Dual-sporting a 2010 TE 450, with cheap tricks

Hey OHR, thanks for the updates. I like the looks of your chain. What exactly do you use on it, and what do you use to clean it? Thanks,

WD40 to clean it, wipe it down, then, after that dries off, I use this, its fairly cheap and works good.

I like the white waxy finish. No mess. Is that what the Champion Chain Lube leaves that I saw in the picture, huh?

Hi Mate, the factory made user manual for my TE recommends a minimum of 98 RON Unleaded (12.9:1 compression ratio - the 450 is also high). My 310 has never seen anything less than 98 and with 5000km on it the motor is still in pristine condition. Never had any pre-ignition/knocking or anything. I run rich also (JD Tuner) with only a slightly dark/tan plug.

I strongly believe that the low octane fuels are not only that, but the base fuel blend used is also just of lesser general quality - more water, dirt, different HC's etc..

Dont you Yanks have 'high' octane fuels at the pump? 98 RON is common even in many rural Australain towns (I am starting to see 100 RON around now but alot of those are a 10% Ethanol blend). The minimum RON fuel that is sold at the pump in my part of Australia is 91/92 RON, and I wont even run that in my lawn mower

The highest I can usually get is 93 grade gas, see explanation below of USA rating. Sometimes, 91 is the highest that's available, in more remote areas.

When the bike was new, I never had any problem with knocking on the 93 gas I was using.

Info on USA octane rating:

The research octane number is a rating that’s primarily used in other parts of the world, and could be useful if you travel outside the U.S.
The pump octane rating at U.S. pumps is an average of two lab-tested octane ratings, which includes the research octane number and a motor octane number. Look at the pump the next time you fill up and you’ll see the formula, (R+M)/2.
Other countries might only use the RON as a measure of octane, which will be listed on the pump as the advertised octane. Because of this, the rating on U.S. gas pumps is typically four to five points lower than other parts of the world,

Yes, the Champion leaves the lithium based grease behind, after it's carrier has dried, the coating is usually gone after 1 day's ride, it get hot and lubes the chain/flings off. It hasn't ever really attracted dirt to the chain as most would think, with that much coated grease on the chain.

I put a 120/100 Pirelli on the rear, I knew that was gonna make my gearing even higher than it already was, so I put a 12/43 combo on with the OEM chain that I shortened considerably. Took it for a spin, perfect, I can do 65MPH with 6300RPMs. Got home, parked it, then remembered I wanted to see the mileage, turned the key on, pushed the button prematurely, before the SEL1 and SEL2 cleared out, then FAIL came up, and the fan came on! With the engine not running! Never done that. AND it wouldn't start, just crank and crank and no fire, just FAIL on the dash. Well, I've read too many threads here to not know I better pull out my spare temp sensor, ordered just for this occasion, and I plugged it in and just let it hang in space, BOOM, bike starts up and all is well. Took 10 minutes to swap it out, the OEM black one lasted 9500 miles. Glad it happened during maintenance time and not in the field.

This is the best thread I have ever seen. Awesome documentation. What a tank. Your mileage is amazing. Was the linkage ever greased before your bearing failure? If not, that is amazing with their lack of any grease from the factory! Again, well done OHR

I never greased the linkage bearings in the first 9000 miles, so I was a bit stupid there, plenty of threads here calling for more grease at all points on the bike, I was just lazy, cost me $27. I probably should have replaced at least one bushing , the single at the lowest point of the linkage, it was very pitted. I got it immobilized in my vise and polished it up with some emery cloth. I think it will be OK.

Have you seen this bushing option? We have their 50mm seal kit in out '08 TE's and they are working great.
http://shop.synergyseals.com/Bushin...qvarna-linkage-shock-bushing-P-Bushing-20.htm

Wow, that's a good looking replacement, no rust, I would definitely get some of these next time my bearings go south, thanks for the tip.

10,000 mile report
9000 mile report was on July 5th

It's been 21 months, 10 rear tires ($700), 10-12 oil changes ($200-$240), the bike has just started to burn/use oil. I've got some rings and gaskets but I may need a piston as well, if I find out the ring grooves are worn out. I am leaning towards taking the bike to 11,000 or 12,000 miles as is, and then just plan on a piston with the rings and maybe a cam chain as well.

The bike is still fast, handles great, can do more than I can do. it's not the best single-track bike but then I 'm not the best single-track rider. I have found that I do prefer a 120 tire instead of the 140 tires, the more narrow tire does in fact speed up the handling and directional changes.

Would I dual sport this bike again, if I knew then what I know now? I am tempted to say no, but I've had a lot of fun and I've learned alot about EFI and so....I'd probably do it all over again. i think I might have another 10k miles to go on this bike, if a piston and rings will solve the oil useage problem.

Transmission: A-
Close ratio works great on the trail, not so good on the street. Reliability and ease of shifting have been great. Downshifting from 3rd to 2nd results in going past and hitting neutral, annoying, not major.

Clutch: A+
Lost clutch feel one time running 70mph, it came back, no other problems, no leaks, no issues with the hydraulics, I have tortured the clutch pack by running high gearing and fanning/slipping the clutch in the slow stuff and no problems.

Wheels: A
Front bearings were a breeze to replace, got some new ones for $8 apiece from Bryon at Bill's.. Spokes on both wheels have stayed tight and uniform. Hate the black rims, wish I had regular alum colored rims, too much scratching on painted rims.

Misc: A-
Horn bracket broke twice, horn finally gave up at 10k miles, ordered a $9 horn from MotorcycleSuperstore, will rubber mount it due to vibration that destroyed the OEM.
Twin Aire filter element developed cracks in the outer layer, from washing, replaced it with another TwinAire.
Air filter access and design and battery holder access and design are really good, nothing has come loose or broken, air filter chnges/cleanings are a breeze.

I treated the bike to a new spark plug for its 10K miles, the new one will look like the old one in short order, as I am running rich at all RPMs.



Got a new filter element from Bryon at Bill's ( I get all my Husky parts from Bill's), my original TwinAir element was showing some stress cracks in the outer layer from washing/wringing, didn't want to take a chance if the cracks migrated to the inner layer. Got my rings ready when I decide to go into the top end.

I just ordered a new Twin Air as well. the structure of mine is good but I don't know what the PO was oiling it with. Almost looks like some old Bontrager greas I used to use. The funky blue color won't wash out either. I'll keep in oiled up in a baggie as a spare when the new one arrives.

I changed from the generic auto fuel filters I had been using to this arrangement:
Edelbrock 40 micron aluminum housing, stainless screen inside that is replaceable/cleanable, used 2 adapters to get a 5/16" nipple on each end, thus preserving my existing 5/16" submersible fuel line. I have put about 50 miles on this filter and the bike is running great.

A couple hundred more miles on the new fuel filter, bike is running better than ever, I quit using octane booster and I haven't heard any knock, kinda crazy, it's almost like maybe I got rid of some of the carbon in my combustion chamber and lowered my compression ratio back to normal, never really know what the deal is.

I missed a scheduled 3 day ride in New Mexico, saved me $500 in gas and hotel but I really missed a good ride. My slave piston finally wore a groove in my slave cylinder and my clutch started going out. I knew i couldn't ride the bike with no clutch in the mountains so I bailed on the ride, got ythe 7602 piston in and wow, clutch is back better than ever, feels like it's got another 10,000 miles in it. See the pic below for a comparo of the stock piston and the 7602.

I actually have another ride scheduled for New Mexico in 2 weeks, and with the bike at 10,700 miles, my next post will be the 11,000 mile recap.

OHR have you checked your steering head bearings? Is there much play in your rear upper shock mount?

I have not checked my steering head bearings, I will do that in December/January/Feb, our coldest months

I think my upper shock mount is OK, but I'll check it as well.

The 310 has 5500km now, recently i have noticed the steering head offers no resistance whe turning. I have a feeling it is ceazed and the collar is spinning in the head .
The upper rear shock mount has a small amount of play, this equates to squeaks and groans when going over bumps. Husqvarnna wants $180 for the upper mount 'kit'. Basically a washer and a bolt....

Wow, went out to get the mail, always take the Husky, so that I know if it needs some work or not, yesterday was fine, but today, it was cutting out, back-firing, all the stuff it would do with the bad fuel filters, but now I have the new, all-metal, steel-screen fuel filter and a hundred miles of great running on it. So, I take off the tank and start thinking, what if it's something that gets jiggered when I work on the tank, and I remember people here having problems with the coil mounts, so I start poking around the coil area and what do I find?



That Green/Red wire shows to connect to the following items:
Fuel Injector
Fuel pump relay
Fuel pump
Coil

I taped that bare spot up, put the tank back on and, viola, it runs like a dream again. No wonder I kept chasing fueling possibilities, that shorted wire was making it seem like it was running out of gas!