need advice: what bike to look for

[monster 84r]

im looking at getting an older cr250, or rm250. im trying to shy away from 125's because i feel like ive outgrown them. i do alot of desert and woods riding, but im going to be hitting the dunes soon. im not a big guy, 6'2'', 180lbs, but would a older cr250 fit me, my riding areas, and most importantly, my budget?

[monster 84r]

are their any years of cr250's to look out for? im leaning twards an 87, did the older years have the same power of the newer years, because of epa regulations and stuff?

[200xcellent]

How much are you able to spend? If you want an old bike get the 85 cr500, suposedly the baddest. If you got the cash and want a 250 i would try to get one of the newer aluminum frame ones.

[monster 84r]

a 500 would be too much bike for me, im almost pondering a 125, even though their not to impressive on power in my book. i just want something with good, strong power that i can rip through the woods with, hit the dunes/desert once in a while, and ride harescrambles. im only looking to spend about 900-1000$, i know thats low but i dont need something brand new. my real question is, will i be satisfied with a 125? im very power thirsty, but i love light bikes that you can flick around turns with, and feel at home on a fire road. anyone with any input, feel free to chime in :). im also checking up on some older ktm's, and xr400's

[Groundworx]

I am 6'0 and 230. I had a KX 125, YZ 250 and a RM250. I still own the RM. I don't think you would like a 125. Especially if you like power. They have almost no bottom end. My 89 YZ 250 ran awesome. It was a POS too, but had great power. I sold it for $600. I still have my 93 RM250. It screams, but isn't stock by any means.

I know someone who has an XR500 for sale. I am not sure the year, but it will need a valve job. He owns a bike shop. Someone brought it to him to do a valve job and some other things to it. The customer didn't tell him the cam chain was making noise. He told the customer about the noise and the customer said it has been making noise for years and not to worry about it. Needless to say, it bent the valve on the test ride. The customer told him just to keep the bike. I don't think he wants much for it. I think he said $600. It would have a little more torque than the 250 2-stroke. Should be a good woods bike, but probably not a good choice for desert.

[monster 84r]

i looked at a rm250, i regret buying it. what kind of riding do you do groundworx? is the 250 light enough to hit trails with? how does it perform on dirt roads and fire trails? id love to find one of those rmx250s, the woods rm's, with the heavier flywheel and different porting. im also looking up a few kdx300's. im definately getting a 2 stroke though.

[Groundworx]

I ride trails and MX. I have taken it to the river and ridden in the sand as well. I like it in every situation. I can run with any of the newer 4 strokes. They will shoot out of the whole or off a turn quicker, but within 15-20 yards, I am back on them. My RM is really clean. I got it a little over a year ago not knowing much about dirt bikes. The guy I got it from didn't know a lot either. I believe my bike might have been raced in the past. It has a deal welded on the frame where a steering stablizer was mounted. My has an FMF pipe and silencer, jet kit, Boysen Rad Valves and some pretty extensive port work. The only thing I did was the Rad Valves. It will fly though and I can't imagine me riding anything else. Even as big as I am, it pulls the front up through 4th. 1st gear is crazy, 2nd is scary, usually when I wheelie, I use 3rd or 4th. You should be able to pick up an older RM for around $1k. I have more than that tied up in mine, but like I said, I didn't know much when I traded for it. I wouldn't even consider getting rid of it.

[86tri-z270]

a 125 isnt bad if *Edited* put the right prts on the but a 250 judging by weight and rider would be perfect if *Edited**Edited* around 180-210 pounds... now a 500 is for massive riders... who are not only 300 pounds but not afriad to break bones.... my oppinion get a 86 cr250 i had one got stolen man that thing flew

[Groundworx]

a 125 isnt bad if *Edited* put the right prts on the but a 250 judging by weight and rider would be perfect if *Edited**Edited* around 180-210 pounds... now a 500 is for massive riders... who are not only 300 pounds but not afriad to break bones.... my oppinion get a 86 cr250 i had one got stolen man that thing flew

My KX125 was a former race bike. Nothing on it was stock. It had bottom end if you kept the RPMs up, but still would touch either 250 I had.

[daputz]

Iv'e got a 2002 cr125 here at the farm for the weekend. It's a fun bike, but I dont care for it while attempting to break new trails through the woods.

For the type of riding I do (woods, trails, I am not a racer) a xr400, drz400, is perfect. Unless I am shooting the field I don't always have the room to keep a 2 stroke DB happy and on the pipe.

Have you considered looking for a rmx, or a wr? If you are not mx'ing I think one of the older 250 2 stroke bikes with the wide ratio trans would be a good fit.

[monster 84r]

well my budget is pretty low, and i think one of the older 2 strokes like your talking about, daputz, would fit the bill. id like to check out the late 80's, and early 90's cr250's or rm250's. i dont have much experiance with suzuki groundworkx, but they seem to be sturdy bikes. from what ive heard, the older yz's dont hold up too well so il shy away from them.

an xr400 or like machiene would be nice, but im a really big 2 stroke fan. plus, i dont have the money for new valves, and all the needed parts for when its time to rebuild a thumper. the simplicity and cheapness of rebuilding a 2 stroke when the time is right sounds better to me. the local newspaper had a dr650 for 700$, i think it was a 92 model. it sounded like a great bike, but was probably a heavy son of a gun.

i guess the real perpose of this bike is tearing woods trails and descent fire roads. sometimes id do some gravel roads, and desert trails, but nothing too close or winding. i need something reliable, and light that i can spend all day riding on, and come back to camp with a smile on my face. im only 16, but ive been riding enough to respect a 250. thanks for your imput guys, keep it coming :)

[cliff2302]

I was thinking of a wide ratio bike also, i rode a 91 WR 250 once, it was awesome. Its basically a YZ 250 with a wide range tranny for trail riding, they are pretty neat bikes. IDK what the other brands name their wide ratio bikes though, you should look into them.

[RedRider_AK]

The YZ 125 looks like it would be pretty cool. I'm about 5'8" or 5'9", 130 lbs and I ride a YZ 85. I love those little machines! They don't have any torque at all, but they're light enough so that you can just rev 'em up and rip!

Anyway, perhaps you should be looking at a 4-stroke 250, like a CRF or a YZ-F...

[monster 84r]

well i cant afford any of the newer four strokes. i personaly dont like four strokes for the type of riding i do, i like the feel of a 2 stroke. if i could find a cheap bike that ripped like a cr250, id pick it up. i just havent ridden a four stroke that gave the the feeling that a screamer does.

[RedRider_AK]

I rode a YZ250F last summer, and it was kicking my arse constantly. Too much torque. LOL

[hondaxr100]

Ive had my 2000 Rm250 for about 3 years now. Awesome trail bike. Fast , lost of bottom end and just a blast to ride. Im only 5'11 165 pounds and I can ride it pretty good. I like suzuki's so I would buy one of them. Ive had no problems with my RM so far. Lots of fun..

[monster 84r]

i thought the 250f was a thumper? correct me if im wrong. see my dilemna is that i love the power to weight ratio of 2 strokes, and the agressive handling and good suspention. when i think of a big bore thumper like a xr500, i think of a heavy, harshly suspended bike (im talking about the older generation xr's).