gas gas ec 125....?

[ali-s]

Anyone out there got any info on these bikes - test riding one on wednesday, looks a ripper. I'm 5'9" 75 kgs.
Cheers
AL

[chop]

From what ive heard there not the go. I have heard of one giving all sorts of greif.

[charles23]

looks can be deceiving........... parts are expensive and for older bikes, like mine, not always in stock.

If i had the choice again I'd go Jap.

[B0000M]

dont quote me, but werent these the ones that had the block or piston cracking problem- i cant remember which, i just remember meeting one of the few female riders on a trail and she said all of them sold that year had done it.

sorry, dont know specifics, i could be waayyy off track here.

[telliman]

dont quote me, but werent these the ones that had the block or piston cracking problem- i cant remember which, i just remember meeting one of the few female riders on a trail and she said all of them sold that year had done it.

sorry, dont know specifics, i could be waayyy off track here.

was;nt that ktm?

[ali-s]

aawwwww lads you're bursting my bubble here - just found the bike on TM -
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Dirt-bikes/auction-142602820.htm
- it's brand new, 12 month warranty - will be riding up maddix park weds and checking this bike + klx 450 r (also present will be a kdx 200 and my klx 300)

[Wellyman]

It has no torque, enjoy the wide fucken open ride all the time mate, thats the only way to the power on the 125's. a 200 or 250 has more torque and not so hard to man handle around, and 300 is just fantastic.
(old man owns 300, I own a 250)
feel free to PM with anything you want to know, if need be.
WM

[cheese]

Those fucked 125s were the 07 KTM SX 125. The cylinders crack on all of them apparently. Factory fault.

[jimmy 2006]

really? glad i didn't buy that 125 i was riding with you at kimmies!!!

[B0000M]

Those fucked 125s were the 07 KTM SX 125. The cylinders crack on all of them apparently. Factory fault.


oops yea my bad, that was the one

gas gas -what was i thinking! sorry

[ali-s]

test riding one on wednesday, looks a ripper


grinning like a chesire cat at the mo'.......
:jerry:

[F5 Dave]

Met a chap with a 125, he seemed to like it & got it super cheap 2nd hand like $3500 for an ~02 as the guy (mech at a shop) needed money quick. Said it was good but had to attack things wide open.

My 200 is mint. I've ridden the 250 & it has great power but a bit intimidating in the tight stuff. When you get in some silly situation the 200 is easy to ride & has enough grunt to lug up hills most times when you screw it up. The 200 feels lighter, smaller spinning crank or something. Would I buy a 250 or 200 given the same $ next time now I'm more experienced? Erm, erm. I'd get the 200, but I'd like a 250 for the more open rides as well.

[Rupe]

grinning like a chesire cat at the mo'.......
:jerry:

What did you make of it?

[ali-s]

What did you make of it?
well...after a couple of years lugging round a klx the little gasser was something of a culture shock, but what a brilliant little ride it is. light - nimble - flickable - ace clutch - bit of grunt from the 125cc's - and the star of the show has to be the suspension, bits of the enduro loop at maddix are craters of the moon dips, just chop down a gear and rev/clutch to get the front wheel up 50mm and let the Ohlins take the strain:banana: - usually i do 3 to 4 laps of the 15k loop and then pack up the van and head home in a zombie like kanckered state, today i could have ridden the little toothpick all day and still hit the town tonight:2thumbsup - only dark side are a couple of pm's from people who own this model and have w/pump shaft issues-ring replacing every 20 hrs!! - shock bushing issues. anyone else have gas gas experience?

[Rupe]

only dark side are a couple of pm's from people who own this model and have w/pump shaft issues-ring replacing every 20 hrs!! - shock bushing issues. anyone else have gas gas experience?

Rings every 20hrs doesn't seem right. Done well over 20hrs since I've had mine with no problem there.

The parts issue is not the big problem people make out.

The best person to talk to about gasgas bikes is Linton @ Dirt Action Services 033890080. He'll know about the rings mate, and is the best sorce I've found for parts.

hope this helps

[cheese]

NA the book says every 20 hours. Its cause they are reving their fucking nuts off 24/7.

[F5 Dave]

The chap I bought my EC200 off (Baileys in Hawera sp?) said he replaced the ring but it didn't need it. Sure I thought. So a couple of years on I figured I should do the piston & rings. The rings were still in spec. In fact they were at the new end of in spec. Incredible. Spectro is working well, but that was nuts. I replaced it as I had the parts, but I'll measure up next time. For sure a 125 will have a harder time than a bigger bike though.

Had to do linkage bearings a couple of times, but that's std on all dirt bikes, my KDX was never any better & I don't powerwash.

+1 Linton.

[B0000M]

i used to replace the rings on my cr125 every 30 hours, and it probably wouldve been every 20 back when i was racing competitively, 125s pull some serious revs and if you want to be fast, your going to be pulling serious revs ALL the time - hence why rings need replacing more. its not like its a big job tho and it still takes a while to clock up 20 hours... 20 hours to be exact

[ali-s]

you could race this little beast fun mx if you wanted to, and it's so light and low seat height you could probably faff around a trials circuit for a bit of fun as well. I kinda like the versatility of this bike :scooter: - it's not either of those things tho' its an enduro/xc tuned engine and it does pull some torque down low - when i lived in UK i had a mate who moved to andalucia in s. spain and these bikes were all over the trails because they are tight, rocky and technical, when you come off for the 20th time it's a PITA to try and haul up your 450 4t - in the woods yesterday i found i was attacking stuff with a grin on my face cause i knew if it all turned to custard (which it did a couple of times :innocent:) i could easily pull it back up - 1 kick and go - with a dodgy 45 year old right shoulder this is what the doctor ordered for sure. :rockon:

[marks]

you could race this little beast fun mx if you wanted to, and it's so light and low seat height you could probably faff around a trials circuit for a bit of fun as well. I kinda like the versatility of this bike :scooter: - it's not either of those things tho' its an enduro/xc tuned engine and it does pull some torque down low - when i lived in UK i had a mate who moved to andalucia in s. spain and these bikes were all over the trails because they are tight, rocky and technical, when you come off for the 20th time it's a PITA to try and haul up your 450 4t - in the woods yesterday i found i was attacking stuff with a grin on my face cause i knew if it all turned to custard (which it did a couple of times :innocent:) i could easily pull it back up - 1 kick and go - with a dodgy 45 year old right shoulder this is what the doctor ordered for sure. :rockon:

how was it on knarly slow hills?

[ali-s]

how was it on knarly slow hills?

there are a couple of reasonably gnarly hills at maddix pk which in the wet are def a challenge, even though we've had a bit of sun here there was still enough gloop around to make it interesting, now there's not bucketloads of torque from the little engine but enough to lug you out of any panicky moments and the hydraulic clutch is featherlight ( the engine spins up in an instant) so i was winding it up and just tweaking the clutch when i felt the back wheel spin, and clutch/throttle to keep traction all the way to the top :Punk: on the first lap i had the 'rain' setting flicked on, on the second loop i switched to 'dry' - i could see the point of the wet setting if it was really slippy as it mellows the delivery, but the bike filled me with so much confidence i just left it on dry and went for it - slow technical stuff is meat and drink to this bike, it's so light and well balanced and just seems to 'flow' round the trails. there is no real powerband as such as in a mx'er style, but the motor has def got some bollox so getting momentum on run ups was a cinch - certianly gave me a few eye popping moments. I now have a really nice and reasonably priced KLX 300 for sale :D

[marks]

usually i do 3 to 4 laps of the 15k loop and then pack up the van and head home in a zombie like kanckered state, today i could have ridden the little toothpick all day and still hit the town tonight:2thumbsup

I suspect the 'exhaustion factor' is the single most important thing for a casual trail rider of middle age+ to consider. I can only hit the trails once a week and after 3-4 hrs I am a zombie when I would like to stay out there 5-6 hrs.

Yes you can work on personal fitness - but I'm now spending more time getting fit than I am riding.

sounds to me like you've made a really good choice.

cheers

Mark

[jimmy 2006]

I suspect the 'exhaustion factor' is the single most important thing for a casual trail rider of middle age+ to consider. I can only hit the trails once a week and after 3-4 hrs I am a zombie when I would like to stay out there 5-6 hrs.

Yes you can work on personal fitness - but I'm now spending more time getting fit than I am riding.

sounds to me like you've made a really good choice.

cheers

Mark


from all your posts Mark, it really sounds like you would be a whole lot better off on a 250f than your 450. lugging the extra weight, and fighting against the power might be the thing that is tiring you out so fast...... ? riding a 125 wears you out bloody fast. you have to be really fit !

also, riding for 5-6 hours ??? shit, most people i know are buggered after 2-3......

[cheese]

Yeah I'd get a leg over a 250/2 and a 250/4 before you make a decision. a modern 4 you feel like you could ride it all day.

[marks]

riding for 5-6 hours ??? shit, most people i know are buggered after 2-3......

Thats encouraging - I thought I was just a big girls blouse....


Yeah I'd get a leg over a 250/2 and a 250/4 before you make a decision. a modern 4 you feel like you could ride it all day.

there is a one major problem - everything you guys say is true - but the WR has turned me into a torque addict. Even when I'm just pootling along (which is most of the time) just knowing that one good twist of the throttle will give me that stomach churning BLAAAST makes the negatives just fade away. It might spit me off totally rooted at the end of a 3hr ride but the smile on my dial stays for days.

I just just want the fun to last for longer ....

[jimmy 2006]

have you riden a new crf250? or rmz250? if that an't enough power for anyone but a pro i would be very surprised........