hotrods Connecting rod kit

[eastside 400]

Anyone use the HotRods connecting rod kit on an OEM 04-05 crank? i want to use a balanced crank this season but mine needs to be rebuilt and Pro-X doesnt offer a kit and carillo and falicon rods dont come with the lower rod bearing. Any suggestions?

[fastredrider44]

I've used this rod on Hot Rods cranks and Honda cranks. It has usually turned out good however it did vibrate in one bike I installed it in. Vibrations weren't bad though, and the motor lasted a full season with no ill effects. I say go for it. I had a local atv shop who does machine work put the rod on the cranks though. I'm not sure if he ever fooled with balancing them or what he did.:o

[ThumPIN_450R]

I put less then 5 gallons of fuel through a brand new engine with a hot rods crank before it locked a lower rod bearing up.

[njquadracer11]

^ i top that, i used a hot rod to start out my season and i had to replace the whole motor in april cuz the crank let go...go with stock honda, soooo much more reliable

[fastredrider44]

He's talking about just the rod. Not the entire crank. Lord knows I've been through just as many Honda cranks as I have Hot Rods.

[mx Eli]

I would go with a whole honda crank or a falicon. wouldnt trust anything else

[ds268]

There is nothing wrong with the their rods, and they work great. I would never run a re-rodded crank unbalanced... or any modified unbalanced crank for that matter. Hot Rods cranks are just factory cranks assembled with their rod. I ran their stock stroke HD crank in my 06 for two years with well over 200hrs and rediculous power before the rod finally snapped. It was a true test of durability. Having one 'lock up' isn't the rods fault but most likely oiling issues or a stressed bearing. Reliable?? If you only knew how many were out there...

[Ruf Racing]

Originally posted by ds268
Having one 'lock up' isn't the rods fault but most likely oiling issues or a stressed bearing. Reliable?? If you only knew how many were out there...

I run a HR stroker crank, and will run more in the future. But they do make an inferior product, compared to OEM or Falicon. This is due to the Chinese' lower standards of quality. When the HR crank rod fails, 99% of the time, it's due to the materials (Bearing)and the their tolerances. There are bunches of HR cranks, running around with no problems. And others sitting on shop floors. :ermm:

[ds268]

Originally posted by Ruf Racing
I run a HR stroker crank, and will run more in the future. But they do make an inferior product, compared to OEM or Falicon. This is due to the Chinese' lower standards of quality. When the HR crank rod fails, 99% of the time, it's due to the materials (Bearing)and the their tolerances. There are bunches of HR cranks, running around with no problems. And others sitting on shop floors. :ermm:

True in terms of quality to either you mentioned but the OEM rod itself would fail where a hotrods rod would still survive. Now you're other point is the bearing failure which I totally agree. That seems to be the worst part with HR kits and cranks. I p Much more bearing failures from HR than OEM or others. I prefer OEM bearings in any circumstance but my last build used HR bearing without any issues. Guess it's just the nature of the performance beast!

[eastside 400]

the problem is that the OEM lower rod bearing is not available, you have to buy a whole crank... i heard falicon sells the bearing and washers but they get over 100 bucks just for that. looks like another oem crank it is

[Ruf Racing]

That does suck about the availability. $100 just for the thrust washers and bearing? How much would Falicon rebuild your OEM crank? It may be worth the coin. Their stuff is almost bulletproof.