First time in the dirt

[Yagadan]

Hey all,

So a week ago I had pretty much my first dirt experience. Was on a crf450..
Great fun. Considering moving from the road scene to the dirt as most of my friends are into dirt rather then road..

My maintenance skills are beginner level. Can do oil/filter and clean an air filter..don't want to be doing anything more than that super often.

Budget of somewhere in the 3-5k region..I'm thinking a 4 stroke, unsure if 250 is enough or ill want a 450 for the long term ?


Cheers all

[out_in_front]

All proper racing dirtbikes are going to be high maintenance - If you want easier and cheaper to maintain get a DRZ-400. They are about 80% of the performance of a 450, a bit more than a 250 and only slightly heavier, but you dont need to replace pistons/ valves every 50-80 hours of riding.

[doogle]

Have to agree maintenance is a bit constant, I come from a 2stroke mx background, I was changing pistons every 4-6hours of race time, practice time I would leave things a little longer, I've been told 4stroke are a bit less but not much, sire someone with a 4stroke will be able to shed light

[thro]

All proper racing dirtbikes are going to be high maintenance - If you want easier and cheaper to maintain get a DRZ-400. They are about 80% of the performance of a 450, a bit more than a 250 and only slightly heavier, but you dont need to replace pistons/ valves every 50-80 hours of riding.

That.

If your maintenance skills are lacking i'd even suggest a 2 stroke bike before a high performance 4 stroke, because the real high performance 4 strokes are just as much fucking maintenance, and the actual work is a lot more complicated.

A piston replacement sounds like deep shit territory but on a 2 stroke single it is literally a couple of hours of work - and you can probably count the number of parts involved on your fingers and toes once you've ripped the airbox and tank off (including all the bolts). No cam timing to get right, no timing chain to fuck with, etc.

[Marty MOOSE]

Have to disagree don't be scared of modern 4st. The life is the air filter. Once you learn to check valves you don't need to do it very often once or twice a year and that's if you ride heaps. My last yzf was the most reliable dirt bike I've ever owned. A good 250f will be plenty they go very very well.

MM

ps I just bought a 4st never will I get another 2 banger.

[smitto]

What marty said

If your diligent with cleaning the air filter on any bike it ensures longevity and especially a 4 banger.

When it comes to trail riding at a intermediate level your valves wont need shimming anywhere as often as you think, as an example karri on here bought his crf 450 new in 08, looked after the servicing side and rode it like it was stolen. then at 60 or so hours a few years later checked his clearances and was barely 1 size outta spec. Nothing at the end of 3 or more years riding.

Its all in the maintenance and that foam thingy espicially

[karri]

Cheers for bigging up my maintenance regime smitto! The only points I'd make is that a well maintained 4 stroke from new will give you few problems but if it hasn't been, shit can get expensive quickly. A rebuild is not hard work and if you have half decent skills you can do a 4st in a couple of hours. 2st second hand are a bit safer but by no means fool proof or guaranteed to be cheaper than a 4st. Oh and I'd be stretching the budget to the 5k mark and make sure you find a pristine one.

Also, fuck drz. They are a bike you can use for long distance touring and they are great reliable bikes but you'll find the limits of it in no time. I'll buy one, one day when I want something a bit more casual.

[Yagadan]

Cheers for the opinions guys..

Am leaning towards the 4st. Scouring gumtree to see what's in the 5kish region..no rush to buy so will see what comes up

[karri]

If you haven't spent much time on a 2st they can be hard to get used to. You'll be quicker on a 4st as well.

[filbert]

Cheers for the opinions guys..

Am leaning towards the 4st. Scouring gumtree to see what's in the 5kish region..no rush to buy so will see what comes up

does it need to be road legal?

i picked up a 2009 husky txc450 as a swap for my old ute with a mate, it's worth about $4k to me and redbook puts market value at $4,900 to $5,800 but it's a little rough round the edges so i'd think $4k was a fair price if you were interested, [MENTION=19322]kennyboy[/MENTION] has seen it but i don't know how closely he looked, needs new battery if you want to run the electric start, throttle cables are chafed on the coating and would be replaced for aesthetics and decomp lever which attaches to the clutch master cylinder top is snapped off, well maintained and nothing major wrong with it

[Yagadan]

Not fussed on it been road legal no..will either by taken on trailer or back of ute to desired locations..

With work and uni at the moment would be 2 - 4 weeks before I inspect anything, will contact you then

Is it 4st or 2st?

[Marty MOOSE]

There are a couple of really nice low hour crf 450x 's on gumtree round that figure bit of haggling. 5k will get you a really nice bike in good nick.

[Yagadan]

There are a couple of really nice low hour crf 450x 's on gumtree round that figure bit of haggling. 5k will get you a really nice bike in good nick.

I'm a honda and Yamaha fan boy so I'm towards something like this..

E.g 2008 CRF450R Excellent condition on Gumtree http://www.gumtree.com.au/c-ViewAd?AdId=1027971791

[Mr_Mike]

I learnt to ride dirt on a 2 stroke it was fast but I wasn't I then got a 4t and improved heaps. Trail riding I reckon the 4 stroke is better, engine braking is the best thing when going down a slippery gravel slope.
Also don't be worried when u hear things like needs a piston every 80hrs etc. 80hrs is a lot of dirt riding!!!
Think of it this way u go out on a Saturday start riding about 7ish ride till 12ish that's 5hrs of intense excercise of ur body and mind in that 5hrs u may of only been riding hard 3-4hrs. Then u pack up and go home. Now life gets in the way and u don't go riding again for another 4 weeks.
Then u do a weekend away so mayb 8hrs riding then again no riding for another month.
So in nearly 3 months u have done 12hrs on a piston. And this scenario isn't that uncommon.

Unless ur racing or doing enduros the engine hours to a casual weekend rider are not a great concern.
Buy 2 air filters so u always have a clean one on hand, if I was doing a weekend or a full day in the dust I would usually swap the filter out after half a day.
Clean filter is the biggest thing to pay attention to.

[Shady7/8]

Get a CRF or WR and get tard wheels too

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Get a CRF or WR and get tard wheels too