Which 250 MX bike is best for woods

[wictor]

I will sell my KTM this week and i'm going to buy a newer bike. Something 250 2 stroke about 99-02, i can't afford newer bikes so that's the only choice i have.

My question is which bike has the most potential to be a decent woods bike with little mods, i don't have money for bigger mods like porting, head work and things like that. Farthest i would go with mods is the pipe.

I plan on first puting FWW on and set up the suspension and see how it goes in woods.

I hear alot of good things about CRs and actualy i preffer Hondas over all other bikes but they are hard to find in my country. So maybe a YZ?

 

[hot125mod]

i really like the 2002 rm 250 smooth, not so harsh like the kx or yz even better with a flywheel weight. i would say try to ride a few and then decide. cheers

 

[_JOE_]

i really like the 2002 rm 250 smooth, not so harsh like the kx or yz even better with a flywheel weight. i would say try to ride a few and then decide. cheers

Wow, really? Mine had a nasty hit in the midrange that was tamed a bit with a 13oz fww but it's still quite snappy. I sold it because I thought it sucked in the woods and didn't want to spend any more money trying to tune it how I wanted.

Lots of woods guys run YZs with good success. They're pretty solid bikes. I've always heard they're a bit tamer than the RMs. The cr is a good choice as well, but they changed frame designs during those years and some people don't like the early ones. I don't know anyone with a KX in those years.

 

[Someone]

How about a newer KTM EXC 300? I've heard they have great power delivery, but I've never ridden one.

For me, the best bike I have ridden in terms of handling and power (very linear) for trails is my 05 YZ250.

 

[BSWIFT]

I currently have the 05YZ250 and it has crisp but abrupt power with an 11 oz flywheel weight. Any properly jetted and suspended 250 will make a good woods machine. The KX's have the best bottom end power and seem to just run forever. Most of the guys I ride with have switched to KTM or GasGas and have no regrets.
I you really want a woods bike, buy a woods bike. If that's not in the cards, buy a solid machine and compromise some aspects in performance. MX bikes are designed for the track and can be massaged into decent woods bikes but they are still thorough breds and like to run!

 

[digifox]

Why not buy a Trail bike?
Seriously

 

[dirt bike dave]

I had a '99 CR250 that was completetly set up for off road by a District champion enduro and cross country rider. It was like a magazine project bike in terms of parts. It was an outstanding trail bike, but was far from stock. It was extremely similar in overall performance to a friends dialed in '05 250 KTM EXC, though the KTM had the wide ratio gear box and the CR vibrated more.

If you can find a dialed in YZ, KX, CR or RM, they can all make excellent trail bikes.

However, I have to say my '02 250 EXC is probably the best all around 250 motor I've ever ridden. It's strong everywhere, and with some suspension work and a good seat, it is a hell of a trail bike!

It's a personal preference thing, but the 250's tire me out less than the 300's.

 

[whenfoxforks-ruled]

#3 on buying a decent trail bike. It will be more reliable. Its easier to mod it, than de-tune it?

 

[dirt bike dave]

Well, 'detuning' an MX bike for the trail usually means a spark arrestor, bark busters, a flywheel weight, skid plate and revalving the forks. Maybe a big tank.

If the OP is looking at 5 - 10 year old race bikes, many of them will already have several of those items already, as those bikes were removed from front line racing duty years ago.

BTW, they will feel lighter and more nimble than his '91 300.

 

[wictor]

Hey guys thank you on suggestions and i know that trail bike would be the best option but as i said i'm 18 yo, no job so not much money and trail bikes are far more expensive where i live than MX bikes and pretty hard to find.

I like my 300 power in woods but it's too old to put more money in it and i will not get more from it than i already have so i will buy something newer.
I must say i'm pretty good and agressive rider, i occasionaly ride with A riders in woods and they all say i have great agressive riding style and that i will kill them in a year :D so i thought that moded MX bike wouldn't be such a bad idea since i like to rev the bike and make it scream even in woods.

I would really like to have one of the newer KTM 2 strokes but they are just not an option now. I've riden new 09 250 EXC on KTM test day and i was impressed with perfect power, control and feel but that EXC is just a dream for me for at least 5 years...

Also my neighbour, former AA racer has a 2002 EXC 520 that he sells but i really don't know if i should take it since it's heavy and just has too much power to use.
Also bike is beat up from races and only engine is good on it, everything else needs to be replaced.

 

[whenfoxforks-ruled]

Abundant and cheaper, so the trail riders are not just crazy, wanting mx race bikes for trail riding? I would imagine a 91 ktm to be a turd, compared to newer trail bikes for sure. But, availability would drive higher prices. Beat up mx bikes are a dime a dozen. Yamaha yz, lower the compression and put a trail silencer on it, change the sprocket sizes and put an o ring chain on it. Pipe for trails? Where do you go with that, trail needs torque from idle, yet top end is nice? Stock pipe with a forestry approved spark arrestor would do fine! I have seen plates, or double the base gasket to lower the compression and alter the port timing. Never been a fan of the flywheel weight, just because it seems a bad idea altering the crank balance alone, shorter bottom end life?

 

[wictor]

Propably getting CR 250 2002 or YZ 250 2001 next week and i'm not sure which one to pick. I will go see and try both of them and decide which is better suited for me and which is in better condition.

I'm more on Honda side but if it's beat up more than YZ i will go with YZ or some other bike in better condition.

 

[dirt bike dave]

FWIW, the '02 CR250 was the first year of the new case reed motor design. Stock, it reportedly is a little soft at low end power, but will pull hard if you get the revs up. From what I hear, the motor can be much improved for trail riding if it is ported for more low end power.

 

[NJGregsCR]

Here's what I did, and it works for me. Keep in mind I just like bombing thru the tight NJ/PA woods and muddy rocky trails with my sons.

I have a 97 CR250R with proper jetting, a 14oz FWW, steel clutch, Gnarly pipe, bark busters, 51 tooth rear sprocket, ProCircuit nature friendly silencer, and DB Snorkel.

Bike runs great at slow 1st & 2nd gear luggung trails, but still rips on the fire roads. We are setting up my older sons YZ125 the same way and the FWW, and steel clutch make a great difference.

 

[wictor]

Here's what I did, and it works for me. Keep in mind I just like bombing thru the tight NJ/PA woods and muddy rocky trails with my sons.

I have a 97 CR250R with proper jetting, a 14oz FWW, steel clutch, Gnarly pipe, bark busters, 51 tooth rear sprocket, ProCircuit nature friendly silencer, and DB Snorkel.

Bike runs great at slow 1st & 2nd gear luggung trails, but still rips on the fire roads. We are setting up my older sons YZ125 the same way and the FWW, and steel clutch make a great difference.

Hmm nice advice but i'm not sure i would go with steel clutch(never heard of it before) because it's a little to expensive and hard to get here.
I think i will certainly go with FWW but not sure how much, i will try a bike stock and than add 9oz or so and see how i like it then.

Can't wait to get a new bike :nod:

 

[steve.emma]

i had a 02' cr250 setup for woods. sure in stock form they have soft low end power but i had a flywheel weight, v-force reed block and a gnarly pipe with shorty silencer. that thing had great all over power. plus the handling on those 3rd gen honda alloy frames is magic!

 

[julien_d]

kdx200? :D

 

[wictor]

kdx200? :D

We don't have much of these over here :D

 

[wictor]

Hey guys what is your opinion on getting YZ 250 and send cylinder to Eric Gorr for 295 kit and low-mid porting. I think that would be nice woods package. Also with suspension setup it would be very close to trail bikes i think if not better :D

Anyone tried it?

 

[_JOE_]

If you want all that grunt by all means go for it. Almost any bike can be set up for anything and it sounds like you're on thr right track.

 

[dirt bike dave]

I think you should ride it a few times first before you spend the $ on a big bore. A dialed in motocross 250 has plenty of power for most trail riders (but less low end than bikes like a KTM 300).

BTW, the newer KTM 300's from say '97+ are far superior to your older 300 in just about every way, and make a great trail bike if you prefer a something with that displacement. FWIW, lots of riders actually like the 250 better.

 

[whenfoxforks-ruled]

Most people do not like the idea of sending the top end to Eric. It is my answer though, for setting up an mx race bike to a trail terror bike. Tell him where you like the power, big bore or not. The big bore should give it torque off bottom for sure! Suspension, Does MX Tech have a shop close to you? Having Eric do the motor, and Jeremy do the suspension, is like the perfect marriage.

 

[Chili]

I would likely skip the big bore and just have Eric port the cylinder for low-mid power. He did an RM125 for my son that I could not believe the change in the power characteristics.

 

[rdwhytcross]

What worked for me was having the head machined to the specs actually listed in the workshop manual. What you buy is never what is actually listed in the manual.....What you will find then is that with the standard gearing {14-50} the thing will want to stand up on the back wheel in the first four to five gears {given good traction and good tyres and a whole lot of throttle} Then change the gearing to {14-45} and go enjoy the improved bottom end for those tight trails and more top end for the more open sweeping corners.