Posts
5
Joined
8/6/2024
Location
calgary, AB, CA
im around 5’10 im 200lbs (losing weight still trying to hit 165) but in the mean time im thinking of getting a new bike and i want to get a yz125 but i dont know if i am too big for it. I ride motorcross and want to start getting into some races but i dont know if the 125 will pull me around the track and up big jumps. Just dont want to spend a massive amount of money for it to be a bad purchase. Any thoughts would be much appreciated!
I hover around 175-182lbs and i got a 2022 YZ125 for this season. I have stopped racing and i only ride 25-30 hours per year at this point in my life, so i thought i would try a 125 for the fun factor.
Well, it is fun on hard packed and smaller tracks. I can go pretty fast on it (1-2 seconds slower than on a 450) and it is rewarding. And i love how light it is! But the issues start the second i go to a soft sand track or any kind of track that is a bit heavier. It is so slow, and it gets annoying after a while. I know i will get down votes for saying that but that is the truth.
To me, having a 125 as the only bike you ride is not optimal if you actually want to go fast and also ride softer/deeper tracks. For me it would be the perfect complement to a 4-stroke, a fun bike to ride 10-15h a year. But not as the only bike you ride and definitely not the only bike you race (unless all the other people are also racing on 125s and are older/heavier). This will be an unpopular opinion for a lot of people but so be it.
Can’t go wrong with a 250F any colour, 125s are a lot of fun if your fast, fit, super aggressive and can wring the piss out of it the whole way around the track - if you don’t fit in this category I’d save yourself the hassle and buy a low hr 250F
as i am still not of age and able to move out yet my step dad insists on me getting a 125 because they are cheaper to re build if they blow up. I already asked him if i could get a 250F (im the one paying btw) and he said no
im 6 foot, and 190 pounds, over a 20 min moto im just as fast on a 125 than i am on 450, and probaly faster in the last few laps, if you are racing, in a open class you will struggle a bit on the starts, but for general riding, you will be fine, and riding a 125 will teach you better habits,
The Shop
Free shipping: VITALMX
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
DeCal Works Huge Plastic Inventory of UFO and Polisport kits.
At 200lbs it will be hard to really be fast and you will pay for any small mistake, which will probably help you be better in the long run. It may be a good source of motivation to keep losing weight because if you get into the 170-180lbs range it will make a noticeable difference. Try to convince your dad to let you get an austrian 150. I don’t know how good the new FI generation is, but the old carb one were fast and at your curre t weight it might be the little extra that you need. And like others have said, hey are fun as hell!
Just get a YZ250. Put a gytr heavy flywheel on it, jet it properly, and maybe play with gearing a small bit... you won't regret it. Nearly all the fun of the 125 but with more than enough power to ride anywhere/do anything.
If you get hardcore into moto, besides getting your suspension revealed, look at beefing up your front brake. Thats the one thing I'm not super excited about my YZ.
I've had more fun on my 125's than my KX450 lately. I have a 2004 CR125 and 2003 RM125 that I thinker with. I'm 6'2 240lbs. At all the local tracks I ride at, I'm able to clear all the big jumps but it's hard :p
Being heavier on a small bore 2 stroke, you'll need to keep your momentum up as much as possible, because if it boggs, you're stuck for a little bit until you can get it back up and moving.
Will he let you get a 150 or 250 2 stroke? They are about the same cost to rebuild as a 125 but obviously have more power.
Don't start a beef with your step dad, at least he's cool with you riding. it will always end with "my house, my rules". Be happy and rev that thing
I second the carb 150 plenty of bike especially with a little bit of motor work for your weight but will also teach you all the skills to keep your momentum up and super light and agile!
KTM 150SX is exactly what you need! Im 5'10 and 210lbs with gear on. I also have a YZ250F. The 150 clears everything the 250f does for me.
Ask Profeshenal about his Cr125
I’m still looking for a 2018 125/150
I'll name 9 ways you can go wrong with a 250F:
-Heavy
-Hot
-Flameouts
-Hard to start (well, not so much anymore, now that they had to add 4 additional pounds' worth of electric start)
-Pipe burns your leg, melts your boots and pants
-Sounds like shit
-People 14 miles away know that it sounds like shit (it's LOUD)
-More complex to maintain
-More expensive
How much riding experience do you have? And you looking at a modern 125 or something 20+ years old? For a new or well maintained 125 your size and weight would be fine. But if you are new to riding a 250F would be easier to ride and learn on, and cheaper too.
IMO it is more or less do you think you will be able to (or want to) ride a 125 properly. You can throw a 300lb dude on a 125 and he will be able to ride it, but he may not have any fun. If you think you can keep it screaming and relish in it, you will have a blast. If you are not used to clutching the shit out of it and constant shifting, (the power really is only at the top, nowhere else), you may think "dang, this is way too much work". And as others have mentioned, if you ride in sand or loam, you may feel a real struggle to keep momentum (which I actually enjoy on a 125, you feel like you are hauling balls but.. you are not lol). If you ride on mid or hardpack, life is a lot easier. You are big, but not too big for a 125, you can ride one all day, but riding one fast is work that is either an absolute treat, or an annoyance depending on what you are looking for.
I think a lot of us that were raised on 2 strokes, absolutely love them. Some of the folks that were raised on 4 strokes, don't like the work it takes to ride a 125 2 stroke fast, it is definitely more work. It is why I have a 4 stroke when the mood calls, and a 125 when I want that fun too, which also is usually decided by what track I ride. You have no idea how many times I have wondered if I had to pick my 350 or my 125, and had to get rid of one, which one would I keep? I still don't know that answer.
about 10 years of riding experience track and trails
im looking for a 2022-24 yz125
Pit Row
Depends on skill level and what class if you are racing. I race 40 + Jr on a 23 YZ125. Yes race starts are usually shitty, but everywhere else I ride the piss out of that thing and it is great. A few weeks ago at a Washougal race my wife commented how fast I was going up horsepower hill compared to the guys around me…they were tired and had to back it down just to survive.
My son who is a very timid beginner on an 03 KX125 thinks he needs more power to be able to clear jumps. In reality he just needs to ride it more aggressive.
Oh sorry forgot to mention above that I was 224 lbs at the beginning the year….now down to 209 lbs.
In racing they use to say 1hp = 10kg (or 2.2pound in American). So if we say that a modern ktm125 today is around 36-38hp depending on the type of dyno.
And the normal 125 rider weigh around 65-70kg (154) you would be 2-2.5hp short of the lighter rider. And im sure you can live with that 5% power deficit.
And if you were to buy a ktm 150 you would be at the same power to weight ratio as a 70kg rider on a 125.
The weight is not the big problem hindering guys on going fast on a 125, it’s the skill. So yes, your body would do fine on a 125/150, then it’s up to your skill to ride it the way it needs to be ridden to go fast.
But large guys with less skill often blame their weight when they don’t manage to rev the 125 as it should.
Well that kinda settles it. But fwiw, I'm 60, 185lbs. and still love riding my 144.
Yes, you will be at a power disadvantage and they are harder to ride, but you will learn corner speed and clutch work. Keep working to get to your target weight and work on the riding skills and techniques. Yes, you are going to get worked some by bigger bikes but you will be much further ahead for the time when you are able to get on a 250F.
Brother, get a 250 two stroke. I've had about 20 bikes, but my all time favourite was my RM250 2009. I rode everything from moto to enduro with it, and clocked about 300 hours on it.
In my opinion, you just cannot go wrong with a 250 two stroke. Cheap, easy to maintenance, fun, fast... It does it all, unless you are Johnny Supercross.
Get a YZ250, you will have a blast with it.
Not on a 125 any more but this would have been my response verbatim
I'm 6'4" 200lbs and picked up a 2022 KTM 125 last year and it has been a blast. I'm faster on my KTM 250 2-stroke, but the 125 still rips and I've actually been really surprised at how well it pulls me around. You should have no problem on a YZ125 to hit any jumps or pull up hills.
Get a YZ250, you have more power and will have to rebuild it less often. Get an APEX head for it and follow their jetting specs.
Your not wrong Falc - but neither am I. To the OP short answer is no your not to big for a 125 at all, you can jump on the thing and haul the mail all day long. Listen to your step dad & get out there and have some good ol fashion FUN. Let us all know what you end up buying.
Are you going to LL? Who gives a fuck! Don't listen to these jabronies saying you need a 450, nobody needs a 450. You know the 125 is going to be maximum fun just get the YZ.
Too bad you're not East Coast...dealer out this way has a new 24' for $5800
Bro, are we the exact same person?
Post a reply to: Too big for a 125 2 stroke?