bike didn’ t feel as consistent as I wanted from braking to turn-in to mid-corner. With the FCP mounts, the chassis gained this subtle but really useful compliance / twist. On corner entry through braking bumps, the bike feels calmer— less kick, less harsh reaction, more of a feeling of it‘ moulding’ to the ground. Rear wheel feel has improved too. It’ s not that I can‘ prove’ there is more traction, but the connection between my throttle hand and what the rear tyre is doing feels more direct and predictable. Paired with the Xtrig clamps, it’ s a great balance. There’ s a more precise front feel, but less of that stiff mid-bike sensation. If you’ re choosing where to spend money, I’ d honestly put the FCP mounts ahead of clamps / mounts for most riders.
MAKING THIRD GEAR THE HOME BASE Fitting a 49-tooth rear sprocket has been a brilliant tweak that works everywhere. My goal was to make third gear more usable. I don’ t love running this Triumph motor super high in the RPM— and because it has great anti-stall and pulls clean low down, I like lugging it a bit and riding a gear taller. The stock gearing had me constantly in that annoying zone of being between second and third— especially in sand and tight MX— and I’ d end up either shifting too much or clutching more than I wanted. With the 49T sprocket, third becomes the default more often. It works in sand, tight MX, and hardpack, and it reduces the need to feather the clutch just to keep it in the meat of the torque. It’ s one of those changes that makes the bike feel smoother, easier, and less tiring.
COOLING UPGRADE I’ ve had some real cooling moments in sand— not because the bike is faulty, but because it’ s been tested in worst-case conditions: deep dry sand, hot days, lots of load, and a riding style that tends to lug the bike( which adds heat). I fitted the Triumph fan kit listed for the 250, and it bolted straight onto the TF450-RC with no issues. The wiring reached, the install was straightforward and it works exactly as it should. It’ s effective too. I can literally feel it pulling heat out on the stand. For me, it’ s mainly a safety measure giving confidence on sand days, peace of mind when it’ s idling / heat soaking and and it’ s super handy while mucking around in the app / Wi-Fi module and the bike is just sitting there trying to cook itself. If the fan kit just isn’ t for you, I also had great success with Red Line Water Wetter. This actually solved my heating issues when I didn’ t have the fan installed. So that setup has been great and I am running it alongside the fan.
THE TAIL PIPE The Akrapovič system is a good example of‘ nice to have, not mandatory’. On some bikes, an aftermarket pipe transforms the motor. But on the TF450-RC, the gains are more subtle which tells you the stock system is already pretty decent. So, if you don’ t want to spend( or don’ t have) the money, you’ re not missing some massive performance leap. Where the Akra does make a genuine difference is motor recovery; how quickly the motor picks up again if you’ re a gear high or trying to avoid clutching. With the stock system, that‘ build back into power’ can feel a bit slow.. The Akra improves it noticeably. It makes the bike feel more connected and more enjoyable to ride, even if I can’ t claim it’ s automatically faster without timing back-toback laps. The big bonus is it’ s still quiet, like the stock exhaust. There’ s no obnoxious bark, no drawing attention.
MAPPING UPDATES Right now, the TF450-RC is running the 10 preset packs. The bike comes with the standard and RC maps preloaded, and so far it runs fine on everything- it’ s more about subtle feel than any obvious running issues. With the stock exhaust, I used the RC map a lot. With the Akra fitted, I don’ t love the RC map- it feels a touch lean-ish in character- the standard map feels smoother and a bit stronger. In sand, the dry sand map has been solid. I’ m still working through which maps I prefer for hardpack and mixed tracks.
42 KIWI RIDER