Help! Bike for my kid

[SteveInIraq]

Hey everyone, First of all, I know little to nothing about dirt bikes. But my soon to be 12 y/o son has wanted one for a long time. Its been a battle with my wife to let him get one, but he is old enough now that I would really like to get him one for his 12th birthday. Money of course, is a problem, so these $2000 bikes are out of the question. He is a little under 5' and prob just under 100lbs. I dont want anything that goes really fast, but at the same time, I dont want a bike that will get him laughed at by the other kids with bikes. Last twist is im in Iraq, so a used bike would be difficult as I couldnt check it out, and couldnt be home to fix it up anytime soon. I would like to spend around $500-$700. Any recommendations? I have seen some no name bikes on the internet, are these reliable? Any one in paticular? Tell me if this price is just a pipe dream, and I would be better off buying him a ps3 or something (which I really dont want to do) I would rather he get outside and have some real fun!
Thanx alot,
Steve

1) your physical size 4' 10" 90lb
2) How physical / aggressive are you ? beginner
3) what do you plan to ride- MX/SX tracks, woods, fields with friends or ????? freinds, feilds, woods maybe
4) Do you have any riding experience? almost 0
5) Do you think you will race ? no
6) Are you mechanically inclined and will you be doing your own bike work? yes after i get back from iraq though
7) Do YOU have a preferance to a brand/ motor choice (2 or 4 stroke)? nope
8) Do you have a dealer close by your home that you might use and what brand(s) does he carry? dont know
9) How much do you plan to spend on a bike? 500-700
10) Do you live in California? texas
11) anything else that you think would help form an opinion

 

[slater]

i have a no name bike a jc70y, people would say its slow but IMO i say she goes pretty darn well. Ive had it for 5 years and all i had to do is get new bak tyre and change gear shifter, im 13 and still have this bike and its still good :nod:

just my 2 cents......

 

[FruDaddy]

CRF100F or TTR125 would probably be your best bets. Virtually no maintenance, not too fast, and easy to ride. My son to be 12 yo daughter was riding a TTR125LE (big wheel disk brake on front) a little last year, and she isn't really into riding. Unfortunately, you will not be able to get a new one in your price range, but the used ones are out there, and are often pretty reliable. If you can find a clone of one of these, he could ride one.

 

[snb73]

CRF80, CRF 100, KLX110, TTR90, DRZ125, TTR125 (not the L models)

 

[SteveInIraq]

Thanx for all the replies, but these are all $1500 bikes, I really cant afford that much. Are there any other alternatives that i wont regret, or is this just a pipe dream?

 

[Blackcat]

I learned to ride on a yz 60 when I was 12yrs old. Nobody tought me how to ride I kind of figured out the clutch thing on my own. I used to pretend my bicycle had a shifter and a clutch. I just looked in the cycle trader I see plenty of used kx 60's for 900. A little more then you wanted but well worth it in my opinion. Does he have an uncle or close friend that can go with him to check it out?

 

[snb73]

Buy a 1985-2000 XR80 or XR100. These bikes have basically remained the same thoughout the years. Check the classifieds and local clubs near your home. Buy the newest bike your budget will allow.

I bought a 1985 XR100 for $120. I put about $200 into it to make it servicable.

Deals can be had, you just need to look. I also found a 2003 XR400 for $700.

Good luck and be safe, and thankyou.

Steve.

 

[robbie_new]

i buy and sell bike all the time and i recently bought and 1978 ds80 and a kd 80 for 50 bucks each all the needed was some gas an oilchange and a little cleaning up they were rough but they ran

 

[2 strokes for life]

robbie_new, how do you manage to come across such deals.

 

[150rguy]

Yea, an old XR would be a cheap bike and a bike that would not be slow, but not real fast either. My first bike was an old yamaha and I got it for 300 bucks.