"Cheap Skates Minimalist Touring/Woods XR250 for a Full Size Rider"

Why I an XR250???

I compared gear ratios, weight, reliability, true offroad ability among the many things I concidered. Budget is also or lack of is a issue.

I was finding my past XR600 and XR650 or more just too much power and weight to deal anymore. I liked the XR250R's I've had in the past so I started looking. I like the '86-'95 model years fit and egonomics the best.

Whats a XR250RL? It's a '87 XR250R combined with a '95 XR250L. Then mix in some other XR600/650 and CR500 parts also.


Here's the plated '87 XR250R it's based on.






The bike was well cared for and in good shape. The engine had a bad timing chain tensioner and smoked some.

The goal is a $1000.00 budget total after selling the exta parts and goodies... :huh So far so good...

Before the tensioner broke I found the gearing to be too close for D/S and higher speed fun. I started to look for a 250L to gain the wider ratio transmission.

I sold the forks and triples from it and tossed a old XR600R front end on it.

I bought a '95(leftover '95) XR250L parts bike with 6800 miles on it. It was missing some parts. Inspecting the engine I found the head, cam and rockers are like new, but it had a like new 10.5 to 1 Wisco forged piston in it. The cylinder was scored slightly thou... Who knows??? It seems to be in great shape otherwise.

I'll sell the 73.5mm 10.5 to 1 piston with the R's 73mm cylinder ready to bore with it.

When inspected the R head, cam rockers all are in great shape.

I sold the R's bottom-end and the L's fork and wheel.

It's getting a the XR250L engine built with R cam and rockers.

I'll bore the L's cylinder to 77mm for the extra power.

The wide ratio 250L 4-6th gears with a 14/46 final is the gearing plan.

I will use the 250R carb and header with a XL600R 4" SuperTrapp for now.

A 34mm Mikuni flat slide may be done for added top-end and response when money permits.


Other mods planned: The list will grow.

XR250L swingarm and cush drive rear 2.15" wide disc brake wheel. (test fitted)

'99 CR500 46mm KYB inverted front end and wheel with a billet upper triple clamp. (need spacers for xr 600 stem or emig stem)

XR250L side panels for the even bulge of both sides (done)

Long distance XR650L 4.0 gal tank and 1.5" over "custom cut foam" seat (done) For tight woods the XR25R seat and tank will be reinstalled.

XR250L spring on a XR250R shock with a short '94 XR650L lower link (test fitted, need to measure total travel)

XR250R flywheel, Ricky stator with a 12 volt AC and a 12 volt DC lighting DS conversion.

A custom rear rack.

and on and on...



Here's a picture of it a few weeks ago in it's long distance configuration. (There's no engine in it and it has the rear suspension swap done right now)

XR650L 4.0 tank, XR250L side panels, XR600R seat with a custom contoured tall/solft seat foam, XR600 forks and a BD headlight.

D/S long distance seat/ tank combo




It's a full size bike now fit wise with the big XR parts on. Leg room and tank profile perfect for longer rides.

It has a 39" seat height and 22.5" from the pegs to the seat. It's meant for comfort with a 8" wide seating area.

With a 36" inseam I can flat foot it with a slight knee bend.


When set-up with the XR250R seat and tank. It has a 36.5" seat height when set-up this way and has 20" from the pegs to the seat.

Woods/local use seat and tank combo






I'll be listing the extra parts for sale in the flea market. PM me until then otherwise. Thanks

.

Here's some other pics of it while trying different XR650/XR600 parts.


XR650 4.0 tank and stock seat XR650L suspension and wheels - test fitting. (XR250R side panels)






XR650 4.0 tank and stock seat XR650L suspension XR650L side panels and wheels - test fitting.







XR650 4.0 tank and stock seat XR650L suspension and wheels - test fitting. Custom cut XR250R side panels.




'99 CR500 46mm KYB front end with billet upper triple

I'm always impressed to see folks mix parts from a variety of bikes to make a custom "one of a kind". It's not easy to get everything to fit, lots of work and lots of research is required to figure out all the sizing differences and how to get them all to fit.

I'm curious about that bike stand. It looks like it could topple over, and also looks like it had to be hard to get the blocks under it. Are the blocks attached somehow? :huh

Subscribed, & looking forward to watching the progess.

I have the same bike stand but in Coburg Dairy blue.

Mine is held together with carriage bolts.

Great project! But If the frames are basically the same, I'd use the 250L frame. It would be easier to get a plate for in my state since it was street legal from factory and has a VIN that reflects that. Of course that may not be your goal

I love building stuff like this. You can't buy anything like it for what the end cost is and it's should handle better too. I like the ergos of the XR600 sized bike. A new bike ergos just feels wrong...

The stand works good. It's built with 2"x6"s arcross the top with a piece of 1/2" plywood top. The base 4"x4"s are screwed to the crate with deck screws as is the top. I use a ratchet strap to hold the bike still if needed. You can slide the stand around with the bike on it.

Brand/design matters. This one handles a XR650L no problem. It's a late model "Deans" brand.

I have another early model "Deans" stand that needs the updated Deans crate because it was too weak for the 650. After a few months it had some stress cracks in it... :eek1

Thanks. The "87 XR250R is titled and plated already. The L frame isn't. It is rusty and I think it might be mild steel instead of chromoly.



.

Just scored a rear rack, some cases and mounts for panniers.

Perfect style for a cheap skate build.

I'm getting two sets of panniers and mount and a rear rack. Special thanks to Fritzcoinc.


The rear rack is going to be used as parts for different projects.



Small panniers



Larger Panniers



They where on a XR650L so they should fit pretty easy.


Edit.... After fitting these I decided to use soft luggage. So these will need to find a new home.

Plans

Well I think decided to bore the '95 XR250L engine to 77mm and get a big bore kit. The L engine will use an '87 R cam and rocker box. It will also get the R flywheel and a Ricky stator. HD clutch springs are planned and it will get the R side cover to maintain the oil cooler. The L head will get prepped and ported for use. It will use the R carb and header for now.

Parts

So now I need to start listing all the spare/extra parts I need to deal with...

Here's what I came up withoff the top of my head... :huh

I will make a flea market listing at some point.

I have a mint 250L cam and rocker box, a good XR250R head, 73mm cylinder, a like new 73.5mm 10.5 to 1 Wiesco forged piston/pin/rings, XR250L carb, XR250L right side cover, L alternator/cover/ flywheel. The L cdi, regulator, coil and harness pigtails will also be available.

Other parts I have are a XR250R swingarm, pivot, rear wheel, rear brake, brake pedal/rod, '87 R gas tank, '87 R seat, '87 r tool bag, '95 L seat , L speedo, R speedo, '87 XR250R front wheel/axle,

Other XR parts available are '87 XR600 forks/triples, /87 XR600R swingarm w/pivot, '86 XL600R seat XL600R forks/triples, 2 XL600R swingarms, a nice complete XL600R rear wheel with spacer/cush drive/brake/axle, XL600R speedo, complete good XL600R engine with carbs.

I also have a bunch of other misc XR/XL parts and hardware around.

PM me if you are interested in anything.

That's a lot of good parts for me...

Perfect for building another bike, just having a donor frame...

Good luck with the parts sale!..
I'm suscribed to see the evolution of this project, it's looking great!

Here's the Flea Market Link.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=19896269&postcount=2313

Thanks for starting this thread! Please keep us posted w/ pics & I look forward to following your progress.:)

Here are some random thoughts, tech and findings I figured I'd put out there...

(more to come...)

Rear Suspension


My plan is to increase it's travel slightly and improve the handling. I will also gain the L's rear disc and cush drive wheel with the wider 2.15" rim.

The rear shock will be revalved using parts from both the L and R shock.

The R rear suspension uses a 14.7" shock with a 3.25" lower link.
The L rear suspension uses a 15" shock with a stiffer spring and a 3.375" lower link.
The pivot mount on the swing arm is located 1/2" further away from the suspension pivot also. The L swingarm is 1/2" longer then the drum brake R swing arm.
The L pivot is a different width at the swingarm. It appears to have the same measurements that would effect the suspension ratio.

The L's upper shock mount is wider then the R mount is so I used the stiffer L spring on the R shock. This lowers the bike. By using the 3.125" 650L lower link it increased the ride height making it 1/2" higher then the stock R suspension was. It also changes the linkage ratio of the rear suspension so the spring rate is right for a 250 pound load with 3/4" static sag and 4" race sag. The shorter link also make the suspension get stiffer quicker and travel seems to be increased by 1" also. I'm pulling the spring to measure how much travel I have with each link.

A longer link lowers the bike, decreases travel and lowers the springs effective stiffness/overall rate.

A shorter link will raises the bike, increases and increases the springs effective stiffness/overall rate.

The stiffness/overall spring rate change is caused by the lower link lengths effect on the linkage ratio ratio.

These are the ones I have right now.

3.125" XR650L lower link
3.25" XR250R lower link
3.375" XR250L lower link

The above lengths are approx.

Here's a list I have been working on.

84-85 XR200R 52470-KF0-010 84.1mm
84-85 XR250R
83-84 XR350R
83-84 XR500R
85-87 XL250R
84-85 XL350R
83-87 XL600R

86-88 XR200R 52470-KT0-670 81.6mm
88-00 XR600R
93-00 XR650L

86-95 XR250R 52470-KN5-000 84.5mm
85 XR350R
85 XR600R

96-04 XR250R 52470-KCZ-000 79.9mm

96-04 XR400R 52475-KCY-670 Length needed

86-87 XR600R 52470-MK2-770 Length needed

01-03 XR650L 52479-KZ1-305 Length needed

04-09 XR650L 52475-MY6-A40 Length needed


If any one can help complete the list post up

Aftermarket lowering link lengths would be great too.


Parts

Here's a flea market link to the parts I have available.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showp...postcount=2313

Thanks.

bout time you got going on this project.. looking good

Now the question is how long will it take?

I've been in contact with CW about doing a big fin job, his cloverleaf combustion chamber, some oversize valves, and fully ported head. Of course he has a wild plan for bumping the cc's on a bit... It will get a healthy cam and some other goodies for it too...

I figure I'm not going to buy a bigger bike so I'm going to make sure this is built right.

I figure the Wizard can crank up the fun level no problem...

Just a quick update.

I picked up some Easton EXP 1 3/8" handlebars, one McGrath/Stewart bend(CR high according to Easton's site), one KTM/Suzuki bend, two sets of Easton EXP bar mounts for my aftermarket billet triples and two clamp/bar pads for $30.00 package price for each set. $60.00 well spent. Sweet!!!

I also bought 2 pairs of Answer pillow top grips for $6.50 each and some hand guard bar inserts bar inserts. Shipping was free. Cyber Monday was good to me...

Now I need to pick which bend I like better.... Then I'll have a complete spare 1 3/8" handlebar kit left over.

Next traded some car speakers I had for a pair of black Acerbis super moto handguards. It was a win win deal for both of us...

I also sold my XL600 engine to a fellow inmate and received a XR400 oil cooler in trade as part of the payment.

I also found a fellow TT member that will handle making my USD swap bushings and spacer for me in trade for a couple of parts I have.

It uses the longer XR600R stem to keep the distance between the upper and lower triples the same as they were on the CR500. A spacer under the upper triple makes up the difference.

All for only $88.96...

I bought another set of Easton EXP bars Woods Hi/Freestyle bend and 7/8" to 1 3/8" adapter mounts

Test fit my the KTM/Suzuki bend Easton EXP bars. Everything will work great togeather I set the bars at 0 degrees and everything bolted up perfectly.


This is what your seeing: CR250 billet upper triple, Acerbis Supermoto handguards, Cryra front triple handguard mounts, Easton EXP KTM/Suzuki bend bars and XR650L turnsignal mounts.

The Cryra front triple handguard mounts are nice and have two handguard mounting holes instead of one like the pictured on the website.










My Woods Hi/Freestyle bars will be here tomorrow. I'll post up pictures of the 3 bends and the 7/8" adapter mounts too.

Here is a picture of all three Easton EXP 1 3/8" bends I bought to try.

Top to bottom: Woods Hi/Freestyle, KTM/Suzuki, CR Hi



Too to bottom: Woods Hi/Freestyle, CR Hi, KTM/Suzuki



Front to back: Woods Hi/Freestyle, CR Hi, KTM/Suzuki






I liked the Woods HI/Freestyle bend the best. The KTM/Suzuki is a close second. Here is a picture of the Woods Hi/Freestyle bend with one hand guard personalized for proper fit.

nice!

Any progress? Did you get the engine sorted?