I have the carbon fiber. It has worked out pretty good for me. I do have a nice dent on the bottom of the frame. But I would have got it with any skid plate. The Rock was HUGE. I got mine from a shop that had it on the shelf for a year. So I got it at a considerable discount. Sent with this high tech chingadera!
I'm rocking the stock plastic KTM skid plate as well. At first I worried about it not being heavy duty enough, but after a few times bottoming out, the skid plate nor the frame show any worse for the wear. Plus it takes two seconds to get it off after a ride to clean.
OK I road my 09 530 home last night this was the first time I rode it in the dark and as you all already know the headlight sucks! Any suggestions? thanks AB
The simplest and cheapest upgrade is a halogen bulb from Sicass. It is way better, but still not quite enough. After that, it just takes money!
I got an HID conversion kit on fleabay. Haven't fitted it yet (that's part of a whole rewiring project to get the 530XC-W street legal and plated in CA), but I'm sure it'll be better than stock ..... I've used these kits before on other vehicles and they have worked fine. Search for HID BA20D if you're interested.
I installed a Baja Designs Squadron on my 500 EXC last week. For myself, the Squadron was the solution to the lack of light problem. It's not cheap, but it is a quality product and worth every penny. Actually it's too bright for riding on roads with oncoming traffic. It is blinding, so you'd need to buy the dimmer switch too, if you're gonna be on pavement. I am very happy with this light. It was a plug and play install and took about 45 minutes to complete. Check it out. You won't be disappointed.
Did some looking didnt know they made this in the model specific, clean looking, dont see anything about a dimmer on there site though.
There was a guy awhile back posted photos of a unit he imported from Poland or something like that, like the squadron it replaced the stock light assembly in the factory headshell. $500 or so. I got the trail tech X2, works decent at night for me. Got it. Enduro-Tech LED. http://advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=21483005&postcount=4345 Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWQkFKjN2LY&feature=youtu.be Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Hold tight. I think Rally Moto Kit will be offering a Rigid LED kit soon. http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=20913281&postcount=300
So I'm getting ready to order tires for the EXC-R and would like some feedback. I know, I said I was going to a while back but now I am ready. Just finished off a set of 6 Days Extremes. Options in order I see are: 1. MT21 front / MT43 trials rear 2. K760 / K760 3. MT21 / MT21 4. MT21 / D606 I see a lot of praise for the trials rear but I am most concerned about the lack of sidewall tread. I lean the bike over a lot, off or on road. Was leaning toward the Kendas because they should last similar to the 6 Days, which I liked, at about half the cost.
I put on the britania lynx kit. Better lighting, a little bit of a fairing and a dash where I mounted a gps and powerlet outlets. http://britanniacomposites.com/index.php/products/lynx16
I'd go with option 1, been running the Mt-43 for a while now and absolutely love it. The traction when single tracking is amazing compared to a knobby. Hodakaguy
Thanks all for sharing what has worked for you, so far the Baja squadron looks like the way I will go if I don't have to rewire my stator. Thanks again. AB
Yo HG....I wanted to check back with you on this. I really appreciate your advice - you've helped me out with this bike a few times. I owe you a beer sometime. Anyway, I tried a few things based on your setup. First, I rerouted my lines - I was running very close to the head and high up on it at that. I rerouted so that The line is going under the carb and sort of laying over the top of the starter. The other thing I did was wrap the exhaust - that made a HUGE difference in the radiant heat! Very much recommend that. I even sprung a bit extra to get the titanium colored wrap so it blends in with the pipe... I also did the heat tape over the forward portion of the tank - up around the head and radiators. Took two rolls of 1.5" x 15' tape to do it. (Side note: if you decide to do this - TAPE your fingers before you start! You'll be surprised how quick you'll get blisters if you don't) It wasn't that hot out today and I wasn't able to go trail riding and really push it hard - but I can tell it made a huge difference already. It was idling in traffic and running smooth in the canyons today. Not sure if its really fixed yet, but it's definitely better! Thanks man!
Some suggestions please. My 09 530 shakes pretty bad at 40 MPH because of the rimlocks a little faster and it mostly goes away. As a fix I took the front rimlock out and siliconed the hole to keep dirt out. And the bike is 80 percent better. What I'm asking is if you guys think it's absolutely necessary to have the rear rimlock in place. I know probably everybody that reads this will think I'm nuts. But if I keep the tire up in the high teens near 20 PSI really will the rear rim spin in the tire ?
You'd be much better off running a rim lock and getting some weights to balance out the tire for smooth street running. Even with 20lbs in the tire it only takes one good hook up to tear your valve stem out of the tube.....and it will happen . I'd run a front as well myself....better than changing out a tube 20 miles from the truck. Your loosing a lot of traction off road with that kind of tire pressure, I'm running 10lbs for all around use on my rear MT-43. You can run run Motion Pro light weight rim locks (CLICK HERE) that slightly help...but you'll still need a bunch of weights. Or you can run dual rim locks 180 deg apart which will also balance out the wheels, but it will make it harder to change a tube/tire especially while out on the trail. Pick up a set of weights and you'll be good to go! These weights are great, easy to install/remove and reusable! http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?p=10474959 I've been balancing my own wheels with the weights above at each tire change, I use a balance stand similar to this with great results....fast and easy. Link: CLICK HERE One more thing, don't use the nut that comes with the tube to anchor the valve stem to the rim....I think those were invented by the tube companies to sell more tubes lol. If the tire does slip and the stem is bolted down it will tear the tube....otherwise the stem just rotates and you can easily see that your tire has slipped on the rim. I carry the stem nut in my tool bag in case I need to change a tube out on the trail, it can be handy to hold the valve stem from popping back through while your changing the tire...then it goes right back in the kit While were on the subject I also like running these rubber seals that go around the valve stem and help keep sand, water etc from getting between the tube and the rim. Less abrasive stuff touching the tube the better! Here's a link to the seals: CLICK HERE Hodakaguy
Glad you got it worked out . Be careful not to spill oil on the header wrap...they can catch fire and burn Hodakaguy
I like running 2 rim locks and was until the last set of tires I installed. Could not get the second one in. Worked well for balancing the tires and the extra security is priceless. Never had a flat on the trail so cannot say how much more difficult it is to fix a flat in that situation. Add a couple weights and it could be smooth as glass and definitely run less than 20 psi unless you are riding high speed rocks. Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
