i am thinking about getting rid of my crf 250r. i am sick of the maintenance, i can do the simple stuff but i dont trust myself to do my own engine work myself like valve adjustments and top ends. i am thinking about buying a new 2004 125 but i dont know which one to buy. i have rode a 04 ktm 125sx and i liked it, it had pretty good bottom end for a 125 which i liked and the power seemed kind of linear, no real hard jolt that trys to rip your arms off. the only other 125 i had a chance to ride recently was my friends 03 rm 125 which i hated, it had pretty much no bottom end at all. i realize that 125's dont make a lot of bottom end power but coming off of a four stroke i would preffer one that has the best low end. i read that yamaha's are known to have the most bottom end out of the 125's is this true? has anyone ridden both a yz125 and a 125sx that can give a comparasion?
which 2004 model 125 should i buy
- Thread starter Lonewolf
- Start date
trailboy125
Member
- Aug 24, 2004
- 90
- 0
why not go to a yamaha dealer and set up a test ride session.
i can give you a bit of advice here.
i was lucky enough to try all the 04 125's except the husky at the beggining of the year.
I loved the SX, like you said, it has an awesome little engine but i felt the suspension needed a lot of work. i liked the ergo's on it. felt very light and flickable, which was mainly down to the rad shrouds being so inwards.overall i was impressed but the potential sus work that was needed put me off.
The CR.....Sh!t. complete rubbish, i was being smoked on the straights by 85cc's. akward feeling bike with no power. but the components like always are well made on hondas. but wouldn't touch one again.
The yam. decent engine, good top end i thought with a reasonable bottom. the suspension was superb and soaked up the bumps beautifully. a very forgiving bike.
it rode well but after 20 minutes it looked 5 years old. doesn't scrub up well. minor detail though.
The Rm surprised me, i've never thought much of suzuki to be honest but this bike ripped it up. great all round engine. nothing that was overly powerful but a good balanced range that i enjoyed.
the suspension was good, minor adjustment had it perfect for me. it's a great looking bike.
the only fault was it feels a bit chunky and because of that made it feel heavy.
apart from that, great bike.
the KX, as you probably guessed was my fave.
stock, it was awesome. the bottome end is so sharp it pulls your hands off of your wrists. the mid and top end just click with one another and the power from the mid range is instant. could't fault the engine. kawasaki have excelled here.
the suspension is great too, minor adjustments and it soaked up everything you could throw at it and it was the easiest bike to turn, it just carvs the corners perfectly and never trys to jump out of line going high speed.
the ergo's i loved, super slim and small and with me being 6'2" tall i felt so in control of the bike, it was like riding a bmx with and engine. super light and flickable.
so, there you have it. obviously i am biased and i love my KX but i've given you my honest 1st impressions of all the bikes. the kx has held up well so far, no problems yet...touch wood.
good luck.
welcome back to the wonderful world of the 2 strokes.
i was lucky enough to try all the 04 125's except the husky at the beggining of the year.
I loved the SX, like you said, it has an awesome little engine but i felt the suspension needed a lot of work. i liked the ergo's on it. felt very light and flickable, which was mainly down to the rad shrouds being so inwards.overall i was impressed but the potential sus work that was needed put me off.
The CR.....Sh!t. complete rubbish, i was being smoked on the straights by 85cc's. akward feeling bike with no power. but the components like always are well made on hondas. but wouldn't touch one again.
The yam. decent engine, good top end i thought with a reasonable bottom. the suspension was superb and soaked up the bumps beautifully. a very forgiving bike.
it rode well but after 20 minutes it looked 5 years old. doesn't scrub up well. minor detail though.
The Rm surprised me, i've never thought much of suzuki to be honest but this bike ripped it up. great all round engine. nothing that was overly powerful but a good balanced range that i enjoyed.
the suspension was good, minor adjustment had it perfect for me. it's a great looking bike.
the only fault was it feels a bit chunky and because of that made it feel heavy.
apart from that, great bike.
the KX, as you probably guessed was my fave.
stock, it was awesome. the bottome end is so sharp it pulls your hands off of your wrists. the mid and top end just click with one another and the power from the mid range is instant. could't fault the engine. kawasaki have excelled here.
the suspension is great too, minor adjustments and it soaked up everything you could throw at it and it was the easiest bike to turn, it just carvs the corners perfectly and never trys to jump out of line going high speed.
the ergo's i loved, super slim and small and with me being 6'2" tall i felt so in control of the bike, it was like riding a bmx with and engine. super light and flickable.
so, there you have it. obviously i am biased and i love my KX but i've given you my honest 1st impressions of all the bikes. the kx has held up well so far, no problems yet...touch wood.
good luck.
welcome back to the wonderful world of the 2 strokes.
- Jan 8, 2000
- 3,331
- 1
How much you askin' for the CRF. PM me.
trailboy125
Member
- Aug 24, 2004
- 90
- 0
wow! the discription about the cr really made me reconsider my decision.
- Thread starter
- #7
thanks for all the responds, good report syko. i rode my crf today, i really love this bike but if it is going to start asking up and needing a lot of engine work then i got to get rid of it. i rode the sx again today, the power is great but the suspension really is terrible, i was supposed to ride a 04 yz 125 but the guy never showed up. i should look into a 250 also, i rode a my friends 04 yz 250 a few weeks ago and i liked it but i rode it in an open field not on a track, my friend says it is scary on the face of jumps when the power comes on. i dont know, i am pretty confused right now.
The KX is good, I love mine it's not the lightest but it's very light feeling and slim alittle short in seat height but still good. I don't mind cause i'm short so it fits me good, it's got good bottom/mid style power with decent top end it lacks alittle bit on over rev. Handling/brakes/suspenion I have no complaints from it. The YZ be another good one, motor is like the KX maybe alittle more on top and less off the bottom. But it has typical yamaha suspenion harsh at times if your not attacking all the time it can transmit feed back to you, of course revaling fixes it. Now the KX is very plush and fluid not spikes in the suspenion and I can hardly ever tell if I do bottom it. The RM is a good bike also, it's alittle nervous though and you have to keep the rev's going of it can fall on it's face. It feels like a lack of fly wheel hurts it and it doesn't seem that meaty in the way its power band feels. The CR don't consider it stay away don't even look at it. Good chassis crap motor, the KTM is like opposite good motor crap chassis. The ktm ergo's are okay (minus the rear brake pedal tip! ) but the suspenion is sorta vague feeling and rear fender/side # plates sucks it bulges outwards. I would say best overall outta the package bikes the require least amount of setup stock be KX, YZ & RMs. KTM's good that don't have to throw lots at the motor but you do in terms on the suspenion and a better seat. The CR's aren't worth it you just can't make that motor super fast, once you do to it with another bike the other bike will still be faster. Maybe look out for a TM 125 they are very fast stock (aka ported from the factory motors) good everything just thier suspenion setup is euro spec's but who can't fix ohlins suspenion. I haven't ridden or even seen one of the GAS GAS 125's.
