Hi Guys,

Some of you may have seen my other write-up on how I updated the IT490 DG exhaust to use a modern O-ring Head pipe and FMF silencer. At some point I'll do a full build thread on how I achieved the following mods, but this is just a teaser as i'm excited with how things are turning out. There's not many vintage races where I live, the few we have are just grass tracks too. But we do have regular cross-country and ISDE events with modern bikes. I've always wanted to compete against the new bikes on Vintage Iron and so i'm building a contender. If I can place mid-pack this year in my Amateur class, I'll be pretty stoked, either way I think it will be a blast!

The base is an 84 IT490. Last year I rebuilt the motor, went through the rear linkage and swing arm and rebuilt the front end. This year I'm doing some upgrades to make it a bit better. Other than the exhaust stuff i've already covered, I have also fitted a Keihin PWK 38 Air Striker, Fitted the entire front end off of a DRZ400, Fitted wider foot pegs, and used the same 1/8" bar my 24' Husky TE300 uses. I've also fitted a Trailtech computer. I still need to build a bash plate and Racetech is building me a custom rear shock ( not rebuilding the old one, a completely new custom unit). 

I really excited for the front fork swap, it's gone together amazingly. The DRZ400 forks are probably the best conventional fork you can get. I wanted to stick with conventional for that retro look. 49mm fork tubes, compression and rebound adjust, disc front brake, and tons of parts availability. 

PWK carb is amazing, bike has never run better. Still perfecting jetting, but best upgrade!


I have size 14 feet, and the stock pegs could not keep my feet from sliding off.


One of my Tuning trips, dialing in jetting. This is before the fork conversion


Getting ready for the fork conversion. 


DRZ Installed and front end mocked up. Looks amazing! Nice beefy forks


I really love the bars on my 24' TE300 and decided to fit a pair to the 490. This will also aid in me switching between riding the two bikes.




Trail Tech Computer mocked up. This will tell my RPM, Cylinder head temp, speed, ambient temp, odometer, trip meter, time, and hours of runtime

It's looking like a nice update to a classic machine!

You're having fun on several fronts!