1996 KX250 fork conversion Vs 2007+ YZ250 Vs 2003-2007 KX250

[TeamGreen46]

Fellas, I'm stuck between a rock and a hard spot and don't see a better group to ask for some guidance. I have a 2015 KX250f as my main bike which I use a lot for MX and some offroad. Then I got my hands on a 1996 KX250 and did a resto, rode it 2 times so far offroad (mainly on sandy trails) and fell in love. It's a beast, has a 295cc kit, weighted flywheel etc, PC pipe & silencer etc.

Here is where my dilemma comes in. I was out this past weekend with my buddy who has an '07 YZ250 and I rode it, wow, what a difference! It was much more nimble feeling, lighter feeling and super silky smooth suspension. The next day I put my KX up for sale and decided to go against my die hard Kawai ways and get a blue one. Everyone thought I was crazy to sell the '96 beings how nice it is. Maybe they're right, so I took it down and as of now not for sale lol.

What I want is to keep my 250f for the track, get a 2 stroke for the woods and sand pits we ride in sometimes. It would also be nice to bring the 2 stroke to the track sometimes so I want something that can handle MX too. Should I invest MORE money into the '96 and think about a suspension swap of some sort? If so, I read somewhere I could drop some 450f forks in there.

Or, should I pick up a newer model 250? I keep reading about the later model KX's not being the best bikes for handling. It seems like the 2007+ YZ250's are where it's at for the complete package....what to do lol

[KXDINO]

depends your budget ? i would hop for a later model forks and adapt and set it up with gold valves and correct springs , if you get a set of bladder forks used on 01 kx 250 era and a few other years close , they can be made to work by getting rid of the bladder system the springs under the spring seat and spring seat ,revalving the mid valve and using a gold valve on the compression, then there good . 03 and 04 are good models that need a pipe and porting if your chasing more top end , 05 to 08 need a longer dog leg on link different off set triple clamps or slacken frame head angle by half a degree , put a softer cartridge spring and gold valve the forks and shock and modify the cylinder head for better combustion there some good guys out there that do this and make them run better, i have done all these mods and a lot more these are the importing ones , now the yz 250 a good bike except i have repaired a lot more broken gear boxes than other makes and heaps of free piston in the forks which can be fixed with a improved part from rt. nothing perfect.

[KXDINO]

strange thing is about the kx250 05 - 08 models is there a lot of guys that like the way they handle ? and wouldnt change a thing , it seem there is one mag that does not like them and gave them a bad rep. and than there guys like me who like to get the most out of there kawi because they bleed green, come to think of it kx riders is full of them , i like it.

[Heniz]

Similar story to you I rebuilt a 1997 kx250 while recovering from an injury.... then I decided to race it for a season to get my skills back in check. Then a friend of mine said wow your pretty fast on that old girl take this new bike for a spin. Yeah night and day difference so much easier to ride but I will never sell my old 1997 as there has been far to much time and emotional energy gone into the build.

Recently brought a 2015 yz250 with a couple of mods its a weapon and im looking forward to racing it in New Zealands motocross nationals next year and It all depends on what you want to accomplish I hate to say it tho after nationals there will be a yz250 for sale.