125 2 Stroke or 250 four stroke for 176lbs rider

[KuR7]

Hi all,

 

I am wanting to get back into riding after 5ish years out of the game.

 

I am 176lbs without gear and 5/9.

 

I used to own a RM 125 but that was when I was much lighter. I have also done trail rides with a friends RMZ 450 and my brothers KTM 250sxf so have had experience on 2t's and thumpers.

 

What would you think would be more suitable for trail rides and possibly some cross country events later on?

 

I have been offered my brothers 2009 KTM 250sxf for $3500 NZD.

(No hr meter but rarely used by my brother and a older guy had it before him from new. However, I am worried it could be ready to pop...)

 

or

 

There are some nice 2011 KTM 125sx's available one which has just been run in for $4000 NZD.

 

There are currently not a lot of used 250 2t's for sale and can't buy new.  

 

I consider myself an intermediate rider.

 

Thoughts?

[mr.whiskeythrottle]

175 lbs might be a little heavy for the 125, there also not the greatest trail bikes, a 4T or a 250 smoker would best suit you,

but since your getting back into riding i would suggest the 250 4T. you can then upgrade to a smoker when you need it

[not_again]

I think that's a really good price for that 09 SX-F for your part of the world. Here's some good info: these motors don't 'just' blow up. They get neglected and fail just like a 2stroke's does. Now don't get me wrong, engine mainetance IS more expensive especially on a KTM which wants about double for parts compared to the Big Four bikes. But if you change out the piston ON SCHEDULE rather than just leaving it in there for hundreds of hours like a lot of meatheads do, four strokes hold up just fine. Keeping the air filter clean goes a long way toward making the valves last too.

Every used bike I buy used gets a piston ASAP unless there is a damn good reason not to. It's cheap and easy, good insurance.

[KuR7]

Thanks for the replies. Much appreciated. Are there any maintenance schedules floating around the net for 4t's or sxf's. What to check / replace at what time so I have something to follow?

[orangyktmthing]

Now don't get me wrong, engine mainetance IS more expensive especially on a KTM which wants about double for parts compared to the Big Four bikes. 

Giant misconception.

[RhysTheRicer]

Giant misconception.

Yeah, over where i live KTM parts only cost a tiny bit more money

[not_again]

Giant misconception.

Really? Let's compare a 2010 250SXF to a 2010 CRF250R. Basically the same bike by KTM and Honda, respectively.

 

I selected some basic repair parts. No, I didn't cherry-pick bikes or parts to find the most expensive. These are representative of commonly replaced large parts on common bikes. From KTMParts.com and HondaPartsDirect: 

 

KTM   OEM crankshaft p/n 77030018300:   $752.39

Honda OEM crankshaft p/n 1300-KRN-A41: $265.84

 

KTM    OEM piston p/n 77030007700:     $368.79

Honda OEM piston p/n 13011-KRN-A40: $60.55

 

KTM    OEM cylinder head, compl. p/n  77036020444:   $574.19

Honda OEM cylinder head, compl. p/n  2010-KRN-A40: $354.94

 

KTM    OEM rear wheel, compl. p/n 7731000114430: $697.09

Honda OEM rear wheel, compl. p/n 42650-KRN-A40: $391.03

 

I could go on and on, but it's a pain in the ass to prove what I already know to be true.

Don't get me wrong, I like KTM bikes just fine but parts for them are expensive.

[KuR7]

So and rmz, kxf, crf and yzf would be cheaper to maintain in the long run than a sxf? As above any maintenance schedule floating around?

[KuR7]

http://www.ktm.com/dealer-service/service/manuals-documents.html?tx_ktmproduct_pi3%5Baction%5D=searchResult&tx_ktmproduct_pi3%5Bcontroller%5D=DocumentFinder&cHash=124eaeabc1f569a9aa903fa034a94305

Found it

[RhysTheRicer]

Really? Let's compare a 2010 250SXF to a 2010 CRF250R. Basically the same bike by KTM and Honda, respectively.

 

I selected some basic repair parts. No, I didn't cherry-pick bikes or parts to find the most expensive. These are representative of commonly replaced large parts on common bikes. From KTMParts.com and HondaPartsDirect: 

 

KTM   OEM crankshaft p/n 77030018300:   $752.39

Honda OEM crankshaft p/n 1300-KRN-A41: $265.84

 

KTM    OEM piston p/n 77030007700:     $368.79

Honda OEM piston p/n 13011-KRN-A40: $60.55

 

KTM    OEM cylinder head, compl. p/n  77036020444:   $574.19

Honda OEM cylinder head, compl. p/n  2010-KRN-A40: $354.94

 

KTM    OEM rear wheel, compl. p/n 7731000114430: $697.09

Honda OEM rear wheel, compl. p/n 42650-KRN-A40: $391.03

 

I could go on and on, but it's a pain in the ass to prove what I already know to be true.

Don't get me wrong, I like KTM bikes just fine but parts for them are expensive.

Just done some research, it seems to be very different in the UK because the figures i have found show that KTM  is actually cheaper, not really what i was expecting at all.

 

Crankshaft

Honda- £739.74

KTM-£672

 

Front wheel

KTM £323

Honda-£557

 

Cylinder head

KTM £553

Honda £808

 

Figures from Ams4KTM and lingshondaparts

Edited April 27, 2014 by RhysTheRicer

[not_again]

Just done some research, it seems to be very different in the UK because the figures i have found show that KTM  is actually cheaper, not really what i was expecting at all.

 

Crankshaft

Honda- £739.74

KTM-£672

 

Front wheel

KTM £323

Honda-£557

 

Cylinder head

KTM £553

Honda £808

 

Figures from Ams4KTM and lingshondaparts

You may very well be correct that the difference is in US only. I know that most US companies don't ship internationally due to tariffs and duty hassles.

[orangyktmthing]

Really? Let's compare a 2010 250SXF to a 2010 CRF250R. Basically the same bike by KTM and Honda, respectively.

 

I selected some basic repair parts. No, I didn't cherry-pick bikes or parts to find the most expensive. These are representative of commonly replaced large parts on common bikes. From KTMParts.com and HondaPartsDirect: 

 

KTM   OEM crankshaft p/n 77030018300:   $752.39

Honda OEM crankshaft p/n 1300-KRN-A41: $265.84

 

KTM    OEM piston p/n 77030007700:     $368.79

Honda OEM piston p/n 13011-KRN-A40: $60.55

 

KTM    OEM cylinder head, compl. p/n  77036020444:   $574.19

Honda OEM cylinder head, compl. p/n  2010-KRN-A40: $354.94

 

KTM    OEM rear wheel, compl. p/n 7731000114430: $697.09

Honda OEM rear wheel, compl. p/n 42650-KRN-A40: $391.03

 

I could go on and on, but it's a pain in the ass to prove what I already know to be true.

Don't get me wrong, I like KTM bikes just fine but parts for them are expensive.

A lot of this stuff is a moot point. If you own the specific bike, you tend to look for parts that you get the best prices on. I just don't base the whole thing on one specific website. I bet someone can search online for honda parts and find places that charge inflated prices on their stuff. I guarantee that I have never paid 574 for a cylinder head. Another thing is that there are plenty of people that choose to repair the parts on a bike versus purchasing a replacement part. I know for a fact that having a crank rebuilt is going to be less expensive in a majority of applications, regardless of brand. Here is another example, I had an 05 honda crf 450. I wasn't about to either replace the parts with oem or just buy a new complete head. I went and installed a kibblewhite valves/spring kit and never had an issue. In the short term and the long run, the aftermarket outlasted the oem. 

[not_again]

 I bet someone can search online for honda parts and find places that charge inflated prices on their stuff.

Yes except I didn't look for inflated prices on stuff. I have a life and I spent 10 minutes to prove my point.

 

On my 06 CRF450R, I found a used head, about 2 total hours on it, $120 shipped. It works great and will continue to do so for another 150+ hours. Do that with a KTM...

 

My buddy wanted an off-road set of forks and shock for his 08 250SX-F and he had to wait weeks for a set of XC suspension to show up, then spent well over 1.5K on it. It leaked, so full service needed. $2.2K total to run.

My CRF-R stuff swaps directly to CRF-X stuff and vice-versa. It cost me $270 for forks and shock, no rebuild needed- I picked through 5-10 sets to find primo ones.

 

My point is this: KTM makes nice stuff. I don't debate that for 1 second. In fact, I recommend KTM all the time...BUT

The Japanese Big Four, especially Honda is a lot cheaper to repair- OEM, Aftermarket and used.

Edited April 28, 2014 by sandlvr69

[not_again]

typo.

 

 

 

Edited April 28, 2014 by sandlvr69

[orangyktmthing]

Yes except I didn't look for inflated prices on stuff. I have a life and I spent 10 minutes to prove my point.

 

On my 06 CRF450R, I found a used head, about 2 total hours on it, $120 shipped. It works great and will continue to do so for another 150+ hours. Do that with a KTM...

 

My buddy wanted an off-road set of forks and shock for his 08 250SX-F and he had to wait weeks for a set of XC suspension to show up, then spent well over 1.5K on it. It leaked, so full service needed. $2.2K total to run.

Ok, I had the oem valves (that were more than a crapshoot, as I'm sure that you know) zero out on my crf, hello kb. With my ktm heads, I've never had an issue with any valves, so, I really didn't need to do that with a ktm. With your buddy trying to find an extra set-up for his sx-f, he overpaid. I like all brands, but comparing a honda to a ktm and vice versa is, again, a moot point. I have extra suspension for my ktms, and it didn't cost me 2200, hell, your buddy could of bought a bike for that price. Plus, you are comparing the used parts market. That market has really no upper and lower limits. You could look on ebay, for instance, and find someone that wants, for example, a head for a crf that has 2 hours runtime on it for 120 bucks. I don't care what brand it is, that is a good deal. On another day, you might find someone asking 500 dollars for a head in the same condition. Here is another one, my old berg 450 had over 120 hours on it without touching the valve clearance and my 350 had right around 100 hours on it and still had all the shims in it from the factory, nary one was changed. With those early crf 450s, that would be almost impossible (I should know...).

Edited April 28, 2014 by orangyktmthing

[KuR7]

So one thing I noticed when riding the bike it would backfire quite a lot engine braking / off throttle. I have read some posts which say it's the way KTM assemble the exhaust and also it can be resolved with sealing air gaps / joints in the exhaust. Is it as simple as that or could something else be wrong with the bike. It seems to pull fine and not bog out. I'm currently overseas and can't check it personally but thoughts would be appreciated.