#dirtbike #2stroke #motocross #outdoors
Nathan Alexander, who was the team manager at the Muc-off Honda team in 2021, was the mad scientist who brought the 1994 Honda CR500 to life. Jamie Ellis at Twisted Development was a part of making this project come to fruition. He was the original owner of the box of parts and volunteered his expertise, his dyno and his race shop to get the bike in running order. The bike took months to complete. Nathan and Jamie wanted the 500 to still have that old-school feel with a touch of new-age technology. The Honda CR500 got A-Kit air forks from a 2018 CRF250 with EZE 22mm triple clamps from Australia (stock is 24mm). The front wheel and brakes were also off a 2018 CRF250. On the rear brake, Nathan used the stock CR500 caliper but took out the plunger and used CRF250-style internals.
The engine was rebuilt with the cylinder and head cleaned up and a 1.5mm bigger piston to erase all the previous wear and tear. The only part of the CR500 engine that wasn’t new was the crank; they are difficult to rebuild, and they aren’t available anymore. It was decided that since it had lasted 28 years, it was probably good to go.We were shocked that the CR500 felt much more like a motocross-style bike. This surprised us because all the big-name riders who build up 500cc machines to race the World Two-Stroke Championship seem to always pick the KX500. Not sure if this is more of a fluke than a thought-out decision. The CR500 chassis was very nimble. The cockpit was more motocross friendly. It turned better and was easier to jump. Even though the power curve on the dyno looked short-lived, on the track it seemed much broader. Maybe it was because we were able to ride a gear higher due to the powerful torque.We had our best lap times when we lugged the CR500 around the track in third and fourth gear. Once we stopped revving and started lugging, the feeling in our hands started to come back from the vibration and it was easier to ride around the rough Glen Helen track.
The bike cornered with precision and was impressive, to say the least. The Factory Connection suspension setup was on the soft side for faster riders, but through the chop and in the corners the setup was great. We just couldn’t slam into the face of jumps or absorb any hard landings or the forks would bottom pretty hard.
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9 июл 2024
