KDXRIDER.NET

Alright, so I finally pulled the trigger on a kdx. Been wanting a two stroke for awhile and was turned onto the kdx by a friend. Anyway, it's a 95 and has been sitting in a barn for the past 7 years. I'm going to rebuild the engine and get a few things its missing.

Anyway, my main question is about fluids, yeah what a newb question. What's the recommended oil or what y'all recommend? What's do y'all recommend for mix and what ratio to mix the fuel?

FYI this bike will see little use, it won't be raced but trail ridden maybe once a month or once ever couple months. I currently run amsoil in my two other birtbikes and two quads.
I'd love to continue to use amsoil but I'm open to all quality fluids.

Thanks y'all!

I run Lucas oil 10w40 in the transmission and Lucas oil semi-sinthetic premix at 40:1. You can mix a wide range of ratios, but it's all about what your bike is jetted for. If you use too much premix, your power valves will gunk up more quickly.

I have a ton of full synthetic amsoil 10w-40 dirt from my race quad I recently sold. I'd be fine to use that?

The 10w-40 is fine for the transmission. You can run a full quart and it helps quiet some of the engine noise these bikes are known for. For premix, what ever premix you want to use . Just remember to pick an oil, pick a ration and then jet to that and don't change. Any changes will require re-jetting for best performance and minimal splooge. I run 40:1 (mostly because the math is easy ) but folks on here run everything from 32:1 - 50:1 with no issues.

TeamExileRacing wrote:I have a ton of full synthetic amsoil 10w-40 dirt from my race quad I recently sold. I'd be fine to use that?

Make sure it's not 'Energy Conserving'. If it is, it'll be too 'slick' (not a very technical term) and the clutch will slip. I like non-synthetic Shell Rotella T; some people like ATF. BTW, I am, of course, talking about gearbox/transmission oil.

For two-stroke/pre-mix oil, I like Maxima K2, Motorex, Motul 710 and Motul 800 (the off-road version). There are a lot of really good two-stroke oils and a lot of strong opinions. There must be a million threads on the internet about two-stroke oils. I mix at 26:1. 32:1 wouldn't be a bad idea, I definitely would go any higher than 40:1. (Cue the guy who mixes at 300:1 and says his motor has lasted for years... )

26:1? You are literally the only person I have heard of that mixes heavier than even the OEM 32:1 ratio.

bufftester wrote:26:1? You are literally the only person I have heard of that mixes heavier than even the OEM 32:1 ratio.

Every time I pull the pipe to look at the piston/cylinder, they look nice and oily. Just the way I (and my engine) like it. I've bought A LOT of two strokes that were blown up due to lack of oil. I've never bought even one that was blown up due to having too much oil on the cylinder walls, piston, crank, etc.

Thanks for all the insitw guys. I talked to the previous owner and he said he always ran Yama lube for the premix and mixed 40:1. I'd say the bike is set up for that, you think I should keep running it?

I'd say there are better oils than Yamalube, but I have no doubt there are people that use it with good success. Also, jetting (at least where I ride) isn't necessarily "set-it-and-forget-it". Sometimes I ride at ~5,300 feet at 55 degrees and sometimes I ride at ~9,500 feet at 85 degrees.

There are two different versions of Yamalube. One is suitable for injection motors while the other (2R maybe) is what you would want. This is assuming you ride on the pipe and not just putting around with the throttle barely cracked past idle speed.

bufftester wrote:The 10w-40 is fine for the transmission. You can run a full quart and it helps quiet some of the engine noise these bikes are known for.

Thanks for the tip, I suppose that with the bike on the kickstand the oil level would be right at the top of the sight window then?

You check the oil level with the bike level.

So how much play is acceptable on the connecting rod to the crank?

Side to side play is normal. Up and down it shouldn't have any noticeable play.

"Fun Wheel Drive"

I have a dummy question since I have never been into a bottom end. What activates the power valve on our KDX's?

javjacob wrote:I have a dummy question since I have never been into a bottom end. What activates the power valve on our KDX's?

A governor that's operated by centrifugal force.

It's a bit like Kawasaki's version of the old "Mouse Trap" game. A whole bunch of parts connected in strange and wondrous ways.

Thanks for the input guys. Been in the bottom end a little, all looks good. I'm going to send the top end off to my engine guy and let him work his magic.

I haven't had my KDX very long... I started off with the OEM spec' 32:1 but it seemed to be too much. I've changed to 40:1 and the bike seems to like that the best. I've got a jet block gasket failure so I'm back to too much smoke and splooge. Prior to that the smoke was reduced by the 40:1 ratio. I've heard of others going even thinner with some advanced Amsoil(?). Also, don't make the insanely noob move I did and run lower grade fuel to begin with... use the premium stuff

I am in the same boat, starting to learn everything from scratch on a used KDX220. For oil, I am following the Jeff Fredette formula of golden spectro at 50:1 plus a bit more for safety so 2.8oz per gallon. Gear oil the Belray 80wt gear saver brand, 1 qt fills near top of sight window.