I thought that older Husky looked good too then...... I seen that the kick start lever is on the wrong side . How hard is that to do?
The other night while camping out at Red Mountain, CA, in the pitch black night, Stacy and I heard rolling thunder. We only caught a glimpse of it, but it was a brand new Husky 501. It was a Big 6 Grand Prix race bike and it was really moving up RC201 on the edge of the Prospector MC camp. No idea which rider, it went by so fast I couldn't see the numbers. As far as the Husky's go, they are not all Husabergs like I hear people talking about. The Husky SX models are not KTM SX models, they are XC-Fs like the ones we raced at the GH24. They have a nice close ratio mx transmission. The enduro models are the XC-W's which have wider ratios that the enduro guys like. Some Husky parts are not interchangeable with KTM parts, etc. Mapping is different, suspension is different, the Husky's feel more solid. The 501 is nearly identical to the Husaberg and it has an extremely wide transmission, very close to my BMW tranny. It has that low end, tractor pulling power you get on the MY05-07 525s that many racers love. It is very comparable to the 511, but with wider gears most people wanted.
Like Kelly said, once you get the hang of it it's just as easy as a right side kicker. I do however tell anyone who wants to ride my '96 410 with left kicker that if they can start it they can ride it all they want. Keeps the punk kids off of it.
Norm, If I ever make it up for the NE husky gathering you better not bring this bike. I will steal it from you.
You are still first on the list when it goes up for sale. I might surprise you, sooner than you think.....
No. The Husky MX bikes have the exact same engine/tranny that their KTM cousins use. That being said, the XCF and SXF trannys are very close to each other. That's not to say that the trannys aren't swapped for racing. Happens all the time. All the Berg riders switched the wide ratio XCW trannys out of their TEs and put in XC trannys.
I'm adding to this single cammer HiJack, don't know what it is about some of our weird DNA, but I could always start and ride the heck out of those "big block" single cammers, even the 610 in tight stuff. From my 86 aircooled great g-pa model to a US based Italian Pros TE610 to my own TE610, I always gelled with them. Everyone I know in my extended crew to a number never could ride them or felt comfortable on them. Of course the left kick started the intro off, It never bothered me either and when tuned well, just a smooth stoke will light them off everytime, no need to jump all over that super high kick pedal. I love those bikes,
I had the last and most monstrous version of that bike the 02 TE570. That was a freaking FAST bike and fun to ride. EZ to start and VERY powerful but vibrated like a paint shaker. FUN bike. Another one I wish I could have kept. That thing would pull roll on power wheelies at highway speeds. Was amazing.
I had the TE 610 also, never cared for it. It was the only Husky made i thought was just an afterthought. Sold it and got me a Husaberg, right on, way better 4-stroker.[Swedish}
I should have kept my '01 TE400... This last chassis revision for the single cammers was very good. They handle better than the previous bikes. The TE400 engine was the full on race version of the TE410... hotter cam, high comp piston and lighter crank. Tough for a little guy like me, to ride in tight off camber as it was kind of off/on power, but an ISDE Special Test animal! I never rode a more perfect stand up bike, it just fit and I felt like Stefan Merriman! I still have the full page ad, after Merriman won the overall at the '00 Spanish ISDE on it. It said.... Trail bike my @$$! It was the first 4 stroke to overall, in over 30 years. Great bikes!
The paint shaker comment reminded me of one of my favorite stories to tell about my 410. I was camping with a bunch of friends 10 or so years ago. One of my buddies has an incredibly hot wife. My buddy takes the 410 out for a ride with his hot A$$ wife on the back. They come back 30 minutes later and all seams well. They get off and one of the other girls at camp asks my friends wife if it was fun and if she should take a ride herself. I overheard my friends wife say in a quiet voice so as not to be heard be all... "you have to ride that bike! It tickles the right spot in just the right way!" 100% proof the everyone loves the ol left kick paint shakers.
