[Seven Bravo]

New member from N. ID. here...

Question 1+

I recently purchased my first dirt bike (that I owned) in about 30 years (trying to stay young lol). I grew up riding dirt bikes and moved over to street bikes as an adult. I've been wanting to get back into trail riding and I'm at an age where it was now or never if I ever plan on being any good at it, so I just purchased a 2017 CRF450RX. I live in the Rocky Mountains and will be using this bike for enduro riding.

I'm curious what kind of Mods you guys have done to your bikes to equip them for trail riding. I generally prefer a cabled clutch for a number of reasons, one of which is the ability to still shift with a broken clutch cable using a stick or some other modification. The other reason I like cable clutches is b/c I USE my clutch for EVERYTHING...including as a "throttle" at times (ESPECIALLY on this bike!) where you preload the throttle and use your clutch in it's place. With all of that being said, the clutch pull on this thing is going to wear my arms out over time, so I'm looking at Hydraulic clutches????

Can anyone recommend a QUALITY aftermarket Hydraulic clutch cable for my application? I'm also curious whether or not the Hydraulic Clutch adversely affects one's ability to use it for everything??? I guess I'm kind of wondering of the "on and off" of the Hydraulic Clutch is going to screw with feathering/riding it??? Any other pros/cons I should be considering???

I'd also be VERY interested in a clutch and rear brake combination set up on the left handlebar.?.?.? Does anyone know of any companies putting out a clutch/rear brake setup instead of just a clutch alone? Last but not least (with Levers) is that I wouldn't mind finding some shorter aftermarket clutch and front brake levers, if available.

Question 2:

I need to find some QUALITY rock guards for my disks...along with any other "protective" guards you guys think I may need??? I'm curious for your thoughts on (if available) trying to find an aluminum skid plate to replace the composite one that's now on the bike (pros and cons).

Question 3:

Where's the best place to find and buy aftermarket parts for this bike? I'm also curious where you guys have found your best deals on a Factory Service Manual for these bikes?

I SURE WISH I had done this sooner. I couldn't believe how much came back to me naturally when I jumped on this thing for the first time...felt like I was "home". She may not be the best bike for Enduro riding and that throttle is EXTREMELY aggressive (hence the clutch control of said throttle in many instances), but I think she'll serve me well.

I'd love to hear any and all thoughts I can get on the most popular mods for this kind of riding! Thank you Folks! I look forward to learning all I can here!

[JimDirt]

I gave some gearing and flywheel suggestions in your other post in the Gearing Topic , so look at that for some ideas

I will add , if you are wanting to switch to a hydraulic , the Magura is about the only option for your bike at the present time .... when/if the OEM stuff ever arrives in the U.S. you can actually use the 21 450R/RX left side case which has the clutch provisions for hydraulic , and is a direct bolt on to the 17-20 platform (nice !) , you just have to add the corresponding components that go with the 21 clutch actuation assembly (from lever to actuating rod) , but as mentioned , it is not available at this time

I can say after riding my buddies 21 and 22 450R's (unlike me , he has lots of money so he has both) I actually prefer the feel of the cable clutch ... there is a company that makes a longer actuator arm , and it helps smooth the clutch actuation out a bit allowing you to loose that on/off feeling of the stock clutch pull , though it is a bit pricey https://xprmotorsportsparts.com/product ... clutch-arm ......

You can get good deals on the manuals right here , as well as most of the available aftermarket parts for your bike , along with a Magura or anything else you may want (I have no affiliation with this site aside from being a member and Honda devotee such as yourself , but I would not be here if this was not a quality CRF site and a friendly site with no drama like some other *TT cough* sites , that are nothing but drama and tons of misinformation) https://www.crfsonly.com/catalog/index. ... 55_359_341

Service Manual: ..... https://www.crfsonly.com/catalog/produc ... ts_id/3226

Magura: ..... https://www.crfsonly.com/catalog/produc ... ts_id/6468 (same part for the RX)

Hope that helps ...

And congrats on getting back into bikes , you are never too old , I am 62 and love my 20 450R ...

[Seven Bravo]

I gave some gearing and flywheel suggestions in your other post in the Gearing Topic , so look at that for some ideas

I will add , if you are wanting to switch to a hydraulic , the Magura is about the only option for your bike at the present time .... when/if the OEM stuff ever arrives in the U.S. you can actually use the 21 450R/RX left side case which has the clutch provisions for hydraulic , and is a direct bolt on to the 17-20 platform (nice !) , you just have to add the corresponding components that go with the 21 clutch actuation assembly (from lever to actuating rod) , but as mentioned , it is not available at this time

I can say after riding my buddies 21 and 22 450R's (unlike me , he has lots of money so he has both) I actually prefer the feel of the cable clutch ... there is a company that makes a longer actuator arm , and it helps smooth the clutch actuation out a bit allowing you to loose that on/off feeling of the stock clutch pull , though it is a bit pricey https://xprmotorsportsparts.com/product ... clutch-arm ......

You can get good deals on the manuals right here , as well as most of the available aftermarket parts for your bike , along with a Magura or anything else you may want (I have no affiliation with this site aside from being a member and Honda devotee such as yourself , but I would not be here if this was not a quality CRF site and a friendly site with no drama like some other *TT cough* sites , that are nothing but drama and tons of misinformation) https://www.crfsonly.com/catalog/index. ... 55_359_341

Service Manual: ..... https://www.crfsonly.com/catalog/produc ... ts_id/3226

Magura: ..... https://www.crfsonly.com/catalog/produc ... ts_id/6468 (same part for the RX)

Hope that helps ...

And congrats on getting back into bikes , you are never too old , I am 62 and love my 20 450R ...

Thank you VERY much for the VERY informative reply! I see you are a fellow Idahoan. I'm in the Sandpoint area, myself. Thanks again!

[JimDirt]

Yea , southwest Id. for me , basically right above Payette about 12 miles (just before you enter the town of Weiser) , then about 10 miles east into the nothingness (just below/west of Paddock Reservoir) ... I live on 105 acres of nothing but sagebrush , hills , elk ,deer, mountain lions, and wolves surrounding me ..

I ride at Clay Peak a lot (in Payette) the pic below is my bike at Clay Peak last winter , we pretty much rode year around , as long as the snow was not too deep , we were riding ... and no problem on the info , hopefully it helped and gave you some idea's as to which way to go .... That is what this place is about ... riders helping riders


Last winter:

[Seven Bravo]

Yea , southwest Id. for me , basically right above Payette about 12 miles (just before you enter the town of Weiser) , then about 10 miles east into the nothingness (just below/west of Paddock Reservoir) ... I live on 105 acres of nothing but sagebrush , hills , elk ,deer, mountain lions, and wolves surrounding me ..

I ride at Clay Peak a lot (in Payette) the pic below is my bike at Clay Peak last winter , we pretty much rode year around , as long as the snow was not too deep , we were riding ... and no problem on the info , hopefully it helped and gave you some idea's as to which way to go .... That is what this place is about ... riders helping riders


Last winter:

Nice. If you ever get up this way, look me up! I'd love to buy you a beer and shake your hand for the help! I'm on the BC border...as a matter of fact, I'm looking into Canada from the house. Thanks again!

[JimDirt]

Don't drink ... but yea , it would be cool to meet , and no problem for the help ... hopefully it gets you what you are looking for in rideability , I was actually born in Canada (Ontario , so east coast) , and have family in B.C./Alberta areas , for Northern Idaho I used to hunt up in Grangeville , and have a nephew in Sandpoint .... and been to Lewiston a few times ..

Been thinking about trying out the ECMX track near Lewiston with a couple of my buddies , but it's a long haul for us , over 225 miles just from my house , and my friend lives about 50 more miles away from it than I do , my other friend is in Richland , Wa. , so it would only be about 140 miles for him ....... I would be heading up highway 95 , which is a straight shot up there for me , but is a bit of a drive just to ride for a day or 2 ...... , but the thought of going there to the track (I think there are 2 up there , the other is "Slick-a-Poo" track in Culdesac , Id.) has been kicked around ...

[Seven Bravo]

Don't drink ... but yea , it would be cool to meet , and no problem for the help ... hopefully it gets you what you are looking for in rideability , I was actually born in Canada (Ontario , so east coast) , and have family in B.C./Alberta areas , for Northern Idaho I used to hunt up in Grangeville , and have a nephew in Sandpoint .... and been to Lewiston a few times ..

Been thinking about trying out the ECMX track near Lewiston with a couple of my buddies , but it's a long haul for us , over 225 miles just from my house , and my friend lives about 50 more miles away from it than I do , my other friend is in Richland , Wa. , so it would only be about 140 miles for him ....... I would be heading up highway 95 , which is a straight shot up there for me , but is a bit of a drive just to ride for a day or 2 ...... , but the thought of going there to the track (I think there are 2 up there , the other is "Slick-a-Poo" track in Culdesac , Id.) has been kicked around ...

I don't either (drink, that is). I'm not sure how far south Lewiston is from me, mileage wise, but it takes me about 3.5 hours to get down to Moscow and Lewiston is west of Moscow. It's probably a 4 hour trip. We live in a BIG state. The mile markers on 95 (before you turn off on my road) are in the 500's up this way. While it would be fun to hit some of these local motocross tracks, I'm trying to learn the skillset required for trail riding (backcountry riding). I've been working on low speed skills and drills ever since I picked the bike up. I bought this to get up in the mountains. I have an ATV but I find that I don't ride it much. They are just nowhere nearly as fun (or mobile) as bikes are.

[JimDirt]

Yea , I was just looking at a map , and you must live up by Eastport .... Yea , that is a ways up there if that's the case .......

Yea , I love trail riding myself




, but my friends prefer the MX tracks , so that is mainly what we ride anymore ... last time I was really trail riding was in July 2016 about a month before I broke my wrist , then I was practicing for a MX race in Boise (on my birthday in Aug.) , and broke my wrist really bad ... almost lost my left hand... once I got back on the bike (almost a year later due to having a heart attack and cancer while recovering from the wrist) , we were mainly riding MX ... I keep bugging my buddy that I mainly ride with to go hit the trails , but we always end up at the track it seems , and he used to race woods in Texas , and he enjoys the woods ... but for some reason , the tracks usually come into play ...He is 4 months younger than me , so he won't be 62 till Dec. , but we do try to ride at least twice a week , sometimes 4 times a week , ..... and the track we ride is more off road than it is a modern MX track with 40 jumps , this is more like the old GP tracks of the 70's

Although I always ride my 06 450X for trails



..... it is a lot better suited than my old R (02) or this new one , for going slower and climbing hills or tight single track , though I can putt this 2020 R pretty good it is definitely not a "trail bike" like the X is , it would also not have the gas capacity to do the 50+ mile trail rides we do , and the lessor power an mellower power delivery of my X seems to be better suited for trails as well .... keeps you out of trouble more ...... One other thing I just thought of , since you have mentioned going slower speeds .... Honda sells , as does Trail Tech ... a fan kit that basically plugs in to the RX or R , it is thermostatically controlled and will keep the bike from boiling over for the most part .... the Trail Tech one even has a temp gauge built in so you can see how hot the bike is actually getting ......



You can also run the 1.8 or 2.0 Bar radiator cap along with that and it will help when really crawling around , and add either Engine Ice or Evans Waterless Coolant , as they both help with boil over's by raising the temp at which those coolants actually boil over..... remember , the radiators need air flow to keep the engine cool , so the fan acts like your going faster and keeps airflow over the coolant , I don't remember if the RX comes with a overflow bottle , if it does not you can get aftermarket ones , and anything to keep the coolant from spilling on the ground will help keep the bike cooler because when it does cool back down , it will suck the coolant back into the radiator's , much like the coolant tanks do on your truck/car , so you don't actually lose coolant like you would if it did boil over without a recovery tank/bottle , as opposed to just the overflow hose pointing at the ground and when it gets hot enough to boil over , that coolant is gone , so as you ride you have less and less coolant , which is not good .... so keep that in mind as well ...

[JimDirt]

I wanted to add one more thing about gearing ....

Ride the bike on the trails you are planning on frequenting ...then decide what direction to go to "better" the riding , in other words , if where you ride , you are constantly shifting from 1st to 2nd , or 2nd to 3rd , that will determine where you should be , what you ultimately want , is the most frequent speeds you will be riding is where you want to focus your gearing , so if you are in real tight stuff 80+% of the time , and you find yourself shifting constantly between 1st to 2nd , and are either using the clutch way too much to keep the bike from stalling or lurching , that is when you need to alter the gearing to better suit the terrain .... if the trails you are riding are mostly 3rd gear somewhat open , and you find it is a constant battle shifting from 2nd which is winding the engine out too much , to 3rd where you are bogging , then you need to re-gear ..... follow ?? .............

So for example , you are riding real tight stuff 80% of the time , it is slow tedious and never really open/fast , then look at how your bike is performing , if you are needing to constantly feather the clutch to get thru each section , and you are in 1st gear , then you need to go up/larger on the rear 1 or 2 teeth , this will keep you close to where you currently are , but give a little (depending on 1 or 2 teeth) more lugging ability , and keep your engine from getting as hot , because feathering the clutch causes heat to go up .... and going to a smaller front , would be too drastic a change (about 3 teeth jump compared to a single tooth change on the rear) , besides the smaller front causing more wear on parts ..........

Comparatively , if you are riding more open stuff 80% of the time , and find you are shifting way too much because it is just not there , but close , 1 tooth on the front (larger for example) can make a huge difference , but might hurt you in the tighter stuff , but , if you are struggling in the tight stuff because the bike has way too much torque , 1 tooth larger (14) would smooth out the power delivery , and you can fine tune the power needs with the rear (larger) ... Example: ... I run 14/51 (stock 13/49) , the gearing I have smoothed out the massive hit my R has (along with the flywheel weight) , I am even considering going 14/50 , just to see how it works .... my goal (as should yours be) is to not need to constantly shift up/down where I normally ride (location/terrain) to get the power delivery I want/need for where I am riding mostly , then compromise in areas I don't frequent , or even re-gearing to suit the conditions .... That is how you should approach gearing ......

So keep that in mind .... but gearing will not do what a flywheel or flywheel weight will do in the tight stuff ... if you find you are feathering the clutch and shifting constantly because of stalling , or trying not to stall it , then that will be of more benefit than just gearing alone , but combining the 2 is major as far as benefits ...... so flywheel weight for stalling , then gearing for fine tuning to the environment so you are not overworking your clutch or yourself

Here is a gear chart so you can see the differences a front or rear tooth or a combo of the 2 will do ........Note: the front should be kept between 12-14 , the rear should not go over 54 due to it making for excessive wear on the chain guide , nor go under 47 , so stick within those parameters , which will still give you a ton of options/combinations .... also note that changing the gearing even 1 tooth on the rear (or front) will affect your sag and handling , as the farther back the rear wheel or the farther forward , makes the suspension softer/stiffer and how fast it moves up/down in relation to the rear wheel , also going more than 2 teeth on the rear would most likely require a different length chain , so keep all this in mind when swapping things around .............

[Seven Bravo]

Yea , I was just looking at a map , and you must live up by Eastport .... Yea , that is a ways up there if that's the case .......

Yea , I love trail riding myself




, but my friends prefer the MX tracks , so that is mainly what we ride anymore ... last time I was really trail riding was in July 2016 about a month before I broke my wrist , then I was practicing for a MX race in Boise (on my birthday in Aug.) , and broke my wrist really bad ... almost lost my left hand... once I got back on the bike (almost a year later due to having a heart attack and cancer while recovering from the wrist) , we were mainly riding MX ... I keep bugging my buddy that I mainly ride with to go hit the trails , but we always end up at the track it seems , and he used to race woods in Texas , and he enjoys the woods ... but for some reason , the tracks usually come into play ...He is 4 months younger than me , so he won't be 62 till Dec. , but we do try to ride at least twice a week , sometimes 4 times a week , ..... and the track we ride is more off road than it is a modern MX track with 40 jumps , this is more like the old GP tracks of the 70's

Although I always ride my 06 450X for trails



..... it is a lot better suited than my old R (02) or this new one , for going slower and climbing hills or tight single track , though I can putt this 2020 R pretty good it is definitely not a "trail bike" like the X is , it would also not have the gas capacity to do the 50+ mile trail rides we do , and the lessor power an mellower power delivery of my X seems to be better suited for trails as well .... keeps you out of trouble more ...... One other thing I just thought of , since you have mentioned going slower speeds .... Honda sells , as does Trail Tech ... a fan kit that basically plugs in to the RX or R , it is thermostatically controlled and will keep the bike from boiling over for the most part .... the Trail Tech one even has a temp gauge built in so you can see how hot the bike is actually getting ......



You can also run the 1.8 or 2.0 Bar radiator cap along with that and it will help when really crawling around , and add either Engine Ice or Evans Waterless Coolant , as they both help with boil over's by raising the temp at which those coolants actually boil over..... remember , the radiators need air flow to keep the engine cool , so the fan acts like your going faster and keeps airflow over the coolant , I don't remember if the RX comes with a overflow bottle , if it does not you can get aftermarket ones , and anything to keep the coolant from spilling on the ground will help keep the bike cooler because when it does cool back down , it will suck the coolant back into the radiator's , much like the coolant tanks do on your truck/car , so you don't actually lose coolant like you would if it did boil over without a recovery tank/bottle , as opposed to just the overflow hose pointing at the ground and when it gets hot enough to boil over , that coolant is gone , so as you ride you have less and less coolant , which is not good .... so keep that in mind as well ...

I'm a little bit west of Eastport but in vicinity, yes.

It's funny you mentioned the radiator...and thank you for the recommendations. My coolant has boiled over several times. The last time I filled it up (with water...I need to get some coolant but wasn't sure what to put in it yet, as I do not have the manual yet) I put a full quart in her. I don't like adding a bunch of weight to the bike but those two mods are likely worthwhile...and no, the RX dumps it on the ground. I'll look into a radiator cap too. This bike is NOT designed for what I'm doing with it (constant low speed drills-not as much as I'm doing it anyway). Just about ALL of my riding has been with trying to master low speed techniques and drills...if this darn thing doesn't kill me first! I think I've had three incidences where that throttle somehow got out of control...and she took off towards the moon. I haven't had any bad wrecks yet; thank God! I've just dropped her a few times.

If I ever get down your way, I'll try to look you up and maybe you can show me some local trails... I would like to pick your brain a bit when I get ready to add weight to the flywheel sometime in the future b/c I'm pretty sure I'm going to go that route.

Nice bikes and nice pics! I'm sorry to hear about the heart attack and cancer but glad you're back on your feet again! I'm also glad to hear you're still riding. I hope I can say the same in a few years. I have some significant health limitations of my own...which is one of the reasons for doing it now. Gotta push off old age as long as I can...and riding these bikes really works your body (if you are riding hard). I'm pretty sure this thing is going to help with my exercise as I grow older (and start riding harder).

I'm looking forward to gleaning as much info like above as I can get from this forum! I will put it to work. Thanks again!

[Seven Bravo]

I wanted to add one more thing about gearing ....

Ride the bike on the trails you are planning on frequenting ...then decide what direction to go to "better" the riding , in other words , if where you ride , you are constantly shifting from 1st to 2nd , or 2nd to 3rd , that will determine where you should be , what you ultimately want , is the most frequent speeds you will be riding is where you want to focus your gearing , so if you are in real tight stuff 80+% of the time , and you find yourself shifting constantly between 1st to 2nd , and are either using the clutch way too much to keep the bike from stalling or lurching , that is when you need to alter the gearing to better suit the terrain .... if the trails you are riding are mostly 3rd gear somewhat open , and you find it is a constant battle shifting from 2nd which is winding the engine out too much , to 3rd where you are bogging , then you need to re-gear ..... follow ?? .............

So for example , you are riding real tight stuff 80% of the time , it is slow tedious and never really open/fast , then look at how your bike is performing , if you are needing to constantly feather the clutch to get thru each section , and you are in 1st gear , then you need to go up/larger on the rear 1 or 2 teeth , this will keep you close to where you currently are , but give a little (depending on 1 or 2 teeth) more lugging ability , and keep your engine from getting as hot , because feathering the clutch causes heat to go up .... and going to a smaller front , would be too drastic a change (about 3 teeth jump compared to a single tooth change on the rear) , besides the smaller front causing more wear on parts ..........

Comparatively , if you are riding more open stuff 80% of the time , and find you are shifting way too much because it is just not there , but close , 1 tooth on the front (larger for example) can make a huge difference , but might hurt you in the tighter stuff , but , if you are struggling in the tight stuff because the bike has way too much torque , 1 tooth larger (14) would smooth out the power delivery , and you can fine tune the power needs with the rear (larger) ... Example: ... I run 14/51 (stock 13/49) , the gearing I have smoothed out the massive hit my R has (along with the flywheel weight) , I am even considering going 14/50 , just to see how it works .... my goal (as should yours be) is to not need to constantly shift up/down where I normally ride (location/terrain) to get the power delivery I want/need for where I am riding mostly , then compromise in areas I don't frequent , or even re-gearing to suit the conditions .... That is how you should approach gearing ......

So keep that in mind .... but gearing will not do what a flywheel or flywheel weight will do in the tight stuff ... if you find you are feathering the clutch and shifting constantly because of stalling , or trying not to stall it , then that will be of more benefit than just gearing alone , but combining the 2 is major as far as benefits ...... so flywheel weight for stalling , then gearing for fine tuning to the environment so you are not overworking your clutch or yourself

Here is a gear chart so you can see the differences a front or rear tooth or a combo of the 2 will do ........Note: the front should be kept between 12-14 , the rear should not go over 54 due to it making for excessive wear on the chain guide , nor go under 47 , so stick within those parameters , which will still give you a ton of options/combinations .... also note that changing the gearing even 1 tooth on the rear (or front) will affect your sag and handling , as the farther back the rear wheel or the farther forward , makes the suspension softer/stiffer and how fast it moves up/down in relation to the rear wheel , also going more than 2 teeth on the rear would most likely require a different length chain , so keep all this in mind when swapping things around .............

Sweet! What a wealth of knowledge. I'll likely be doing BOTH of your mods over the winter. I'm having more problems with stalling than I am with the lurching but the lurching is somewhat of a concern, as I've come very close to a couple of bad wrecks from it. I DO need to tame this throttle a bit, if possible...or REALLY learn it. I think I'm going to find myself using 1-3 gears the most...2nd for tight technical stuff and 3rd when things open up a bit...4-5 for the service roads and wide open riding.

Most of my riding will likely be the tight narly stuff. I hope to get more into a cross between trials and dirt bike riding...but doing it with a standard dirtbike. I've heard folks say that it's easier to learn the TRIALS techniques on a TRIALS bike, so I may look at picking one up. This 450 has me about half scared to try half the techniques I'm practicing! I most definitely have to get a grip on mastering that throttle and clutch. LOL

[Leardriver]

Welcome back to dirt bike riding!

I will give my own nearly worthless opinion to the first parts of your post.

Modern four strokes don't require clutch usage like an old peaky 2 stroke. I shift into third and ride much of the day without the clutch. They can grunt and torque their way out of many situations.

If you were to ride an X in stock form, it might be the best bike you ever rode. You can change things, and we all like to fiddle, but making a change is often not an upgrade, just a change from the way smart engineers designed it. Try riding it stock for a while, and you might be surprised.

[Seven Bravo]

Welcome back to dirt bike riding!

I will give my own nearly worthless opinion to the first parts of your post.

Modern four strokes don't require clutch usage like an old peaky 2 stroke. I shift into third and ride much of the day without the clutch. They can grunt and torque their way out of many situations.

If you were to ride an X in stock form, it might be the best bike you ever rode. You can change things, and we all like to fiddle, but making a change is often not an upgrade, just a change from the way smart engineers designed it. Try riding it stock for a while, and you might be surprised.

Thank you for the feedback! That's kinda what I'm hoping! I have YET to ever buy anything with a motor that I couldn't eventually tame. I always go for broke when it comes to power b/c I outgrow the ride too fast if I don't. That's why my HD has a 124" S&S in it. lol

That said, this bike has me more unsettled than the CR-500 ever did. That said, I the last time I rode a CR500, I had yet to turn 18...so I was likely a little crazier than I am now. LOL This bike probably has me more nervous than anything I've ridden before...but then again, it's been 30 years since I did much on a dirtbike.

Thanks again!

[JimDirt]

You will get comfortable and used to it over time , but the weight and gearing will really mellow out the power delivery , but will not mellow the power , the power will be there when you grab a handful , that much I can confirm ....

When I was racing in the 70's (up till I was about 19) , I had no fear , and I had no worries about too much power .... now that I am in my 60's , 40+ years later , I have a little more respect for power , not so much a fear , but just respect , that and I know how hard the ground is at my age , much harder than I remember it being when I was younger ..... The average rider will never use the full power of a modern 450 , and honestly , we really don't need it all , the bikes will go anywhere we want to go , and some places we don't want to go ...

Dialing in a bike to make it work for you and your riding conditions is all part of what every rider should do , but most just don't and are usually never happy or feel intimidated ..... I push my bike pretty far now compared to how hard I was pushing even a couple months ago , mainly because of the changes I made to make the bike more me friendly .... it will all come back to you , maybe not the way you remember it being , but you will find your happy place , and all will be good ..... All I know is , The RX is a good bike (so similar to the R , but farther away from the X) , making it work for what you want it to do will be a bit of trial and error and finding what works best for your specific needs , without spending all your money and time messing with it to get it there .....The changes I suggested , and have done myself , do work well for taming the beast ... I was at the track today and am going tomorrow and if the rain is not a torrent , Sunday as well .... All I know is , a day riding is worth every bit of the frustration you put into setting up the bike , and then getting to ride for a day

One last thing , you did not mention what Map you are riding in (the Blue Button).... #1 is "Standard" , it has some hit , Map #2 is the mellowest Map , it is as smooth as the stock mapping will allow , so try to use that one till you feel either you can run Map #1 all the time without feeling like your arms are being pulled off , or till you do the mods , or when you need to be smoother due to terrain .... Map 3 will pull your arms off , all the time .... though none of the maps are as strong as the R , they are still noticeable between them .... if yours has Traction Control (the Green Button) use map #3 , it will give you the most traction , when you get in a situation where traction is needed without idling and full throttle is not working ... the Traction Control works best at lower RPM's , if you are spinning going up a muddy trail or hill , and TC is on #3 , just back off the throttle and you will notice the bike bite in and start moving forward as opposed to spinning , again , the mapping takes advantage of smooth throttle input , and sometimes backing off slightly will do better than trying to power thru the situation ... again , the TC works when you back off a bit , give it full throttle , and it simply is bypassed .... so keep that in mind when traversing technical or slick terrain ....

[Seven Bravo]

You will get comfortable and used to it over time...

I can relate to your sentiments.

As of right now, I have it on the 2nd setting (the mellowest). I figured I'd turn it up as I got a better handle on each one. I'm not sure about a "green" button but there ARE 2 buttons on the setting control switch. I think there's a smaller top button and a slightly larger bottom one. Until I have a manual in my hands (ordered from this site, thank you; I did not know about the store side of things), I really won't know what I have. I wonder if the '17's came with that traction control??? I've been afraid to mess with those buttons until I got my manual b/c I don't want to screw something up. I had the guy I bought it from put it on the lowest setting.

I WILL likely be doing your mods to this bike. Those "smart engineers" someone talked about were building a bike for a slightly different purpose (and to make it marketable to a wider crowd) than what I'm using it for...hence the need for mods. You probably remember, from the old days (if you ever had a HD), pulling heavy flywheels off the old bikes and putting them on the newer ones HD was putting out as they were too light to generate any real power. In the street bike world, mods are the norm. Everyone sets their bike up for their own personal riding styles.