Husqvarna 360wr Burleson Replica
HUSQVARNA 360WR BURLESON REPLICA
CYCLE WORLD TEST
Inordinately Expensive, Beautifully Finished, with a Champion's Touch
Racing what you sell or racing what you don't sell has always been an issue of controversy. We have often seen factory sponsored riders competing on equipment in no way close to what is sold to the public, while the company boasts that you too can win on Brand X. Nowadays that's the exception rather than the rule, particularily in motocross and enduro equipment, where production development has nearly caught up with works development. In fact, at times the production bikes have shown nearly equal speed with better relia bility, making a couple of the factory riders wish they weren't riding such a special mass of components.
A spin-off from this is the replica bike, usually a mixture of what the factory teams really use and what the factory wants to sell. At its worst the replica is a hoax. At its best, the replica is the perfect machine for the amateur competitor. Husky's Burleson Replica is one of the best.
The name comes from Dick Burleson, the top rider in AMA enduros for three years running. The Burleson WR is, as you might guess, a Husqvarna 360WR equipped and modified the way Burleson equips and modifies the factory-backed 360WR he rides. (Is the 250 class more your speed? Husky also offers a 250WR with Malcolm Smith touches.)
The makers say the Burleson 360WR is a kit. It is and it isn't. The actual bike is assembled as a stock production model and the changes are made by the dealer ship. You can buy the bike with the kit. You can't buy the complete kit by itself, although a skilled owner surely could du plicate the parts and pieces for himself.
The price difference between the Burle son model and a stock 360WR is roughly $100. For that you get a goodly assortment of items. Up front a Preston Petty head light/number plate combination is the perfect choice to help make the bike en duro legal, with a Petty IT taillight at tached to the standard Husky rear fender. Solid aluminum handlebars are added and hold a quality route chart roller, also part of the package. VDO recently announced a special 24-mph front-wheel-driven en duro racer odometer and it's installed as standard equipment on this model.
The enduro racer shows minutes rather than mph. If the rider matches the miles ridden, shown in the odometer portion, "with the minutes calibrated on the outer ring of numerals, then the rider is traveling "at an average of 24 mph. This means that Jasóme sort of computation must take place if a speed change is put into effect, so we’re -not really sure that the VDO enduro racer ^“really has many advantages over a stan'^dard high quality odometer/speedometer combination.
A tank-mounted route card holder is included. It contains two pockets for cards; one that has a clear plastic cover for viewing without removal, and one that is velcro -fastened and allows quick access in case a card needs to be punched or marked in some manner.
Still more. The usual model 54 Bing carburetor is replaced with a 38-mm Mikuni and the Girling gas shocks are shelved in favor of Curnutts, which are preferred by Burleson. Topping off the model are specially designed stick-on emblems that proclaim the bike has the Burleson touch. There is no doubt that the package complements the normal 360WR. And what the standard 360WR offers is a good beginning.
Husqvarna is known to produce some of the world’s best racing machinery and has an impressive list of achievements to back up any statements of excellence: the 250 World iMotocross Championship and the AMA 500 National Motocross title, along with overall wins in Baja and the Mint 400, plus highest American finish in the ISDT and, with a bike virtually identical to the one we’re testing here, the AMA’s National Enduro Championship.
Riders alone don’t earn that kind of a list. It takes some pretty special equipment along with rider ability.
Though the 360WR is a competitionbred machine, it is not a race bike in the purest sense of the definition. The chassis is the latest coming from Husky’s cross country list, meaning it is not the same as the one found on the 390CR motocross weapon. High grade Swedish chromemoly tubing is used and the design is basically patterned from that of the Heikki Mikkola influence of his World Championship-winning bike of 1974.
In the past the steering head angle was 32 degrees. This time around it’s been pulled in to 30 deg. even. This creates a considerably different feeling than that of previous Huskys. Aided by revamped suspension components and longer travel installations, the new Husky acts like a different motorcycle without losing the Husqvarna personality.
Nearly 37 in. from the ground, the top of the WR’s seat is definitely a tall perch to reach and swing a leg over, but because of the soft suspension rates the bike settles a couple of inches once the rider’s weight is aboard.
There is no question that an Eastern woods rider has heavily influenced the suspension specs. The bike is set up too soft for events that would be held in the Southwest portion of the country. Up front, the latest style fork (but without the forward mount axle) gives more travel and better all around action. This has been accomplished by using the old stanchion tube and new, longer sliders and damper rods. Valving has been changed accordingly and the result is a much nicer working fork over a wide variety of terrain.
The Burleson model comes with Curnutt shocks at the rear. They’re built by California’s Charlie Curnutt, who has been putting out high quality shocks for a number of years now. The units on our test bike were downright plush, with a nice combination of damping and spring rates that would be close to perfect for virtually any kind of woods or trail use, but too soft for cross country desert riding at high speeds. A change in spring rates would cure that incidental in short order.
Money is always saved when a manufacturer can use components from one model or another, or several others. Everyone does it to one degree or another and Husky is no exception.
The reed-valve two-stroke engine found in the latest WR is essentially the same as one produced the last couple of years. Full circle crank wheels are employed and are shared by other models in the line, as are crankcase, clutch and gearbox assemblies. The only difference in the 6-speed WR gearbox and the one found in the CR model is the number of teeth employed internally, spacing the ratios differently in each model.
HUSQVARNA 360WR
$1975
FRONT FORKS
REAR SHOCKS
Fork travel is adequate for the bike's intended use, but considerably less than that of the leading-axle versions on the CR motocross machine. High static friction stems from the use of dual seals in each leg, but in actuality, the forks are compliant over most surfaces. Tests performed at Number One Products
When ridden over relatively smooth ter rain, the WR's rear suspension works fine. The combination of relatively low spring and damping rates and a high wheel/shock travel ratio, however, causes bottoming when severe condi tions are encountered. Aggressive riders will benefit by installing stiffer (around 80/120) springs.
In a way it seems unusual to have a 6speed transmission on a big bore offroader and yet in use the large selection of ratios comes in handy, though sixth won’t be used too often in eastern terrain.
Shift lever travel is slightly long, but gear shifting remains positive and precise with or without the clutch. High quality Magura cam levers operate late style cables which are heavier duty and should be longer lasting. Husky throws grit covers into the tool kit if the owner wants to snap them on. The kit also contains a spark plug wrench, flywheel puller and holder, extra spark plug and assorted Allen wrenches.
Wheel components are the usual Husky mixture. The rear conical hub is magne-
sium and is found on several other models in the line. Strangely enough, the magnesium conical front hub found on the CR models is not used on the WR. In its place is a full width aluminum unit made in France. This unit never showed the degree of braking precision that we enjoyed with our test 390CR, which had the conical item.
Rims are from the Akront people and are the premium “green label” versions, strong and ridgeless. Tires are from Barum, not well suited to southern California terrain, but good in wet goo. Up front, a 3.00 x 21-inch tire is used. At the rear, a largish 4.75 x 18. Both are highly resistant to punctures and wear well.
One of our biggest complaints with the 390CR was with the kick start mechanism. The Burleson Replica is no different. One part of the problem lies with the machine’s overall height, which naturally places everything, kickstarter included, higher off the ground. On top of this the kick crank is shaped differently than in the past, so when the lever is shoved through its arc the rider’s toes cram against the footpeg. Ouch. Don’t even try to start one of these unless you’re wearing boots. And since the arc is rather short, the engine had better be in proper tune so it can start promptly.
Once started, the 360 needs a few minutes of warm-up before it willingly accepts much from the throttle hand. Then acceleration is crisp. We didn’t notice any particular advantage or disadvantage with the use of the Mikuni carburetor in lieu of the model 54 Bing. The carb did need some initial fiddling with the needle but seemed to run crisply after that.
Noise level isn’t annoying but is louder than we expected. Some of the intake howl is muffled by using aluminum and rubber baffles near the intake opening of the air filter canister. The outside of the cylinder is adorned with rubber blocks and straps that hold down some of the internal resonance and the Skyway spark arrester/silencer keeps a cupped hand over the mouth of the exhaust bark. The only problem with the Skyway is that it needs a fair degree of maintenance to keep power up and noise down.
Comparing an older model Husky with the latest in terms of vibration level is like comparing a classic era Packard with a Chevette: like night and day. But really, the 360WR is surprisingly smooth, without a whole lot of internal business making itself noticeable, and hence making the rider think that something is about to let loose.
There is no big power snap as the engine runs up through the rpm band. Very unPenton-like, more on the order of a Yamaha TT500. If you read that as saying four-stroke pulling power, that’s close enough. Broad, fairly smooth, with no extremes or suddenness. That’s kind of satisfying.
Rider comfort has obviously been placed high on the list of priorities, and once one gets used to the idea of being perched on top of the machine, rather than down in it, things begin to fit. Riding a Husky takes some getting used to, just in the same way a BMW street bike takes getting used to. A Husqvarna is different enough and unique enough that it won’t feel just right after a two-minute spin up the trail and back.
One must spend some time in the nicely contoured saddle to appreciate just how satisfactorily things work. The cleated pegs are positioned ideally for riders of many different sizes and the seat is long enough to allow the rider to move forward or rearward to a position that’s most comfortable.
Standing on the pegs is a slightly different story. The left side high pipe is positioned awkwardly and is bulbous enough to interfere with the rider’s left leg. Either position your left foot farther out on the peg, or rub soundly against the hot pipe with your leg. Try as we might, we had difficulty adjusting to this Husky quirk, the infamous Husky bulge, as they say.
All around handling is improved from earlier models, no doubt aided by the fact that the steering head angle has been reduced and front and rear suspension components seem harmonious with one another. But there is still a certain vagueness about the way the bike works and steers.
We have felt far more at home—and as a result more confident—on the latest Bultaco Fronteras and Yamaha ITs, both of which incidentally feature leading axle forks and nearly flat triple clamps. Our Husky wanted to wash out its front end in tight turns, particularly when negotiating a tricky sand wash. If one has to run slowly, the Husky is especially obstinate. The rider must continually work to get the bike around bends that would not require a second thought on the examples we mentioned. However, different tires would undoubtedly help overcome this shortcoming in certain kinds of terrain.
All things considered, our dirt specialists would like to see the 360WR Burleson Replica equipped with flatter triple clamps and leading axle front suspension components such as those used on the 390CR.
But for the guy who wants to look and feel like Dick Burleson from the moment he picks up his new bike, we figure the extra $100 for the replica is a bargain. S3
