What's your go to Mag for dirtbike reviews?

Muezh
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440
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Woodhaven, MI US
MXA, Transworld or RacerX

right off the top of your head. If you're going to buy a new bike which Mag would you go to first?

This all started when some friends and I were talking about how the 2017s rated. And when told MXA gave top honors to the KTM my other friend said "The editor is 105 years old and his answer to every bike in the last 15 years is the same, add one tooth to the rear sprocket. They are literally the laughing stock of Motocross".

I've read MXA for a long time and I always thought their reviews were really good.

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kkawboy14
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TX US
1/2/2017 9:11am Edited Date/Time 1/2/2017 9:18am
I read them all and buy another Kawasaki, to me it's crazy to bounce around brands for a weekend rider, weekend racer.

That's why many of the factories try to get you while your young, it worked with me. The way Kawasaki got me was in the 80s they had one of the best amateur payouts and a good bike.
1/2/2017 9:40am
Honestly Vitals reviews and shootouts this year were the best of the bunch. ML512 speaks well, rides well and seems to form intelligent thoughts. DC and Jody need to tap into his writing ability before its too late.

The Shop

BobPA
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1/2/2017 9:47am
I'm going to have to go with Vital also. MXA is usually pretty good, but they seem to really really really really really have a bias opinion towards the Austrians.
mxb2
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Bowie, MD US
1/2/2017 9:47am
Vitalmx,#1 . Mxa,Transworld MX tied for 2nd,. Racer x shootouts review are below average. Imo.
reded
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KS US
1/2/2017 10:04am Edited Date/Time 1/2/2017 10:09am
I still feel like MXA shoots it straight. It's a shootout of all brands to find the best MX bike and right now the Austrians are hitting it out of the park when it comes to innovative MX bikes that work well for hardcore moto. They have chosen every brand as their bike of the year at one point or another so I don't see the bias.

The VitalMX shootouts are becoming very informative and reminiscent of what I used to see from the popular mags in the 80's and 90's.
ML512
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Wildomar, CA US
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1/2/2017 10:05am
Honestly Vitals reviews and shootouts this year were the best of the bunch. ML512 speaks well, rides well and seems to form intelligent thoughts. DC and...
Honestly Vitals reviews and shootouts this year were the best of the bunch. ML512 speaks well, rides well and seems to form intelligent thoughts. DC and Jody need to tap into his writing ability before its too late.
My speaking ability is prime, my writing ability is average... Laughing But I appreciate the compliment.
Adam43
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Location
WF
1/2/2017 10:29am
MXA is tops for me. They constantly get hell from some crowds, but their observations generally seem to jive with my own experiences.

The Vital ones are good. I like how they take a different approach from the mags and give a massive info dump and give the full impression right from the tester's mouth. I would like to see them spend more time with all the bikes before undertaking the shootout but I know that is not always possible.

Dirt Bike mag shootouts are great and underrated, IMO.

Transworld is almost too brief. Dirt Rider is generally very good.

I give a lot more weight to any shootout that puts more weeks and hours on the machines. I would also like to see some differentiation between the media outlets...someone should leave California for once.
Yzf916
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MS US
1/2/2017 10:30am
Clearly MXA. Then Vital. MXA, whether you like their conclusion or not, has the most detailed breakdown component by component. Vital is great for variety of skill level of testers. Sorry. But Transworld is a picture book. And Racer X an industry insider mag. Although I subscribe to all. I count on MXA and Vital for bike tests most.
Kenny Lingus
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Location
Watkins Glen, NY US
1/2/2017 10:48am
Have any magazines or websites ever done any testing on the east coast? Testing at one or two southern California tracks doesn't seem like it would give a true representation of a bikes attributes. MXA claims to have the most comprehensive tests but, I believe they only test a Glen Helen? For the record I don't hate MXA, in fact gave myself a subscription for x-mas. The gift card may have influenced my decision.Wink I have to say, VitalMX does a pretty damn good job without seeming biased or jaded.
moto0852
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Draper, UT US
1/2/2017 11:06am
MXA and Vital. In this day and age if your not using data, I.E. dyno, lap times, litpro etc. then you have no validity to me.

Keefer lost all my respect when he said he was right and everyone else was wrong but used no data to back it up.
C-Rock
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353
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4/19/2016
Location
FR
1/2/2017 11:11am
Muezh wrote:
MXA, Transworld or RacerX right off the top of your head. If you're going to buy a new bike which Mag would you go to first...
MXA, Transworld or RacerX

right off the top of your head. If you're going to buy a new bike which Mag would you go to first?

This all started when some friends and I were talking about how the 2017s rated. And when told MXA gave top honors to the KTM my other friend said "The editor is 105 years old and his answer to every bike in the last 15 years is the same, add one tooth to the rear sprocket. They are literally the laughing stock of Motocross".

I've read MXA for a long time and I always thought their reviews were really good.

MXA is the laughing stock of morons, imo, who keep on ranting with the same old tooth sprocket story, and the "Yamaha action" joke in between the "Honda action" and "KTM action" ones... Sometimes I wonder if some people really understand what they read...
MXA tests really go indeep, are not afraid to ruffle a few feathers and I've always had great luck with their settings advice...

Oh, by the way, Weisel might be 105, but saying he'd better improve his writing ability before it's too late actually is a great joke.

As far as Vital goes, I really appreciate Michael's work too, who obviously knows his stuff.
jeffro503
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27442
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7/22/2007
Location
St Helens, OR US
1/2/2017 11:13am
I haven't even picked up an MX mag in about 5 years. Let alone buy one. Anything I want to know is usually on here...months in advance.
Bruce372
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6341
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4/1/2008
Location
US
1/2/2017 11:22am
But the vital review kicked arse this year.....I wasn't thinking about a new bike until my kid showed me the vital mx 450 video and he told me I need a new bike lol
Muezh
Posts
440
Joined
4/11/2008
Location
Woodhaven, MI US
1/2/2017 11:24am
rongi#401 wrote:
ML512 wrote:
I approve this message. Cool
geesh.. I guess I don't spend enough time on here because I didn't know Vital did reviews.

gonna check them out now.
ricko
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708
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bfe, PA US
1/2/2017 12:10pm
I read them but don't put much faith in them, i buy what bike i like, not a bike that someone who doesn't ride like me likes.
jbonemalone
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299
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12/4/2016
Location
Otis, LA US
1/2/2017 12:33pm
Mxa is a little bias as the magazine head honchos son is now an upper crust ktm employee.
1/2/2017 12:34pm
BobPA wrote:
I'm going to have to go with Vital also. MXA is usually pretty good, but they seem to really really really really really have a bias...
I'm going to have to go with Vital also. MXA is usually pretty good, but they seem to really really really really really have a bias opinion towards the Austrians.
I love mxa but I do agree. For the last few years they've had a hard on for the orange bikes
bvm111
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7/1/2008
Location
Las Vegas, NV US
1/2/2017 12:39pm
I think Michael hit it out of the park this year with the shootouts!

I have always respected MXA and still read their test and shootouts even though the "add one tooth" thing from Jody has become a bit cliche at this point.
Sipes #412
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164
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4/23/2009
Location
Tacoma, WA US
1/2/2017 12:48pm
I think vital mx is the best way to find out anything about the bikes. I've got tons of feedback from people on this forum and it's my go to for any question I have. I do like reading all of the magazines though just to see how they view stuff and what they recommend on bike setup.
mooch
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1389
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2/16/2008
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OH US
Fantasy
431st
1/2/2017 12:59pm
Anything other than TWMX will do fine.

Never could warm up to that mag...too much fluff.
kiwifan
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9485
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10/31/2009
Location
CA US
1/2/2017 2:12pm
Vital by a country mile, the others I read but put less trust on their opinions, especially MXA who I used to respect but not so much these days.
1/2/2017 6:21pm
MXA bias towards orange?,maybe because they are better bikes,the japanese are so far behind its ridiculous,look at the much anticipated 450 Honda,heavy lump of lard with e start as an option which adds more weight.

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