New to me 2001 Yamaha WR 426

[zlathim]

I bought myself a bike a couple of days ago:



Didn't know too much about these things, but I did some research on thumpertalk.com and decided that I wanted it. Bought it from a guy locally for $1,600.

I'm trying to get some of the PM stuff done to it now. So far I have drained and filled the coolant, checked the valve lash, cleaned and serviced the air filter, installed a new spark plug, and changed the oil.



I'm looking forward to doing some riding this weekend.

[BadAZYj]

Nice! Shoulda gone for a couple years newer for the magic button though love my 03 wr250. Kinda wish I had a 450 now though. We'll see how it does with the 290 kit soon.

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by BadAZYj

Nice! Shoulda gone for a couple years newer for the magic button though love my 03 wr250. Kinda wish I had a 450 now though. We'll see how it does with the 290 kit soon.

I hear you on the electric leg.

This bike was actually newer than I figured I could afford, but I upped my budget a little when I saw this bike. It has way more power than any bike I've ever owned by far.

[BadAZYj]

Cool, youll love it, just make sure its jetted right(clean pilot and idle and fuel/air screw adjusted properly) so hot starting isnt a problem... nothing worse than dropping your bike and stalling it, then wearing yourself out just trying to start the thing also dont think those have the auto decomp cam, so there is a technique to them as opposed to just kicking away like the newer bikes with auto decomp. check out http://www.thumpertalk.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=20 if you havent already

[zlathim]

Yea, I've been spending a lot of time reading threads over at thumpertalk. That is a great site.

I have the kickstart proceedure down pretty good now, so I can usually start it on the first or second kick. I understand that I can install an auto decomopres exhaust cam and it will make life much easier, but I have some other stuff I want to do first.

I'm taking that bad boy out for a ride tomorrow. My son will be following me around on his XR 80. I'm guessing he won't be able to keep up...

[Beat95YJ]

I loved mine, but it was a dual sport. Awesome to ride but the close ratio gearbox sucked on the freeway.

[7.62FMJ]

I've always wanted a 426. I almost pulled the trigger on one before I got my Raptor 700 a few years back. Congrats!

[zlathim]

Thanks guys. I took the bike out for a ride today and man it was awesome. That thing has a lot of power. Very fun to ride.

I have got the stasrting procedure down pat. The hot start button is a must, but I never had any trouble restarting the bike, which I did a lot of because my son was riding his XR 80 with me and every time he crashed and couldn't get his bike started, I had to shut mine down and go help him. I had to tell him that daddy's too old and fat to be starting both bikes all day long. After that, he did a little better.

[ky scrambled]

Cool picture.

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by ky scrambled

Cool picture.

Thanks. I didn't have anything to set the camera on while using the timer, so it ended up on the ground. I like the way it turned out too.

[blakeape]

My 2001 YZF 426 is the only new vehicle I have ever owned. It's been a fun decade on "The Bruise" which has led a very rough life with my untalented self riding it. Once you get the decompression lever and the hot start figured out you don't need that heavy ass starter and battery! Enjoy it yours looks a lot cleaner than mine.

[blt2rok]

Nice buy. I have a 06 450 thats dual sported and an 05 250 that I trail ride and race. They great bulletproof bikes. Don't woory your son will soon be able to start his own bike crash less then you and you will be trying to keep up with him. My oldest is 13 and does things that scare the shit out of me and his 7 year old twin brothers are right behind him.

[zlathim]

Thanks for the replies guys. I am absolutely loving this bike! I took it out again yesterday and had a blast! I'm going again on Thursday after work. It feels great to be back on a dirt bike again, after almost ten years of not owning a bike.

[redneckK20]

I'm insanely jealous, that's the exact dirtbike I want. I had a 2001 YZ426 that was awesome, I'd love to pick up a WR and supermoto it.

[91mr2sw20]

Originally Posted by redneckK20

I'm insanely jealous, that's the exact dirtbike I want. I had a 2001 YZ426 that was awesome, I'd love to pick up a WR and supermoto it.

Do you have anything to trade, got an 01 WR426 and i too wanna super moto mine but might trade for say... Took it too mexico and on the beach hit 74 mph that was interesting to say the least plus hitting a 32% slip faced dune and it powered right up it in 3rd no problem. I swear these bikes are the diesels of the 2-wheeled world. To the OP nice buy you will love it for riding the backwoods and such and very reliable, you gotta love changing oil on these bikes though.

[IrationBomb]

450's are fastt, I'm more then satisfied with my crf250.

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by redneckK20

I'm insanely jealous, that's the exact dirtbike I want. I had a 2001 YZ426 that was awesome, I'd love to pick up a WR and supermoto it.

Dude, I love this bike. It has power to spare, and most of the free mods haven't even been done yet.

Originally Posted by 91mr2sw20

Do you have anything to trade, got an 01 WR426 and i too wanna super moto mine but might trade for say... Took it too mexico and on the beach hit 74 mph that was interesting to say the least plus hitting a 32% slip faced dune and it powered right up it in 3rd no problem. I swear these bikes are the diesels of the 2-wheeled world. To the OP nice buy you will love it for riding the backwoods and such and very reliable, you gotta love changing oil on these bikes though.

Yes, very true, these bikes just pull hard. I couldn't be happier.

I had a couple of Yammis in the past, so I was wanting to get another, but I almost pulled the trigger on a Suzuki DR 350. My buddy has a DR 350, and we went riding together last weekend. We swapped bikes for a few minutes, and I am sure glad I found this bike instead of getting the Suzuki.

[BadAZYj]

ha! yeah the dr350 is like a tank compared to that

[CrzyWhtBy]

I have a 01' yz426...I love the bike, I've had it for a few years now and its reliable as they come. I ridden a few of the new 450's and honestly like the feel of my bike more. Im 6'5" and it just seems to fit me better..the newer 450's just seem weird and I don't really care for the engine response.

Put the hot start on the throttle side of the handle bar and holding the lever in will feel like second nature. Jetting is huge and timing the fuel spray on the carb. those two adjustments will go a long way for you.

A luxury item you may want to add down the road is a hydraulic clutch...they are awesome in helping you control the rpm on hill climbs and tight corners.

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by CrzyWhtBy

I have a 01' yz426...I love the bike, I've had it for a few years now and its reliable as they come. I ridden a few of the new 450's and honestly like the feel of my bike more. Im 6'5" and it just seems to fit me better..the newer 450's just seem weird and I don't really care for the engine response.

Put the hot start on the throttle side of the handle bar and holding the lever in will feel like second nature. Jetting is huge and timing the fuel spray on the carb. those two adjustments will go a long way for you.

A luxury item you may want to add down the road is a hydraulic clutch...they are awesome in helping you control the rpm on hill climbs and tight corners.

Cool. Thanks for the advice!

[ShaneOh]

Nice score! There's some great advice already here so nothing to contribute really other than I had the same bike at the age of 18 - it was stupid fast, way too much for my 150 lb ass and all I ever had to do was put a chain on it. When you get tired of it as is you can come to the dark side, super moto that thing, and have some serious fun!

[kryan]

Have the oppertunity to get a 2002 YZF 426
for a steal 1500.00 bike is mint.
It's a buddy of mine that never rode it.
I haven't ridden in about 20 years.
Is this bike going to be to much for me?
I'm 41 6'2 280lbs

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by kryan

Have the oppertunity to get a 2002 YZF 426
for a steal 1500.00 bike is mint.
It's a buddy of mine that never rode it.
I haven't ridden in about 20 years.
Is this bike going to be to much for me?
I'm 41 6'2 280lbs

Without knowing anything about your riding ability, it is hard to answer your question. You are definately not too small for it.

My bike felt like it had a ton of power when I got it. I had to be pretty careful at first. I guess that I have gotten used to it, because it doesn't feel crazy powerful any more.

[kryan]

I'm very cautious rider, driver.
Have been thinking about getting something a little milder, but
this oppertunity came up. Seems like a good price on a like new bike.
Its a YZF is there a differance from that to a YZ?

[ShmUDE]

here was mine. Street/track only.