Hey fellas.. just bought a used, beat up and broken 2004 crf 250r for cheap. Im going to make this bike a full blown race bike that is fast as well as reliable. Im starting off with the Athena 280 kit.. Full FMF exhaust.. full Hinson clutch.. Some may wonder why put money into an older bike, well times are tough for alot of people so for $ 3,500 including the price of the bike, i will show that you can have a serious race mahine that is set up just for you..

Some also may wonder that a 280 big bore is more geared for more low to mid range power so how can it be considered a race bike.. valid question and i will show you how to make a big bore scream from the bottem all the way to the top.. I have alot more parts aside from the ones listed above coming next week.. so i will post up pics and info as i go..

First day of the stripdown..


Motor out and ready for inspection..


The bearing Race split in half causing pieces of the race and all 13 bearings to go through the head and down into the motor.. not good.. but being the positive person i am, im going to take a lemon and make a full race motor..


Ready for the new parts.. check back in soon :bandit




Ok ive updated the head to a brand new head from a 2009 model which is a direct bolt on for the 04, the 09 head has a better port configuration for better all round power..

The new head was machined to accept Beryllium Copper Alloy intake seats that are compatible with the new ti valves for a long lasting and reliable set up.. the head is also fully ported for all round power..









Then new Chromium Nitride Coated 1mm oversized Titanium intakevalves were added, along with Black Nitride coated stainless exhaust valves for better exhaust guide wear, springs, spring locators, guide seals, retainers and keepers.




A new cam was installed from the hotcams builder series whick will match perfectly with the 280 big bore.. Instead od the power just hitting hard from the bottem through mid.. this cam will allow the power mostly from mid to top with plenty of overrevv.. the 280 will have plenty on the bottem for an allround power spread.. Also stiffer bigger springs were added to accept the cam..




The FMF Ti powercore exhaust is added along with the powercore head pipe for a light yet powerful setup..




Ive added the tokyo mods cam chain manual tensioner in case the stock automatic tensioner failed which can cause serious engine damage..




This pretty much completes the motor package.. check back in soon for pics and a vid.. ( off to surgery )

Unfortunately, I can't see the pictures. You should have used the 07 head for porting. Ron Hamp has done a ton of extensive research on cylinder head porting and he'll tell you that that for the carb models, the 07 head is the absolute best for porting. I'm sure the 09 head will work fine.

Unless I missed it somewhere, I didn't see anything with the crankshaft assembly? I wouldn't think that you would leave it alone with all the work and upgrades you're making. Maybe a carillo or falicon set up of some sort?

You sure did get some some nice parts, I'm wondering about the crank also, with them parts a strong crank would be good !

Thats what i Call Pure Pornnnnnn

Charlie C, on 24 May 2012 - 08:05 AM, said:

the pics are visible my dude.. and yes the 09 is fine for porting .. im going to get a heavy duty hotrods crank and have it balanced for the athena 280 piston from crankworks..

My computer won't let me see the pics. It's pretty much locked down by the corporate office so I don't have the ability to change the settings. I miss out on a lot but from what I've read you're doing, I'm excited to see how it's going to come out! Any plans to put it on a dyno? The 09 head is absolutely fine and big deal that the cases are 04. It's what's inside those cases that make the difference. You probably already know that I'm a builder myself so I'm no stranger to what you're doing and why!

Edited by Charlie C, 25 May 2012 - 04:59 AM.

Anxious to see the finished product! What are the plans for the rest of the bike?