crf250 Rally

[johnnyboxer]

I'm still not well enough to work on my ride-gagging-for 250Rally, but I have just ordered a plastic bash plate and fairing protector for £142 from Kodama composites, to arrive in 2 weeks or so, uk made to order. We'll chuffed as could not find one , till crf rally Adventure Travellers bike web site fb group recommend it. Yay ..

It fits over the original bash plate plastics, but of tough quality. Glued I think. and said to work well.. chuffed, as I like the Rally fairing looks.

Made by a forum member here too

[garyboy]

Oh right .. Chris it is .. who on here then, JB ?
Not obliged to reveal, of course.

BTW, did you order a 300 Rally after?

[garyboy]

So .. eventually felt well enough to carry on with the shock fitting. Took me several hours to get the top bolt in, after I decided to mangle the battery holder to get the nut onto the bolt. ( Couldn't find out how to remove the holder, and it seemed to be part of the air box etc .. doh!!)

The rest was easy, but not sure if it's bottoming out on the rubber or something else, as can't see it and sit on it as the same time.

Definitely lower, 1 inch or 1.5 inches?. and can just about flat foot. It's lower with the seat off, obviously .. the height I want actually, but I will try with seat first .. once I build my strength up to dress and go lol.

The rider sag is a lot less too, and easier to mount the bike, but I wouldn't go lower anyway because of ground clearance.

The sidestand is fine as long as care taken, which is surprising and shows how much sag is in the oem rear.

Not planning to lower front yet . . See how goes.
Looks like the bar risers may not get so high?
Test time soon.

[johnnyboxer]

Oh right .. Chris it is .. who on here then, JB ?
Not obliged to reveal, of course.

BTW, did you order a 300 Rally after?

Haven’t ridden one yet
Smashed my shoulder and ribs in, 2 weeks ago
So won’t be on any bike for a good while

[Hall]

Oh right .. Chris it is .. who on here then, JB ?
Not obliged to reveal, of course.

BTW, did you order a 300 Rally after?

Catcitrus

[garyboy]

Oh right .. Chris it is .. who on here then, JB ?
Not obliged to reveal, of course.

BTW, did you order a 300 Rally after?

Haven’t ridden one yet
Smashed my shoulder and ribs in, 2 weeks ago
So won’t be on any bike for a good while

o dear .... sorry to hear that JB.
I didn't realise it was so bad ..
gws

[garyboy]

a salt and battery on the battery ..
the only quick way of accessing the top bolt shock nut .. without taking the air box and other gubbins off ..
20220416_161812 (2) by gary boy, on Flickr

the holey grail of cheap lowered suspension ..
20220416_161908 (2) by gary boy, on Flickr

ground clearance seems fine ..... but No lower ...
20220416_183613 (2) by gary boy, on Flickr

yay ok .. all seems fine. That extra inch or so, of getting the foot down makes all the difference

[minkyhead]

you can slide a longish 9 onch open end wrench behind the battery box to hold the nut head gary 17mm if i recall you then just bust the thread by using a socket on the right side easy access with a extension to the bolt head just behind the rear brake resivior ..when you replace the nut jam it in the jaws of the spanner with duct tape and revolve the bolt from the right hand side to thread ..... its a bit fiddly but with the right spanner its really a ten min job ..no need to remove the battery or drill owt just the wires off the negative terminal as all you need to is see where the spanner is while fishing for the nut on or off
..you offer the nut up trapped in the spanner and thread it from the oppisite side if that makes sense i suspect you have tried to access the nut from the battery side ...slide the spanner on the nut behind the box and crack it from the bolt head on the right

[garyboy]

NOW you tells me, Minky ... lol.

No, I actually tried getting a 17mm spanner behind the battery holder (brain fog and an aching back and tortured knees prevented me from thinking of taping the nut on ... doh) .. but failed in a hot sweaty frustration.

A sweaty aching month later I came to the inevitable and abject conclusion that I was better at butchering and bodging than spannering .. and really enjoyed taking revenge on that innocent plastic battery box.

Whilste in the throes of vindictive pleasure, I noticed that Honda, in fact, had a really nice and tight and secure setup for retaining all the plastic boxes and shapes and wires under the seat .. very impressive...... the nuts and bolts are another matter though, and knurled easily, as well as being a poor fit to spanners and sockets ... must have a word with honda's chocolate factory.

[garyboy]

I used the 19mm c/c measurement from the 250L for shodting the shock length, but with a 5mm offset. This length I would say is the maximum for effective ground clearance, and even then produced a lot more rocky under-clunks. The new, when arrive, carbon and kevlar bash plate and sides protect will reduce this even more, but atm I have good footing which transforms confidence and usability for the lower height man lol.

To get even better footing I would lower the seat or do a bodged but effective smaller seat.. but all is fine atm and am actually chuffed that it turned out good .. much better forriding .. and cheap as chips lol.

Obviously, the headlights need adjusting, but OK for the moment. I like the forks at the height they are. However, the front bounce is more noticeable now, as many have stated .. May put an extra spring in later.

The mt21 tyres were initially a huge disappointment but they need breaking in and seemed to improve after even a short trial run. I can see why most crf riders go for the d606 as it certainly looks like it would grip better, though the mt21 rear is good on tarmac.

On the trial run I was once again astounded by the quick and smooth uptake in starting speed and crf gets up to 30s and 40s remarkably fast and easily.. and also to 60s and 70s without any fuss. I can't believe the speedo, tbh. .. Nice bike.