2008 TE 450 - 2 year anniversary

[1kstep]

Here are some impressions on what's been good, bad, and indifferent on my TE450. I'm not a good rider...I'm old, slow, timid so YMMV.

What did you do to yours that I'm missing? Headlight? sidestand? clutch?

GOOD
LTR racing suspension - the BEST thing I've done to this bike
power-up kit - with arrow pipe. I wish I'd waited to get the UpTite silencer
maxxis desert IT tires not DOT.
pirelli scorpions - second choice...soft, good traction...DOT.
Uptite skid plate - it does exactly what it's meant to
CRG folding levers - beautiful craftsmanship.
radiator guards - lot's of offs and no broken radiator (coincence???)
handlebar risers - came with the damper.
bars - didn't like the bend on the stockers.

BAD
Steering damper - meh...could have saved the $400 bucks and got the suspension work earlier. It's definitely saved me a couple times. However..if the suspension was set up like it is now...totally unneeded.
120 rear tire...what the hell was I thinking. Zero traction. Bike totally overpowered it.
sidestand - still stock. I hope whoever designed this for the te450 can't sleep at night.
my clutch leaks like a muther and gets my hand all dirty. it's been cleaned and bled and...makes me long for a cable.

 

[T-Bone]

What bar & what size rear tire did you end up with?

 

[1kstep]

ProTaper Henry/Reed - it helps me keep my elbows up. Lots of sand here in SoCal.

Tires - Pirelli Scorpion Pro 140/80
or
Maxxis Desert IT 120/100
many good riders here swear by trials tires and Tubliss system. Never rode that setup...but I don't like the technical stuff. If you ride sand/rock mostly...Maxxis Desert IT is a great rear tire. The knob pattern will often pick up 3/4" stones and chuck them at people behind you...other than that....long wear and no pinchflats. God help you if you have to snap that bead on yourself...it's STIFF.

 

[OlderHuskyRider]

Thanks for this post, lets me have a little hope for my 2010 450, yours seems to be doing pretty good.

 

[Picklito]

I'm not a good rider...I'm old, slow, timid so YMMV.

This makes your review all the more helpful to us "real" riders. Was going to ask the same about the bars, already answered. I know lots of guys like that Pro-Taper Reed bend. Gonna have to try it because something has begun to hurt my wrists and I'm noticing that I can't keep my elbows up anymore (did somebody say something about being old and slow??)

My mods so far have been... Cycra hand guards. Adjusted valves once (only one shim was "almost" out of spec). Yup, that's it. With the stock 09 power-up changes it runs great. I'm messing with the too-stiff-for-me forks a bit and they're getting better. Can't complain about the shock so far. Just started getting a little leaking out of the clutch master onto the lever. Have had this on my KTM's. Have had good luck disassembling the master, cleaning the rubber parts, and reassembling, but it sounds like you've already tried this? We'll see if it works this time...

It's my first dual sport. In fact, my first street legal bike of any kind after years and years of dirt. Tried various "dual sport" tires and they all sucked. Many were better on pavement, but once you hit dirt, fogeddaboudit. Now with Pirelli DOT knobby up front and MT43 trials out back and I think I'll stick with that.

Husky "almost" hit it out of the park with this one. I sort of wish they stuck with this platform a little longer and fixed just two things: If they had gone with a wider ratio trans and a tank in the 2.6-2.9 gallon range it'd be an industry-killing dual sport. Even the gear ratios can be lived with, as this IS supposed to be a street legal dirt bike. But that tiny tank. And no good aftermarket options (good meaning it fits and you can keep your shrouds so the bike still looks like a Husky). As is, it's a very very close effort.
2000 miles, 09 TE 450. Thanks for the update.