Advice needed on buying a smoker!

[nosebleed]

pro's

*you'll look cool when riding it
*you can say "im so cool ive got a aprilia"
*no cars can burn you off at the lights"

con's

*you'll probualy kill yourself on it
*your not ready for a bike of this power
*it costs lots to run

im not trying to be as arse but, you like many other riders out there make the mistake of thinking "if i can afford it i can ride it" but thats not the case thats why many bikers kill themselfs every year. Trust me your not expirienced enough for this bike get a kr150 or rg150

Pros:
*Bingo
*Bingo ++
*Bingo

Cons:
Dude they're not some MacGyveresque leaky stick of dynamite that go off if you even so much as look at them wrong

I see you own a VFR400. THAT'S what I'd really like to get, more so a RVF400 like this one http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/List...x?id=232865004. Those bikes suit my riding style perfectly, but I better keep it legal until maybe Xmas or even save a little more and get the new model. I'll be taking a friends RS250 for a decent spin to see 2 stroke riding is for me... the mechanical maintenance and running costs are something I'll deal with as they come if the riding gets me off.

Bingo!

[motorbyclist]

so, how was the testride?

[jade]

God some shit gets posted on the internet
I only read the first 4 pages, forgive me if Im in the wrong since then
Imdying and 1 other person seem to be the only people who know what they are talking about, The people that are telling you all this crap have never ridden 2 strokes - they have just 'heard' all this stuff and are quoting myths

I own my 2nd rs250, a 2000 model - the first was a 94, (production ran from 94-03), before that - I learnt to ride on an NSR250

where do I start, jesus its frustrating.
Ok, #1 - if you can stay upright on a 250 4 stroke then you are going to be ok on these more powerful bikes, yes it goes faster, and yes it takes longer to stop, the power does not come unpredictably or 'spin the wheels' in the blink of an eye.
In the wet, you can spin the rear in the first 3 gears in a straight line no problem
Personally I have only managed to spin the rear 3 times in the dry, and I was trying to do it all 3 times - and 2 of them were so slight they didnt count, the only way you are going to spin the rear in the dry is holding it dead at the sweet spot then leaning over as far as you can go then pinning it
and even then probably only the first 2 gears, Its not an issue - dont twist the throttle too hard.
My RS doesnt make 72hp like claimed, Realisticly its 60 - rgv250.co.uk will tell you that 70hp for the road requires alot of expensive tuning.
In saying that, 1st gear you can flip the bike if you know what you are doing without any clutch (good yank on the bars though)

#2 Reliability, Whilst 2 strokes are renowned for blowing up/fucking out, in my 3 bikes I havent had ANY issues, and I wheelie them, do burnouts, stoppies and thrash the fuck out of them all day every day.

Warm it up idleing for 5 minutes, warm it up below 5000rpm while riding for another 3-5 minutes, then fucking send it

"top end rebuilds" consist of normally, pistons, piston rings, head gasket/ base gasket
The last one I did (having never opened an engine up in my life) I replaced all the above, + gudgeon pins, circlips and small end bearings

I went to my local Suzuki dealer, gave them the part numbers then went and picked up the parts a few days later - TOTAL COST 560 bucks. Put them in myself, what does a service cost ?

Are powervalves a weakpoint ? Supposedly, definately on the rgv, less so on the RS - my bike has gone 33,000 km without any inspection, cleaning or issues - I will inspect/clean when I rebuild shortly (my powervalves have drains)
A top end rebuild is supposed to be done every 10,000 miles, thats 16,000km, I did mine at 26,000 - there were no issues with the bike whatsoever. Warm it up - take care of it and its fine.

Pillions, Yea you can Pillion, had mates on the back, had the missus on the back for 3-4 months, makes wheelies really easy, wouldnt like to do a long distance trip, but I wouldnt want to do it on a 400 either ?

Torque/Road usability - Its fine, Its a motorbike - you twist the throttle let the clutch out and it goes forwards - you can ride all the way up to 6th gear without ever going into the powerband, slower yes, but it will work - its not ALL or nothing like people say - but when you do go into the band - dont you love the noise and acceleration ? My bike gets used as my only form of transport to go to work, trackdays and lane splitting through auckland traffic, actually really good for lanesplitting, cruising at the right revs it is perfect for nipping into gaps that appear then rolling back off the throttle to the same spot for the next one

The problem with these bikes is they love being thrashed, I am exactly the sort of person who should not have one, I have crashed them, rebuilt them, lost my licence 4 times on them, twice from demerits, twice for 28 days from being done at 200km/h, So If you want one, what you need is self control, These bikes will make you a better rider, from both the skill needed to get the most from it and making sure you are in the right gear for entry and exit, rather than riding round in 1 gear on a 4stroke but also maintaining your bike mechanically.
Yes they require more maintenence, but its do it at home shit, Its fun im self taught since owning a 2 stroke and I love tinkering with it anytime.

What else can I say, it looks good, goes good - parts are available - be it rgv parts from a suzuki dealer, genuine aprilia parts from af1racing - or bolt on trick shit from rgv250.co.uk which also happens to have a wealth of knowledge relating to every possible aspect of the bike.
It has top of the line brakes, good suspension, perfect chassis and an awesome engine, easy to work on, fast, light and looks the ducks nuts ?

It'll do a sub 12 second 1/4 mile and will beat any 600 up to 150km/h

I know mine intimately and ride it every day, can control it on either wheel and lean it as far as it goes, yet its still got more to give on the track than I do - I can put it to maybe 50% of its use on the track ?
I know this because even though I was knee down and getting on the gas, a good rider on a 125 race bike went around me and passed me..
Its going up in value too with the 250's getting phased out of motogp.

Ive been in aus for 14 months now, I came back in may to check on my bike in storage, pulled it out, connected the battery and turned it on... and put it back away - Im coming back in a month and gonna spend 3k on it, Whilst I want a thou, Ill wait till summers over, Im happy with the power my bike makes and losing my licence is proof it has enough for the road, Ill never, EVER sell it, unless im building a 500...


Questions ?

[Leyton]

God some shit gets posted on the internet
I only read the first 4 pages, forgive me if Im in the wrong since then
Imdying and 1 other person seem to be the only people who know what they are talking about, The people that are telling you all this crap have never ridden 2 strokes - they have just 'heard' all this stuff and are quoting myths

You seam to thrash on about how you wheelie, bin, loose license 4 times. Yet you provide another perspective on the topic. Well done

As for knocking people for giving their perspective, then follow by you giving yours, that's blatently disrespectfull shame on you.

But then again.... I would go on to say your post is fairly genuine and you have given it deep thought... cool.

Red rep me if you please, I don't give a F@%k

[jade]

Just as a bit extra - Ive always used Castrol TTS from super cheap auto, 27 bucks a litre - every 6-7 tanks I guess ? Filler her up - it lasts for ages

Its also worth noting, that on the 4th day of ownership of my NSR, I highsided at 0kph pulling out of a driveway in the wet, I later went on to hit a car at a decent rate of knots breaking my femeur in 5 places, I spent 4 months on crutches fixing my bike, put vfr forks on it with homemade alloy brackets to hold the callipers on it... Rode it and crashed it when the front wheel locked up 15 minutes into its maiden voyage, Got it home, Remade the brackets so the callipers WERENT rubbing on the discs.. Rode it for a few months, thrashed it, sold it - Even got through a wof LOL ! ... then upgraded to my first RS..
Im doing alright nowdays though, little bit older and wiser,
Driving cars can still be a problem, im alright at reversing - its when shit gets in front of me I have problems

Hell yeah Im a sick cunt

(seriously though im not young and dumb anymore, I dont crash, Im 23 now..)

[NDORFN]

Well I'm off to pick up my new ZXR250 today BUT... I'm utterly sold on the idea of a 2 stroke. I'm convinced that the happy medium for me is to buy a cheap one and use it primarily for blasting around the back roads and on trackdays. The ZXR is in absolutely mint condition and has a warranty and all the rest so I'll be able to spend all my garage time on the 2 stroke, which is new mechanical territory for me and I'm really looking foward to it. Thanks to everyone for the advice. I'm glad I didn't bowl out and buy an RS250, and even glader that I looked into the idea of getting a 2 stroke. Cheers!

[jade]

^^ smart fellah

[Cheshire Cat]

You seam to thrash on about how you wheelie, bin, loose license 4 times. Yet you provide another perspective on the topic. Well done

As for knocking people for giving their perspective, then follow by you giving yours, that's blatently disrespectfull shame on you.

But then again.... I would go on to say your post is fairly genuine and you have given it deep thought... cool.

Red rep me if you please, I don't give a F@%k

Yeah! Shame on you so I'll hit you on the head with a hammer

[imdying]

I'm utterly sold on the idea of a 2 stroke.

No surprise there... nobody in their right mind ever brought bigger bikes and then a few years later returned to a 4 stroke 250 to keep them company...

[Ooky]

Just as a bit extra - Ive always used Castrol TTS from super cheap auto, 27 bucks a litre - every 6-7 tanks I guess ? Filler her up - it lasts for ages

heard mixed reviews on that in the RS / RSG's


and well done on the k's without even having to remove and clean powervalves still need to get some of those vents if doing a rebuild soon able to post up how badly gum'd up the valves were?

[jade]

Yep will do, bowt 6 weeks

[motorbyclist]

Thanks to everyone for the advice. I'm glad I didn't bowl out and buy an RS250, and even glader that I looked into the idea of getting a 2 stroke. Cheers!

good move + good attitude = great success!

fark this is probably the best outcome of one of these threads on KB ever.