Maintenance & Technical > KX500 Original

Is a kx500 the right bike for me. Opinions please. Woods ridding. Should I sell.

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Hillclimb#42:
 That is in good shape, chrisorbics!!!!! Thats wild that my 97 is basically the same bike. I think the surge is from MASSIVE crank and stroke. I thought it was a lean condition for a little while, until I learned that is just a trait of the k5's. You have to use the clutch to stop and it tends to raise the front end during a jump, so get in the habit of pulling in the lever to keep the rear fender in one piece. :wink:
  I hear alot about that flywheel-weight, but it seems like it is restricting the motor. If that was good for it, wouldn't it run faster as you clogged up the air filter, ran it too rich, or dented up the pipe? The one I took off my k5 was real heavy for its size and would surely add to the inertia of the crank. Tell you why I ran it. When I bought the bike, it was wore-out. The crank had slop in it and therefore had vibration. Vibration to the point, I was losing a bolt or two per tank of gas! Eventually, it caused the flywheel to sheer the woodruff key which damaged the end of the crank. The weight mounts to the inside and outside of flywheel which held it all together, plus helped balance out some of the vibration. Now, I'm all fixed up, keeping my bolts, running well and racing with the old sandbaggers. (Amateurs formerly pros) :-D

chrisorbics:
Hi as far as using a flywheel weight I do not think that it resticts horse power. As far as I know it is supposed to add a lot of bottom end torqe. I know it is going to change the power and respone at high revs but that would not really bother me. If I was ridding it in the dunes I would be looking for a lighter flywheel but that is completely different. I would definately not compare a fly wheel weight to cloging up the air filter. I guess everybody has their own opinion. Getting rid of all the vibration sounds great to me.

Chris

Hillclimb#42:
 I know alot of k5 guys seem to like them, so I may be wrong. I thought it slowed the rev down, to make it easier roll-on power, instead of powering thru powerband of the gear. It has its pros too I'll give it that. Also, vibrations were worn bearrings. Much smoother, crisper bike today :-D

chrisorbics:
Hi I know what you are saying. I think that the flywheel weight could make the bike seem slower. It would also rev less. That is good that you got your bike fixed.

I think I have made up my mind about what to do with my bike. After ridding it the other day I can definately see that the bike is a lot harder to ride in the tight woods than anything I have ever ridden. I could ride any of my other bikes or quads all day and me tired but this things just kills me. Don't get me wrong. I had a very good time ridding it all day yesterday. That was probably the longest ride I have taken it out on. I almost ran it out of gas. I think I will keep it and save some money for a kdx200 or something like it. I would only sell it or trade it for a good offer. That is where I stand for now. Thanks for all of the comments and information.

Chris

BigGreenMachine:
At the risk of sounding like a total hick why don't you stuff the KX500 motor in a trike frame setup for the woods.

By the looks of the vids you posted you have wide enough trails for a trike/quad and it would be a whole lot easier to ride for long periods vs the big KX.

You could even keep it with team green since Kawi made the Tecate back in 84-87.
I'd get an 86/87 Tecate trike and put the motor in. It practically bolts in with little work. The swingarm bolt lines up as does the bottom motor mount. The top and front motor mount would need to be fabricated (just the removeable mounts I mean) but thats easy.

They are a race chassis straight from the factory with 9 inches of travel front and rear. They originally come with a 42hp 250 powervalved KX motor so they are very capable of handling the big KX5 motor and has been done numerous times before.

Heres a pair, one stock and one setup for MX racing from back in 86/87. Very sweet looking machines IMO and definately fun.

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