KX Riders
Maintenance & Technical => KX500 Original => Topic started by: mccowan14 on May 16, 2003, 04:24:05 PM
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Does anybody dirt drag there 500? I have started racing a little bit at my local track and now I want more power. I would like to get my motor built somewhere but I don't know who to send it to. Does anybody have any suggestions. Also what other mods can I do to get faster.
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This information is a little old,but its what I thought of when you wrote drag racing a KX500.In my 1988 Dirt Bike magazine they had L.A. Sleeve make the KX500 into a 550,then ran 1/4 mile (paved)at 12.18 seconds.With some set up time it would have been a little faster.This may not help,but I thought it'd be interesting.
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Thanks, anything helps. I am looking into a big bore. The only thing is I don't know any builders that can do a good job. My buddy had a CR 500 built and the guy didn't do a good job. So I don't want that problem. I would appreciate any suggestions on builders.
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Give Eric Gorr a call.
http://ericgorr.com/
He'll set your motor up for you anyway you want. He's done my motor and it's great!
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i wouldnt let eric gorr rebuild my kids tricycle.my buddy had Eric perform complete rebuild on his WR400 motor.Rebuild included Big bore kit,hotrod crank and connecting rod kit,Hotcams,minor head work[cleaning ports,grind and seat valves].rebuild took 2 months.when my buddy finally got motor back it suffered from several oil and water leaks[head gasket,water pump seal,sidecover gasket and bolts not torqued to specs]it seems Eric re-used some of old seals and gaskets.the motor blew in less than 3 months.when my buddy took motor apart to rebuild himself he notice it still had OEM connecting rod and top piston ring was installed upside down.i forgot to mention there was nothing wrong with motor when it was sent to Eric. my buddy just wanted to add some HP and someone recommended he send it to Forward motion Racing.my buddy rebuilt blown his motor in less than 2 weeks at 1\3 cost and with much better results runs great and without leaks.
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KXtas:
Are you for real about Gorr? Did your buddy follow up on this "robbery"? Man, thats WRONG!!!!!!
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I was just getting ready to send my engine to this guy. I hope this guy followed up with Eric on this situation.
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Well in that case does anybody recomend any other builders? I would like to find a builder that has done alot of good builds. Of corse nobody wants to get a bad engine back from somewhere that they just spent alot of money on. So any other builders names and how to get in touch with them would be helpful.
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I know at least 6 people that have had work done by Eric Gorr and all are very satisfied. I referred 3 of them there and wouldn't have done so if I wasn't satisfied with the service I received. The only real complaint I've ever heard about his work is how long it takes him to do it. Some have complained about the sloppiness of his epoxy work and I agree to a point. Ultimately though the epoxy never gets seen and having it neater would make very little difference in the output.
Eric charges "crack head" prices for his work, he is by far the least expensive guy I've found, and if he wasn't I'd do it myself or I'd go somewhere else that was quicker, closer, and did a little more finish work. For about $430 shipped you get your cylinder repaired, bored, plated, honed, ported, welded/epoxied, and your power valves disassembled, cleaned and reassembled. You also get your head modified to work with the porting you choose, and finally you get a Wiseco piston, rings, pin, circlip, and cometic gaskets. Add it all up and the 2-4 week wait doesn't seem that bad and the cost is a steal, considering when you get it back it will be ported to your specifications and all you have to do is put it together and ride.
With that being said Eric is human and can & will make mistakes, if your friend had went back to him with his concerns I believe Eric would've made it right. All I can say is that I and several of my friends are satisfied with his work, and thrilled with his prices. If I was a top racer I might look elsewhere to find the best product regardless of price, but since I'm not price plays a part in my decision and forward motions prices make it an awful easy choice.
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Thanks for the followup. I will be sending Eric my parts.
I know the feeling about getting bad service in this field. About ten years ago I sent out a head for porting and boring and it came back butchered. The top end was put together but the company forgot to use the new oversize piston and assembled the old piston and the bike had 0 compression. The exhaust bridge was made paper thin and not usable and to top it off the boring job that was terribly rough. Absolutely a lousy job. Obviously, this company is no longer in business and rightly so! I don't see how places like this can overlook this stuff.
Does anyone know the differences in Gorr's bottom end services? The website doesn't seem clear to me. I want the bearing and seals replaced but does the price include balancing and a Hot Rod. It looks like there are two different listing for this... Maybe one just expect the crank to be sent whereas the other is the whole motor. Thanks.
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my buddy didnt try working it out with Eric.he figured it wasnt worth it.even if eric said he would repair motor free it still almost cost $100 to ship motor each way.I agree that he's only human and everybody makes mistakes,but there were a lot of little things wrong with motor that were just uncalled for.Eric must store motors outside because there was a lot of rust on gears and counterbalancer when motor came back.my buddy changed oil after first day of riding and oil filter was covered in dog hair.Next time someone talks to Eric ask him if he has dog.if he says yes find out if dog is pet or working as mechanic.i would like to say i own both Erics books and they have been a great source of help and info.i dont doubt Eric's knowledge of motorcycle engines ,but i do wonder about his commitment to performing quality services.
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Has anyone else had any problems with Gorr's service. Does he do the motor rework or just the big bore kits?
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Next time someone talks to Eric ask him if he has dog.if he says yes find out if dog is pet or working as mechanic.
LMAO!! Too funny
Has anyone else had any problems with Gorr's service. Does he do the motor rework or just the big bore kits?
From what I know Eric was referring bottom end rebuilds to another company called 2fast racing or something. If you want to get a lot of opinions on Eric's work try posting on
http://www.DIRTRIDER.net or http://www.WOODSRACER.com There are lots of satisfied people and a few unhappy ones on Dirtrider that should be willing to give their opinion, and I remember reading a complaint on woodsracer a while ago. GOOD LUCK with your decision and if your not sure about sending your stuff to Eric try and find a local racer or shop that's capable of doing the work and support them.
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I've had Eric do all of my bikes, been 100% satisfied.. Wait forever for the work, but it is totally worth it. Have friends who also use him and they have not had 1 complaint. KXtaz, sorry you had a bad experience, just call him and get over it, it happens. Give him a chance.
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I've been told (maybe just bs) that you could bore the engine up then further stroke it comming to a total of 580 cc. This will give you tons of power and because of the stroking it will be easier to handle.
Eric Gorr makes the LA 540 sleve for 465$
Madman enginering does a 540 as well:
http://www.madmanengineering.com/bigborekits.htm
Max power does 523 cc but that seems rather expensive:
http://www.maxpower-engines.com/bb-kawasaki.htm
You should give John from B&B racing a call. He's riding a kx 500 him self (allthough I think it's a quad), and he sounds like he knows the big kx wery well.
http://www.swbike.com/classifieds/messages/3288.html
Martin
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Eric did my top end.A 520 kit and some all around porting.I have not had any problems from his work.Its goes both way's though,some people have had bad work and others good.ask for a gaurantee or your money back in writing before going into spending the money.
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Hi!
Here do you have the recept,hehe!
You have to raise the cylinder to get more porttimes and lower the head to the right compressionvalue.(tighten the squish).
Shorten the pipe to suit the higher duration on the exhausttime.
Take away any flaws and so who disturbed the flow.
Ovalbored or bigger carb...
Carbon reeds to avoid flutter on high rpm.
This is the way!!!
Right gearing is very importent when you dragracing too.
I will dragrace my kx500(70hp rw) this summer and see what it can do.
Maybe only the 1/8 mile is right for it.
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How do you raise the cylinder,with 2 base gaskets?
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Yeah mikesmith
that?s right! :D
But you lower the compression at the same time,so you can put a thinner headgasket instead.
Be sure you have 1,3mm squish(distance head-piston). :!:
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What part of the pipe do you shorten,head middle or stinger,and how by how much?
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Depens on what powerband you want!
You can?t shorten without calculate first.(or a little bit and try,you can weld it back).
Easiest is downpipe(the first part who is all round, from piston view).
Losing bottomrange doing that. :cry:
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I got the 520 kit and have never had a problem with his work.The epoxy work is a little rough but thats ok.My cylinder and head were clean and flawless.The port work along with the head modification has been great.I personally believe its just a matter of choice of who you want to do your work.I hace talked to eric on the phone and he has answered every question i have asked him.Call him and ask him the questions that are bothering you.As fo me i will be using his services again....
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I thought Eric's big bore was a 520? I don't see a 540 listed on his site. Can some post a link?
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Give him a call or mail him. I mailed him a couple of months ago and he told me he does the LA big sleeve as well. Thats the 88mm bore (523cc) and 88mm stroke, comming to a total of 540cc. Price was 465$ at the time.