gearing? and complete rims

Im on a on a 2002 RM 125. Some people are going to say I'm crazy(Nevada Sixx won't - got the idea from him) but I dropped from 12/49 to 11/52. Both tracks I race regularly are very tight - lots of 120 and 180 degree corners with very short straights.

I was having trouble finding enough juice on the bottom to keep from dropping into first in a couple very low speed corners and trying to upshift quickly to second before a whoop section or jump was causing me to hit neutral once in awhile. I'm not having that problem anymore. :)

If you decide to try this, be prepared to shift even more than normal and you will wear out the chain and sprockets quicker. Then again, its not that big a deal on the shifting - I basically use second, third and fourth - as before - but I'm faster exiting corners.

Plus, I've been pulling above mid-pack starts against 250 2 strokes and 450 4 strokes in an open class - and I've only been racing for 2 months.

Try it - you might like it.

Rob Bright

Yea 12/49 was stock. Front sprockets are only about $15.00 so its not that expensive to experiment. If I were you I'd try a 12 on the front. That's like 3-4 teeth bigger on the rear. You can always go 52 or 53 on rear as well. With that stock gearing I dont think I'd drop to an 11 countershaft though - the change would be extreme.