MAIN: Olly found his happy place on the WR450F by
the end of the nine months. It started out as a fire
breathing dragon and ended up a great trailbike- Stock front brakes uses a floating disc
- TeeNCee Graphics kit didn’t show much sign of
wearing after four months hard riding - Kenda Washougal II is a solid choice as an all-
around tyre and see, no wear!
The stock tyres were
shredded so a pair of Kenda
Washougal IIs was fitted
FAREWELL I YAMAHA WR450F
1
3
2
clutches divide dirtriders. You’ve got
those who love them and those who
hate them. After hearing the opinion of
half of Australia I ended up taking the
advice of a couple of trailriding mates
who run Rekluses.
The boys at Suttos Motorcycles
installed the EXP and I was sold. I got
less arm pump, I was riding faster and,
most importantly, I was having more
fun. I was no longer fighting with the
WR-F’s engine.
Suspension was next on the agenda
and Thommo had some settings he
wanted to try. I was finding the WR-F
harsh on the front and difficult to turn
in. It’s a very stable bike at high-speed
but that has its drawbacks when the
speed decreases and the trail becomes
as tighter as a... (you fill in the blank).
Thommo dialled in the clickers and
we raised the fork in the triple-clamps
to 15mm above the top clamp to
encourage the WR450F to turn more
easily. The turn-in was much better but
even with the clickers set and rider sag
at 105mm the front still felt harsh.
Thommo said the stock fork springs
are too light for the WR450F even
without a rider. If you’re 75 to 85kg the
WR-F has a tendency to ride too low in
the stroke, resulting in the harsh
front-end. A stiffer set of fork springs
will improve that plush feeling in the
front-end.
The final piece of the WR450F
puzzle was new tyres. The stock tyres
were shredded so a pair of Kenda
Washougal IIs was fitted. They are a
dual-compound tyre and deliver good
grip on all the terrain we ride around
Sydney. Sand, rock, hardpack and
loamy dirt, I couldn’t fault them. I
ended up only putting seven hours
riding on the Kenda tyres and they
showed no signs of significant wear.
The combination of the Kenda tyres
and the WR’s torquey engine made it
even more of a hillclimb machine. On
trails I’ve ridden for years on small-
bore two-strokes, destroying clutches
as I went, the WR450F just ate inclines.
No matter how out of shape you find
yourself on a hill, the WR450F always
has power to get you out of trouble.
I had my reservations when Mitch
first told me I’d be looking after one of
the quickest 450s on the market but in
the end I had a lot of fun on the big
Yammi. In the nine or so months
looking after it we had our differences
but we worked everything out.84 | JUNE 2017 http://www.adbmag.com.auThe mods:
- TeeNCee graphics
- Akrapovic titanium slip-on muffler
- GYTR pivoting levers
- GYTR anodised axle blocks
- GYTR anodised brakehose clamp
- Kenda Washougal II tyres
- ProTaper KTM bend handlebar
- ProTaper Pillowtop grips
- Baja Designs Squadron Sport