Bike for my kid, what do you think?

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Colorado Mike
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Bike for my kid, what do you think?

Post by Colorado Mike »

I'm looking at getting a first bike for my son. He's almost 14, 5' 3" tall, and weighs about 107. He hasn't ridden before but is athletic and has good balance (he plays hockey).

I was looking at getting him a Honda CRF 150F, but some things about that bike bother me. One is the cost, there aren't many used ones available and they are almost the price of new ones. Another is the weight, it's not outrageous, but it sure is porky for the hp it makes, something like 14 hp. The other thing is the suspension is pretty lame by modern standards.

The way I would like to go is: A friend at work is selling his son's 2003 KX 85. The bike has been very well maintained and the motor is fresh, and comes with some mods, and the original parts. The bike is a feather weight, is a little shorter than the 150 so my son could more easily handle it's mass. The suspension is much nicer than the Honda too. The problem is that obviously the 2 stroke power of this thing would be a hurdle for him to deal with.

The question is, I am wondering if any of you have experience on getting a kid up to speed on one of these bikes, and if it's out of the question to expect a reasonably intelligent 14 year old to be able to stay out of the powerband when he's just learning. Any pointers on de-tuning tips like richening the jetting would be welcome too.

Thanks,
Mike

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Indawoods
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Post by Indawoods »

Well Mike... My brother got his boy a 2 stroke bike for his first bike and to make a long story short, It was a mistake. He now is afraid to ride bikes.... The first time he rode it, he did a superman seat grab and that's all she wrote.

My advise is start him on that exspensive 4 stroker and it will pay off in the end. Maybe look for a older XR200... better bike and you will always get your money back out of it. And that's a good thing....
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Post by dave04kdx »

We have a Yamaha TTR 125L. It has decent power, easy to start, ok suspension for a learner/playbike. My wife, 12 and 14 year old nephews have a blast on it.

Its also easy to work on. I got the shop manual and did the valves in less than an hour with no special tools.
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Post by skipro3 »

I've got to say, the KX could be a great first bike for a 14 year old of the size you mention. He should be easily able to handle the weight and keep his feet on the ground. Some methods to detune the motor until he gets throttle control:
You might try a double head gasket. This lowers compression and horsepower.

Build yourself some sort of restricter in the tail pipe. Reducing the size of the tail pipe opening will cut the bike's ability to breathe and it will have less power.

Change the gearing: By going to a smaller CS sprocket, the top speed is reduced BUT if you taller with that gear, it will reduce the torque from a dead stop. He will have to be better with the clutch as well to get rolling.

Get all the gear you can for the guy before he even is allowed to start it. My son got his first ride at 7; a Yamaha YZ50. The bike had a real transmission and manual clutch. It was extensively modified by the previous owner. His first ride, he had to have a milk crate to get on the bike, he was too short. He spent a few days pushing it up the driveway and coasting down, getting his muscles used to operating the brakes. Then he coasted and put the bike in gear, kill switch hotwired, and felt the engine through the tire. Then he coasted using the clutch and kill button, turning the bike on and off with the kill button and the clutch as he rolled down hill. He worked the brake while doing all this. Finally, he was able to kickstart the bike and try taking off from a dead stop. He augered my beautiful new pickup truck. After picking himself and the bike up, he pulled his helmet off and with a grin bigger than all outdoors, said, ''That was GREAT!"
Without the gear, and preriding, he might have been intimidated, but his preriding involved some falls and he knew what to expect.

His mother had to be lead to the bedroom and tranquilizers applied along with a margarita.

Just don't let falling down be a suprise to him, teach him to expect it, experiance it and discover his gear will save him from most harm. Then stand back, he's gonna leave you in the dust!!! Mine did by the fourth ride.
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Post by KDXGarage »

I don't think a MX bike would be a good starter bike for him. The CRF150's and 230's have not been around long, so that is why used ones are not a lot less than new ones. As you can already tell, they hold their value fairly well, so if he outgrows it, then maybe you won't lose too much money.

Like IndaWoods said, you might want to check into a used Honda XR200R. He may be big enough for one of those.

If he is just starting out, he can benefit from the softer power and more beginner friendly bikes. Even a fat kid will know nothing of gas, clutch, front break, rear brake, etc. Let him grab a handful of KX power and he could go from "just beginning" to "just finishing up" in the same day.
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Post by Colorado Mike »

Good info, thanks. Ski, I hear you on the gear. I just came back from a four day ride in Grand Junction and one of my buds used up all of his helmet on the first day. He managed to stick his front wheel into a square-edged gully and went over the bars onto his head, then his 650R jackhammered him. He's very lucky to be breathing through his nose right now. He was wearing full gear including a neck roll. He had on a properly sized, fairly expensive helmet, and his head was still bruised. We went helmet shopping when we got back to the truck. He was pretty banged up even with the gear, but without it would have been ugly.

My son is also a big believer in wearing his gear. his hockey stuff makes some of our pads look pretty flimsy.

The thing that gets me about the 4 stroke trail bikes is the weight. That CRF150 weighs a whopping 216 lbs!! that's about 4 lbs less than our KDXs, and the KX is 143. That's a huge difference to anyone, but especially to a new rider. I really don't see why the manufacturers don't offer the nice small MX bikes with a mild mannered 4 stroke motor as a trail option. The development of the chasis/suspension is paid for, it can't be that much to getting a 125 4stroke engine into the frame. If they can't do that, why are they charging 3 grand for a trail bike built on '80's technology? Okay, some of them do have a disk brake on the front, Woohoo! :prayer: Oh, and some of the other 125cc trail bikes make around 7hp. Considering I often ride at 10-12,000' they probably make considerably less. I'm thinking there might be some money to be made in adapting some trail-friendly motors into small frame MX bikes :wink:
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Post by KDXGarage »

You can get a BBR framed bike with a CRF engine in it. Won't set you back but about 7 grand. :shock:
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Post by skipro3 »

Well Mike, you are getting a bunch of info and opinions here, just like you asked for. If your son is going to like riding, he won't care what you get him, as long as it's got a motor and it will start. If the rider training is going to be around home, that might not be a bad idea; get a beater bike for next-to-nothing, have him learn a little wrenching and then bump up to something once he has the basic skills down. Good luck with you and your son. The whole idea of sharing the sport with your son is going to go a long ways with your relationship together!
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Post by KDXSean »

A couple years ago I got my son a Suzuki DRZ 125. He still seems to like it. When the kids got into bikes I decided to go 4 stroke for a couple reasons, the power band is more manageable when their learning, and because the future for them is 4 stroke anyhow. They might as well get used to it from the start.

Having said that, my oldest is 14 now, and is going around the yard on my 220 with a big smile on his face. Maybe it's my future that is 4 stroke
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Post by fuzzy »

I 2nd what Inda said. No need to buy something new for him to outgrow. Look for an XR200, or even a XR100 @ 5'3" would suffice. Teach him the basics, then you can move him onto something that he can grow into...(Lowered KDX)...
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Post by bradf »

My wife relearned on my XR200, my son and daughter started out on the XR200. It is a great starter bike.
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Kid Bike

Post by Mark W »

My son (and me) started riding dirt bikes last year. He was only 7 at the time. I bought a 4-stroker KLX110 and that was the right decision. He learned how to ride that bike and could have moved up within the first few rides - he outgrew the thing in ability, not physical size. I sold that bike after the first season and bought him a KX 65 this year (cost me $300 in depreciation). In my opinion, it would have been dangerous for him to have had his first bike be the KX65. It has a power hit that scared the crapola out of me the first time I hit it and I wheelied the thing and almost went off the back of the bike.

With that said, it took my son exactly 2 days in the dirt to learn how to use the powerband of the KX65 and if he had more power, he would love it. He also rode a KX85 and while it was big for him, he thought the powerband was not a big a hit as it is on the 65. KIP's factor maybe?

In my opinion, suspension is key. Clutch, throttle and brake control he can learn quickly. If you get a bike with bad suspension, he will quickly outgrow it and then be doing stuff that the suspension was not designed for. This is scary and the reason we moved into the KX65 this year. My son was doing jumps and landing them well and then bouncing again. Not a good thing.

There is a lot for a kid to learn on a bike. You have to decide what your kid can handle as you know him best. Whatever you decide, he will love it and you will enjoy the time you get to spend with him riding. Best time I get to spend with my son by far. Wish I could get my daughter out riding.

Mark
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