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Going from a 426 to a CR250?

By Mossman,
in YZ400F/426F/450F/450FX

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Mossman

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Okay, here is my situation. I bought my 2000 YZ426 this spring thinking that I would be doing a lot of trail riding and with a little MX thrown in. Well, the opposite has been the situation, the bike hasn't even seen a trail yet! I am relatively new to MX, but I have managed to be respectable on the track (clearing most, non-life threatening doubles!) but with much more to learn.

I am starting to really notice the weight and the reluctance to turn of the 426. I have been toying with the idea of getting a CR250 for my MX bike. I like the small feel of the bike, the weight, and the way it turns (not to mention I love the brakes).

I was planning on dumping some money into the 426 this winter, but now I am having second thoughts. I would love to try a new 450 (CRF or YZF) but they are out of my price range (I need to be under $3K). The CR's are cheap, I have the opportunity to do a straight up trade for a 2002.

I am by no means a pro, nor do I plan to be. I don't even race, I just go to practice days at the track with my buddies.

Anyone else in a similar situation?

One more thing, before everyone starts recommending a 250F, I am not interested, not enough motor ?

thanks!

Joe

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Matt96xr6

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The 2 stroke power is different from the 4 stroke. Enough said there.

For the 426, spend the money on the ZipTy Magic link. It will make the bike corner. Then get the suspension revalved front and rear. The nice thing about the 426 and 450s is that you have all the power you need out of the bike. plus the tractability of the 4 stroke. If you gear it for the track, you will have less clutching and shifting to boot. If you want major power run a 14/52 on the bike and hold on!

My problem with the bike is the power wearing me down at Washougal. I can ride SX tracks all day, but a true MX track like Washougal kills me in a few laps, especially when the uphill gets rough there. I bit more conditioning on my part should help there.

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Jeffro426

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Here i am cowboy!! As already stated, i just made the switch from an 01 YZ426 to a 04 CR250 and i honestly couldnt be happier. The weight difference between the two bikes is night and day...corners i had trouble on my 426 are shredded by the CR with ease. On my 426, i was good for about 5-6 hard laps before i had to slow down and let my body catch back up...now i can ride two-three times that without a sign of slowing. My lap times have improved by an average of a good 2 seconds and jumps that i had trouble with on my 426 are a breeze on the CR....which would also explain my overjumping of a table and tearing my meniscus putting me out for a while! ? The 4 strokes power is deceiving...it sure does feel like its going to pull your arms out of your sockets but in all reality in a corner to corner drag race between the CR and my YZ, they are neck and neck. You need to learn to ride the 2 stroke like it was ment too...hard and lots of clutch were as the 4 stroke had the torque advantage down low and you just twisted the throttle. The CR just shows its highlights when that straight ends and the corners and jumps begin. It definetly take a more agressive riding style in my opinion to be faster on a 2 stroke, but once you get it down, its a way of life. I may be a traitor, but i am one much faster, and alot happier one! :devil:

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Jeffro426

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The YZs motor had hotcams intake and exhaust cames, had a Thunder Alley pipe and silencer, and a whole other slew of bolt on goodies....the CR is bone stock. I rode a 04 YZ also before purchasing the CR and it just didnt fit me as well as the CR did. Im a pretty small guy, 5'7 145 pounds and it seemed to be more suited to me. I think honda build quality is better too...the YZ seems to use alot of cheezy hardware and their welds on their frames are sloppy. But i guess im just a nitpicker! ? As for bottom end power...the CR definetly has less than the 426 did, but its all in the clutch. Just give the clutch a quick stab instead of just rolling on the throttle out of a corner and your off like a rocket ship...like i said before, it does take a different riding style but it has proven to me to be faster.

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Mossman

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I went and looked at the CR tonight, what a piece of crap it was! ?

I can't imagine how some people can get a bike into such bad condition, it just amazes me.

I am still hunting, but still on the 426 for now. Look for it in the Sale section soon!

Jeffro, when I asked about bottom end, I was referring to a comparison with other 250's. I jsut keep reading that the CR is lacking a little on the bottom. Thanks for all of the input though!

Joe

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Jeffro426

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Honestly, i dont think the bottom end on the CR gives up anything to any other 2 strokes out there...mine never sees any bottom end ridding anyways for the most part...its just a mad dash to the next corner, brake, down shift, clutch stab with throttle twist and power out of it for me. A good aftermarket pipe and a shorty silencer would cure any problems that anyone might think it has though...or you could always bore it out!

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00YZ426FMRCD

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Okay, here is my situation. I bought my 2000 YZ426 this spring thinking that I would be doing a lot of trail riding and with a little MX thrown in. Well, the opposite has been the situation, the bike hasn't even seen a trail yet! I am relatively new to MX, but I have managed to be respectable on the track (clearing most, non-life threatening doubles!) but with much more to learn.

I am starting to really notice the weight and the reluctance to turn of the 426. I have been toying with the idea of getting a CR250 for my MX bike. I like the small feel of the bike, the weight, and the way it turns (not to mention I love the brakes).

I was planning on dumping some money into the 426 this winter, but now I am having second thoughts. I would love to try a new 450 (CRF or YZF) but they are out of my price range (I need to be under $3K). The CR's are cheap, I have the opportunity to do a straight up trade for a 2002.

I am by no means a pro, nor do I plan to be. I don't even race, I just go to practice days at the track with my buddies.

Anyone else in a similar situation?

One more thing, before everyone starts recommending a 250F, I am not interested, not enough motor :devil:

thanks!

Joe

Joe - I can relate 100%. I also have a 00 426 that I bought with trails in mind. I have riden trails once and the rest MX since I bought the bike in early Jan. 04.

Ironically, my riding buddy has a 2001 CR250 so I get to ride both bikes quite often. About a month ago, my buddy broke his arm in a race and just last week, I went to the track with him to check out his bike and shake the cob webs off it. I had a full day of riding on his CR250 while leaving my YZF 426 at home. I agree the weight is actually very noticeable as well as the turning.

Although - Just this past Sunday, I spent all day on my YZF and thought - Damn I am glad I have my old heavy 00 YZF426. There is no comparison in the power and delivery. I will admit it has taken me about 4 months to figure out the power delivery and turning but once you do, there is no going back. Some of this is due to me not riding much MX. I raced my 1st MX race last month in the Vet class and ate up not only every 2 stroke on the line but several 4 strokes as well. (Got the holeshot in the 2nd moto and finished respectively for a woods rider - Wasn't far behind at all and most importantly had a blast!)

Again - I come from a HareSramble background so MX is a little bit of a change. Especially at age 38. Hang in there.

Two things I can tell you about my experience on the YZF.

1.) You must be agressive on the corning and get your weight on the front of the bike when turing and the YZF will cut the corner.

2.) Throttle control is key. Once you have this down, keep the throttle twisted at all times. It will go up, by and over almost anything & anyone.

3.) The 426 does want to push in the corners. I have heard people talk about the engine braking characteristics on the 4 strokes but I can tell you that mine doesn't do that at all. (I'd like to hear from others on this one but I haven't seen it at all - I let off the throttle and the bike keeps a rolling)

Hope this helps but if I had the choice between my buddies CR250 2 Stroke versus my old heavy 426, I would stick with the YZF. ?

- RCD

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Aaron

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You should try a yz250. Power delivery is night and day vs cr250. I switched with my freind on cr250 and he about crapped himself. CR250 feels like a sewing machine, yz250 feels like a bomb.

I think there is price parity on 2 or 3 year old bikes.

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Jeffro426

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The STOCK 04 YZ, and KX 250 i rode back to back before buying my CR offered no real advantages to me motor wise...the KX definetly had the best low end of the bunch and the YZ probably the best top, but the mid/top is where the CR shine in my book. I spun several laps on each bike and found that the YZ was way to stiffly sprung for me, and like my YZF, seemed to hinder my cornering ability. The build quality of them just didnt seem up to par in my eyes...the plastic seemed flimsy, the stock chain and bars are junk(the CRs come stock with renthals now), bottom end was no more powerful than the CR, and im not a fan of having graphics on the gas tank where as the CR they are only on the shrouds(i.e no more yellow graphics!)...sure, small problems, but if your spending 5 grand on a bike it better be what you want. I would have bought the KX if it wasnt for the fact that they wanted 5500 out the door and it was green ? ...great motor, good suspension, fit and finish were good and ergos seemed darn near perfect...but in the long run i was a sucker for the good looks of the CR. The aluminum frame, and simple design on the CR make working on it a breeze. I prefer the more rigid, solid feeling you get with the CR...their build quality are great, fit and finish are top notch, and they seem to hold resale value much more than the other 3 bike companies...look around...used CRs usually command more money vs YZs, KXs, RMs...there is a reason for that. Either way, i would shop around and find the bike that suits you...what fits me and my ridding style may not suit the next person.

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Aaron

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The only thing I agree with jeffro about is that you need to try for yourself. I have generally been happy with the build quality of the yz. I just did a topend and all gaskets came right off, no scraping or banging.

zy is way more powerful in my opinion ?

Are you talking about overall power? Which would you consider easier to ride?

thanks to all, this is some good input. I am hoping to get some seat time on an 03 CR this weekend.

Joe

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Mossman

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I took the 426 out to the track tonight and I think I came to a conclusion, it's the engine braking that I dislike the most! I am not an agressive pro rider, so when I get out of the gas, it just kills my momentum. The acceleration / decceleration really takes it out of me. It could just be my technique, but either way, it annoys me!

We ended up leaving early when CBDaddy (250F Forum) landed a little less than straight off of a triple and proceeded to take soil samples. ? He is okay, but pretty sore. We decided to call it a night after that.

Joe

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00YZ426FMRCD

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I took the 426 out to the track tonight and I think I came to a conclusion, it's the engine braking that I dislike the most! I am not an agressive pro rider, so when I get out of the gas, it just kills my momentum. The acceleration / decceleration really takes it out of me. It could just be my technique, but either way, it annoys me!

We ended up leaving early when CBDaddy (250F Forum) landed a little less than straight off of a triple and proceeded to take soil samples. ? He is okay, but pretty sore. We decided to call it a night after that.

Joe

Joe - As I said, I have the same year 00 426. I have heard people talk about engine braking on the 4-strokes but I have yet to see this occur on mine. Maybe I got a lucky one built on Friday from the factory or the previous owner did something to eliminate this (some type of Mod) but I have yet to see...I let off the gas and there is little if any engine braking or de-acceleration. (By the way I am a 38 year old MX novice/C Rider as well and have rode 2-strokes for years)

Good luck with the CR and prepare yourself for seeing a lot of blue fenders in front of you. :devil:

Enjoy!

RCD

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00YZ426FMRCD

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Funny...i seem to pass ALOT more blue ones on my CR! ?:awww:

Yeah those PW80's on the straight-aways are easy to catch on a 250! ?

Seriously - You have to go with what works and I am glad you are faster on the CR. I am much faster on my YZF 426 than on my buddies CR. He has a great bike - don't get me wrong but the power just doesn't cut it for me.

Read what Aaron says and I can guarantee - you would be still faster yet on a YZ250...Next time you are at the track, switch with someone and see for yourself. :devil:

- RCD

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