• 4 Stroke Husqvarna Motorcycles Made In Italy - About 1989 to 2014
     TE = 4st Enduro & TC = 4st Cross

  • Hi everyone,

    As you all know, Coffee (Dean) passed away a couple of years ago. I am Dean's ex-wife's husband and happen to have spent my career in tech. Over the years, I occasionally helped Dean with various tech issues.

    When he passed, I worked with his kids to gather the necessary credentials to keep this site running. Since then (and for however long they worked with Coffee), Woodschick and Dirtdame have been maintaining the site and covering the costs. Without their hard work and financial support, CafeHusky would have been lost.

    Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been working to migrate the site to a free cloud compute instance so that Woodschick and Dirtdame no longer have to fund it. At the same time, I’ve updated the site to a current version of XenForo (the discussion software it runs on). The previous version was outdated and no longer supported.

    Unfortunately, the new software version doesn’t support importing the old site’s styles, so for now, you’ll see the XenForo default style. This may change over time.

    Coffee didn’t document the work he did on the site, so I’ve been digging through the old setup to understand how everything was running. There may still be things I’ve missed. One known issue is that email functionality is not yet working on the new site, but I hope to resolve this over time.

    Thanks for your patience and support!

Noob ATV harescramble racer converting to dirtbikes.

Also you should grease the linkage up with a good quailty grease and also put grease on all the bolt shafts as well. This will stop rust from developing. I am working on one right now, it is a friends.
 
Ok....... so far I have ordered the lower seat from Hall's. I rather hack that than my original. I think I'm gonna hold off from purchasing anything else unitl I get the new spring and this seat issue taken care of. Who knows........ by then the suspension might have settled in and that might be low enough.. I did indeed remove all the preload of the 5.4kg stock spring. It dropped the static sag close to a inch. That will work for me until the seat and the other spring shows up. Im only joy riding on gravel roads and streets near my neighborhood, and I don't see myself going thru a whooped section anytime soon. So it should work for now.
 
i have a 2011 te 250. i got the lower factory seat for $ 106.00 and put a 100/100-18 bridgstone on the back for $ 55.00 it lowerd the bike a little over a inch. it was money well spent. gives you more confidence when you can get a foot on the ground ! note the lower seat is not as plush as the factory one. but when on the trails your on your feet as much as on the seat. happy trails :)
 
Keep in mind the Race Tech web site is a bit stiff on their spring recomendations. My 11 250 they say I need the stock .45's and I cant get my sag numbres right with them. Im going to .42. Go over tho the "common topics" thread and learn about static and rider sag importance.
 
JasonfromMN said:
Keep in mind the Race Tech web site is a bit stiff on their spring recomendations. My 11 250 they say I need the stock .45's and I cant get my sag numbres right with them. Im going to .42. Go over tho the "common topics" thread and learn about static and rider sag importance.
Click to expand...
IDK about the front. lol I just visited their site and it pretty much stated the stock spring rate up front is what I should use. Stock is .43kg? And Race Tech says .421kg? I dont like how it calculates without gear on.
 
Just a guess but I'd bet you wil need a .40kg to be spring right. My stock is .45, I'm trying a .42 and might need a .40 to get my sag right. Who knows, ride it and see how it feels. Mine feels a bit stiff in the rocks and ruts. Either way you need to get the rear dialed in first.
 
JasonfromMN said:
Just a guess but I'd bet you wil need a .40kg to be spring right. My stock is .45, I'm trying a .42 and might need a .40 to get my sag right. Who knows, ride it and see how it feels. Mine feels a bit stiff in the rocks and ruts. Either way you need to get the rear dialed in first.
Click to expand...
hahaha......... the entire suspension is stiff. I just need some more time on it. But yes! Im gonna work that rear first before doing the front. Thank you for the help!
 
Your suspension will settle a bit after a few hours of use. However, it will break in much better & quicker if it's being rode briskly thru some rough stuff off-road...ie. long whoop sections etc.
Once the suspension is broke in, then the sag can be more properly set. Your spring weights should be set to your ride weight with gear.
That being said, I really wouldn't worry about redoing springs & valving at this point, as you're still quite early in the leaning curve and are not using much of the suspension cruising on backroads etc. Also, the suspension on the TXC needs to be used aggressively- it feels much better when ridden quick thru rough stuff. For light stuff like your riding now it will feel kinda stiff.
Keep riding every day like you've been doing & as you get more comfortable, keep challenging yourself.
The sooner you can take the off-road course you mentioned, the better, as it will get you into good habits & practices early on. It will also save you a bunch of $$$ & pain from learning things the hard way.
Once you've been solidly riding offroad for a few months( say later this summer), then I would suggest looking at a respring/revalve, if still needed at that point.

You can start practicing with some basic things in the mean time on back roads/dirt laneways such as standing up in the attack position, gripping the seat/tank with your knees and using that & your feet to balance(don't use your arms/hands to balance). Keep a light grip on the bars while doing so. Lean forward into acceleration and backwards into decelleration. Using the first 2-3 gears speed up in a controlled manner & then slow down(80% front 20% rear brakes, controlled manner) almost to a full stop, speed up, slow down etc. Do that lots until it becomes comfortable & keep doing it til it becomes second nature.
While practicing this, advance into learning how to bring the bike to a gentle controlled stop with 80%front/20%rear brakes while still standing and drop down to your left foot on the ground when the bike comes to a halt.
This stuff will help you get comfortable with the height of the bike.
Also practice putting all your weight on the outside peg when going around turns- even if it means your thigh muscles start burning(if you feel a burn in your thighs, it's a good thing).
Then you can progress into purposely sliding the rear wheel under braking(on dirt) & then into controlled sliding of the front wheel. (all while standing).

Practice, practice, practice

Have patience with yourself & understand that learing to ride a dirtbike is like a 5 year apprenticeship. The first year is the toughest, it gradually gets better after that.
 
What you need to do is.... not forget your quad forever, but put it away for a year and just ride the bike or you'll never transition. Everything Slowpoke said is spot on. I'd buy the Shane Watts DVD's and attend one of his schools as soon as you can. It will put you way ahead on the learning curve.
http://www.shanewatts.com/schools
 
Slowpoke said:
Your suspension will settle a bit after a few hours of use. However, it will break in much better & quicker if it's being rode briskly thru some rough stuff off-road...ie. long whoop sections etc.
Once the suspension is broke in, then the sag can be more properly set. Your spring weights should be set to your ride weight with gear.
That being said, I really wouldn't worry about redoing springs & valving at this point, as you're still quite early in the leaning curve and are not using much of the suspension cruising on backroads etc. Also, the suspension on the TXC needs to be used aggressively- it feels much better when ridden quick thru rough stuff. For light stuff like your riding now it will feel kinda stiff.
Keep riding every day like you've been doing & as you get more comfortable, keep challenging yourself.
The sooner you can take the off-road course you mentioned, the better, as it will get you into good habits & practices early on. It will also save you a bunch of $$$ & pain from learning things the hard way.
Once you've been solidly riding offroad for a few months( say later this summer), then I would suggest looking at a respring/revalve, if still needed at that point.

You can start practicing with some basic things in the mean time on back roads/dirt laneways such as standing up in the attack position, gripping the seat/tank with your knees and using that & your feet to balance(don't use your arms/hands to balance). Keep a light grip on the bars while doing so. Lean forward into acceleration and backwards into decelleration. Using the first 2-3 gears speed up in a controlled manner & then slow down(80% front 20% rear brakes, controlled manner) almost to a full stop, speed up, slow down etc. Do that lots until it becomes comfortable & keep doing it til it becomes second nature.
While practicing this, advance into learning how to bring the bike to a gentle controlled stop with 80%front/20%rear brakes while still standing and drop down to your left foot on the ground when the bike comes to a halt.
This stuff will help you get comfortable with the height of the bike.
Also practice putting all your weight on the outside peg when going around turns- even if it means your thigh muscles start burning(if you feel a burn in your thighs, it's a good thing).
Then you can progress into purposely sliding the rear wheel under braking(on dirt) & then into controlled sliding of the front wheel. (all while standing).

Practice, practice, practice

Have patience with yourself & understand that learing to ride a dirtbike is like a 5 year apprenticeship. The first year is the toughest, it gradually gets better after that.
Click to expand...
That sir is the stuff I need to know! Good advise! So unlike a quad, I would want to use the front brake more? Well........ that wont be a issues since I could never break the habit of mainly using the front brakes on the quad.lol
 
I do plan on doing so serious offroading with it soon. Just waiting on my Cycra Probend wrap arounds to arrive. I already have the Husky aluminum skid. Regardless if I ever race it or not, I do truely enjoy riding it. So I don't foresee myself quitting anytime soon. Thanks for all of your advise and patience with me.
 
Where are your rebound and compression set? That might be why it's harsh right now. Soften it up. Once you start riding more aggressively and get a better feel for the bike you will likely need to dial in more rebound and compression.
 
Glad to hear you've graduated to a new Husky. Honz and the guys at Gateway will take care of you. I also have a 2011 TXC250 and love it. If you would like to do some riding and get some help with bike setup, I'll be around working on trails all weekend. Oh yea, I have a riding area about 65 miles from STL that is for bikes only. Check it out at: www.briggs.studiocdz.com Anyone on a bike is welcome anytime.
 
Just me, but I'd park that machine that can't be pitched sideways in corners :) ...

Good choice on the bike ... Huskies are professional grade and ~hard bikes, from day 1 till the day they die ... As mentioned, the suspension will loosen up some but it most likely will need some work to get it to fit your riding ... If you are as green as you say with bikes ... I'd ride a month or two before doing much to it other than clickers or adjusting oil\air amounts in the forks ... BUT you do need the sag correct (usually means changing springs in most cases) early on in your riding or at least close to get the suspension on par with what it is suppose to be doing ...

Don't be afraid of the clickers on the suspension ... Just record the current setting so you can always go back to where you are currently ... I'll move mine top to bottom to get a feel of what is available from the settings ...

Probably 2 lines of thought on the riding school ...Go now before you get too many bad habits on riding ... OR wait till you actually understand riding so that the true aspects of what the PRO rider is teaching can come through and you can apply them to your riding in a meaningful manner ... I'd go with the latter idea ..

On the seat height, do what has been said above and when riding, always watch ahead and plan the next stop ... On trails, always look for your next stopping \ landing spot close to a log, rock, ETC to help get a foot on the ground ... Also, maybe sit on the lowest point of the seat at this point ... Avoid places where you must put your foot in a hole or other low points on the trail ... Be smart or at least don't stop in a place where the height problem is amplified ...

And on the EFI, the riders here have all that lined out ... It is highly doubted that any issue you have here cannot be sorted out ...
 
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