OT:Two Stroke track bike?

[blusxv]

Are two stroke bikes any good track days? I was thinking of a NSR250. what are your thoughts on it?


Mike

[blakebird]

The Aprilia RS250 would be another good choice.

[RoundelRider]

Sure..........I work at VIR as a corner worker and see 2 strokes of all kinds running track days!

John

[Joe]

typically more maintenance and less choice of options= more$ in the long run. need to replace crank and pistons in X many hours of use. nothing like a slightly modded SV 650 for track time lots of bang for the buck.

[roger albert]

The little 250s (or even 125s if there are no long straights at your fav track) can be a blast, but Joe's advice of a cheap SV650 is better yet, imo.

The 2strokes are easier to work on, which is good, because you need to work on them a lot more.

Much depends on whether you're the kind of guys who 'gets' to work on his bike, or the kind who 'has' to work on his bike.

[UberXY]

I raced RD's and RZ's in my day. Lot of fun, very simple, but as mentioned above you need to buy a lot of pistons.

[blusxv]

Im used to the maintenance from my motocross days, so i have no problem with the rebuilding part. I probably would only get to the track twice a year anyway.

A friend is selling one, so that show this came about. The plastic has some scraches but i dont mind that, I kind of like it that way, I wouldn't feel so bad going down on it since its not mint.

Other bikes I was looking for were older (87 and up) Hurricanes, EX500's, or ZX600 types. Like your all saying the 4 strokes are pretty much Gas and go.

Thanks for you input,
Mike

[repoe3]

it was the "gas n' go" and a good deal on the R6 from a friend that got he to take the plunge. i, too, will be lucky to do 2-3 track days this year...more next year though.

the SV650 and modern inline 4's are almost boring in regards to upkeep. but that is a good thing in my opinion.

repoe3

[blusxv]

You guys are probably right, but it is a hard thing to pass up a good two stroke.
I had a mint cond RZ350 that I sold when i bought my house 8 years ago, now i'm so sorry i sold it. Not that i would have used it for the track but it was just cool to have.

alright, 4 stroke it will be, i never tried an SV, i guess i should put that on my list of scooters to concider.

Thanks again for the input,
Mike

[Nitro]

I used to race semi-professinally the NSR250. Fun, fun and then some. 250s are the best handling things on earth and have the highest cornering speed of any other class. You enter almost as fast as a 125 but you got power to pull out fast without spinning. INSANE!

Problems: carburation, a true bi tch. Engine longivity: we replaced pistons and cyliders every race. They are very sensitive to the oil you use and the ammount. They don't idle well if at all. Anybody who tells you it's easy to work on two sroker don't know what the hell they are talking about and they are probably refering to snow blowers or simple underpowered street bikes. Two stroke race bikes are the queen of the b itch es.

I really don't think they are a good choice for an amatur racer. I raced for a team so who cared

My suggestion: either a SV650 or a R6 depending on what you are looking for.

[SCOTTinNJ]

Mike,

Sent you a PM.

[JonyRR]

As the owner of a '95 TZ250, I can tell one and all that if you haven't been raised on a 2-stroke and comprehend all the differences between a 2 and a 4, if you don't drink 110 octane fuel mixed 20:1 with castrol R and blendzall gold label, if you don't know what a plug chop is or the difference between primary and secondary compression ratios are or don't understand the importance of fresh crank seals or what every metering circut does in a 39MM PJ lectron, stay away......be afraid. I love 2-strokes but my first streetbike was a '71 suzuki t500 titan and I was doing wheelies past my high school on an RD350 and have had at least one 2-stroke motorcycle ever since....and even I (reluctantly) concede the superiority of an R6 for a track day (and it's a depressing thought to realize that now an R6 is FASTER than my TZ.....heresy!!!)...the only thing that's the same is that they both have 2 wheels and handlebars.....but I'd still trade a testicle for a cherry NS500 triple....or even better, a harrris YZR500...what a rush that'd be...

[Joe]

I road a TZ750 once.............(Baldwin's bike)and lived.... one of my first bikes was a built kawH2.......talk about a narrow power band At one time 2 strokes were the way to go for a ultimate race bike but with the development of 4 stroke motors the p/w ratio is not a issue with a 4stroke anymore.

[JonyRR]

Yeah, another of the 'I wish I would have kept it' bikes of my past was a really neat H2, put together by (mostly) Danco Racing....wasco-modified stock frame, cal-fab swingarm, close-ratio tranny from north coast gear, flatslide mikunis, chambers of course..we used to run it in vintage superbike in the '80s....I won $100 from Zlock Racing with it...I bet dan zlock it was as fast as a money superbike. I entered it in club-level money superbike in '85 at PIR..Portland (oregon) int'l raceway. the lineup included dan zlock's full-yosh GS750ES superbike, I think Mike Sullivan's Honda interceptor and the one I remember most, Gary Goodfellow on a just-introduced GSXR750 (before you could buy 'em in the US, they had 'em in canada) I won the drag race to the first turn (and a hun'$) and then, of course, got passed like it was tied to a tree stump, but it DID pull the holeshot against a bunch of supposedly-faster 4strokes. man, that thing was a blast....

[Sman]

Boy Oh Boy you guys are weak! Two strokes if understood are not a problem. I tuned TZ250's for a living from 92 to 99 and if done properly will not give any problems. I had two mechanical DNF's in that entire time due to an ignition problem and rear brake failure. Any TZ from that period will go around corners faster than any street bike and youl have more fun doing it. Nick AMA 2nd in championship 1997.

[sakurama]

You're asking people who ride 4 stroke street bikes about a 2 stroke. Do yourself a favor and go to a track and ask someone who rides a 2 stroke what they think. All you'll hear here (aside from Sman) is people who had one 20-30 years ago or who have 3rd or 4th had information.

FWIW I have a 97 TZ250, a 98 RS125 and a 03 Tigcraft (426 in a 125 chassis) and I've ridden SV's on the track - boring. What would you rather drive on a track a Ford Taurus or an open wheel race car?

2 strokes don't require that much maintainence - if you're not riding at 100% you can go a full season without doing much. I can change a top end on a TZ faster than you can change the oil on an SV. You will learn more on a light bike that corners faster. I don't car for the Aprillia 250's as they're not real race bikes but they are maintainence free and light.

Go to the track and talk to someone that races them.

[repoe3]

repoe3

[JonyRR]

Hey, man;
2-strokes are simple if you understand 'em and if you don't they're voodoo...I understand 'em and they're no big deal to me, but would you really want to do your initial learning on a track bike? yeeeeeennnnnnnkkkkkk...........sieze/highside/fiberglass explosion/bodytumblingdownthetrackouchouchouch....remember? I know you do becasue it happens to all of us when we were learning and anyone who says they never siezed their 2-stroke either wasn't trying to tune if for max performance or is not being entirely truthful....

[sakurama]

I've never siezed a 2-stroke in 6 years of racing. I'm less than a second off the track record for NHIS and one of my teammates is less than .1 off the record and hasn't seized either. We jet right on the ragged edge too.

You got the first part right - they're simple.

[Joe]

You guys are that close to the track record in the expert ranks ........why aren't you running pro and signing autographs.....I'll have to ask my buddy Tim O'Connor to slow you down before you hurt your self. BTW were you at the LRRS banquet in Stamford ? Tim was given (Racer of the year award?) Tim has been tunning 2 strokes for 20 years and still racing but I'm sure he would suggest a newbie to racing or someone that wants to put in track time not start with a 2 stroke it's a lot more important to get as much track time as possible then when your a little more comfortable and confident start playing around with modded or race only machines. Hey I miss it and envy you guys hope you have a good season.......go fast and safe