WTB MAYBE XR250 or similar

This is kind of tentative still while I see whats out there. I havent ridden a dirt bike since I was about 15 and lately Ive become more and more convinced that dirt experience is the only thing seperating me from Casey Stoner.....

Anyway a guy I know is putting the wood on me to get a registerable dirt bike and he says Id be best on the XR250. Budget is not huge say 2-3000 at best.

Im aware of most of the websites and can search eBay but you never know when someone might be thinking of selling and a volunteer buyer is what they need to make the decision.

Plus Id be interested in any thoughts for or against this bike or anything similar. Ive completely ignored dirt bikes for about 30 years now so know less about them than Swabio does about tastefull paint schemes :twisted: :laugh:

 

: thats harsh mate ! :

XR 2fiddy's are a great little weapon in the dirt. XR400's are even better, and I reckon you should be looking at one of those. There are heaps around, they are not really any different in weight etc, to the little 'un, but a 400cc dirt bike is always going to be a bit easier to ride around on than a 250.......

just a thought anyway. 2nd hand prices are unlikely to vary much between these models, and you can still get decent aftermarket stuff for both from Geoff Ballard.

Good luck in your search - when you land a good off-roader, you will have to come on some rides out in the bush !!

 

Thanks Gos. I have looked at the 400s and prices seem to be virtually the same. I think the 250 was suggested as a good "entry level" but if the 400 is about the same I think Id be happier with a little bit more

Its just going to be a bit of fun so I dont need some maniac 2 stroker Ill just potter around getting creamed by little kids on 50s and 80s

 

Just to confuse the issue Ive come across a KX250 1993 for $2000. Any comments? Still a 250 I know but its in my budget. What are these like?

 

Not really compatible with this statement...

...and not road registerable if that is an issue

 

Hey Sprinter, you wouldn't be able to get the kx registered, but any of the mx bikes from that era went well. It depends on the type of riding you want to do I suppose, if you want to get out in the hills for some legal trail riding, I'd be leaning towards the XR400. Previous to the ktm520 I had a yz250, the ktm is so much nicer (and faster) to ride, particularly up and down steep rocky fire trails. Go the big bore 4 stroke :thumbsup:

 

Aah yes, again displaying my ignorance of bikes not intended for tarred roads Thought KX was 4 stroke :roll: OK I definitely want 4 stroke and preferably registerable so back to the XR I guess. Anything else similar?

Sorry its hard being the noob again after all this time

 

Giday mate!

XRs are ok > just SOFT as...........Ballards kit all the way if you get one.......

However, I bought a brand new Husky TE250 - it comes with 2 years factory warranty on parts AND labour > unheard of for dirt bikes.....The Huskys are more of a hard core racer than a soft trail bike that the XR is......depends on how big you are too.....my TE250 could easily out drag a current XR400 with only a few basic mods.....(pipe, carby slide mod, air filter)....I sold it late last year to someone else we work with and he's at least 100-120kgs and 6ft 4+ so don't think that a 250 is going to be too small/slow........
Ya just have to keep it on song more than the 450s....

Also, forget about any MX 2 stroker. No rego, heaps of vibrations are just the start. If you want to hit up the Brindies or ANY trail riding, you'll be struggling to keep the stroker on the boil. Not that it can't be done, they're just heaps harder to ride in the bush over a dedicated 4 stroke enduro bike.......which the XR ain't!

OR if you DON"T need rego, check out the Mx version of the TE250 - the TC250. A 2004/05 model will go for about what you're looking at as all MX bikes lose SO much of their value........

come around and check out my pics of the Husky at my desk!! :thumbsup:

 

Thanks J-Rad. Might be moving away from what Im after though.I might have muddied the waters mentioning the KX but I thought they were 4 strokes.... Remember budget is small so I cant really go newish plus add go fast bits. Im soft core all the way so just something suitable to potter around on and preferably registerable is what I need.

 

As far as the Kawasaki's go, look for the KLX prefix for the four strokers

 

Go the XR then.......

forget anything with the name 'Kawasaki' on it...........

:thumbsup:

 

Stick with the XR mate, it will do exactly what you need. Or perhaps, if you see one advertised, a TT350 Yammie could also do the job, these were capable little chookies, fully rego-able, a bit more old-school than an XR, but still good and reliable for flogging around the mountains..........

KLX's are a lot more soft-core than the XR's........probably would avoid them unless you can get one in *excellent* condition for not a lot of money....

yeh, tell that to Bubba !!! how many AMA champs has he won on a kwakka ?? I think I have lost count !!!

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

 

Agreed on the Yammie > mind you, the extra 100cc is going to put it in a whole different class for rego costs......closer to $600 for the 301-601 class....anything under is only $170/yr....go figure!

My comment re: KWakas has more to do with their road bikes > esp before they started sharing R&D With Suzuki.......ie: ZX-7 + ZX-9 days.......Kawasaki Heavy Industries! And ppl wonder why their bikes are so heavy.... LOL

So Bubba can suck my balls. I'll fit some knobbies to the GSXR and take him hehehehe
Hmmm...GSXR1000 Hill climb bike anyone?

 

The R&D sharing with Spewsucki only lasted a couple of years, and was just a blip on the radar.

Kawasaki road bikes are indestructible - How many Suzuki's / Honda's / Yammie's from the 70's do you see still be used regularly ?? SFA, because they were shit-on-wheels. The kwakka9 from 1972 is the reason that japanese sportsbikes exist today. Kawasaki roadbikes, right from the word go, are engineered for endurance first, and everything else runs a distant second.

I'm sure Scott Russell won a WSB championship on a ZX7, so they can't be that bad eh ??

BTW as a died-in-the-wool kwakka nutcase, any bagging of kwakka's can be expected to result in an immediate and often terminal return-of-serve. :laugh:

 

OK. Sorry if this is a pain but apart from a couple of prospects on All Classifieds Ive found these on eBay. Appreciate any comments for or against (or if its a 2 stroke ). I may have access , not definate, to cheapish transport but I do have issues with buying a bike I dont get to see first.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... :IT&ih=003

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... :IT&ih=010

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... :IT&ih=016

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... :IT&ih=012

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... :IT&ih=012

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... :IT&ih=006

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... :IT&ih=009

Because I want to register it Ive decided to stick with 250s for now. Which may eliminate a couple of these that look like they might be a bugger to register

 

:thumbsup: sweet! Suzuki Vs Kawasaki thread!!! excellent.............sorry sprinter > hijacked thread...

LOL > quit living in the 70s dude.....all bikes sucked back then hehehehe

The NEW Kawa road bikes are actually pretty nice....well, up until 2006 anyhow....

For me personally, Kawasaki's have way too much weight over the front > some riders like that > some don't, but my main point stands. They've always had, traditionally, far heavier bikes that the competition. We all know that savingin weight on a bike is one of the VERY best mods you can do........ie: carbon rims save 2kgs/rim over the stockers > which when moving and converting to kinetic energy = about 14kgs.........

All that aside, it's not so much that I think Kawasaki's suck but more that they suck for me. We could all argue which is the BEST bike but the best bike is the one that gives you the most confidence as you will always be heaps faster when confident....

So for me, the kawasaki's suck all confidence away due to how heavy the front is AND the overall weight of the bike.
I owned these and model VS model equals:

My GSXR750s (96 stunter + 02 trackie) were both around the 165-170kgs mark - with the ZXR-750 + ZX750R were both WELL OVER 200 kegs...........that's a huge difference and affects both power to weight and braking performace....

Yep > someone may have once or twice one a championship aboard a ZX7 - they were great bikes to modify apparently, however the GSXRs have won a bag load of WSB championships, and had recent success....
When was the last time a Kwaka took out WSB or MotoGP???? (not that suzuki have gone great in GPs)

Ahhh...the age old arguments......love these threads cause everyone is so passionate and loyal to their brand we get some good phishing!

 

:thumbsup: sweet! Suzuki Vs Kawasaki thread!!! excellent.............sorry sprinter > hijacked thread...

LOL > quit living in the 70s dude.....all bikes sucked back then hehehehe

The NEW Kawa road bikes are actually pretty nice....well, up until 2006 anyhow....

For me personally, Kawasaki's have way too much weight over the front > some riders like that > some don't, but my main point stands. They've always had, traditionally, far heavier bikes that the competition. We all know that savingin weight on a bike is one of the VERY best mods you can do........ie: carbon rims save 2kgs/rim over the stockers > which when moving and converting to kinetic energy = about 14kgs.........

All that aside, it's not so much that I think Kawasaki's suck but more that they suck for me. We could all argue which is the BEST bike but the best bike is the one that gives you the most confidence as you will always be heaps faster when confident....

So for me, the kawasaki's suck all confidence away due to how heavy the front is AND the overall weight of the bike.
I owned these and model VS model equals:

My GSXR750s (96 stunter + 02 trackie) were both around the 165-170kgs mark - with the ZXR-750 + ZX750R were both WELL OVER 200 kegs...........that's a huge difference and affects both power to weight and braking performace....

Yep > someone may have once or twice one a championship aboard a ZX7 - they were great bikes to modify apparently, however the GSXRs have won a bag load of WSB championships, and had recent success....
When was the last time a Kwaka took out WSB or MotoGP???? (not that suzuki have gone great in GPs)

Ahhh...the age old arguments......love these threads cause everyone is so passionate and loyal to their brand we get some good phishing![/quote:30yje3by]

So, in summary, the XR250 even though a bit more would be a better buy than the It250 is what you are saying?

 

LOL....

was that a joke Sprints?

But basically YES! They stopped making the IT in the 80s dude and it's an old 2 banger too so stick with the XR mate - if you can't buy a Husky! :thumbsup:

 

Actually they were TTs and XTs I just threw IT in to baffle you What about them?

One of those links is a Husky. I expected you to pounce on it?

 

IT's would be one bike I would probably avoid. Not because I am anti-Yamaha or anything : , but they are a much older design, parts are getting harder to find, they were air-cooled and the suspension/brakes weren't much to write home about.........and smokers don't have much range in the bush...

Having said all that, an old IT250J or K model is still a handful for average riders, they go like stinkwheels should, and you could probably swing a swap for an old dunger that needs a piston kit, for a case of VB !!

4-stroke is the best bet, if you can find a TT350 for 1.5-2k, in good nick, grab it.