Good starter bike MX / Trails

[Rideharder]

I ride a 2017 YZ450F and I taught my niece how to ride on my Raptor 700. She wants to ride a dirt bike but my 450 is too much so I’m wondering what’s a good bike I can get for her that doesn’t cost a lot but also something I can have some fun on too. Too keep costs down I probably would have to go with a carb model but let me know what you guys think.

 

What Year, Make, and Model suggestions do you have? As an example there is an 07 YZ250F for sale for $1700. Seems like a good price but I don’t want to buy a money pit.

 

 

[Sheerider11]

What's her weight and height

[Rideharder]

What's her weight and height

5’8” 130lbs and she is 28 yrs old so she’s not a kid.

[Sheerider11]

5’8” 130lbs and she is 28 yrs old so she’s not a kid.

Oh shit so she's a big girl. Not in a negative way
But At 5'8 any 250 will be good. Probably won't even have to lower it.

[Rideharder]

How old of a 250 can I get before I really have to start worrying about reliability.

 

Would an 07 YZ250F be ok?

 

[surfez]

Sometimes i wonder if TT editors write these forum post that get forwarded onto social media sights like Facebook to get a response...

Forgive me if i'm wrong! I've had two wines and i decided to reply with my first thoughts after reading this post. 

You ride a Raptor 700 quad... A beast! 

You want a bike to teach a learner... A crf230 or something 4 stroke and tame as hell if you want them to learn with ease...

You want something that wont be a money pit... Don't we all!

And something you can enjoy...

 

If you have high expectations & standards a 2 year old bike that you've had from new can be a money pit. Ask me!

As others have said. 

Her weight/height/ride ability (some learn fast some very slow)

Your weight/height/ride ability (some ride big bikes but cant ride well/some on smaller bikes are amazing). 

Money pit... All bikes are money pits unless you don't maintain them. 

Bike options comes down to the market in your area, terrain your riding, what you consider fun Honda Z50 can be fun... Etc etc. 

 

Don't take this the wrong way but do your research and you'll save us all the headache bro.  You can't get a bike great for learners, accomplished riders and that wont cost you money IMO. Unless your and her riding ability plus weight etc is almost the same. Bikes cost you money unless you neglect them. :-)

 

Edited November 9, 2017 by surfez

[Rideharder]

Sometimes i wonder if TT editors write these forum post that get forwarded onto social media sights like Facebook. 
Forgive me if i'm wrong! I've had two wines and i decided to reply with my first thoughts after reading this post. 
You ride a Raptor 700 quad... A beast! 
You want a bike to teach a learner... A crf230 or something 4 stroke and tame as hell if you want them to learn with ease...
You want something that wont be a money pit... Don't we all!
 
If you have high expectations & standards a 2 year old bike that you've had from new can be a money pit. Ask me!
As others have said. 
Her weight/height/ride ability (some learn fast some very slow)
Your weight/height/ride ability (some ride big bikes but cant ride well/some on smaller bikes are amazing). 
Money pit... All bikes are money pits unless you don't maintain them. 
Bike options comes down to the market in your area, terrain your riding, what you consider fun Honda Z50 can be fun... Etc etc. 
 
Don't take this the wrong way but do your research and you'll save us all the headache bro.  

Thanks for the reply........I think???

[shrubitup]

22 minutes ago, surfez said:

Sometimes i wonder if TT editors write these forum post that get forwarded onto social media sights like Facebook to get a response...

Forgive me if i'm wrong! I've had two wines and i decided to reply with my first thoughts after reading this post. 

You ride a Raptor 700 quad... A beast! 

You want a bike to teach a learner... A crf230 or something 4 stroke and tame as hell if you want them to learn with ease...

You want something that wont be a money pit... Don't we all!

And something you can enjoy...

 

If you have high expectations & standards a 2 year old bike that you've had from new can be a money pit. Ask me!

As others have said. 

Her weight/height/ride ability (some learn fast some very slow)

Your weight/height/ride ability (some ride big bikes but cant ride well/some on smaller bikes are amazing). 

Money pit... All bikes are money pits unless you don't maintain them. 

Bike options comes down to the market in your area, terrain your riding, what you consider fun Honda Z50 can be fun... Etc etc. 

 

Don't take this the wrong way but do your research and you'll save us all the headache bro.  You can't get a bike great for learners, accomplished riders and that wont cost you money IMO. Unless your and her riding ability plus weight etc is almost the same. Bikes cost you money unless you neglect them. :-)

 

if you buy a brand new bike say a leftover 2015 or 16 or even 17 model for cheap, ride the heck out of it say 300 hours, make it so that it barely starts, then decide you want to sell it, come sale time you may get $1,000 out of it. So, even a bike you don't maintain is still a money pit.

[Singletrack_rider]

43 minutes ago, Rideharder said:

How old of a 250 can I get before I really have to start worrying about reliability.

 

Would an 07 YZ250F be ok?

 

Its not the year its the hours and abuse.  An 07 that was trial riden for 50 hours will have some life left in it over a 2016 that a 16 year old wrung out on a track for the same time. Any used 250f is a ticking time bomb some just have a longer fuse. If you dont want a money pit buy a 2st. What does she want to ride track , trails or both. 

 

[surfez]

1 hour ago, Rideharder said:

 

 

Thanks for the reply........I think???

 

 

Yeah, i just thought you wanted the "impossible". If my suspension mods cost me $1500 NZD to make work form me, on a bike i bought new, but that suspension won't really work for someone 15 kgs more or less. Then how does a learners bike become fun for someone who rides a 700 weapon? I tried reasoning in some thoughts in a cheeky response. I've had two rather large glasses of win, so don't take it personally.

 

Edited November 9, 2017 by surfez

[surfez]

1 hour ago, shrubitup said:

if you buy a brand new bike say a leftover 2015 or 16 or even 17 model for cheap, ride the heck out of it say 300 hours, make it so that it barely starts, then decide you want to sell it, come sale time you may get $1,000 out of it. So, even a bike you don't maintain is still a money pit.

Its only a pit if you sell it for $1000 but your right... I bought a 5 year old (New) old stock bike. People are still selling my year/model bike for around what i paid for it new. Plus i'l likely keep mine for another 6-8 years... Problem solved. (Yes bikes are a money pit regardless).

Edited November 9, 2017 by surfez

[Rideharder]

Its not the year its the hours and abuse.  An 07 that was trial riden for 50 hours will have some life left in it over a 2016 that a 16 year old wrung out on a track for the same time. Any used 250f is a ticking time bomb some just have a longer fuse. If you dont want a money pit buy a 2st. What does she want to ride track , trails or both. 
 

We trail ride mostly but I took her to the track for the first time this weekend and she loved it. At least on the quad. She has only putted around on 450 before but “thinks” she would like it. This is why I don’t want to invest a lot of money because she may not like it and I’ll be stuck with a 2nd bike just laying around.

She just started riding the quad this year but has really taken to it and was attacking the tabletops really good especially considering it was her first time.

Because of that I have some confidence that she may do well on a dirt bike but you never know.

[kenbrough]

I have a 2016 Yamaha TTR 230 and I love it. It is sweet and tame and a great bike to learn on (and inexpensive)... BUT the Honda version has more aftermarket parts available... With the Yamaha you can easily go back 10 years and still find essentially the same bike as today. Just find one that is in good shape and that had the oil changed regularly and you should be good to go...  The same holds true for the Honda crf... Both sweetheart starter bikes...

[pedec]

Get her a yz125. ktm sx-xc-xc-w125-150. Great bike that can be ridden easy or rip if you want a te150 or xc-w 150 are even better but more cash. yz250 can be a hand full.

 

Edited November 10, 2017 by pedec

[sbest]

I taught my 3 daughters to ride, and I too owned a Raptor, a 2003 660. 

The girls (and 2 boys and a couple girlfriends) took to riding the Raptor with ease, with only the occasional stupid use of the throttle. I usually had the throttle stop cranked in to minimize the damages. When it came to riding my Husaberg 450 or KTM 300 or even KTM 125, it was a different story. WAY too much bike for a beginner rider. The height and power just scared them, made them a timid rider, especially if they got hurt. 

We had some other bikes, a Chinese Baja50, an old Yamaha MX80, an awesome BW80 and others, but the very best low maintenance learner bike was a CRF100 Honda I still own. I couldn't find a picture of it other than the home-made Bark-Busters:

This bike was used and abused by an unsupervised young kid, scuffed up a bit, I got it for $800 and it is still running fine a decade later. I have less than $200 in parts and oil over the last decade. It has taught a dozen folks how to ride. Small and light enough to not intimidate. Nimble enough to keep up on the tight trails but not enough top speed for open sections. We have even used it for Search and Rescue searches. It will go 10 hours at search speeds on one tank of fuel. One of my daughters moved from this CRF100 up to a Ninja 250 with no problems keeping up to the big boys:

A 250f or especially a 250 2 stroke is a lot of bike for a beginner rider. My daughter could ride mine but didn't find it fun, especially to start. She was very comfortable on a friend's son's 80cc MX bike. Frame size, weight, kick start all enter into it. 

[Rideharder]

I taught my 3 daughters to ride, and I too owned a Raptor, a 2003 660. 

The girls (and 2 boys and a couple girlfriends) took to riding the Raptor with ease, with only the occasional stupid use of the throttle. I usually had the throttle stop cranked in to minimize the damages. When it came to riding my Husaberg 450 or KTM 300 or even KTM 125, it was a different story. WAY too much bike for a beginner rider. The height and power just scared them, made them a timid rider, especially if they got hurt. 
We had some other bikes, a Chinese Baja50, an old Yamaha MX80, an awesome BW80 and others, but the very best low maintenance learner bike was a CRF100 Honda I still own. I couldn't find a picture of it other than the home-made Bark-Busters:

This bike was used and abused by an unsupervised young kid, scuffed up a bit, I got it for $800 and it is still running fine a decade later. I have less than $200 in parts and oil over the last decade. It has taught a dozen folks how to ride. Small and light enough to not intimidate. Nimble enough to keep up on the tight trails but not enough top speed for open sections. We have even used it for Search and Rescue searches. It will go 10 hours at search speeds on one tank of fuel. One of my daughters moved from this CRF100 up to a Ninja 250 with no problems keeping up to the big boys:

A 250f or especially a 250 2 stroke is a lot of bike for a beginner rider. My daughter could ride mine but didn't find it fun, especially to start. She was very comfortable on a friend's son's 80cc MX bike. Frame size, weight, kick start all enter into it. 

Good info! Thanks

[OKDinosaur]

If you want a bike she can learn on and you will enjoy, get an 06+ yz125 (or any 125 you like). Nothing will make you a better rider than a 125, and nothing is more fun as a secondary bike than a 125, imho. She looks like she's pretty capable, she might be able to adapt to the 125 quickly - all it takes is forming the habit of using the clutch all the time. She also might not catch on to the required technique, get put off from killing the bike all the time and not want to ride because of it. 

 

If you want a bike that will make it easiest for her to learn the basics, get a crf230 / ttr230, or a crf150f / ttr150. Go to a dealer, put her on each, see which size she's more comfortable on, and buy a used one, all 4 are extremely reliable and low maintenance. You also won't enjoy any of them, the 150s might be a little bit of fun as a pit bike? 

 

[Rideharder]

If you want a bike she can learn on and you will enjoy, get an 06+ yz125 (or any 125 you like). Nothing will make you a better rider than a 125, and nothing is more fun as a secondary bike than a 125, imho. She looks like she's pretty capable, she might be able to adapt to the 125 quickly - all it takes is forming the habit of using the clutch all the time. She also might not catch on to the required technique, get put off from killing the bike all the time and not want to ride because of it. 
 
If you want a bike that will make it easiest for her to learn the basics, get a crf230 / ttr230, or a crf150f / ttr150. Go to a dealer, put her on each, see which size she's more comfortable on, and buy a used one, all 4 are extremely reliable and low maintenance. You also won't enjoy any of them, the 150s might be a little bit of fun as a pit bike? 
 

Thank you

[Motox367]

13 hours ago, Rideharder said:

 

We trail ride mostly but I took her to the track for the first time this weekend and she loved it. At least on the quad. She has only putted around on 450 before but “thinks” she would like it. This is why I don’t want to invest a lot of money because she may not like it and I’ll be stuck with a 2nd bike just laying around.

She just started riding the quad this year but has really taken to it and was attacking the tabletops really good especially considering it was her first time.

Because of that I have some confidence that she may do well on a dirt bike but you never know.

 

Yes get that woman a bike dam. ? A 125 or 250f before that quad runs her over. Looks like a natural 

[Dirtbug26]

Low hour TTR 230 or CRF 230, nothing else comes close to low maintenance and durability