Yz 125 or yz 250?
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What you using it for I guess is my biggest question.
A 250 is much better for the road, a 125 makes you work for it on the track.
Both are superb bikes, both need meticulous attention and I wouldn't want to scrimp on either. You're talking 40 hour engines here then a rebuild.
A 125 is stupendous fun around a track, a 250 is easier going but still a cracking bike.
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@declan Nah I haven't bud. These aren't really my sorts of bikes.
Scrim would be able to give a much better opinion on what works for enduro.
What I said above applies to enduro, the 250 is going to be an easier ride, but the 125 is going to be balls lit fun!
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I'll put it simply, a YZ engine is bullet proof. Practically the same engine between the 125 and 250 and both are stupidly reliable. If you went by the book, you'd be taking apart the engine for inspection/rebuild after every race or "sortie". Which obviously not many people outside of a professional enviroment do, so my general advice on this is simple. If you ride smooth and with a good mixture, you should be getting about 60 hours on a top end. Both engines cost about the same to rebuild, the biggest difference is fuel consumption. You will be filling up more at petrol stations with a 250 than a 125 for sure. So it doesn't really matter when it comes to the technical aspect of it.
However, for a more "childish" approach. You will have a LOT more fun on the 125 if you're planning to be popping wheelies, letting the back wheel slide etc. It is a much more childish bike in that regard than the 250 and is more nervous, but if you one day want to do some hill climbing and you stall, that 125 will not get going again unlike the 250. A 250 is a much better bike if you ride in an enduro environment, a 125 is for the fields/tracks.
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LOL. Depends what you do with the engine, racing a YZ250 45+hp.. Dont use a cheap Con Rod when you rebuild it! This happened to a mate's YZ250 at a race weekend.
Buy good, and look after it and it wont eat itself.
@declan I'm building a SM YZ125 AF, I'll let you know how that goes.
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Just needs a light hone and a fresh set of rings
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@declan KTM certainly make some good bikes, but I view it more as a fashionable brand now than a business and it is not a brand I wish to be a part of. I've seen far more accidents and crashes on KTMs than I have on any other bike, from personal experience.
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@declan For me, it's the whole picture
KTM's do make superb bikes, but you have to pay a premium for it. For the money, you can get a mint YZ or a CRISP DTR with lots of change. So you have to weigh it up. If money wasn't an objective.... but unfortunately it is. This is why I love the Aprilia's RS and MX. You're getting fantastic spec'd machines at a DTR price. So it's the best all round.
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If you want the BEST stock enduro, road legal and incredibly cheaper than a KTM, Gas Gas EC or the later Beta rr enduros. As far as im aware a Gas Gas EC 125 from 2000 odd + makes as much power as a modern MX bike and are reliable engines, the stock components are incredible as standard too, the new models come with FMF pipe, v force reeds etc. I had a Gas Gas TXT Pro trials bike a few years ago and it was stunningly built, if they werent so rare id drop my DT for an EC in a heartbeat.
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@glynn123 Sorry, as much as GasGas may build good engines they aren't nearly as reliable anywhere else. And parts from their older bikes can be very tricky and costly to find, as a GasGas owner I really can't recommend it. Not unless it is their newer models.
that looks scary
