Questions About Choosing A Bike. WHat Kind, Type, Size, Etc?

[chocula]

I am moving to Charlotte in the next month or so and have wanted a dirt bike for pretty much my entire life.
My wife told me that if I got her a new house, I could get me a motorcycle.
The new house will be ready in a few weeks, but surprisingly, my wife seems to have forgotten her deal.

So now I am in the market for a dirt bike.

I have read a good deal of information here and other places and am still not sure what to get.

I am a little too old to get too wild on a bike, but it would be nice to try some jumps and such.

I will probably ride trails around my house (or in the area) for the most part. I found some good places to go and will try them as well.

What I am not sure is what kind of bike and what size.

My thoughts are to get a dirt bike, but then I would think it would be nice to have an enduro to be able to drive to the trails or wherever I will ride the bike. Of course getting the bike on a trailer would not be that big of a deal, but it would be easier. I used to have a street bike and was involved in a crash that put me in the hospital for a week. No big deal now, but my family said they dis-own me if I ever got another bike again. Of course they were talking about a street bike and not a dirt bike.

I am about 6', about 190-200 lbs depending on my stress level.
I am thinking that I want a bike around 250cc. I assume that it would be more than enough power to get me around the trails and jumps.

My last question, and why I posted here is about the "Chinese Bikes" that I have read about here.
PLease do not take offense, but when I first found this site on Google (or from Craigslist), I thought it was someone's idea of a joke. I have never heard of a new bike for less than $2k (for 250cc or so). I had seen some ads for Pep Boys, but clearly those bikes were crap.
It seems like there is a bunch of complaints for these bikes, but a bunch of favorable comments as well.

If I buy one of the Chinese bikes or get a like priced used one, I can get it soon.
If I buy a new bike, it would be some time before I could buy it and I would have to finance it. My big worry is that I buy the bike, then rarely ride it.

I am hoping that the experts here will have some insight for me.

If I get an enduro, can I ride trails and hit jumps? I assume the trails are not an issue, but doubt I can jump with it.

Should I buy a used bike for $1500 or so, and sell it if I do not stick with it?

Would I be fine with a Chinese Bike (I really like the look of the Orion)? I said I will not get crazy on it, but I would be very tempted to be tough on it when the situation came up.

I saw a Chinese bike video on EBay (a guy was selling one), and the video showed it being gunned (it looked like he was gunning it), and it seemed to go about 15 mph. When he hit th ejump, he got less air than I used to on my mountain bike.

Thanks for reading a long, boring post.

I appreciate any feedback.

[AZ200cc]

welcome to the site.

It would be an inexpensive experiment, If You don't like it You're not out much and can still sell it for a couple hundred bucks. Mine has taken some good abuse and has held up so far..No jumps yet though and I would not go very high if I did. It is however a great trail cruiser..Or beer fetcher. Buying any new Jap bike is nuts..You can find plenty of hardly used ones for half the price. People will buy them and realize they have no clue how to ride them and give up...My 2 cents

[MOTOXtreme]

Welcome chocula, sounds like you have read enough on here to strike your interest in China Bikes. I believe most people on here are very happy with there China bike.

There are a wide range of Makes, Models etc. for China bikes. Some grey market and some not. I'm not getting into the whole grey market thing, some folks have them and love them. Overall, I believe for the money, you could not ask for a better dual purpose bike. Very well built.

One thing to caution you on is where to buy. Check with others and do your own reasearch on the place you decide to buy from. There are a lot of places (claim to be dealers) who are only in this to make a quick buck. You want to make sure you can get parts for the bike you get. Read some of the horrior stories on MSO's here.

Keep reading, If at all possible, go to a local dealer and see a GY-5 in person.

Have fun.

[pumpkin]

first off welcome.
second i have jumped my gy-5 repetedly the first time i sheared an engine mount bolt since then no problims(by the way i'm 6 feet 240 - 250) granted i have not got mad air nor do i want to.
third i went trail riding with SamM he was on a yamaha tt-r 250 i could not out run him but i kept up with no problim.

in closing what ever you decide on good luck and have fun.

[ejcycles]

Hi chocula

Welcome to ChinaRiders!!
Whatever you decide be careful. A lot of the so called 250cc china bikes are not 250cc. A 250cc bike should be 235cc or larger, some of the so called 250's are only 225cc.....................Good Luck!

[katoranger]

Bruce is right on the the 250cc designation. I calcutated the displacement on some them that claim 250 and most come out to about 225.

The UM bikes look nice, but cost more. Most of these dual sports are not intended for big jumps.

The resale on these bikes is starting to improve too.

Allen

[goldshadow]

My Lifan suits me fine (6'3" and 265lbs). I haven't jumped it and have no real plans too. It really has a lot more pep then I thought it would and really is just a blast to drive!

Good Luck finding your new bike!

[chocula]

I appreciate all of the feedback.

I have found a couple of bikes that are used that are about the same price as the China bikes are new. I really like having a warranty to cover me just in case.

JUst to clarify.... I will not be trying for big air, but will probably try to clear 4-5' vertical (kind of guessing on that one). In other words, no big stunts like the guys that can get off and back on their bikes in mid-air.

I am really getting excited about getting a bike.

[mdsuave13]

I will add this to the equation. None of the dual sport bikes apart from the Drz400e/s/k and the honda xr650 are really made for "jumping".

If you read reviews on most of the jap dual sports, they are too heavy and don't have the suspension made for jumping. Now that doesn't mean that you can give them some abuse, but they arent like Motox bikes at all.

I would say that the price you pay for a china bike, it does things well, but you have to do some modification and upkeep to it.

I added 4oz to each of my fork tubes over the weekend and i noticed a 100% improvement on the way the forks react to bumps and feel. The rear suspension has gotten much "cushier" over the miles that i've put on it. I wouldn't hesitate to jump my lifan, but i dont weight 200+ lbs either.

I would say get a china bike, its a cheap investment to make to get into the hobby and see what you think of it. If you like riding and it does everything you need, then you just saved yourself a ton of cash, if you don't, upgrade after the season and get yourself a drz or a offroad built bike and add a dual sport kit to it.

I am very happy with my lifan for the intended use, now i just have a hankering for more power on the street. Which is why i plan to get a another bike for street duty.

[katoranger]

The DRZ400/KLX400 is the closest you will get to a full off-road trail bike with lights. Dual Sports and even trail bikes really are not intended to be jumped hard. I think 4-5 feet will kill a china bike quickly. 1-2 probably okay. 3-4 pushing it.

Allen

[frostbite]

The DRZ400/KLX400 is the closest you will get to a full off-road trail bike with lights. Dual Sports and even trail bikes really are not intended to be jumped hard.

While not as fast, the KLX250 is pretty well equipped for off-road and lighter to boot. Based on my research its much more off-road worthy (suspension, power, etc...) than its contemporaries (XT225, Super Sherpa, DR200)

[katoranger]

I don't think we can get a klx250 in the US. I would take a TTR250 if I could tag it, but GA is alittle strict unless it was approved for street use.

I am alittle partial to yamaha. I also prefer aircooled. Less to break.

Allen

[pumpkin]

I don't think we can get a klx250 in the US

we can get them in the US . i'm thinkin really hard about one.

[katoranger]

I looked on ebay after I posted that. I have looked at alot of dual sports and never saw a klx250.

Allen

[shammash55]

if your talking about the kawa klx you can get them my local delear has one, was looking at them wanted a klr650 but too much money .