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►Four and a half weeks ago we took delivery
of the most dynamite bike to come out of Japan since the 125 Elsinore.
Just take a long look at our test 400 Monocross. Rolling your eyes over it will
tell you that it has most of the stuff you'd expect to find on a good European
unit. A little closer look, and you'll find some things that'll make you wonder
why the components weren't made this way all along.
During our first day of
testing, Bryar Holcomb and Jim Connolly came along with us to help give a
thorough run through the wringer. George put 20 minutes on it and decided that
it was worthy of a dual 40-minute moto race test at Saddleback on Saturday.
Here's what happened.
RACE ONE MOTO 1
Over the gate and gassin' it.
A. ..C. CELERATION! !! Whooa! Into fourth now, headed for the first turn. John
DeSoto and Bruce Baron are there first. George tucks in behind Baron and
prepares for some initial hot laps.
Track surface was all you could
ask for, moist to tacky, with holes already started from practice.
Through the glen and into the
big uphill switchbacks. He's still hanging in there, about 15 meters back. But,
there's no one behind them. Look at that thing turn! Just like a Maico. Flick
the bars and gassit. Front wheel roosts and all! Maybe it'll be different when
the track dries out a little.
With four laps down, DeSoto and
Baron start pulling away. Unchallenged, George had the track virtually to
himself for several laps. That Monocross is the loudest thing on the track.
It accelerates from corner to
corner as quick as the leading experts. Once into the turns, how-ever, their
skill proved who was going to make the quickest lap times.
Roughly 30 minutes into the
first go-round, the leaders lapped our test Yamaha. Couldn't stay with them like
he could in the beginning. Forty minutes and the checkered flag. First Amateur!
BETWEEN MOTOS
George rolled up to our truck
yelling things like: What a rocket! This thing's so quick! It even turns!!
Almost turns too good in that dirt. Did you see that start? Wheelied all the way
up. Yea, we saw it. Needless to say, but we'll say it: George was excited about
the bike. Wrenches started clanging as he proceeded to. as he put it, make sure
it didn't get a chance to harm him.
How did the rear suspension
work? In his condition, we were almost afraid to ask. He reported that it was
the best rear end he had ridden so far. Could he better, though. Slightly
oversprung, of course, in the Yamaha tradition. Entering the downhill
right-hander at the bottom of Webco hill. he had trouble keeping the rear end in
line. It was hopping all over, from side to side. Had to keep his weight to the
maximum rearward position to keep it headed in the right direction. Not so had
in a way, because it made him tend to want to keep the gas on longer. As long as
the gas was turned on, it was fantastic. That can't hurt your lap times much,
unless you do something silly like going off.
Hmm. We quickly found that the
rattling he heard on the starting line was the super-lightweight alloy tank
vibrating against its large rear mount which once held it to the frame. Luckily
the front edge of the seat held it in place. Nothing like a belt or a strap to
hold on a tank. Looks tricker too. A bungee cord will have to do.
Spokes loosened up enough to
require attention after 55 minutes of riding. After the first day of testing,
they were loose as a goose. Not nearly as bad now. Steering head bearings
appeared to be the only other thing to loosen up.
MOTO 2
This time the experts used the
gate and the intermediates were flagged off about eight seconds later.
Up the start hill, on the rear
wheel most of the way again, and the first turn belonged to the German rider/
Japanese bike combination. No competition. He pulled out a very comfortable
lead.
Twenty minutes into it, in the
exit of the downhill left into the glen, he turned a little too sharp and it
spit him off. No big deal. He remounted and continued without losing a position.
Again, after about 30 minutes, the few fastest experts motored by. A few laps
later, the checkered and another win.
In the pits, he hopped off and
started stroking the front and rear suspenders to see what was left of the
dampening. The rear didn't feel too bad in the final laps, nor was it too far
from what he started with when checking it now. Forks left a little to be
desired. They probably had the standard fish oil in them and weren't the hottest
things going. Steering changed some as the track dried up a little, but still
the geometry seemed very close to what you needed.
Not bad at all. Even the
harder-rubber copies of Oury grips weren't bad enough to need changing. Without
Tibblin gloves, maybe. One o'clock, we headed home. Ah yes, two 40s at
Saddleback on Saturday.
George was content with two
firsts the first time out on the bike. Little did he suspect that this was just
the beginning of one of the most memorable days of his life.
DYNO DAY
Removing the number plates to
clean the air filter, we found that the only thing holding the bolt in place
that the top of the swingarm and shock pivot on was the outer air box cover.
Strange. You'd think those crafty Yamaha designers would have drilled and cotter
pinned such an important part. A new nut was fitted with plenty of Loctite.
The air box is beautiful. It's
made of very thick polyethylene-type plastic. There are no bolts to be sucked in
if things come loose. A plastic X-section, of similar material, has two 6mm
bolts imbedded in each end. This passes through the center duct of the box to
hold the outer covers in place, sandwiching the two filters in place. Ingenious.
Looks vibration-proof, too. Makes the original YZ part look like trash.
Back to the dyno . . . 37.8 of
the most usable horsepower ever to come out of Japan. The power curve looks very
nice on paper and felt even better on the track. Quite a combination, with power
like that, and suspension that can get it all to the ground.
RACE TWO MOTO 1
The flag moved and they were
gone. George made a slight error getting over the gate. Into the first turn a
slick guy on a 450 Maico the door on him. Following for a lap and a half, he saw
his chance and took the lead. They pulled far ahead of the pack. Two laps later,
the Maico with the squeaky brakes regained the lead. One lap later George got it
back and pulled away. A couple of laps later the pipe broke in two, just behind
the stinger.
BETWEEN MOTOS
He was stoked again. With only
two hours sleep the night before, this was the only bike to ride. He could sit
in places and rest where you wouldn't normally want to. One hose clamp held the
pipe together till we could weld it. A couple of the berms were so deep that
they cleaned your feet off the pegs if you left them there. The hot setup was to
either keep your feet off the bike
completely, or rest one on the
engine cases. Pegs didn't work so good with clods of mud on them.
We had moved the forks down in
the crowns so that they were now 1.5 cm above the top edge. For the first race,
they were at about 3.4 cm. Better now. Same oil though. George said that he was
much too busy living during the week to play with things like fish oil.
MOTO 2
It appeared that he had the
holeshot until the final few meters before turn one. Some dude slipped in front
just as they had reached the shut-down area. George had overcooked it quite a
bit. The sight of someone going 20 miles per hour slower, directly in front of
him, and the thought of overshooting the shut turn, sent him into a full-lock
brake slide for easily 13 meters. Nearing the end of the slide, he rolled on the
gas and swooped by for the lead before turn two. He pulled away and caught the
experts on the same lap. No contest. First.
Later he was heard to comment:
Does this thing have handles, or what? Slides! It does most everything right.
Bars are a few centimeters too wide, he clipped a couple of course markers.
RACE THREE MOTO 1
190.5cc of Bel-Ray 20-weight in
the forks, 2.1 cm above the crowns, a full 2-1/2 hours sleep.
Holeshot. Wire to wire.
When you gassit, it seems to
straighten itself up out of a slide, coming out of a turn. Forks worked much
better for a 75 kilo rider with the good oil. Decent. You don't really think
about the brakes. They're there when you need them. Front is smooth and
predictable. Rear is least sticky of any Yamaha we've ridden lately. Once in a
while, you're bound to get a good one.
MOTO 2
Holeshot. Wire to wire. That's
six out of six 40-minute motos, open intermediate class.
TRICK-OUT TIME
Orange County Cycles had
sponsored Mike Gillman to ride the support class throughout this past Trans-AMA.
Both sides learned as secrets were shared. Guess who was anxious to get the
lowdown on the monoshock rebuild job?
Tom White at O.C.C. has rebuilt
more monoshock units than he cares to recall. National number 80 expert, circle
dirt track freak. He's done a lot of experimenting and has come up with the
right setup for both motocross and desert.
Their own valve replaces the stock unit, rotated on the main shock shaft 180
degrees from its original position. A standard, off the shelf, rebuild kit, the
light instead of medium Yamaha spring, Bel-Ray LT-300 and a few personal tricks
complete the hot shock assembly. They'll do the whole thing to yours for just
$30.► |
