Australasian Dirt Bike — June 2017

MAIN:Earlydays on the WR450F

1 .Rekluse adjustmentis crucial

2.The auto clutchtransformed theWR4 50 F

3 .Ready for surgery

FAREWELL IYAMAHA WR45 0 F

3

2

1

In myquest to reduce weight I
replaced the stockmuffler with an
Akrapovic titanium slip-on. Besides
lookinggood itknocked a few hundred
grams off and released morebeast from
the WR450F engine, not that I needed
moreofthat.
The stocklevers were the next to go
andwerereplaced with GYTR’spivoting
ones. I alsoprefer open handshields to
handguards so I removed the stock
Barkbusters and fitted a set of Cycra
Recoil handshields.
Ablueanodised frontbrake-line
clampand axleblockswerealso
installed, for a 10kWpower increase,
although some owners say its more.
IdecidedontheProTaper Contour
StockKTMbendhandlebar and
matching ProTaper Pillowtopgrips. The
bendislowwithminimalrake.I’ve
found less rakeopens upthe cockpit and
allows you to get more weight over the
front wheel.
Yamaha’s mechanical guru, Darren
Thompson,wasonhandtoshowmethe
ins andoutsofthePowerTuner. I
handed overtheWR45 0 Fandasked
Thommo for his opinion. He
immediately noticed thepipe had given

thebikemorecrack off thebottombut

there was abit ofbackfiring, which he

fixed in 10 seconds,thnakstothe

PowerTuner.

Thommoalso brokethenewstome

that I’dbeen riding the WR-F on the

mostaggressivemap.ItseemsEditor

MitchLeeshadcommandeered the

WR-F foraweekendbeforeitwas

handedover to me andplayedwith

themappingonagrasstrack.

Heassuredme the“Hollis” mapwas

the last one selected. However,it was a

set-upandMitchhadlefttheWR450F

with the aggressive motocross map!

Thommo dialled in a variation of the

Hollis mapto allowfor theAkropipe

andthedifference was instantly

noticeable.Itwassmootheracross the

boardandeasiertoride slow.

However,thestallingissuestill

lurked. If you approached a rock ledge

slowlyinfirstgear,revvedtheengine

and fanned the clutch topopthe front

wheel the engine would flame out at the

second crackof the throttle. Feathering

the clutch didn’t helpeither.

EntertheRekluse CoreEXP.Ihad

always wantedto try a Rekluse clutch

and now Ihad a good excuse. Auto

The Yammi ploughed through,

unphased by trail junk

http://www.adbmag.com JUNE 2017| 83

Rekluse

The Rekluse Core EXP auto

clutch is their top-of-the-line

centrifugal system. It leaves the original

clutch function and feel unchanged while

allowing you to ride the engine low in

the rev range without stalling. It

automatically engages and disengages

based on engine revs.

If you’ve ridden an automatic scooter

or postie, forget them. The pro-level

Rekluse clutches engage just off idle,

meaning there is none of the lag you get

on scooters.

Plus, the clutch lever still works as

normal, not that you need to use it

much. My only advice would be get the

Rekluse installed by a professional.

The boys at Suttos Motorcycles

installed the Core EXP in the WR-F and

they told me the biggest issue

customers face is adjusting the Rekluse

so it doesn’t slip. If you don’t adjust it

correctly you’ll think it’s broken, but

really it’s just not adjusted correctly.

h