Sprucing up a 220

Discussion specific to the 1995 - 2006 KDX200 (H Series) and 1995 - 2005 KDX220R (A Series) models sold in the USA
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6 Riders
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Sprucing up a 220

Post by 6 Riders »

OK, so I bought my son a totally stock, 01 220. I have a few parts questions, I know that the answers are in here somewhere, but searching all those threads gets tiring.
My son has been riding my 93 200, it's totally set up with all the AM goodies Pipe, rad valve etc). He rode on Thanksgiving and did great on the bike (220), he's quite fast on it really. The 220 does feel "slow" to me, but I'm sure it's just because of the "all bottom end" of the 220.
We are doing some Hare scrambles, we also ride the in the dessert, but MOST of our riding is woods riding, both single a 2 track.

These are the things that I'm looking to upgrade;
Piston, yeah it's on the way.
Pipe....FMF, woods or dessert OR PC platinum? Why? (I'm leaving the stock silencer on for ease of maintenance)
Reeds, maybe a whole valve kit...V-force or Boyseen Rad valve? Is there a difference using the Rad valves or is "upgrading" just the reeds going to be similar? Also if going with the V-force, what series do I get (they number them 2,3 or 4 I think).
New clutch perch....his is a bit "worn" if it's stock. Any recommendations here?
Throttle tube, PO didn't have bark busters on and the tube is a little dinged up, do I go cheap or get a cam type system?

Those are the things I have questions about, but here is a list of "other" parts I'm planning to fit;
Bars (hell why not)
Bark Busters (I want mine back)
Skid plate, most likely a Works Con. plate, I like the way those don't stick out past the frame at all.
Air filter, I have my own opinion on these, and will stick w/what I know, but I'm going to try a Moose Racing filter also. I bought the Moose for my wifes CRF and it is NICE, so I'm going to try a couple on our bikes.

Thanks,
Tim

:pop:
newbbewb wrote:^what he said.
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*side note...I'm drunk, so try to read what I'm trying to say, instead of what I actually type
cornishwrecker220
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Sprucing up a 220

Post by cornishwrecker220 »

If you are NOT replacing the tail pipe then I would just leave the whole exhaust system stock....why ?...because fitting just the front pipe wont really make that much difference performance wise if you have the OE muffler as it will restrict the flow of exhaust gasses somewhat .....I know because when I was welding up a crack in my FMF powercore2 silencer I fitted my stock muffler so I could still go out & ride with my buddies & the bike didn't run nowhere near as good...especially in the mid to top end department as it did with the FMF silencer...So if I were you & you ride woods then just fit the FMF `WOODS` pipe with POWERCORE 2 silencer...

I also run the BOYESEN RAD VALVE with dual stage reeds, once you dial in your jetting ( you need to lean things off both in the pilot & main jet ) you will be surprised how good the bike runs.....now ive not tried the V FORCE system , but both JEFF FREDETTE & ERIC GORR ( & me ! ) both recommend the BOYESEN RAD VALVE ....enough said.. :grin:
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Re: Sprucing up a 220

Post by adam728 »

cornishwrecker220 wrote:If you are NOT replacing the tail pipe then I would just leave the whole exhaust system stock....why ?...because fitting just the front pipe wont really make that much difference performance wise if you have the OE muffler as it will restrict the flow of exhaust gasses somewhat .....I know because when I was welding up a crack in my FMF powercore2 silencer I fitted my stock muffler so I could still go out & ride with my buddies & the bike didn't run nowhere near as good...especially in the mid to top end department as it did with the FMF silencer...So if I were you & you ride woods then just fit the FMF `WOODS` pipe with POWERCORE 2 silencer...

I also run the BOYESEN RAD VALVE with dual stage reeds, once you dial in your jetting ( you need to lean things off both in the pilot & main jet ) you will be surprised how good the bike runs.....now ive not tried the V FORCE system , but both JEFF FREDETTE & ERIC GORR ( & me ! ) both recommend the BOYESEN RAD VALVE ....enough said.. :grin:
I have to disagree on the pipe thing.

I used to have a 220 I purchased new, and then put an FMF rev pipe and Turbinecore II. Mixed and matched the pipe was 99% of the gain. Putting the stock silencer back on barely made any difference in performance.
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Re: Sprucing up a 220

Post by diymirage »

adam728 wrote:
cornishwrecker220 wrote:If you are NOT replacing the tail pipe then I would just leave the whole exhaust system stock....why ?...because fitting just the front pipe wont really make that much difference performance wise if you have the OE muffler as it will restrict the flow of exhaust gasses somewhat .....I know because when I was welding up a crack in my FMF powercore2 silencer I fitted my stock muffler so I could still go out & ride with my buddies & the bike didn't run nowhere near as good...especially in the mid to top end department as it did with the FMF silencer...So if I were you & you ride woods then just fit the FMF `WOODS` pipe with POWERCORE 2 silencer...

I also run the BOYESEN RAD VALVE with dual stage reeds, once you dial in your jetting ( you need to lean things off both in the pilot & main jet ) you will be surprised how good the bike runs.....now ive not tried the V FORCE system , but both JEFF FREDETTE & ERIC GORR ( & me ! ) both recommend the BOYESEN RAD VALVE ....enough said.. :grin:
I have to disagree on the pipe thing.

I used to have a 220 I purchased new, and then put an FMF rev pipe and Turbinecore II. Mixed and matched the pipe was 99% of the gain. Putting the stock silencer back on barely made any difference in performance.

no offence cornish, but im with Adam on this
there are exactly two NOTABLE gains from an aftermarket silencer over stock
1 weight reduction, the stock unit is a pig
2 noise, the stock unit is very nice and quiet

now, if you replace a faulty clogged up silencer with a new one, then yes, you will notice a performance increase, but that is not an increase over stock, but rather a return TO stock
newbbewb wrote:DIYmirage has it right.


-1996 KDX 200 woods weapon (converted to 99 green body)
-1996 KDX 200 plated street toy (barney edition)
-2003 Yamaha TTR125-L (wifeys bike)
-1997 KDX 220 project bike
cornishwrecker220
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Sprucing up a 220

Post by cornishwrecker220 »

.Adam,... you said there was barely any difference with the stock tail pipe?.....but you did notice a difference however small.....likewise with me I too noticed a difference but mine appeared greater. I agree that over stock yes an aftermarket pipe is lighter & can improve performance somewhat or appear to by shifting the way the exhaust gasses leave the cylinder hence `woods` pipe & `dessert/rev` pipe...I personally don't seem the point in fitting anything other than a full system...as lets be honest that's why the manufactures designed them to work best together for maximum performance.
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Sprucing up a 220

Post by canamfan »

Put the pc pipe on or the fmf rev pipe, plenty of low end and revs out good too. Get an aftermarket silencer a little louder but worth the extra power. Work on the jetting if needed, big power to be had. I used uni filters for years but after trying the twinair I like it better.
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Re: Sprucing up a 220

Post by adam728 »

I'm saying stock vs full system, huge difference in power and throttle response.

Stock pipe with either stock silencer or Turbinecore, no change in power between the two.

FMF pipe with stock or Turbinecore, huge improvement from stock pipe, with maybe, maybe a hint better throttle response with the Turbinecore.

This was on a Fredette ported bike with head mods, carb bored, airbox lid modified, etc. One can argue that if the stock silencer impeded flow then it REALLY should have been a bottle neck on my bike. The only reason I didn't run the stock silencer and FMF pipe all the time was the weight penalty. With the single wall pipe and all the noise that comes through it there really wasn't even a sound level difference from the rider's perspective between the two silencers. On a db meter or to observers I'm sure the stocker was quieter though. Went the the same on a KX125 I quieted down, riding the bike was disappointing. But when my buddy borrowed the bike my jaw about dropped, as it was sooooooo quiet on the track as a spectator.
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diymirage
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Sprucing up a 220

Post by diymirage »

Why not see what the forum sticky on performance mods says ?

http://www.kdxrider.net/forums/viewtopi ... =77&t=7198
newbbewb wrote:DIYmirage has it right.


-1996 KDX 200 woods weapon (converted to 99 green body)
-1996 KDX 200 plated street toy (barney edition)
-2003 Yamaha TTR125-L (wifeys bike)
-1997 KDX 220 project bike
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Re: Sprucing up a 220

Post by 3j3j3j »

If you get bars I would definetely go with fat bars. I have some pro tapers and they have been through worse crashes than I'd like to admit (read dropped down 40ft embankment/cliff and caught on a tree by the bars) and never bent. They also feel really nice standing even for a taller guy at 6ft 2. I think have protaper contourbin the atv high bend.
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Re: Sprucing up a 220

Post by 6 Riders »

I have the PTs on my bike, I really like them, but my bend it to tall, maybe I'll give those to the kid and get myself a new bend :lol:
newbbewb wrote:^what he said.
masterblaster wrote:Man 6 riders you rock.
*side note...I'm drunk, so try to read what I'm trying to say, instead of what I actually type
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