It's Yellow, It's Fast, And It's Mine!!!

j_freak

Member
Feb 7, 2004
169
0
Well, I went and bought a dirtbike today :yeehaw:

It's a 1983 Suzuki RM250. It has an Answer spark arrester, wiseco piston, and Boyesen reeds. I think I got a decent but not great deal on it, $600. Around here I've seen lots of 84's sell for $850-1000, if that's any comparison.

It's a great bike, very very fast (too fast), but no bottom end. Since I have no plans to race it, this presents a problem. I managed to stall the thing about 5 times when I was trying to get to a little riding area near the previous owner's house. I had to go down a steep hill, up the other side (basically a 15 foot deep ditch alongside the road), then down another hill to get to a little circle track/mud pit. I stalled it at the top of the hill letting the clutch out, at the bottom of the next one (not enough speed), then at the top of the hill letting the clutch out again. You get the picture. I took it for a quick ride down the little country road, and wow. Once it gets the rpms up, it absolutely takes off. After spending about 5 seconds in the bottom of first gear, I was in 5th gear less than 10 seconds later.

How should I go about adding more low end power? my monthly income hovers right around $0, so cheaper would be much better. I've heard that the motor on the 83's is the same as the 82, just with a different head and timing. (I read this from <a href="http://vmx.livewire.gen.nz/magazine/83RM250D/83RM250D.htm" target="blank">http://vmx.livewire.gen.nz/magazine/83RM250D/83RM250D.htm</a>) Would changing the timing improve low end? How much good would an aftermarket pipe do? I've heard that flywheel weights are the best way to go, where can I find one for this old of bike?
 

KaTooMer

~SPONSOR~
Jul 28, 1999
435
0
Unfortunately, age will be a factor in getting more bottom end out of your RM. One of the first places to look for more bottom end is a different pipe, but I didn't see your bike listed on the FMF or Pro Circuit web sites. For stalling, flywheel weights are the best solution. Steahly Offroad shows RM flywheel weights going back to 1987. You might call them to see if they've got something that would fit an '83. On the timing, I can't offer much advice there. Good luck, and have fun!
 

a454elk

Mexicutioner
LIFETIME SPONSOR
Jun 5, 2001
7,529
18
You could go one tooth smaller on your front sprocket or go up two in the back.
 

elf

Member
Jun 7, 2003
695
0
Gear it down like elk says, and learn to feather - slip your clutch when starting out. Once you get some more time on the bike you will figure it out.
 

j_freak

Member
Feb 7, 2004
169
0
I rode it some more today, It's not as bad as I thought; I can get used to it, learn clutch control (My old bike's clutch had three functions: engaged, mostly engaged (when the lever was pulled all the way in, but the bike decided it didn't want the clutch to work), and disengaged), Add a few teeth to the rear sprocket (it's at 51 now), and I should be alright.

When I test rode it at the guys house, I noticed that the rear brake was a little touchy; If I tapped it, the wheel would skid on the gravel or mud. When I first rode it today after school, I very very carefully tapped the brake before a corner, and it froze the wheel, killed the bike, and then, since I didn't think to pull the clutch in, skidded 15 feet before I laid it over on my ankle. My ankle hurts but thankfully wasn't seriously injured. Proper riding equipment just moved up to the top of my "to buy" list. I figure I'll go try stuff on at a bike shop to see what fits, then see if I can get it cheap off of Ebay.

I spent an hour pulling the rear wheel off and fixing the brakes. Turned out there was a nice layer of rust around the outer edge of the brake drum. I sanded it off, put the wheel back on, and it's definately a lot better, but I'll have to use the brakes for a while to totally fix the problem.
 

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