MartinP518
Husqvarna
B Class
As some of you may know, I was one of the very lucky guys whose name was drawn when it was time for the husky factory to ship OEM 144cc kit to their customer. 
I got the bike on april 3, with the kit, and as soon as I got home, I installed it. Unfortunately, I never tried the bike in the 125cc version, and didn't make a lot of comparison between the two cylinder. So I hopped on the bike for some short riding.
On april 24 and 25, I went for the real test with my mates, who all ride 125 2strokes. First we went to Deschambault, a deep sand track with uphills and big tabletop, then to Valley Jonction, hard pack with nice berms and ruts, and nasty 85 feet double I was hitting in fourth on my 450 last season.
The first day I had the opportunity to ride my mates hopped up YZ134. It's a project bike he put a lot of time in it, and it's really sharp and working well. The bike has amazing low-end and midrange, wich make it very forgiving and easy to ride. It signs early on top. Brakes are very good and suspension are plush and predictable as well, as you would expect from a yamaha. Shifting on the Yam is also more precise, I hit a couple neutrals on the husky under hard acceleration, but I moved the shifter up a couple notch and it helped, maybe I can move it a little more.
When we returned to the pits, a pit disapointed with my 144, we went with a bigger main jet, and we did a small adjustement to the timing ( advanced the spark a little bit) I would say turning the plate clockwise 1/8 of an inch. Wow, that woke up the bike dramatically. As soon as I opened the throttle on the little husky, everyone turned their heads and looked at me like the beast was unleashed. On the track, the difference was immediately noticeable. The bike ran clean, crisp, and nasty on the top end. It just pull my 210 pound belly like a monster on top. I even got some little whiskey throttle and lifted the front wheel out of corner on various occasion. It is still flat in the low-end and require shifting and a little clutch abuse, but if you keep it in the upper mid to top, it flat out haul ass.
The next day at ValleyJ, on the hard pack, I jumped that nasty double , coming out of the corner in third gear, and shifting fourth gear and holding the thing wide open, I cleared the gap no problem. We also made some adjustement to the suspension to improve handling. Compared to the YZ, it's a little more shaky in braking bumps, but still very balanced. As soon as you hit the rut or the berm, the bike follow the line. I was surprised by the amount of speed I could carry out of corner when shifting at the right time. The cornering is also very confidence inspiring, the bike feels light (remember I just jump off 5 seasons on 450 and a 5002stroke), and I could just hit corners a lot faster than before and keep my momentum.
Like I said before, my mates YZ134 is hopped up from top to bottom, and it's a really good bike, forgiving and user friendly, and it makes you confident to push it a little harder. However, my 144 pulls so hard on top it beg you to ride it harder and harder, and rewards you with solid acceleration and superb handling. I wish I have more time to test other bike. The only mod I would do to this engine is a little head work to bring some 'humpf' in the low end. Or just me training harder and loose 25 pounds.
In 25 years of riding bikes, the last 2 days count as some of my best days of riding.
I got the bike on april 3, with the kit, and as soon as I got home, I installed it. Unfortunately, I never tried the bike in the 125cc version, and didn't make a lot of comparison between the two cylinder. So I hopped on the bike for some short riding.
On april 24 and 25, I went for the real test with my mates, who all ride 125 2strokes. First we went to Deschambault, a deep sand track with uphills and big tabletop, then to Valley Jonction, hard pack with nice berms and ruts, and nasty 85 feet double I was hitting in fourth on my 450 last season.
The first day I had the opportunity to ride my mates hopped up YZ134. It's a project bike he put a lot of time in it, and it's really sharp and working well. The bike has amazing low-end and midrange, wich make it very forgiving and easy to ride. It signs early on top. Brakes are very good and suspension are plush and predictable as well, as you would expect from a yamaha. Shifting on the Yam is also more precise, I hit a couple neutrals on the husky under hard acceleration, but I moved the shifter up a couple notch and it helped, maybe I can move it a little more.
When we returned to the pits, a pit disapointed with my 144, we went with a bigger main jet, and we did a small adjustement to the timing ( advanced the spark a little bit) I would say turning the plate clockwise 1/8 of an inch. Wow, that woke up the bike dramatically. As soon as I opened the throttle on the little husky, everyone turned their heads and looked at me like the beast was unleashed. On the track, the difference was immediately noticeable. The bike ran clean, crisp, and nasty on the top end. It just pull my 210 pound belly like a monster on top. I even got some little whiskey throttle and lifted the front wheel out of corner on various occasion. It is still flat in the low-end and require shifting and a little clutch abuse, but if you keep it in the upper mid to top, it flat out haul ass.
The next day at ValleyJ, on the hard pack, I jumped that nasty double , coming out of the corner in third gear, and shifting fourth gear and holding the thing wide open, I cleared the gap no problem. We also made some adjustement to the suspension to improve handling. Compared to the YZ, it's a little more shaky in braking bumps, but still very balanced. As soon as you hit the rut or the berm, the bike follow the line. I was surprised by the amount of speed I could carry out of corner when shifting at the right time. The cornering is also very confidence inspiring, the bike feels light (remember I just jump off 5 seasons on 450 and a 5002stroke), and I could just hit corners a lot faster than before and keep my momentum.
Like I said before, my mates YZ134 is hopped up from top to bottom, and it's a really good bike, forgiving and user friendly, and it makes you confident to push it a little harder. However, my 144 pulls so hard on top it beg you to ride it harder and harder, and rewards you with solid acceleration and superb handling. I wish I have more time to test other bike. The only mod I would do to this engine is a little head work to bring some 'humpf' in the low end. Or just me training harder and loose 25 pounds.
In 25 years of riding bikes, the last 2 days count as some of my best days of riding.
