"01 YZ426 Actual Weight Yikes!

[Goosedog]

What he's left out is the fact that the complete mod requires the seat and subframe from the 450 along with the plastics.

Yeah...sounds like too much trouble to me. If I wanna shave 6 to 8lbs, I'll just lay off the Irish beer for two weeks. ?

[Doug.]

To be honest, the obese weight doesn't bother me all that much when riding my friend's '98 YZ400F...which, I believe, is even heavier than the stout 426F. The only time I notice the weight is actually not when I'm in the air off of jumps, or in corners but when I'm trail riding in the tight stuff. The steering feel isn't the greatest in that respect.

[FZ1426]

I think a set of Ti engine mount bolts and carbon fiber gussets would save more weight than plastics, and probably cheaper too. It's not worth either project. It would still weigh at least ten pounds more than an '03 450 anyway.

[swab400]

True It Does Require Quite A Bit Of Parts I Was Just Throwing The Idea Out There. Sorry If I Came Across Wrong I Was Not Trying To Be Mean Just Making A Point That It Does Eliminate Alot Of Weight Off Of These Bikes.

[yogist]

Coming off a cr 250 the weight was an issue but after a couple of months getting use to the bike Im riding it just like the cr..I put on some great tires and am getting more confident with this bike every day...I also have a clarke desert tank on mine..Just point and shoot, having that power really helps me manage any extra weight.. ?

[grayracer513]

Sorry If I Came Across Wrong I Was Not Trying To Be Mean

Writing in all caps is a breach of communications etiquette because it gives the reader the visual impression that he is being shouted at. OTOH, writing with each word capitalized is just weird.

[Raven1911]

JUST DO A SEARCH FOR 450 PLASTIC MOD AND YOU SHOULD GET MORE INFO THAN YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH. IT IS A SIMPLE PROJECT AND DOES SHAVE 5-8 POUNDS, I KNOW I WEIGHED MY PARTS NEW AND OLD! A: THE TANK IS A SMIDGE SMALLER THAT SAVES YOU WEIGHT B: THE TANK IS MADE OUT OF THINNER PLASTIC, THAT SAVES WEIGHT C:THE AIRBOX IS A ALMOST HALF THE WEIGHT OF THE 426 AIRBOX, THAT SAVES WEIGHT D: YOU HAVE TO RUN THE 450 REAR MASTER CYLIDER THAT SAVES YOU WEIGHT NOT TO MENTION THE VERY MUCH IMPROVED ERGOS! WELL WORTH THE TIME AND EFFORT BUT IF YOU LIKE THE ERGOS OF THE 426 AND THE ADDED WEIGHT THEN DISREGARD THIS POST. ?

How much $ did that mod set you back??

[PMK]

When I had my 01 YZ426f, the bike was fun but also for me was kind of heavy up high. Mine weighed at around 247 like stated. I did a bunch of cheap or free mods focusing on removing or lowering weight. In the end I got it to the mid 230's, 236 if I recall correct.

These are some things that helped, 450 cam and removed hot start cable and lever, but left in decomp shaft in head, coil on plug from a Hyabusa, Cut away almost the entire top of the airbox and the portion doubled by the fender. Removed all unused wires from harness, ran a tapered WB head pipe, I also used the lathe and drilled hollow the brake clevis pin, the clutch actuater, the deompression shaft, and the shift shaft on the inside of the engine, plus some of the flat plates securing the shift drum, where possible I swapped steel washers for aluminum aircraft AN960D washers, drilled out the throttle cable bracket on the carb, fabricated titanium vent pipe holders on the carb, and installed a DR.D wetsump conversion, I also ran an SDG regular height seat, renthal bars, made my own front brake line and honda routed, also drilled hollow the steel pins anchoring the brake calipers, drilled the clutch and frtont brake lever pivots. I'm sure there was more, and this was done over time so it wasn't too bad. None of the mods were difficult except drilling the steel plates around the shift drum as these were hardened and needed carbide drills.

My 426 was pretty much bulletproof, I will say the best thing to buy though is a magnetic drain plug, and a 450 cam. Bike is gone and converted to a SM with ohlins modified forks.

PK

[stillsun]

My F650 weighs in at a portly 397lbs!! While my 00 YZ426F feels very slender at 250lbs!! All things are relative.

Ride a F650 all week and when the weekend rolls around you will throwing the YZ around like it is a paperweight!!

Very good point, when I get on my TT600S (around 320ish ready to ride) it feels like a big elephant, then I get used to it again. Then I jump back on the YZ426F and I'm like damn this thing really doesn't weigh anything at all...

-Josh

[felony]

i love my 01 426,still going strong,i did buy a 2 smoke 250 though.Its funny my buddys will hound me of how heavy my 426 is and thats its a pig and what not,so what,its not like i plan on carrying the bike or doing a backflip! then i say even if "their" bikes weighed only 150lbs,they still dont have national caliber speed.point taken.hehe

[theclone]

I weighed my 99 YZ400 with A quarter tank of gas and it came out to 265 pounds. I knew the bike was heavy, but not that heavy!

[whyzee79]

So, lets say I wanted a winter project. To put the 426 engine in a total aluminum frame. Where would I start (say buying an aluminum frame)?

can i just buy an 05 or 06 450 al. frame, and throw a 426 in it?

[grayracer513]

The '06 YZ450 is exactly 2 pounds lighter than my '03. The aluminum frame, per se, will make a difference in your bike, however, because while there is almost no difference in the weight of an '03 frame and an '06 frame, the steel YZ450 frame is 6 or 7 pounds lighter than yours.

Plus, the steel frame has an oil reservoir in it, the aluminum frame doesn't.

When parting a bike out, the steel frames are hard to sell, and often end up left over. You might get one cheap.

[whyzee79]

ahhh okay ?

[razornpc]

i love riding a fat girl in the woods!! my bikes not bad either, much love for the 400s!!!

[grayracer513]

For a little perspective, my old Matchless G80 was 325lb in dirt trim. The highly tricked out G85 that came with a Rickman frame was 285. The BSA Goldstars we raced ran around 280. My '71 BSA B50MX Victor was the peak of 4-stroke development (and just about the last development for several years after that). It had conical hubs, aluminum gas tank and fenders, and a very compactly designed engine. It was impressively light at only 260 pounds.

[razornpc]

ok grey so why/how can a bike that is almost 40 years old weigh as much as a bike thats about 10, dont get how that works with all the plastic and aluminum and junk. or is there just that much more suspension/engine or the newer bikes.

[Brokenparts123]

ok grey so why/how can a bike that is almost 40 years old weigh as much as a bike thats about 10, dont get how that works with all the plastic and aluminum and junk. or is there just that much more suspension/engine or the newer bikes.

Well, Some of the TRUE factory bikes before there were restrictions used to weigh under 200 pounds. I imagine they used alot of ultra trick metal parts ?

[grayracer513]

ok grey so why/how can a bike that is almost 40 years old weigh as much as a bike thats about 10, dont get how that works with all the plastic and aluminum and junk. or is there just that much more suspension/engine or the newer bikes.

Comparing the YZ400 to the B50MX, the BSA had no water pump, no radiators or associated hardware, and carried no coolant. It also had no suspension linkage, and shorter, smaller diameter forks. The engine was a two valve pushrod design, so the head weighed very little.

All in all, considering the YZ400 had more than twice the suspension travel, was liquid cooled, had hydraulic disc brakes, and a phenomenally high revving dual overhead cam engine that produced 5-8 more horsepower than the Victor (which was 20% larger displacement), and yet weighed almost the same to the pound, I think you can understand how and why it was such a stunning achievement in 1997.

[WhiteEagle78]

Man...

I just got a 98' YZ400R and am stoked at how light it feels. I rode a 1986' XL600R for the last 12 years (RIP) I think that bike must have been something like 350 lbs wet.... which meant it outweighed me bey about 210 lbs when I first got it!!!! Im going through the 400 now, sent the carb to Zip Ty for their mods.... ordered the tall seat foam and competition cover from Guts racing and cant wait to put it back together and tear it up for the first time!!!! I think riding a bike with a little more power than my old XR and weighing something like 90 lbs less and having almost twice the suspension travel is going to be a freaking blast!!!