster coil and maybe even a 450 carb. Oh, another popular mod is grinding down the welds on the stock header. Here's a link to a thread that talks about it (http://www.exriders.com/vbb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=334885&highlight=best+header). That should be more than enough to keep a smile on your face for a while. That is, until you decided you want to bore her out.

Welcome to the forum, welcome to the disease.

[400notstock]

Yeah I got a K&N when I purchased the slip-on. I read somewhere this past summer about what a CDI does and had issues with it cutting out when i was pinned on the top of a sand dune, the CDI fixed it completely which was awsome- but I know that there is no way to really get a power increase with that CDI unless it's alongside with a cam - I just wasn't sure if you could mix the key with the cam, or key with CDI- Or if stage 2 was too much for a virtually stock motor-

[bkelley]

Yeah, like I said, I'm not the most knowledgeable person when it comes to cams. I let someone else answer that for you. I'm pretty sure a stage 2 will be alright for a stock engine.

[Ryan'07400ex]

if that cdi advances the timing you may not want to mix it with the sparks 6* key cause it be advanced to much

does your cdi advance the timing?