Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126404
...... .... I-< 0.. < You want a bike that keeps running - no matter w hat. Championship Enduro Shaping your bike for'enduro Make it fit you 20 No matter how much thou~ht a motorcycle ma nufacturer puts Into a machine designed for enduro or the related sport of reliability trials, no matter how closely the designers and engineers pay attention to what riders really want and need for back -country competition on and off the road , most riders make changes to fit their bike to their personal preferences and style of riding and to their own physical bu ild. And it makes no difference how high the quality is or how up to date and exotic the components may be. With the latest all-out enduro bikes, the alterations and shaping may be subtle. But even top-ranking factory riders make some changes. They overlook no detail in turning an already excellent cross -country motorcycle - one whose de sign th ey have probably influenced - into a mount that's a lillie m or e rel iable under severe condi tions, a little better suite d to th eir cha ngi ng needs. Not everyone ca n afford a new bike every yea r, or even wants on e . There are advantages to staying with on e motorcycle awhile in compet ition. You get familiar with it , and you have the special tools and know -how to maintain and repair it. In addition, you 've probably learned the secrets of riding it well . You've discovered its ideosyncrasies the hard way, through a lo ng series of sometimes painfu l crashes and frustrating DNFs , So u nless you're looking for a new bik e and have the money to choose from am ong the best , the on ly way you 'll come close to getting the qualities you want or may need for enduro is through some degree of modification of you r present motorcycle or on e you can afford , a nd in the addition of vital equipment to it. If you do it right , this · should make you r bik e as competiti ve as the majority of endu ro mounts, and with proper prepping befor e ea ch event you may even hav e the edge . Two examples As examples let 's look at wha t was done to a medium -pri ced street -trai l motorcycle . a Can -Am 125 TNT , befor e and during its life as a serious end u ro bik e in two seas on s of easte rn enduro. Then we'll see how a western rider shaped his KTM 25 0 GP Cross Country , an expensive ma chine which should require a m inimum of changes. Like so many so- called enduro bikes, the Can-Am TNT started out street -legal , cl uttered and weighted down with lights and other stuff better left off, and shod with those " uni versa l" tires that are not the best for street use and certainly not on trails . This model 125 also had a reputation for less th an satisfactory rear suspension, which could be im pro ved most easily by moving the lower shock mounts forward a little. So before it left the dealer, Lindy's Suzuki of Romero , Mich. , this CanAm sported high- q uality kn ob b ies - a . 3.00 x 21 Trelleborg in front and a 4 .00 x 18 Metzeler-rnanufactured Hi· Point on the rear - in place of th e stock universals, and shock mounting gussets had been welded to the top of the swingarm , permitting moving the lowe r mounting position forward either two or four inches. Further changes were made at home to prepare it for enduro riding. The stoc k muffler , which was extremely quiet , b ut heavy and not U ,S . Forestry approved , and which a lso blo cked use of the forward set of upper shock mounting holes in th e fram e , was repl a ced with an X -Dusor silencerspark arrestor mounted farther to the rear at th e end of a short piece of custom -bent tubing con nec ting it with th e stock upswept exha ust pipe. Test rid ing at a local MX cou rse p ro ved the need for better shoc ks, so a set of 13 .4·inch Kon i d ampers with heavy-duty 80 -pount Hi -Point spri ngs was insta lled using th e most forward set of top hol es and the two -in ch forward lower mounts. Unnecessary lights and equ ipment were stripped off the bik e to reduce weight and eliminate some of the clutter. Tu rn -indicator lights , speedometer lig h ts , unnecessary wiring , rearview mirror and the handlebar-mounted ign it ion switch were taken off, and the headlight and tail light were re p la ce d with t he fashi onable a nd nearly indestructible Preston Pe tt y p lastic headlight number plate with its 4 \02 ·inch sealed beam bulb , and a Hillmart rubbermounted enduro tail light and license plate holder. The stock plastic front fe nder on the Can-Am is a lill ie skimpy, so it was replaced with an unbrea kable Petty integral -bracket Mudder, deep and lon g to help keep mud off th e engi ne and rid er. The speedometer, satisfactory for a beginning enduro rider, would not do th e job in serious competition so' it was rem ov ed and a Specmo 24 -mph Enduro Pil ot wa s rubber m ounted with a Hi -Point bracket on th e handle b ar crossb ra ce . d own behind the number plate wh ere it 's prot ected from damage , yet easy to read. While th e Bet or forks on thi s bike are more than sa tisfac tory for en durotri als, with 6 \02 inches of travel. th e vent holes in th e ca ps. whi ch hel p th em work so well. squirted oi l on th e rider. The solution was to tap th e vents for hollow 8-32 scre ws (drilled out on a lathe). which we re long eno ug h a fte r th ey'd been screwed into the ca ps and th e hea ds cu t off, that pl astic tubing co uld be faste ne d to eac h one . Open ende d loops of gas lin e were insta lled on each for k vent so th e oil goes just part way up th e tu b ing , th en is suc ked