KaTooMer
~SPONSOR~
- Jul 28, 1999
- 435
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'99 300EXC vs '02 300MXC
Finally...I was able to ride my new '02 300MXC at St. Joe State Park. The new bike fired up on the first kick (man, I love new bikes) and I took off for a couple of 20-minute rides through the sand flats and part of the outer trail loop. Didn't have the handguards on it yet, so I didn't spend much time in the woods, but here's my thoughts on the MXC transmission, compared to the EXC that I've been riding the last 4 years.
First thing I noticed is that the gap between 2nd and 3rd is so close that I didn't even realize I was in 3rd. When I up-shifted, I thought I missed 3rd and was still in second. The next up-shift, which I thought was 3rd, was actually 4th. Same thing the next time - was in 5th gear, felt like 4th. I was topped out in 5th, searching for a higher gear that didn't exist, and felt like I was creeping along in the open sand. Granted, I wasn't opening the throttle too far, but this is definitely not a bike for the desert. However, it does pull pretty hard in the upper gears. Would have been nice to have in those muddy open fields at the Kahoka, Missouri national hare scramble this year.
Cornering in the soft sand berms was a lot easier in 3rd gear, with its lower ratio. Third is where the narrower spacing begins on the MXC (1st and 2nd gear are the same on the EXC and MXC), so you get a lot more pulling power out of those faster, power-sucking corners. The gear shifer has a different design on the '02 MXC, with more room for guys who use huge boots like Tech-8's. I'm used to the '99 shifter, which is a tighter fit, so there were times I'd be searching a little for the "roomier" shifter on the MXC. The clutch engagement was set differently than my EXC, with engagement starting with the clutch lever about 90% of the way out (more like 75% on the EXC). In the few times I did venture in the woods, was getting messed up searching for more clutch action.
And while I'm on the subject, venturing into the woods with no bark busters, wide (stock) bars, and no steering damper (after having used one for the last 3 years) is just plain scary. Can't wait to get the TAG bars (cut to 30") and handguards installed and get the Scotts damper transfered to the new bike. I'm the kind of person who likes to get up close and personal with trees, which is something I would not recommend unless you've got a strong set of handguards. No crashes, but a couple of healthy rubs.
I will probably play with some sprocket combos to gear it up a bit. Here in Missouri, our hare scrambles usually have some short, fast pastures that link up woods sections, so an occasional burst of high speed is sometimes needed. In the woods I found that my EXC gearing (14-52 sprockets) was just a little high, especially in third gear which gets used a lot in Missouri woods, so I geared it down to a 13-50 combo (14-52 is stock on both machines). Conversely, the MXC gearing seems a bit too low in 3rd gear; I'll try a tooth or two lower on the MXC's rear sprocket and see how that works.
So, the "early read" on the MXC is that it won't win you any top speed awards, but it pulls like hell in 3rd-5th gears. Can't wait to get some more time on it....
Finally...I was able to ride my new '02 300MXC at St. Joe State Park. The new bike fired up on the first kick (man, I love new bikes) and I took off for a couple of 20-minute rides through the sand flats and part of the outer trail loop. Didn't have the handguards on it yet, so I didn't spend much time in the woods, but here's my thoughts on the MXC transmission, compared to the EXC that I've been riding the last 4 years.
First thing I noticed is that the gap between 2nd and 3rd is so close that I didn't even realize I was in 3rd. When I up-shifted, I thought I missed 3rd and was still in second. The next up-shift, which I thought was 3rd, was actually 4th. Same thing the next time - was in 5th gear, felt like 4th. I was topped out in 5th, searching for a higher gear that didn't exist, and felt like I was creeping along in the open sand. Granted, I wasn't opening the throttle too far, but this is definitely not a bike for the desert. However, it does pull pretty hard in the upper gears. Would have been nice to have in those muddy open fields at the Kahoka, Missouri national hare scramble this year.
Cornering in the soft sand berms was a lot easier in 3rd gear, with its lower ratio. Third is where the narrower spacing begins on the MXC (1st and 2nd gear are the same on the EXC and MXC), so you get a lot more pulling power out of those faster, power-sucking corners. The gear shifer has a different design on the '02 MXC, with more room for guys who use huge boots like Tech-8's. I'm used to the '99 shifter, which is a tighter fit, so there were times I'd be searching a little for the "roomier" shifter on the MXC. The clutch engagement was set differently than my EXC, with engagement starting with the clutch lever about 90% of the way out (more like 75% on the EXC). In the few times I did venture in the woods, was getting messed up searching for more clutch action.
And while I'm on the subject, venturing into the woods with no bark busters, wide (stock) bars, and no steering damper (after having used one for the last 3 years) is just plain scary. Can't wait to get the TAG bars (cut to 30") and handguards installed and get the Scotts damper transfered to the new bike. I'm the kind of person who likes to get up close and personal with trees, which is something I would not recommend unless you've got a strong set of handguards. No crashes, but a couple of healthy rubs.
I will probably play with some sprocket combos to gear it up a bit. Here in Missouri, our hare scrambles usually have some short, fast pastures that link up woods sections, so an occasional burst of high speed is sometimes needed. In the woods I found that my EXC gearing (14-52 sprockets) was just a little high, especially in third gear which gets used a lot in Missouri woods, so I geared it down to a 13-50 combo (14-52 is stock on both machines). Conversely, the MXC gearing seems a bit too low in 3rd gear; I'll try a tooth or two lower on the MXC's rear sprocket and see how that works.
So, the "early read" on the MXC is that it won't win you any top speed awards, but it pulls like hell in 3rd-5th gears. Can't wait to get some more time on it....
