Vintage Dirt Bike Q & A

Hey im looking to get back into riding and ive always liked the old bikes. I havent ridden in about 3 years(when i was 16). I got into diesel drag racing so that took to much time, but know that ive moved to a place where i see bikes on trailers going to and from riding every day I'm getting the fever!! I really like the old Elsinores but im not really sure what size to get. I weigh about 170, my last bike was a 96(?) KLX300 dual sport and that thing felt enemic power wise. I dont want something to hurt me so im shying away from the 480's but how will the power on a 125 or 250 feel compared to the KLX i had? Is their much in the way of performance parts for the 125's and 250's? Im not looking for a show bike but i do want something in very good condition, how much should i be looking to pay? Anything i should watch out for, or years i should stay away from? Sorry for all the questions, thanks in advance.
Allan

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No more 2 wheeled toys
2006 dodge ram cummins turbo diesel twin turbos two much to list 650HP

Allen, Just my 2 cents. If you thought the 300 KLX duelsport was underpowered, I'd go with a 250 78,79 or 80 Elsinore. You'll have plenty of power! Watch ebay for a while, you'll see them at all prices.
Just depends on how much you wanna spend and how much resto you wanna do. I like the rebuilding myself. I'm not as savvy as some of these guys on here, but I try and they help me solve my issues.

I like power too.....2002 Ram 2500 Quad Cummins 5.9 Turbo 4X4 takes me where I wanna go.

I guess you seen the Feb. issue of Diesel power with the 5.9 Cummins on nitrous, single turbo.....860hp, 1655 lb-ft torque??? 11.8 second 1/4 mile

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Garry Mainer
#33m (retired)
Honda Cr250r 1980
Honda Cr250r 1980
Yamaha TY250C 1976
Arctic Cat 650 H1 2007

Thanks for the info, ive been scrounging ebay for a few weeks now! I kind of thought the 125 wouldnt be enough but all my experience with 2 strokes have been quads so i really wasnt sure. What about performance parts for these old bikes, ive heard about something called the Mugen kit?Yeah i saw that one, im hoping to run a 11 this season as well and im shooting for 700HP. If you remember the first diesel power challenge with the two identical ford crew cab dually 6.0's they were my brothers, and his business partner(elite diesel). Im hoping to make the challenge this year as well.

_________________
No more 2 wheeled toys
2006 dodge ram cummins turbo diesel twin turbos two much to list 650HP

2¢

I don't restore so much as ~return to running condition bikes. Maybe done a dozen bikes in the last 5 years.

I love the old <200cc bikes and about half of what I have done has been the small 2 stroke stuff. The down side is they come to you chewed up.

This will sound a bit confusing as I don't really know how to describe it. It is almost like you have to grasp two facts at once with the implications.

First fact is the 125cc bikes outsold the 250-500cc models. They were seen as an entry level dirt bike so a lot of parents bought them for their 14-16 year old kids.

Second fact is you have to think of the throttle as a horse power knob.

What happened is a lot of young adults didn't know how to mantain their bikes in good running condition. As their skill level increased they learned to use more horsepower/WOT. As the bikes started losing tune, they compensated by going to WOT. Maybe the bike wouldn't even idle anymore, but heck, just keep it WOT and bang it through the gears.

Just about every small bore 2 stroke I have worked on had pretty much been through the grinding mill. If you can find a good one to start with or don't mind spending a bit of time to restore it, you will probably enjoy them as much as I do.

On the other hand consider going to a larger displacement bike. They were typically bought as second bikes or by more experienced riders. There are still a ton of ones that were completely chewed up, but the ratio is much better then a 125cc. Even in a bad state of tune most people can not use as much power as a 250 can put out. For the most part they were probably run less then 10% of the time at WOT. I have a Suzuki RM400 and a Husky CR400. I doubt if they were ever run WOT. Engines in the darn things are like new.

Rick