10yr old ready for next bike, whcih way do I go

[Oskar]

My 12 year old who is about 5' rides a ttr125l. It is great for trails. He tried a KX 100, but it scared him on the trail. He hasn't been riding as long as your kid but he is not to bad.
I have to vote for a ttr125L, KLX125L or a DRZ125L and than do all the mods over time. Makes for a great trail bike. Remember it's not the bike it's the rider. I let my friend ride my son's bike once in a while and I have a hard time keeping up on trails with my KDX 200. He is a better rider than I.
Besides, you might enjoy ripping around on that bike too.

 

[2 strokes for life]

I was 4 foot 11 and learned on a xr100 at the age of 11. I stoped riding till this year and bought a 1979 Yamaha IT175. Now all i need is a 250 :nod: . Good luck with you and your son.

 

[150rguy]

I think you should ask him what he wants. If your only ridin trails then the CRF/XR 100 would be a good choice. Also TTR/DR-Z 125s are nice little trail bikes as well. An 85 is a bit harder to ride on trails... Does he like going fast or hit jumps very often??

 

[SpDyKen]

..... He rode the crf100 3 straight days over Christmas break and he really did awesome. We only ride trials and our 2 acre field, so I am thinking that a 2 stoke is not necessary. The 4 stoke is perfect for our Oregon terrain, and we don't ride all that often (20 time a year). He could ride the 100 for a couple years and then move on to a crf150 or xr200. Any thoughts? Is the KX 80 an easy bike to putt around on the trials? My concern with the crf100 is that he could outgrow it faster than the KX 80.

So what if he outgrows the 100? He'll have learned a lot and you'll both have had a GREAT time! What is that worth? It'll cost you a couple hundred bucks in depreciation in a couple of years; maybe less, XR/CRF100's retain their value very well, especially if you take care of them. Stone reliable, too. You said he did awesome - there is your answer!

 

[rushy08]

just go straight to a crf150. they are dirt cheap if you look in the right places and are a smooth, plush ride with a reasonable seat height.

 

[firffighter]

Thanks for everyone's input. Does anyone know if a KX 100 or KX80 bigwheel are much taller than a KX80/85. I would think that larger wheels would be good for offroad and trail riding. I have found a few of these bikes locally for great prices. He has sat on a CRF150 (his uncle's), and it is way too big for him at this point. Like I said he is a small kid. He is very athletic (football, basketball, baseball), but always the smallest on the team. He likes the light weight of the KX and I think if I toned it down with a flywheel weight it would help. There was an article in the recent Kid's dirtbike magazine that suggested putting a washer in the exhaust port to narrow the flow and restrict power on bikes for kids moving up to larger displacement bikes. Has anyone done this or heard of it?

 

[150rguy]

My dad did that with one of my old 2-strokes, It helped ALOT. But I finally got tired of it and took it out without him knowing, so next time we were riding he waas all "How do you get that thing going so fast?". I also read that article in mini rider, its got some good stuff.

 

[cr85rb_rider]

I have no problem riding my 85 in the woods, hell get used to it quick, its that hard to maintain ither, oil the chain, clean the air fliter, change the oil, keep a extra spark plug and when its time get a new top end, its really not much matenience, but if your racing it you need to do alot more than that...

the bike will go anywhere, but hell defintly need to use the clutch... ALOT

 

[cinco in W MI]

I just put my twin 9yr old, 75 pound boys on KX85's this fall. They moved up from JR80's they were already used to gears and clutches so they didn't have to learn that at the same time.

When we first go them they coouldn't even come close to touching the ground so I got some lowering links from pro circut and slid the forks up as much as posible. and backed out the shock spring all the way. I also instaled a set of hand guards and a skid plate on both bikes. The guards protect the leavers and throttle since I knew they would be falling over while learning to start and stop with just one leg on the ground. They have rode them about three times now and the last time out I don't think the fell over once all day. Kids sure can learn fast....

Pro circuit makes a lowering link? I can not find one on their product pages. Part #? LInk? Thanks

 

[SteveinSpringHill]

KX 85 lowering links on e-bay.
@ $33 right now.

 

[firffighter]

I bought him XR100 last month and he has been really enjoying it. We did a 30 mile poker run together a couple of weeks ago and he did great. He says he feels more comfortable on the XR100 compared to his KX60. I will keep him on the 100 for at least another year unless he gets a growth spurt, and then go to a crf150 or xr200. Thanks for everyone's input