450 for me?

[joelmx]

i used to have an rmz-250 and am really considering getting a new bike in the spring(snowing here) and i was wondering if the 450 would be a ood bike for me. I ride motocross and some off-road. Does it have more power than i can swing a stick at?

[kawirider]

Well do you compete? If so, what class are you in? What is your height and weight? If you are a midget like me, (im 5'7") you will have a little more trouble on a 450 seeing as they have a tall seat height. I have to shift my weight to one side just so I can get a foot down. I guess if you are very short you could always go with a honda but dont do that, hondas dont have the reliability of yamahas. As for the power, I came from a '00 KX125 to a '03 YZ450F. If you keep a level head, dont ride it like a 125, and keep a level head (dont go out right away and see if you can hit that big triple at the track) for a 6-8 weeks I think you could make the transition fine. If you are going to buy brand new dont worry about it, but if you are going to buy used read this article, it will help you. http://dirtrider.com/features/141_0511_low_used/

good luck

[joelmx]

im 6' 215lbs and next year i am planning on racing the 250 begginnner class here in canada!

[kawirider]

6' and 215 and your on a 250F? Wow that must be slow. You should go for the 450 then. As big as you are you should be on something bigger than a 250F. I mean, im 5'7" 165 and my 125 was so underpowered (even though it had mods) I thought I was going to lose my mind. But if you dont start racing until next year that will give you plenty of time to get used to it. Even as big of a change as it is for me, I am already, after about 4 hrs last saturday and another 5 today, jumping it 40-50 feet. So yes, go for it, get the 450. If you are human, and you have balls in between your legs, you will love a 450.

[zao]

I'm like 5'6" 238lbs and I am 15. I just got a 450 that has some work done to it and i love it and feel a lot more comfortable on it. The bike also made me more confident. I say go ahead and get one

[flintlock28]

I got my 2004 Yz 450f back in May after not riding any dirt for about an 18 year layoff (I'm a 41 year old geezer now), Anyway, this bike is awesome, with ton's of torque, reliability and acceleration. At first the bike felt rather tall for me (I'm just shy of 6 foot even and about 186 pounds) but I found that the previous owner had the suspension set up way too stiff, which contributed to the bike handling funny and sitting tall, (the previous owner was lighter than me by about 10 pounds, so he must've really been quirky on it) The bike is stock except for Pro-Taper SE handlebars, Billet throttle tube, and a Zip-TY fuel screw. The only complaint I have is that I feel the turning ability could be improved, and I may purchase a "Stormlink" linkage to improve the turning ability.

These Yz's won't let you down....

[joelmx]

it;s snowing here so i cant get used to one. But i am kinda indecisive about whether to get a 250 two stroke or a 4fiddy? Yamaha Only! 05 or 06?

[joelmx]

u should get the lowboy rads from pwr, they are like 2 cm lower than stock and supposedly really help the bikes turning ability!!

[flintlock28]

Does 2 cm really make that much of a significant difference???

Well joel if you can afford it, from the reports coming in on TT, the Yz 450f 06 model seems to be a heck of a machine. Read some of the posts put on today and yesterday, and it looks really impressive. It looks like the engineers got rid of the negative things about the bike, and kept the positive attributes. It is said by a couple of people to be the best turning Yz ever. If I could buy one without offending the wife, I would seriously consider selling my 04 and getting an 06.

At your weight also, I think the grunt power of the 450f would serve you better than a 250. It's great on a MX track to have that low end grunt, and also for hill climbs, and on straightaways it will kill lesser bikes. Mainly because I'm not that great of a rider, better riders on 250's get me in the corners and the tight stuff, but look out in the straightaways, I go past them like their stalled.

[joelmx]

supposedly chad reed and heath voss used this kit on their mx bikes and i think it was dirtrider that did a test on htme and they said that you could feel a significant difference, just my $0.02?

[joelmx]

my rmz blew an intake valve and two buckets went bad, so i am kinda wooried about getting another four-stroke, im not familiar with valves and stuff like that so im leaning towards a 250 2s. Rode an 05 yz 250 and was a lot of fun

[flintlock28]

The Yamaha's are known for their basically "bulletproof" valvetrain. You will find that there are very little problems associated with Yami's if you keep the oil and filters changed. I think someone posted they had 300 hours on their Yz450f and when they checked the valve clearances, they were at specifications. I probably have close to 85 hours on my bike with ZERO problems with it. I am thinking of checking the valve clearances very soon just to make sure.

My only problem is improving my riding...

Don

[joelmx]

ive heard they are reliable but i dont know if i should get an 05 or 05 450 or 250 two stroke

[kawirider]

Get the newest 450 you possibly can.

Newer=

1. Better suspension

2. More powerful easier to ride motor

3. Better fit and finish

4. More aftermarket parts (after about 5-6 months. dont really need them though could race a modern 450 stock)

5. BNG (bold new graphics)

lol, got no. 5 from twmx.

[joelmx]

thanks for the advice, should i get the 05 yz 450 cuz there will probably be some good deals on them in the spring or should i blow the extra cash for the 06?

[riderman329]

the 05 had some what of a handling problem, you should get a 04, and speeking of that i have my 2004 yz450f for sale 3800 us pm me for pictures and details!

[kawirider]

The '06 has the new aluminum frame, five gears, revamped suspension, and pro taper bars stock. Also, Chad Reed is taking it over the YZ250 for supercross this year, and so it must be pretty good. If I had the money I would go for the '06.

[joelmx]

handling issue? was it the suspension or set up or was that it is top heavy?

[flintlock28]

I'd go with the 06 if you can swing it.....

The 06 has gotten some really nice reviews concerning it's suspension. I think it's called "speed sensitive". Plus, pro riders have commented that it "feels" 20 pounds lighter than previous years. Remember, the way in which a bike has it's weight distributed, plus it's rotating mass affect how "heavy" it feels.'

06 if ya got the dough

04 or 05 if you can't stretch that much cash