Learn Me Dirt bikes

Ok so I would love to own a dirt bike for trail riding and the like. It should be said that I have never ridden before. And I want something cheap. I have seen a bunch of old late '70s and '80s bikes for super cheap. Any reason not jump on one?

Buy one. A large displacement air cooled 2 stroke is a great machine. They are as complex as anvils.

They work alot better when you plant a foot to turn em than 4 wheelers do.

clemsparks thinks mndsm should have written: They work alot better than 4 wheelers do.

I'd love to have a basic old 4 stroke dirtbike again. I suppose I should actually spend some time and fix the old XR250 I picked up.

Or...I could pass it along to someone else who wants to fix it ;).

Clem

I had access to a 4 wheeler, I did not have access to a dirt bike. Though I will concur that statement, given the right circumstances.

96DXCivic wrote: Ok so I would love to own a dirt bike for trail riding and the like. It should be said that I have never ridden before. And I want something cheap. I have seen a bunch of old late '70s and '80s bikes for super cheap. Any reason not jump on one?

Some bikes are more reliable than others. It's hard to beat Yamaha, and Honda. A big part of that is parts availability. If you can find a 250 2 stroke that wasn't raced, and somewhat maintained, it will probably be good. That's usually more bike than most can handle, so they're not all worn out. Stay away from 125's. They'll likely be thrashed. It's hard to beat an old KDX 200. They're reliable, easy to ride, and still pretty capable.

zomby woof wrote:

96DXCivic wrote: Ok so I would love to own a dirt bike for trail riding and the like. It should be said that I have never ridden before. And I want something cheap. I have seen a bunch of old late '70s and '80s bikes for super cheap. Any reason not jump on one?

Some bikes are more reliable than others. It's hard to beat Yamaha, and Honda. A big part of that is parts availability. If you can find a 250 2 stroke that wasn't raced, and somewhat maintained, it will probably be good. That's usually more bike than most can handle, so they're not all worn out. Stay away from 125's. They'll likely be thrashed. It's hard to beat an old KDX 200. They're reliable, easy to ride, and still pretty capable.

Why would 125s be thrashed as opposed to 250s? Are they race more or what? When you say more bike then most can handle are you saying new riders beware?

250's are generally a lot heavier/faster than the 125's. A lot of people that get started in dirt biking start on 125's before they graduate to a solid/newer/new 250. 125's are passed around a lot more, crashed a lot more, and generally worth less, so the maitenance on them is going to almost always be subpar compared to a 250.

In reply to mndsm:

But since I am starting shouldn't I try to find a 125.

Generally I'd say you want something light and comparatively slow, so 200cc and less isn't a bad starting point.

There was a bunch of 175cc dirt bikes coming from Japan in the 70s and 80s, that might be something to look at.

Oh, and I'd get something that you can register - maybe I'm weird but I don't like the idea of trailering bikes and pretty much any unmodified dual sport will handle trail riding.

How big are you? A big guy will be miserable in the woods on a 125cc 4 stroke. When I was younger I had a 125cc dual sport (4 stroke), which was okay, but once I grew up (6'2" 195lbs) it just wasn't near enough. Now I have an 06 YZ250 2 stroke and an 80 Husqvarna 390 2 stroke, but I've been riding for a long time. To start out I'd recommend a 250 4 stroke or a 250cc 2 stroke with a heavy flywheel weight.

I am 6'2" 205lbs so you are probably right about the 125cc being a bit small. However what about my girlfriend? She is small (I won't relieve weight I think she would kill me) but it seems like 125cc would work well for her.

We're pretty much the same size......definitely skip the 125.

Your GF would be fine with a 125 though. I still have my 125cc for sentimental reasons (first new bike I ever bought) and it fits my wife just fine. She is around 5'4" and thin so it has enough power for her. She doesn't really like riding though so it just sits.

96DXCivic wrote: Why would 125s be thrashed as opposed to 250s? Are they race more or what? When you say more bike then most can handle are you saying new riders beware?

125's are screamers, and are often ridden on the edge. If they are well looked after, thay can last, but alot don't. A modern 250 2 stroke is so fast, few can truly use it all. Because of that, a 250 can last a long time. TTR's, XR's, WR's, and DRZ's are milder 4 stroke trail bikes, and a lot more reliable, and easier to ride that a motocross bike.

http://utica.craigslist.org/mcy/1972732943.html

1992 KTM 250

http://southcoast.craigslist.org/mcy/1970794939.html

1970 Yamaha

http://southbend.craigslist.org/mcy/1971783439.html

1992 Suzuki RM

Honda CRF230F

The spiritual successor to the old XR bikes--4-stroke, air-cooled, bulletproof.

'70's and '80's bikes can be had cheap, but the parts can get expensive and hard to find. The suspension is pretty primitive too, even the 'long travel' bikes. In the early to mid '90's, there was a change from damper rod to cartridge type shocks and forks which makes all the difference in the world. The 'upside down' forks on later bikes are much more rigid than the early conventionals, this doesn't sound like a big deal but believe me it is. You would not believe how vague the steering is on a conventional fork bike compared to an upside down setup.

Conventional fork, see the larger diameter 'sliders' are at the bottom?

Upside down or inverted fork, the large diameter (more rigid) sliders are at the top.

The 1990s also saw the refinement of the 'progressive linkage' for rear shocks, again this makes all the difference in the world.

Were it me, I'd not go any older than around 1993 or 1994. The values have bottomed out and parts should still be pretty plentiful. Caution: the Euro bikes of the era, while good bikes, were not sold in the numbers that the Big 4 Jap bikes were so parts and know how can be tough to find. That includes the US built ATK.

zomby made a good point about 125 two strokes, their power delivery is hard to handle for a novice. 250 2 strokes are better but are still somewhat more difficult to learn on than a 4 stroke, mostly because it's very easy to get in over your head.

The used bikes I would recommend as starter bikes: Honda XR200, bulletproof and a perfect 'wife's bike'. Next, the KDX200 Kawasaki or the KTM 200EXC, both have a nice mellow power delivery good for learning but being 2 smokers they tend to require more maintenance than the 4 stroke Honda. The good thing about those two is if you decide you'd like to tackle an enduro etc they are just about the perfect bike. The XR200 can be enduro'd but the suspension is pretty primitive.

Then there's the 250 4 strokes, the XR Honda is probably the best of that bunch in terms of reliability. The air cooled engine doesn't have the easily punctured and pricey radiators. The 96-up has the best suspension, even though it still used a more flexy conventional fork than its competition. The earlier bikes have pretty primitive fork and shock damping, they were not intended to be ridden hard. Plus they are somewhat heavier. That one could easily be ridden in an enduro etc. It might have a rather tall seat height for the GF, though. My biggest gripe about those is the same as the XR400 I had: the seat/tank prevents getting far enough forward to properly weight the front wheel for a turn. But for a beginner bike that's not really an issue.

In reply to Jensenman:

Ok awesome advice.

I grew up breathing two-stroke smoke in the woods, and I miss dirt-biking more than I care to think about, pretty much everthing jensenman said is right on the money, but if I can add my $.02, I wouldn't reccomend a two stroke for a beginning rider, and if I am able to return to dirt-biking some day, I wouldn't go back to a two-stroke either. Modern 4-cycle engines (250cc & over) have more than enough performance for any kind of trail riding, and require less maitanance. The biggest advantage that I can see to a two stroke for a novice rider is that they are very easy to kick start, that ,and when they fall on top of you they don't hurt your back as much when you pick them up.

Just my $.02 . Now go get a bike and ride it through the woods!

Yeah I am going with happy Andy on this one. Avoid the old two strokes. Not from a reliability stand point but you posted you were a novice.

Older two strokes are like light switches, power on or off, no middle ground. They get new riders in trouble very quickly.

Depending on your size and/or weight a great learn to ride bike is the XR200. They are not coveted and therefor can be had for a steal. If you want something really unique for woods riding look at a Reflex. Basically a trials bike with the XR200 engine in it.

Watched a guy hop a Beetle in traffic on one. Hilarious.

You can't beat an XR200, that's for sure. The earlier ones got the better suspension.

HappyAndy, I guess you haven't been around bikes for a while. A modern 2 stroke is not only more reliable, but far cheaper to maintain than a 4 stroke race bike. I don't think there is anything more reliable than a modern 250 2 stroke. KDX's are nice mild 2 stroke bikes that go forever, and are pretty reasonable.

Has someone mentioned a XR200 yet?

We have two of these little beasts at our cottage and I find myself jumping on the 1987 more often than my "good bike". It never fails to start and it has enough power for the tight rocky trails around us. I just closed the cottage up for the season but I can promise that the XRs will start next year on the second kick. Oh and I think I paid $500 for the 1987 one about two years ago.

I have a MX bike, a HS bike, and a DS bike, but I can't stop thinking about the lowly XR200 that's for sale on the ODSC site right now

I had 2, and sold them a few years ago. Super fun bikes.

In reply to Zomby woof: I got out of riding in the mid-ninties, and I don't think that there has been any big advancement in two stroke tech since that time, there has however, been a big advance in four stoke singles. Two stokes need gas & oil mixed, power valves serviced, piston rings replaced, and carburetors tuned far to often for my liking. All that stuff is fine if you are a racer or hard-core trail rider, but for a recreational rider a four stroke like an XR/DR/KLR is a better route. BTW the the bikes I just mentioned are trail bikes, not race bikes.

My first motorcycle experience was on something like the above. (I don't know the make or model, it was spray-painted all black) A buddy bought it for like $25 and I provided the misc bolts and nuts to hold it together. We had a lot of fun blasting through the woods on that thing. Compared to a modern MXer, it was like riding a rigid!

I'd love to pick up another cheap one, perhaps not from the 60's however. I like these for some reason: Don't know anything about it, just like the look.