yamaha or a katoom

rockcrawlerdude 10/2/2010 7:50pm
10/2/2010 7:50pm
yamazuki wrote:
The Yamaha is a superior bike even though old. Better suspension, you will be putting money into the ktm suspension and the linkless ( butt kicking)...
The Yamaha is a superior bike even though old. Better suspension, you will be putting money into the ktm suspension and the linkless ( butt kicking) suspension. Yamahas are reliable, parts are cheaper and more readily available, more durable, generaly a better bike. Remember the AMA SX where a KTM rider snapped his frame in half can't find the vid in the internet anymore, and that was a factory bike that had mechanics that made sure the bike was up to snuff. KTM did not earn the reputation for Kant Take Motocross for nothing. Good that they are steel framed so you can weld them back together, and you will be. LOL
But in all seriousness. I still would not buy one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtUj3br21_E&p=38FDCA2566A42430&playnext=…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmHeqCm0RsE
yamaha MAY have been superior 3years ago but the KTM is now the better bike, either bike will have to have suspensiion done to suit riders taste so cant bring up that arguement you know ive seen yamaha frames broken before too so just showing a pic of a 4 STROKE KTM broke isnt losing votes for the KTM 2 STOKE Tongue but for a 2010011 bike the KTM is the only one to buy....
Ing
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Ing 10/2/2010 8:07pm
10/2/2010 8:07pm



Wow, has this place ever changed. 2yrs. ago you wouldn't have found anyone on here recommending the Katoom. (except maybe me) Now the majority are recommending KTM's. Congratulations guys. You've all had a spiritual awakening. LOL




Kronreif Trunkenpolz Mattinghoffen rocks.
yamazuki
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yamazuki 10/2/2010 8:14pm
10/2/2010 8:14pm
rockcrawlerdude wrote:
yamaha MAY have been superior 3years ago but the KTM is now the better bike, either bike will have to have suspensiion done to suit riders...
yamaha MAY have been superior 3years ago but the KTM is now the better bike, either bike will have to have suspensiion done to suit riders taste so cant bring up that arguement you know ive seen yamaha frames broken before too so just showing a pic of a 4 STROKE KTM broke isnt losing votes for the KTM 2 STOKE Tongue but for a 2010011 bike the KTM is the only one to buy....
I have seen so many frames, hubs break. The 65 or 85 had major issues. Ktm at least in the past made their bikes lighter, you know what happens, they break easier. It is always a trade off. Lightness and power vs weight.

Except for Seth Enslow snapping his Yamaha in half I have not seen any Yamahas (take it back, did see a big kid on a Yamaha 85 that was raced by and expert rider for years, break his frame because the bike was thrashed and he was too big for the bike).

I think the Yamie has a lot of things going for it. If the guy is a novice rider, and passes the bike on to someone else after a few years of racing, he would be ok. Just seen to many issues with them at the track. That is just my observation and which causes me to not every buy one even if someday they were the fastest, lightest best suspended bike on the track, but the KTM 350 4 stroke seems like KTM is going for the lowest powered (compared to a 450, heaviest bike (compared to a 250 4 stroke) Just don't kare for KTM Sad
CamP
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CamP 10/2/2010 9:01pm
10/2/2010 9:01pm
They are both good bikes. I would buy the one that cost the least and based on a little research, that would be the Yamaha.

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Pat327
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Pat327 10/2/2010 9:48pm
10/2/2010 9:48pm Edited Date/Time 10/2/2010 9:51pm
We have an '06 YZ250 and an '08 KTM144SX. The YZ is good, but the KTM is amazing. I know it's apples and oranges with a 250 and a 144, but for what it's worth, I'd much rather ride the KTM. The brakes are so good they should be illegal and the overall build quality is second to none. Even if every Japanese manufacturer still made 2-strokes and updated them every few years, I'd still stick with KTM.
2T42
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2T42 10/2/2010 10:56pm
10/2/2010 10:56pm Edited Date/Time 10/2/2010 11:04pm
I have raced and owned them both. Rode both brands today as a matter of fact. I own a YZ125 and
YZ250 right now because I got a smokin deal and they are great bikes. The Yami comes with better
stock suspension, but who leaves them stock?

The KTM is better in every other category and the suspension can be made VERY good for little money.
Everything else about the YZ can not be made to match the KTM. The SX feels much lighter and is. The
hydro clutch will spoil you and your left clutch finger can take a vacation. All the modern features will
spoil you for anything else. air filter, motor flexibility with PV and ignition options. The SX handles like
a champ while the YZ is a chopper in comparison, but at least it's not a truck of a 450.

Things the YZ doesn't have and can't be fixed cheap or at all: Frame geometry/handling, light weight,
hydro clutch, Cromoly frame, smooth powerful motor, awesome brakes, PV and ignition options, easy
air filter changes and no pile of GD linkage bearings to grease and replace.

When the tests complain about a gas cap, you know it's a good bike.
bmbmoto
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bmbmoto 10/3/2010 2:00am
10/3/2010 2:00am
jgilps617 wrote:
im saving up for a new 2 stroke bike and i was wondering of i should go with a 2011 yamaha yz 250 or a ktm250...
im saving up for a new 2 stroke bike and i was wondering of i should go with a 2011 yamaha yz 250 or a ktm250 sx. was wondering if anybody had ridden these bikes and can tell me there opinions on them
slowvet wrote:
I'd check parts availability and price. The KTM is a good look'n scoot.
Parts for the ktm should be easy to come buy and reasonably priced i know that because of how many ktm owners (including myself) import thier gear from the states into oz mainly becuase it is cheaper than buying here and for the large range of parts etc that you can get there and not here.
2T42
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2T42 10/3/2010 7:52am
10/3/2010 7:52am
Parts are not an issue. I have owned both and It's not like a Yami dealer ever has the parts in stock I need either. Once you have to order them it's all the same timeframe. UPS does not care what brand parts are in the box. Now I DO think FedEx holds all KTM parts in a warehouse near area 51 for three extra days because Honda told them too.
newmann
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newmann 10/3/2010 8:53am
10/3/2010 8:53am
I figured someone would be around with broken old KTM photos. How about posting up some broken Yamaha aluminum frame photos? I've seen several of them over the last few years. Wasn't it a YOT bike that got hauled off the track in Houston in a front end loader?
project racer 10/3/2010 9:10am
10/3/2010 9:10am Edited Date/Time 10/3/2010 9:10am
newmann wrote:
I figured someone would be around with broken old KTM photos. How about posting up some broken Yamaha aluminum frame photos? I've seen several of them...
I figured someone would be around with broken old KTM photos. How about posting up some broken Yamaha aluminum frame photos? I've seen several of them over the last few years. Wasn't it a YOT bike that got hauled off the track in Houston in a front end loader?
Here's a nice Yamaha frame.

http://www.motocrossactionmag.com/Main/News/5333.aspx
adamdf
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adamdf 10/3/2010 9:25am
10/3/2010 9:25am
newmann wrote:
I figured someone would be around with broken old KTM photos. How about posting up some broken Yamaha aluminum frame photos? I've seen several of them...
I figured someone would be around with broken old KTM photos. How about posting up some broken Yamaha aluminum frame photos? I've seen several of them over the last few years. Wasn't it a YOT bike that got hauled off the track in Houston in a front end loader?
x2, i've seen them too, saw pics of an 06 YZ250F on thumpertalk one time, no brand is immune to flaws.....some of the things i see in threads like this are beyond me
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RACEGUY 10/3/2010 9:44am
10/3/2010 9:44am
newmann wrote:
I figured someone would be around with broken old KTM photos. How about posting up some broken Yamaha aluminum frame photos? I've seen several of them...
I figured someone would be around with broken old KTM photos. How about posting up some broken Yamaha aluminum frame photos? I've seen several of them over the last few years. Wasn't it a YOT bike that got hauled off the track in Houston in a front end loader?
project racer wrote:
Here's a nice Yamaha frame.

http://www.motocrossactionmag.com/Main/News/5333.aspx
Do I possibly recall (pardon the expression) Yamaha issuing a service bulletin for frame cracks just a couple of years ago? (Maybe they didn't do it in the US but the TSB - not a recall - suggested inspecting the steering neck/main spar area).

Maybe I dreamed all that.
adamdf
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adamdf 10/3/2010 10:19am
10/3/2010 10:19am Edited Date/Time 10/3/2010 10:21am
newmann wrote:
I figured someone would be around with broken old KTM photos. How about posting up some broken Yamaha aluminum frame photos? I've seen several of them...
I figured someone would be around with broken old KTM photos. How about posting up some broken Yamaha aluminum frame photos? I've seen several of them over the last few years. Wasn't it a YOT bike that got hauled off the track in Houston in a front end loader?
project racer wrote:
Here's a nice Yamaha frame.

http://www.motocrossactionmag.com/Main/News/5333.aspx
RACEGUY wrote:
Do I possibly recall (pardon the expression) Yamaha issuing a service bulletin for frame cracks just a couple of years ago? (Maybe they didn't do it...
Do I possibly recall (pardon the expression) Yamaha issuing a service bulletin for frame cracks just a couple of years ago? (Maybe they didn't do it in the US but the TSB - not a recall - suggested inspecting the steering neck/main spar area).

Maybe I dreamed all that.
Yamaha also had a recall on their 06 YZ250Fs for faulty valves, some were breaking..i had an 06 bak then and had the recall done..i still love yamahas and still loved the bike even after the recall, they dealt with the problem and didn't turn their back on their customers, that is admirable.....KTM cares just as much...for people to be posting pictures of older model/generation KTM's cracking is jus ridiculous....sometimes people feel the need to say something, even if what they know isn't relevant to the topic or helpful at all, they just want to have a voice, and if all they can say about KTMs is that they saw a picture of a frame that was cracked, then that's what their going to post....notice they are the same ones who dont have any experience on the modern era KTM's or to take it a step further, the 2011 KTM in question in this thread....



ANd before someone chimes in and say's im drinking some sort of orange cool aid, i dont own a KTM, i'm riding kawis at the moment, but i have owned a couple of KTMs and they were great too...
newmann
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newmann 10/3/2010 5:38pm
10/3/2010 5:38pm Edited Date/Time 10/3/2010 5:38pm
Not the one I was looking for Project racer, but that pretty much sums up the Yamaha's problem.

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TerryK 10/3/2010 6:07pm
10/3/2010 6:07pm
yamazuki wrote:
I have seen so many frames, hubs break. The 65 or 85 had major issues. Ktm at least in the past made their bikes lighter, you...
I have seen so many frames, hubs break. The 65 or 85 had major issues. Ktm at least in the past made their bikes lighter, you know what happens, they break easier. It is always a trade off. Lightness and power vs weight.

Except for Seth Enslow snapping his Yamaha in half I have not seen any Yamahas (take it back, did see a big kid on a Yamaha 85 that was raced by and expert rider for years, break his frame because the bike was thrashed and he was too big for the bike).

I think the Yamie has a lot of things going for it. If the guy is a novice rider, and passes the bike on to someone else after a few years of racing, he would be ok. Just seen to many issues with them at the track. That is just my observation and which causes me to not every buy one even if someday they were the fastest, lightest best suspended bike on the track, but the KTM 350 4 stroke seems like KTM is going for the lowest powered (compared to a 450, heaviest bike (compared to a 250 4 stroke) Just don't kare for KTM Sad
When did Enslow snap a Yamaha in half?
rockcrawlerdude 10/3/2010 6:42pm
10/3/2010 6:42pm
2T42 wrote:
Parts are not an issue. I have owned both and It's not like a Yami dealer ever has the parts in stock I need either. Once...
Parts are not an issue. I have owned both and It's not like a Yami dealer ever has the parts in stock I need either. Once you have to order them it's all the same timeframe. UPS does not care what brand parts are in the box. Now I DO think FedEx holds all KTM parts in a warehouse near area 51 for three extra days because Honda told them too.
not if you order from MunnKTM and last time i had to order a part even my local KTM dealer (TJ'Ss in Austin, TX) had it in 2 days so parts availability isnt an issue these days...

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