CHAD REED'S MOUNTAIN MOTORSPORTS HONDA CRF450R

Jan 11, 2024

The amount of time put in to get his bike ready in time for Anaheim 1 is incredible. A lot of sleepless nights and logistic obstacles were tackled in December before Chad Reed was able to throw a leg over his Mountain Motorsports Honda CRF450R in Anaheim. Ben Schiermeyer went over some of those details and the cool parts they were able to put on Chad's bike. It was a give-and-take scenario. Chad has ridden on plenty of factory bikes and knows the parts they are running. Some he could get, some he couldn't.

Starting at the front of the motorcycle we find Chad Reed is running Pro Taper SX bend handlebars.

Chad prefers to run a Pro Taper soft compound 1/3 waffle design with wire ties for security purposes. It was interesting to see where he likes to have the waffle segment positioned, which was all the way at the bottom.

ARC provides the clutch and brake lever on Chad's bike which are the the folding design. Both were in a neutral position. The throttle tube is a Pro Circuit aluminum throttle tube. The front brake cables and clutch side are all stock off a 2020 Honda CRF450R.

You’ll find XTrig triple clamps mounted to Reed's Honda. They are stock offset. The steering stem is stock as well. You will find some in the pits using different material. The bar mounts are 5mm forward.

Jonny Oler is the owner of Art of War suspension. You might recognize the name from Supercross in the past. Jonny used to work for JGR in North Carolina tuning on all the Suzuki race bikes and Yamahas before that. If your interested in getting the near factory treatment on your suspension you can find out more here. ART OF WAR .

You’ll find a stock 2020 Honda CRF450R map switch located on the handlebars. Chad doesn't run a particular map for his starts. He really has never been a fan and does it the all natural route, by feel and technique. He also has a completely stock ECU.

Nihilo Concepts makes these cool fork guard braces for Chad's bike. This reinforces the guards from being completely ripped off during the event of a crash or close start. The fork lugs are a standard kit lug that comes on the A-Kit Showa front forks.

Pro Circuit supplies their 2 button start device on Chad's bike. The depth of the button location is pretty average in comparison to other riders in Supercross. The buttons have a 15mm difference. Chad will usually stick to the top button in most cases but has the 2nd option for back up depending on the track.

Mettec provides the titanium axle placed through the Talon hubs on Chad's bike. The wheels are assembled by Dubya with a DID rim and oversized spokes that are beefed up for Supercross.

The Mountain Motorsports team uses Galfer pads and an over sized 270mm front rotor.

Chad had a couple works Nissin front brake calipers left over from his time on Honda in the past. The team was able to throw those on to Chad's 2020 race bike.

The radiators are stock with the seams welded on all the sides. Check out the weld on the spigot. They are also braced to withstand a crash or collision during racing.

The radiator cap is a 1.8 . On the stock Honda CRF450R it is a 1.1. This cap is off a KX65 . Most of the teams are running a 1.8 or higher for Supercross. This is just some added insurance when the bike gets hot that the cap doesn't blow off the top during racing. Some teams will fasten them down so they can't roll off the threads if a rider bumps it with his leg.

Moto Hose has a different routing system for the radiators. Ben explained to us that the Honda tends to run a little hot and this configuration is very similar to the Factory Honda team. Anything to get the bike a little cooler they will try to utilize.

While the Factory Honda team uses a CRF450X model skid plate in muddier conditions Ben explained to us that Chad will run the stock CRF450R model skid plate the entire season. In the event of a mud race Ben will use foam and seal the holes from mud packing inside them.

Chad has worked with Dasa Racing in the past on some of his other bikes. They helped with a piston, the porting, and got the team a cam from Web Cams.

The engines were assembled by Bundy Built Motorsports in North Carolina. Ben explained that Bundy has been around a long time and they’ve worked together in the past. Due to time constraints of Anaheim 1 approaching, Ben didn't have the time to do it himself which he is fully capable of doing. Bundy also polished the cases, the stater cover, and valve cover. Athena has been supplying the gaskets to the team. You can also see the Hinson clutch cable bracket that is a little bit stiffer with less flex that adds come consistency.

Works Chassis Labs provides the engine hangars for Chad's bike. They have quite a bit of options to choose from. Ben has been using these as a tuning tool because they don't have a dedicated suspension guy at the races. They play a lot with different combinations to get more comfort out of the motorcycle. There is a soft, medium, and stiff option for both the top hangar and lower engine hangar.

A Pro Circuit shifter is added to the motorcycle. It has a rounded edge that keeps from mud packing in. This is is in the standard offset position.

The swing arm pivot is a titanium item from Mettec.

Nihilo makes a copy of the works Honda pegs that Chad runs on his CRF450R. Nihilo makes the titanium peg, pin, and mount shown in the photo above. They are for sale through their website.

Chad does run grip tape on his bike and not only keeps him in place a little better but also acts as a protection piece to keep the black anodized frame looking sharp. The subframe is a standard/stock item as well.

NoToil provides the air filters to Chad's Honda. They have a cage without a screen and a Supercross filter that allows for more air flow.

Pro Taper provides the sprockets with a DID chain on Chad's Honda. The chain guides are also stock. Pro Circuit axle blocks are placed with a titanium rear axle. Because the blocks are so big the chain adjuster screws can be pushed in close to each other. The position of the rear wheel is actually pretty far out. Usually this is done to provide more stability.

Chad is running a works Dunlop 120 rear tire. He has gone back and forth in the past between a 110 and 120 size on the rear tire. On the Honda he prefers to run the 120 after testing.

Again, out back you will find a DID Dirt Star ST-X rim, Talon hub, and oversized spokes for Supercross.

Pro Circuit provides the dual exhaust system to Reed's Honda. It is basically an off the shelf item. The team took several pipes into the dyno room to see which produced more power. It was clear that Pro Circuit was a winner in this department and a clear choice. Although Chad has never raced on a Mitch Payton team, he has worked with Payton over the years at various stages of the bike building process.

The rear brake is using Galfer pads, Galfer rotor and a completely stock unit. The lines, caliper, master cylinder are all stock. The hardware has been switched out to titanium.

One thing that Chad is very particular about is his seat. He does not like a stiff seat what so ever. As long as the cover isn't beat up or ripped Ben won't change it between races because Chad likes the broken in feel that much.

The brake pedal is a standard/stock arm that is polished with a titanium Nihilo tip on the end. Ben did say that the tip is much sharper than stock and provides more grip.

Hinson has been a big supporter of Chad's through his entire career so it is no surprise they are on his Honda. You’ll find a standard Hinson 7 plate clutch with stiffer springs. Chad is harder on the clutch than other riders and they want to ensure it lasts through the entire day of racing. You can also see the Boyesen Super Cooler in this photo. Another added item to the bike to keep the temperature down while running.

The works Showa rear shock that features a titanium spring. The linkage is stock.

The team got 4 stock Honda CRF450s from Mountain Motorsports who is also the large sponsor overall. They are basically funding the race effort this season. The team didn't get bikes until Dec. 11th. The truck left the Monday before Anaheim 1 ready to go racing. Ben explained it was a lot of 17 hour days in the shop trying to get this all together from the pit display, bike set up, traveling and more.

At this point in his career, Chad Reed has ridden on pretty much every factory level team bike there is in the pits. He knows what every team has for Factory parts and sure there are some things he would like to have on his own bike. Some of it just isn't possible so the team tried to get as close as they could with the resources available to them.

Factory Effex completed the bike with their graphics kit and seat cover. They have been with Chad on various teams for quite some time. Acerbis is supplying the white plastic shown here.

The real question…why did Chad choose a Honda? He went with the Honda based on the amount of bikes the manufacturer sells. Honda has a lot of parts available for their motorcycles and aftermarket parts companies sell a lot of product for Honda motorcycles. That incentivizes these companies to want to help out on a privateer effort like Chad's. It was an easier path to find a motorcycle you can find a lot of parts for in a hurry.