Maintenance & Technical > KX500 Original

Not happy with my '03 500 power curve...

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HULKSTER:
Ok...here is the deal. I have had 500's before. Older ones.

They were all smooth from low to high.

This new 500 has a DEAD bottom and it really comes alive from mid to top end in each gear.  1st and 2nd run out real fast like a 250. 3rd is a lot longer...and 4th is longer than third. 5th is usless where I ride. I couldn't even pull half of 5th on a long strait on the powerlines....lol...never even getting in the power.

To be in the power on this bike you HAVE to be in MID-TOP....period.

In plain english...IT HAS A POWERBAND....not POWER EVERWHERE like the old 500's. You gotta ride it like a 125 to go fast....ever try doing that on a 500? lol

I NEED my BOTTOM end...period.....I ain't no pro!

Ok...the Moose Reed Spacer is supposed to give better bottom. I believe the FMF Gnarly pipe is supposed to be a low-mid pipe.

Anybody else here have these issues before?

I know a 50 is in order in the back too...

Paul:
Thats strange, my '01 isn't like that at all - completely stock. My race bike has a FMF Fatty, reed spacer, VForce Delta II. various other mods internal and it pulls like a freight train from bottom to top. With a flywheel weight on my '01 it'll lug like an XR650. With that said... I'd betch there is nothing wrong with that bike that a little jetting and carb tuning wouldn't take care of.

What's in it now?

Main
Pilot
Needle
Air Screw turns
fuel / oil ratio
type of oil (Golden Spectro, Maxima, etc...)

alan:
I have a 01 KX5 and compared to other big bore 2 strokes I thought it had a pretty good power band. I just sold my old 87 YZ490 and it truly felt like a 125 with all most no low and mid and would jerk your arms out of the sockets when it hit the power band. The problem I had with my KX 5 was starting and bogging down on the low end of the power band and also fowling plugs. :evil:

I took Paul's advise, well mostly! I installed a read spacer and put a FMF Gnarly pipe on it with the stock muffler. d**n was I ever surprised! :shock:  No more bogging now more fouled plugs, mush easier  and to quote Paul, "It pulls like freight train all the way from the bottom"! I also find that I am riding 1 gear taller all the time. It will pull wheelies in all 5 gears at the touch of the throttle. Even in soft sand with my  210 lbs and all my gear it is hard to keep the front end down. :D I am just a weekend warrior so I didn't think I needed the new reed setup.

So get a reed spacer on ASAP and you will be amazed in the difference! If you change pipes you will need and extra OEM rubber mount( buy extras the break often)  for the additional bottom mount. I think the members are fairly split between the FMF Gnarly and Fatty, I chose the Gnarly because it is made of a heaver gage metal and I am a desert rat.

Alan :D

Sharc:
Weird....my 2002 pulled clean and strong stock with factory jetting at 0 - 3000 foot elevation....I'd look at the Carb/Air Filter/Plug and see if all looks ok...maybe you over oiled the air filter and it's choking...? (Seems silly but I've seen it before...) Or the choke's on...? Seems like something crazy must be wrong cuz that bike should pull like a funny car from 0 rpm to redline....I've had other Honda/Husky 2 stoke 500's and this bike would stomp them all....Look for obvious stuff before aftermarket $$...

Sharc

HULKSTER:
I will report back on my carb settings after.

The filter is fine.

Oh....it pulls from the bottom....just that it pulls MUCH harder from mid to top. It won't come up in 3rd, 4th, or 5th without being "in" the powerband (mid-top).

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