What should I do with one of my bikes?

Sell it to me for 4200

Or maybe sell it and get a 125/150 to learn to ride a two stroke properly without the big power of a 250

Learn how to ride that smoker = Better on the 250F...

How should a two stroke be ridden? People seem to have this perception that unless you ride it wide-open, and exactly like RC or JS, you aren't riding it properly. That's just simply not true. 250 2ts are extremely effective when you short-shift and use the meat of the power vs revving them... Loud noise doesn't equal faster...

But my answer is just ride it, or sell it and save the money for gas and oil (and an eventual rebuild) for the 250f.

Monk wrote:

How should a two stroke be ridden? People seem to have this perception that unless you ride it wide-open, and exactly like RC or JS, you aren't riding it properly. That's just simply not true. 250 2ts are extremely effective when you short-shift and use the meat of the power vs revving them... Loud noise doesn't equal faster...

But my answer is just ride it, or sell it and save the money for gas and oil (and an eventual rebuild) for the 250f.

That's just it. I have always thought a 250 2t should be ridden wide-open most of the time, which I don't do.

I do love the KTM, but I guess I've been unsure about how to ride it. I'm going out to my usual track next Wednesday if the weather cooperates, so maybe I'll take both bikes and really spend time on the KTM.

Monk wrote:

How should a two stroke be ridden? People seem to have this perception that unless you ride it wide-open, and exactly like RC or JS, you aren't riding it properly. That's just simply not true. 250 2ts are extremely effective when you short-shift and use the meat of the power vs revving them... Loud noise doesn't equal faster...

But my answer is just ride it, or sell it and save the money for gas and oil (and an eventual rebuild) for the 250f.

mnoble0902 wrote:

That's just it. I have always thought a 250 2t should be ridden wide-open most of the time, which I don't do.

I do love the KTM, but I guess I've been unsure about how to ride it. I'm going out to my usual track next Wednesday if the weather cooperates, so maybe I'll take both bikes and really spend time on the KTM.

No, you just ride it where you feel comfortable... I've been passed by guys who just idle their bikes, and others who rev their bikes...

3

1 youll get faster on both

Monk wrote:

How should a two stroke be ridden? People seem to have this perception that unless you ride it wide-open, and exactly like RC or JS, you aren't riding it properly. That's just simply not true. 250 2ts are extremely effective when you short-shift and use the meat of the power vs revving them... Loud noise doesn't equal faster...

But my answer is just ride it, or sell it and save the money for gas and oil (and an eventual rebuild) for the 250f.

mnoble0902 wrote:

That's just it. I have always thought a 250 2t should be ridden wide-open most of the time, which I don't do.

I do love the KTM, but I guess I've been unsure about how to ride it. I'm going out to my usual track next Wednesday if the weather cooperates, so maybe I'll take both bikes and really spend time on the KTM.

Monk wrote:

No, you just ride it where you feel comfortable... I've been passed by guys who just idle their bikes, and others who rev their bikes...

I'll keep this in mind and get the KTM out and figure out what I want to do. Thanks.

Monk wrote:

How should a two stroke be ridden? People seem to have this perception that unless you ride it wide-open, and exactly like RC or JS, you aren't riding it properly. That's just simply not true. 250 2ts are extremely effective when you short-shift and use the meat of the power vs revving them... Loud noise doesn't equal faster...

But my answer is just ride it, or sell it and save the money for gas and oil (and an eventual rebuild) for the 250f.

This man is correct. You don’t need to be balls out pinned everywhere, I’m usually a gear higher than anyone else and somehow I’m miraculously able to go fast on a two stroke still.

Defiantly sell that POS.














And learn to ride the pumpkin properly

Seriously though, like it was mentioned before, the KTM doesn't need to be screaming all the time to take you to the next corner FAST. It is certainly different than your Yamaha, I would give it a chance, spend some time on it and inhale deeply while doing that. Smell is one of the reasons I moved to 2 strokes.

mnoble0902 wrote:

That's just it. I have always thought a 250 2t should be ridden wide-open most of the time, which I don't do.

I do love the KTM, but I guess I've been unsure about how to ride it. I'm going out to my usual track next Wednesday if the weather cooperates, so maybe I'll take both bikes and really spend time on the KTM.

LOL, If you could ride your KTM 250 2T wide open most of the time around a track, you'd belong alongside the pros at the next SX race. I have a mildly modified YZ250 (2T) and its actually a bit of a handful when on the pipe and hooked up...
My favorite advise to anyone that rides it, " Make sure you have it pointed in a safe direction before opening the throttle".

The 250sx engine is smooth, you can get away with being a gear high a lot of the time, it's not worlds apart from a 4stroke.

Id sell the ktm and use it for your suspension. Keep the extra money for rebuilds and stuff like that. Dont kid yourself, if you dont like the bike youre not going to ride it. Dont leave your money depreciating in the garage.

Something I noticed when I was at the track with my 250 2T is I love my bike. I rode a guys 350 (my bike '18 250sx his bike '18 350sxf so same frame and suspension) and once I hopped back on my bike I hated it. The power delivery is so different that I quit riding for the day because I didn't like my bike anymore (we've kissed and made up since). I stick to either riding just 2 strokes or if a buddy wants me to ride their 4T I wait until late in the day when I'm not going to ride much more. This maybe part of your problem if you're riding them back to back on the same day.

Overall learning to ride the 2T well is going to make you faster on a 4T because you don't have to work as much. 2T you learn corner speed and late braking which will translate over to the 4T.

I'd say sell it and get a 125/150. Ride the 125 for 2 months and take what you learn from that and transfer it to the 250f. If you can get a 125 around a track quickly you'll be amazed at how well you can get around on that 250f. Just my .02. Good luck either way.

If someone is struggling to ride a 250 two stroke, why in the world would you suggest he sell it and buy a 125? Do you want the guy to quit from frustration? 250 smokers, especially the new KTM, are much easier to ride than a 125. Put the yellow powervalve spring in it, back the set screw out flush with the cover. The bike will be linear smooth, but still make good power.

Also, some people just fit 4 strokes better. If you do not agree with the bike, sell it.

If you like to lug the bike you could convert it to a 300, put a gnarly pipe on it, and have the perfect bike for your riding style.

BobPA wrote:

If someone is struggling to ride a 250 two stroke, why in the world would you suggest he sell it and buy a 125? Do you want the guy to quit from frustration? 250 smokers, especially the new KTM, are much easier to ride than a 125. Put the yellow powervalve spring in it, back the set screw out flush with the cover. The bike will be linear smooth, but still make good power.

Also, some people just fit 4 strokes better. If you do not agree with the bike, sell it.

Green spring?

BobPA wrote:

If someone is struggling to ride a 250 two stroke, why in the world would you suggest he sell it and buy a 125? Do you want the guy to quit from frustration? 250 smokers, especially the new KTM, are much easier to ride than a 125. Put the yellow powervalve spring in it, back the set screw out flush with the cover. The bike will be linear smooth, but still make good power.

Also, some people just fit 4 strokes better. If you do not agree with the bike, sell it.

MPJC wrote:

Green spring?

I felt the green spring is just too soft everywhere. The yellow spring seems to make the bike most useable for me. I go from tight technical rocks, to full on Moto and never tough the engine settings.

Only you can answer your particular questions. If you are thinking about a 450, you should test ride one once since you already have a bike you apparently don't like.

You’re in VA. You need a woods bike. Sell them both and buy a yz250fx. Great woods bike and is a capable moto bike also.

This is a real problem you have here. ?

BobPA wrote:

If someone is struggling to ride a 250 two stroke, why in the world would you suggest he sell it and buy a 125? Do you want the guy to quit from frustration? 250 smokers, especially the new KTM, are much easier to ride than a 125. Put the yellow powervalve spring in it, back the set screw out flush with the cover. The bike will be linear smooth, but still make good power.

Also, some people just fit 4 strokes better. If you do not agree with the bike, sell it.

MPJC wrote:

Green spring?

BobPA wrote:

I felt the green spring is just too soft everywhere. The yellow spring seems to make the bike most useable for me. I go from tight technical rocks, to full on Moto and never tough the engine settings.

Makes sense. I thought you might have meant green spring since the yellow spring is already installed.

I also agree that some people just fit 4 strokes better. I had a 250 sx (2016) for a while and found it fun, but just couldn't get good race results on it. It's just not forgiving of mistakes, which isn't great for the modestly skilled like myself. I traded it for my buddy's freshly rebuilt 350 and love that bike! And I'm keeping my 250f around both because it's such a great bike, and because then my son can go riding with me.

I did ride a newer 250 sx and thought it felt like it had less peak power than my 16, but was definitely torquier and smoother with better handling and suspension - easier to ride all around. I wouldn't be averse to picking up a newer 250 sx someday.

Which one do you have the most fun on?

3.

Make the sx250 more yours, change powervalve and gearing and tame the wild horse.
Its a very friendly bike when you're comfortable.
Don't sell it, its allready paid and you have a very fun bike.

I have a KX250 2T and a KX450f and I would say I don't rev the 250 anymore then the 450. I will say for me the biggest difference is how and when I shift, I shift the 250 allot more then the 450. The 450 I get lazy on and lug and shift less. My fun meter is definitely higher on the 250 but my lap times are lower on the 450.

Monk wrote:

No, you just ride it where you feel comfortable... I've been passed by guys who just idle their bikes, and others who rev their bikes...

This.

I just sold my YZ250F for a Beta Xtrainer (300).

Prior to this Beta, my experience was a KTM 200 and a YZ85 friends had growing up that i rode for a few minutes and got off because they were a PIA to ride.

I had a huge concern based on my little bit of previous experience but so far i'm extremely happy with my choice.This Xtrainer is just so easy. Power from idle onward is absolutely amazing.

I'm a lugger and this bike fits me so much better than anything else i've owned. I don't see me going back to a 4 stroke anytime soon, extremely happy with this purchase and decision to give a 2 stroke a try.