Give Me A Sanity Check -- KDX200

[stainlesscycle]

Originally Posted by PistonPants

Enjoy the KDX. It is, hands down, the finest small bore enduro bike EVER to come out of Japan.

the it200 definitely gave it a run for it's money 84-86. if it stayed in production with periodic updates as long as the kdx, i bet both would be the best woods bikes ever from japan......

[PistonPants]

When I was riding IT's back in the '80s, I lusted after a KDX. Back then they were air cooled 175's but better than the IT. But dad was a Yamaha Man and he held the purse strings. My '03 is bone stock and totally reliable and worthy of the highest praise.



Peace
Piston

[anonny]

I've got the 220, about the same vintage and am thrilled with it after 6 years of ownership? Congratulations on a great purchase.

[stainlesscycle]

Originally Posted by PistonPants

When I was riding IT's back in the '80s, I lusted after a KDX. Back then they were air cooled 175's but better than the IT.

no doubt the kdx is better than the it175. the it200 is whole different beast. yamaha figured out power delivery and suspension in one fell swoop.

[JeffS77]

Originally Posted by stainlesscycle

no doubt the kdx is better than the it175. the it200 is whole different beast. yamaha figured out power delivery and suspension in one fell swoop.

WR200 would be the yamaha to get

[stainlesscycle]

Originally Posted by JeffS77

WR200 would be the yamaha to get

there is no doubt about that - but i was thinking vintage tech - drum brakes and air cooled..

[Richarddaroadie]

I've got 2. One plated with stock motor and piped, one with a big bore kit. The most common mod is RB Designs for the head and carb and repipe. Makes em tractors. I'm rebuilding the plated one now and it will be RBed! It's a bike you can put away wet and 2 kicks 6 months later it's ready to go. The swing arm bearings are the weak link. Grease em and replace every year as needed. The big bore kit is awesome but I have to run race gas in it though it is sold as a pump gas kit. Love the power but hate paying for the gas. The rear shock is talked about as being good even with weight. Respring to your weight. The big bore has a $800 shortened fancy one. I can't really tell the difference but PO spent a wad on it. The best mod I did was putting a KX500 front end on it. Bolts right up with the front wheel. The stocker is ok with 400 springs but I caught the fork underhand on a deep water rut and 4 bruised ribs and a torn up shoulder I did the deed. Everyone I ride with has orange and I have a Husky 510 but the little KDX is fun. If a ride has long sandy hills I'll grab the Husky but it feels like a pig compared. Both mine are after 96 same as yours. It didn't change. Hope you enjoy yours as much as I enjoy mine. BTW I run type F tranny fluid so every ride cost 99 cents to change the oil! The KDX is the cheapest lil woods bike out there.

[eyedragaknee]

My KDX220 is about as fun and reliable as they come. I did quite a bit like KX front end and a Rev-Loc and some other mods.

I have a 250 KTM XCF-W also and it is hard to decide which one to ride. The KTM will be the better choice at faster speeds and rougher terrain. The KDX is just plain fun in the woods.

I stuck mine for sale in the flea market and put a "I don't want to sell it" price on it. Most likely take the listing down :)

Good choice!!

[Canuman]

I haven't picked it up yet (it's in safe hands, and the garage needs a little re-shuffle.) I'm becoming pretty excited. Couple of questions.

1: What can I reasonably expect for range? It has the stock tank. The rear fender/light sub frame looks like it will accept a Rotopax mount, so I will probably stick an extra gallon on it. It doesn't look like the available replacement tanks are much of an advantage.

2. It's plated, but not strictly legal. I've been looking at the same Tusk kit that made my DRZ400E compliant. What's there for stator capacity? Vermont really likes a high and low beam on plated bikes, so I'll likely replace the headlight. It's my only concern. Horn, LED signals and the lot can be run off of a total loss aux battery. It's not a bike that's going to go cross-country.

3. I really want to set this bike up for low-end grunt. I have two dual-sports of varying intensity. The KLR is frankly a bitch when the going gets technical because of the weight. In sand, it's a nightmare. I'd take it cross-country in a heartbeat, however. It's my do-everything to some degree bike. The DRZ is much more worthy on the hairy stuff, but wearing for a long day which includes pavement. That being said, it'll do 300 mile days without complaint, in reasonable comfort, and will hold camping gear. I see the purpose of the KDX as giving me a big grin within 150 miles of home. I'd still like to be able to pack the necessaries on it -- warm stuff, rain gear, a little extra fuel. Any set-up advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Canuman]

Originally Posted by eyedragaknee

My KDX220 is about as fun and reliable as they come. I did quite a bit like KX front end and a Rev-Loc and some other mods.

I have a 250 KTM XCF-W also and it is hard to decide which one to ride. The KTM will be the better choice at faster speeds and rougher terrain. The KDX is just plain fun in the woods.

I stuck mine for sale in the flea market and put a "I don't want to sell it" price on it. Most likely take the listing down :)

Good choice!!

Is that a trials rear on yours? I've been considering one. Local terrain is rocks/roots/loose mud. There's little sand and very little sticky mud. VT doesn't bust you for non-DOT tires. I was thinking that a trials rear might be the ticket.

[Harvey Krumpet]

Checkout the pirelli MT 43 thread or trials rear on a dirt bike thread. Sorry, can't search for some reason. I;m thinking of putting one on my DT 230 next. With a decent mountain bike pump I can ride to the woods, drop the pressure to marshmallow, bless my rim locks & pump it up for the ride home. A number of extreme enduro bikes (erzberg etc) run them on the rear.

[eyedragaknee]

Best thing I have ever stuck on the back of a woods bike. It goes through everything. I run about 7psi with dual Motion Pro rim locks and an ultra heavy duty tube. I leave guys with knobbies spinning on the rocks and roots. It is almost unfair.

Only times I noticed them not being as good as a full knob was in pine needles and when you really need power in sand whoops to stay on the tops of the whoops. Mud was not an issue. You just need to ride smoothly.
They give up some on steep downhill braking if you lock the back brake.

Run the same deal on my KTM.

and..yes they get very muddy. Just happen to be clean here.

[Canuman]

Just scored the appropriate Race Tech rear spring for my weight/riding style. I used Race Tech's online spring calculator, and then found the correct spring on Ebay for $60 shipped.

[Richarddaroadie]

There is someone parting out a KDX 220 in the flea market that has a Baja designs kit with a tight looking rear fender and led tail that cleans everything up. It's been on there for awhile so just dig down. I have both types of aftermarket tanks but don't know the range. Does help but not mind blowing. Would still recommend getting one if you ride with 4 strokes. I carry a little bit of oil just in case but you can run them with straight gas in a pinch and not kill them. Just for emergency. There is a method to riding on the street with these that I heard but again forgot. I think you roll of the throttle periodically to get some oil to the rings. For tight woods check the RB mods. Makes them feels like a 4 stroke, meaning getting torque down in the low rpms and staying off the pipe. I stay in 2nd on tech stuff with no bogging. There is lots of info on kdxrider.net as well. It is the other site for kdx heads. Good luck!

[Canuman]

Originally Posted by Richarddaroadie

There is someone parting out a KDX 220 in the flea market that has a Baja designs kit with a tight looking rear fender and led tail that cleans everything up. It's been on there for awhile so just dig down. I have both types of aftermarket tanks but don't know the range. Does help but not mind blowing. Would still recommend getting one if you ride with 4 strokes. I carry a little bit of oil just in case but you can run them with straight gas in a pinch and not kill them. Just for emergency. There is a method to riding on the street with these that I heard but again forgot. I think you roll of the throttle periodically to get some oil to the rings. For tight woods check the RB mods. Makes them feels like a 4 stroke, meaning getting torque down in the low rpms and staying off the pipe. I stay in 2nd on tech stuff with no bogging. There is lots of info on kdxrider.net as well. It is the other site for kdx heads. Good luck!

I'll check that out on the Flea Market, thanks! Def gotta keep up with the 4 strokes. So far as I'm aware, none of the riders I'm likely to be with locally have a two-stroke or less than about 100 mile range. The PO said he was having good results just bringing a quart of two-stroke oil and letting it mix in the tank when racing hare scrambles.