Honda 250 or 450? Yamaha 450?

[bikertim1966]

Yeh this is another "what bike" topic. 5'8" tall, 200 lbs (and losing), want to ride some trails and Motocross tracks. Not real aggressive but not "poky" either. 41 years old. Rode all sorts of bikes before from RM100 in the 70s to a late 80's YZ490. Quit riding dirt in 1995 -- ride a Harley on the street alot, and have a Suzuki LTZ400 quad for offroad trail riding with my son. Liked the 1987 CR250 best, and think that would work well, but wondering how well the four strokes would work too. Everyone I have talked to says the 4 strokes are the way to go, especially trail riding since they will go soooo much further on fuel. Kind of concerned the power of the 450 may be too much --- how do they compare to the older 2 stroke Honda CR250s? Would a CRF250 be better? How bought the CRF---X? Are they comfortable on a moto track? Not looking to race, just run some practices from time to time. Thanks for any input! Tim

 

[truespode]

Honestly, it all comes down to preference.

I'm 36 years old, 6' and 195lbs (was 240lbs at one time) and got back into riding in 1999. I LOVE the YZ250F. I've had an 01, 03 and now an 05. I race Harescrambles and the occassional MX. It is the perfect bike for me and my riding.

I have owned a 1993 WR250 and a 2003 CRF450 and have ridden a lot of other bikes.

IMO, you can't go wrong with a 250F if you are just getting back into it. However, if you are only doing track work the 450F is a bit more fun b/c the power makes up for mistakes on the track where the extra power wears you out in the woods (at least for me it does).

On the other hand, I have a friend who is 38 who rides a 2000 CR250 and that bike has been perfect for him. He has tried the XR400 for woods, YZF250 and even a DRZ250 but always came back to his CR250. It has just been the perfect do it all bike for him.

I can't ride a 2-stroke on the track but if you can it is definitely worth considering b/c you can get a really good used one cheap.

I don't think I've helped much have I?

Ivan

 

[BLACKeR]

take into account the maintenance of a 4-stroke. a modern 4-stroke is nothing like a 4-stroke from 20 years ago. they need nearly daily attention, and buying a used one is a little like buying a grenade that already has the pin pulled.

 

[zig06]

take into account the maintenance of a 4-stroke. a modern 4-stroke is nothing like a 4-stroke from 20 years ago. they need nearly daily attention, and buying a used one is a little like buying a grenade that already has the pin pulled.

Very true!, the modern 4 stroke race bikes need to be considered "high maintenance".

And it's my belief that if your just playing around on an MX track and doing trails, then a 250 2 stroke would be prefect for you.

The modern 4 stroke trails bikes may be worth considering, as the e button is nice. But they will be about 20 to 30 pounds more than an average 250 2 stroke.

 

[Polish_Mikeski]

Honda Crf450r