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Only $10 for all 2026 SX, MX, and SMX series.
I was told that the new SX frame wasn't to a Vet riders liking. So yup, it's a mixed bag. Soil type and conditions have a great influence of course.
To be certain, it's fortunate to have a new big-bore option. It could be a needle change and PV adjustment away from what ever is desired and a re-vale away from at least equaling Yamahas level.
Beta just posted the US prices for the 2026 RX's..
Has anyone reviewed the 250rx? How does it compare to the 250 RE?
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MXA was supposed to do a test of the 250 and compare it to the 350. Not sure when that’s gonna come out. In short, Mossiman seemed pretty enthused about it.
I have only listened to one early review from Italy on it. The 250 has a different transmission, crankshaft, cylinder and cases from the 350 and 300 RX's. The 250 is tuned more aggressively with a much higher compression ratio and more agressive ignition mapping. The focus of the review was more on the 350, but they did say that the 250 has an engine designed for a very different purpose with more mid and up power, and suitable for serious MX racing, whereas for the 350, they were rather negative regarding its suitability for serious MX racing. On the 350, they said that it wasn't just the engine's low-end grunt focus, but also that the power was soft and slower to rev to enhance rideability so it would have difficulty hanging with a 450 4T. In contrast, they really liked the 250 RX's power. It is not just a displacement difference, but Beta intentionally designed the two bikes for very different riders.
That makes sense thanks!
On Nev Bradshaws YT 350 racing clips, he grabs a hole shot against 450's. Keep in mind a 250 will always feel quicker than 300+ cc's. Fortunately one can tune the carb and powervalve to have what ever power delivery desired. There is bound to be a needle that will make explosive power and it will require short shifting, so your back to slower revs.
The 350 RX is unlikely to be a total slouch, but I think Nevelle Bradshaw's hole shot was probably more rider ability than the bike. Certainly anyone can up the compression ratio, port the cylinder, add a bigger carb and remap the 350 RX to make it a fire breather, but it would be a bit of work especially if the goal is to make it competitive for serious racing, when you would probably still be better off with the 450 4 stroke. If it is for "kicks and giggles", then a hopped-up fire breathing 350 RX would definitely be cool.
I don't think anybody needs it to be a fire breather, it already runs with 450's. I've seen a slightly mod'd CRF230 pass half the pack in the Vet Worlds at GH and it was only due to riders having no need to be on a 450.
Anywho, my point was it can easily be enhanced. I myself wasn't thinking that there is a serious class for the 350 or that it will need to go out and dominate 450's.
It sounds like an all purpose, sweet vet or open class bike. Nothing wrong with that.
Mosiman sure seamed to be impressed!
Here's Mossman's' / MXAs' video on the 350 - apologies if it's already been put up here - he said they've a fair bit of 250 / 300 / 350 2t video coming in the next weeks:
Yep. The cool thing is you have 350cc to work with. Good tuners can probably get lots of power outta this thing. Head work, porting, pipe, reed cage, dyno, etc.
Here is a new test of the Beta 350 RX and probably one of the better reviews... 2026 BETA 350 TWO STROKE TEST
Yeah, I was really surprised that he thought the 350 RX had less low-end power and that you had to shift more than the 300 RX. That is the exact opposite of what I expected from this motor, if the focus was on making it easier to ride.
Pit Row
I like Beta’s FU attitude to the motocross industry. They’re saying “F all of yall, weee gonna build what we want and what’s cool!”
I can just sit and stare at my 450RX for hours. Thing of beauty.
Beta USA just started shipping the 2026's to dealers. Anyone have the new 350 or 250 RX on order?
It'll be interesting to see how sloppy the squishband spec will be.
For those of you considering a 2026 Beta 250 or 350 RX, I thought you might want to hear a little more about my experiences with the 2025 300 RX since all 3 bikes are the exact same bike except for the engines, although they may have softened the suspension on the new 350 a bit. Keep in mind that I am an aging rider well into in my 60s and I am getting slower as I age, but I have been riding MX for about 57 years. It is us vet riders that the 300 and 350 RX are aimed at (as opposed to the 250 which is reported to be a different animal).
My first time out on the Beta RX didn’t go so well, as the suspension was stiff as heck right from the first inch of travel and the track was extremely rough. Also, although my size 10 boots are fairly average, I had major trouble shifting as well as finding the brake pedal as they were too tucked in under the plane of the side of the fuel tank, and required angling in of my foot to grab these pedals. I now have had more time on the bike and thus far I have been able to fix all of the issues I had with the exception of the rear shock. I am still working on the shock.
Beta sells a longer shift lever (made by hammerhead) that also puts the tip further out and has more to grab onto, as well as a much bigger titanium brake pedal tip right on their website. These two easy changes instantly solved the problem I had finding the pedals. I no longer feel that the transmission is notchy which is probably a combination of the transmission breaking-in (others had mentioned this is often the case) and the easier reach of the shifter. The bike shifts great now. I had also complained about a grabby Nissin front brake at slower speed, but when I disassembled the front caliper, I saw a big piece of one of the front brake pads missing. That might have been contributing to the problem, but I replaced the whole caliper with a CNC aftermarket brake caliper with better modulation anyway. No more grabby front brake now. Even before you test ride one of these Beta’s, just sitting on the bike, you notice the wider fuel tank/ shroud right at the knee area, as well as the harder seat foam which makes you feel like you are sitting more on top of the bike, compared to a Japanese brand. Most people that have sat on a Beta mention these two points even before riding it. What I did was replace the stock seat foam with GUTS soft foam and now it feels just like I was sitting on a Japanese brand in terms of comfort, as well as feeling I am sitting into the bike rather than on top of it. Beta redesigned the RX fuel tank in 2025. They made it smaller, but there is a lot of unused space where they could have easily made the tank narrower with the same capacity. I hope they redesign again, but that said, I absolutely don’t notice the wider bike at the knees when riding. I am switching back and forth between the Beta and a CRF450 right now, and the wider Beta tank just isn’t noticeable when riding.
As for the engine, I think it is a really good engine as long as you remember what it was designed for.. more low-end power that most vet riders like, and there is a lot of room for adjustment to make it more to your liking, including exhaust valve adjustment, jetting (she is a little bit rich from the factory as most carbed bikes are), and the rear sprocket size. I leaned out the air screw to 3 turns out and that allowed me to carry 3rd gear through the turns almost like on my 450. Before I did that, I had to go through the turns in 2nd at a higher RPM and you get too much of a hit (this engine in stock settings has a very noticeable hit) so you end up wheeling out of the tighter corners. Fun, but not the fastest or smoothest way around a track. I just got some new jetting specs (different needle as well as smaller main and pilot jets) that are supposed to make a significant change in the motor’s characteristics (and it is not so bad with the stock jetting as long as you lean out the air screw).. the new jetting is reported to have better pull down low, crisper throttle response and a longer pull on top. This jetting is leaner than stock, so I might not re-jet the carb until next spring as the weather is getting cooler fast here in the northeast.
As for the handling, consistent with what everyone else has said, from day one the Beta has been great. The bike feels very light and nimble. It is stable and I don’t think I have ever had a bike that turns better than this one, even compared to my 2T RM’s. The front wheel just sticks like no other. This is where the Beta shines.
Lastly, the Kayaba suspension. I am 194 lbs w/o gear and the bike was very stiff the first few rides.. much more so than any other new bike I have had. I like some comfort in the first inch or two of travel and then have it get more progressive through the stoke, but I felt that the valving is stiff right from the first inch of travel on the Beta fork and shock. The fork really loosened up a lot after several rides and I no longer have any major problems with the fork. I have had more problems with the rear shock valving with the biggest issue being the ridiculously heavy rebound dampening. With stock clicker settings, the rebound was so slow, you could barely detect the shock extending when pushing down on the seat. Is this something the enduro guys like? Anyway, I felt that the rear shock was packing through the rough, and I noticed that even with a seat bounce over a jump, the front would ride higher than other bikes and I had to do more work to keep the front lower. I softened the rebound to 20 clicks out and it instantly started jumping normally and felt better through the rough. The rebound is still slower than all my other bikes, however. Like the forks, the shock compression is stiff right from the first inch of travel. It gets better if I soften the LSC, but then I start to get too much bottoming. Stiffening the LSC brought back too much harshness. It has gotten noticeably better as I put more time on the bike, but I think a re-valve is definitely in order for the shock. I am anxious for my suspension guy to take a look at the valve shim stacks to see if he thinks the valving is a bit unorthodox for a production MX bike. If I can get the suspension close to what I have on my other bikes, this bike would be great IMHO.
In summary, there was a point in time where I was thinking I may have made a mistake buying this bike. I know that with a YZ250, I am comfortable with that bike right off the showroom floor. The Beta needed a few changes, but they were easy and fairly cheap, and Beta even sells these parts right on their website. I have made many other changes to the bike, but I am only mentioning the ones that really made a significant difference. I am really starting to like the bike and it has much more character, and becoming more fun to ride than the trusty, old YZ platform. It will be interesting to compare the new Beta 250 RX with the YZ250, but the 300 RX is bit of a different animal. The Beta is a good fit for older vet riders like me that like the taller handlebar to seat, as well as lower peg to seat positioning. We are lazier and don’t like to bend as much. It may not be a mid to top end motor like the YZ, but that’s not what most older vet riders want. We sit more, don’t carry speed like we used to, and prefer to torque over the jumps.. and that is where the Beta 300 shines. At this point, I am happy with everything after the changes except for the rear shock valving. At my age, I am fussy and don’t like to have to make compromises. If I can get the rear suspension to where I want it, I know I will have made the right choice in my pursuit of a fun classic carbed 2 stroke even considering the changes I needed to make. It is a pretty cool bike, a bit different from what the Japanese and Austrian brands are offering, and certainly can out-corner them in the tight stuff.
Care to share the new jetting specs?
Thx!
As I'm getting older and find myself riding 50/50 MX & XC this could be a good option for me.
Looking forward to some reviews.
Only on condition that you report back how it worked out for you
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Stock New
Needle N0ZD N1EH
Clip position 3rd from top 2nd from top
Main jet 180 178
Pilot jet 45 40
Beta has the carb parts in stock and they ship quick.
Beta please change your name :beerscheers:
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