General Discussion Forum

alright, i got the controversial question.... i cant figure out which bike to get, either the crf250 or the cr125.  ive ridden both bikes and both have their ups and downs.  i ride at the dunes about 50% of the time and i like to ride in the woods the other 50%.  im not really lookin for a racing bike, just something that will let me have a good time.  any suggestions would be great.

If you weren't planning on racing on the track much then I would think the CRF250 would be the pick. The CRF250 would be far more forgiving and easier to ride out on the dunes and in the woods than a CR. But ultimately the choice is yours.  

four stroke for sure!!!  

I ride a 2 stroke, but since the choice is a CR 125, or a CRF250, it would have to be the CRF250, because the CR 125's suck. If u are going to pick a 125 2 stroke, definatly the 05 YZ 125, but pick CRF250 if your going four stroke. Plus it will be better for the dunes.  

dude if you go with the crf 250 you will have adjust the valves after ten hours and it is high maintnance,cr 125 is regular maintnace and not as many people have two strokes.i ride forest and tracks my self the 250 f's are the way two go but that maintnance is out the window.  

 I have a CR125 and I trail ride it all the time.  I feel that it is harder to ride, but more fun than a four popper.

hey man if i were you i'd go with a 4-stroke cuz they are lower maintnence and are more reliable and sound better for your kind of riding that you want to do

i agree they are a fun bike to ride around on but racing all out speed....not to much to work with!  

PLEASE STOP SAYING 4-STROKE MX BIKES ARE LESS MAINTAINCE!!!!  PLEASE STOP!!!!  Someone who is new to the sport might believe you.

I agree with the 4-stroke suggestions.  In the dunes the 4-stroke will be easier to ride with its wider power band.  And be religious about keeping the air filter clean.

i always ride with friends that ride kx125's and cr80s and they blow theyre 2 strokes up after a month ..my opinion i probaly wouldnt buy a  2 stroke i think theyre harder to maintain...4 stroke lasts so much longer.  

I'm sooooooo sick of this topic.  Lets be honest here... any MX bike you get is going to require a ton of wrench time.  You can't have 100% performance with 0% maintance.  If you have a 2 stroke and you suck at riding and don't know how to work on your bike properly, yes you will need to replace your top end quiet often.  Personally (when my arm is broken) I ride tracks anywhere from 1-4 times a week and I replace a piston every couple of months in my KX250.  I get get a long life out of a top end and I do all my own wrenching.  I have friends that are horrible riders and even worse mechanics and they go through pistons like crazy.  They bought a few CRF and YZF 450's and 250's awhile ago thinking all there problems where over, but guess what?  Wrong!  1 broken valve stem in the 250 costed a hell of a lot more time and $$$ then a top end.  If you own a 4 stroke, the amount of compression that the bikes come with stock wreck havoc on your valve train.  The valve seats are very fragile in all the MX 4 strokes and require a lot of maintance to make sure they are seating and sealing properly.  In order to make sure your bike is running up to par and won't suck a valve into the piston, you need to constantly mic your valve seats to make sure they are functioning properly.  It used to be true that 4 strokes required a lot less maintance when 4 strokes where 99% trail bikes, but thats no longer the case.

2 and 4 strokes both have advantages and disadvantages.  Neither is truely better then the other, it's all in preferance.  Both bikes require a lot of wrench time.