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It’s nice to be able to be back east and test new parts to see what it does on different types of dirt. I just so happened to be at Club MX doing some testing/training with my kid and Jonny Oler of Art Of War Suspension text me to see if I had time to test something for him. I happily obliged as I am always into testing new things, so he came out and brought a set of some re-valved KYB YZ450F suspension to try. After we did the initial test of his re-valved set of stuff, he asked me to try one more thing and that thing was a set of his own billet fork lugs for the same set of re-valved suspension.
Now I will say I was riding a complete stock set of KYB suspension on a 2025 YZ450F for two days on the same track before I got handed the Art Of War re-valved set. I had a good familiarity of what the stock KYB set lacked at Club and knew I needed something with more hold up if I was going to go any faster on a track as deep and technical as Club MX (when I was there).
For starters, the re-valved set of Art Of War suspension that was given to me to test was much better than stock with more hold up and better front end traction than the stock KYB set. Jonny utilized stock spring rates with his own valving for my 175 pound vet frame and surprisingly enough had enough hold up for the jumpy front track of Club MX. Usually stock spring rates with thicker valving creates a rigid/crusty feel for me on edge of tire but with the Art Of War spec, I didn’t get that. Maybe this has something to do with the east coast type dirt? Possibly. This is another reason why I need to test on the east/west coast and not just at Glen Helen and Pala. Sag was set to 104mm as well as a fork height of 2mm and I came back with a much more balanced YZ450F over stock with the valved AOW suspension.
Once we had a good feel of the re-valved AOW set of suspension, Jonny went ahead and changed out the fork lugs for me to try. He didn’t tell me much about them before I went out to test but once I got out on to the track and down the first straight, I could tell I had much better feel through my hands. CRAZY! Bump touch was immediately improved (more comfort) as well as the action of the fork (followed ground better). The standard re-valved AOW fork was firmer than stock and although better for this type track, I would have still liked some added comfort on braking bumps. With the fork lugs installed, I got increased bump comfort and better lean angle tire contact leading into dry ruts (over the re-valved set of forks). Hitting square edge holes was more supple (AKA had more comfort/less harsh feel) and the front end stuck to the ground better. The difference between the stock lugs and the AOW lugs were apparent after one lap. That is how quick I could feel the difference. What started out as just a test to help Jonny with an opinion quickly turned into something I wanted others to know about. I didn’t even know he was selling these! Hell, I want a set for my east coast bike now too! Usually billet fork lugs DO NOT give me more comfort yet instead offer a more planted feel with a firmer bump touch but these AOW billet lugs gave me both. Putting the AOW fork lugs on made the rear of the bike feel a little firmer so I could even go slightly softer on my shock setting with the billet fork lugs now installed.
Jonny tells me that that these billet fork lugs are extremely difficult to make which makes them expensive so don’t yell at the messenger here. The cost for the lugs are $800.00 but you will need to send Art Of War your forks. You will need someone qualified to mount these billet lugs to the tubes and these billet tubes are basically an upgrade to a fork service. If you ship your forks to Art Of War he will install the lugs for free with any service (re-valve or re-build). These lugs fit a 48mm, 27/22 axle sizing with a 32mm offset. These lugs will fit a 2018-2025 YZ250/ 450F but were made with the intention of late model YZ450F (2023-2025). I can’t sit here and say that these billet lugs will work with another suspension tuners spec as I only tested with Jonny’s valving but I can tell you that they do offer more comfort to the front end of the Yamaha and if you ride a 23-25 YZ450F you know having a little more comfort out of this new gen chassis is HUGE!
If you’re looking for some of these, be forewarned that they are limited so if you want some you might want to get them asap. Call Jonny at 980 444 0008 or artofwarmx.com. Also, if you have any questions on these AOW billet fork lugs you can always ask me at kris@keeferinctesting.com.
