Built Yz125 vs built Ktm 125

Ray Knight
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Ray Knight 7/22/2020 7:07am
7/22/2020 7:07am
kage173 wrote:
C'mon bro. You're not a vet rider coming back after 10 years off and looking for a practice day bike. If you're racing schoolboy 1 then...
C'mon bro. You're not a vet rider coming back after 10 years off and looking for a practice day bike.

If you're racing schoolboy 1 then you know what all the kids in your class are running. It's an ocean of orange and white with some blue sprinkled around mid pack.

You already know the answer.
Stock bikes the KTM engine is hilariously faster. If there is no budget then the YZ can be made very competitive. It just takes a lot of $$$$ to equal the field. The stock YZ125 is a great bike for a slower rider or someone moving up from a playbike, etc. The KTM needs to be ridden more aggressively and some people just don't have that gene haha. Neither can be ridden like a 4 stroke but the YZ would be closer. The KTM, hold her pinned and burn the clutch to control wheel speed. Its crazy fast for a stock 125.
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brocsdad
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brocsdad 7/22/2020 9:56am
7/22/2020 9:56am
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence to push the bike. We decided to sale it and buy a YZ 125. I knew the KTM was faster than the YZ and I would need to mod it. The day after the purchase the motor was in the cooler and being shipped to Terry Varner. After Terry worked his magic we by no means down on power and my son said the bike was faster and easier to ride. His confidence took off and I was glad we made the switch.

The KTM will be faster in the upper mid through top-end but the YZ has more bottom and way better stock suspension. If you don’t want to build a National level motor you could have the cylinder/head mods with an FMF Pipe or HGS if you want a little more top end. Those mods will make the YZ competitive with the KTM and the suspension will be superior. Not to mention you will not have PV sticking issues that are common with the KTM 125/150.

Anyway that was my experience.

Good Luck with your choice.
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kage173
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kage173 7/22/2020 1:15pm
7/22/2020 1:15pm
brocsdad wrote:
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence...
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence to push the bike. We decided to sale it and buy a YZ 125. I knew the KTM was faster than the YZ and I would need to mod it. The day after the purchase the motor was in the cooler and being shipped to Terry Varner. After Terry worked his magic we by no means down on power and my son said the bike was faster and easier to ride. His confidence took off and I was glad we made the switch.

The KTM will be faster in the upper mid through top-end but the YZ has more bottom and way better stock suspension. If you don’t want to build a National level motor you could have the cylinder/head mods with an FMF Pipe or HGS if you want a little more top end. Those mods will make the YZ competitive with the KTM and the suspension will be superior. Not to mention you will not have PV sticking issues that are common with the KTM 125/150.

Anyway that was my experience.

Good Luck with your choice.
Why didn't you send the YZ to EBR? I thought they were big on Yamaha. Were you dissatisfied or just trying something different?
Ray Knight
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Ray Knight 7/22/2020 1:20pm
7/22/2020 1:20pm
brocsdad wrote:
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence...
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence to push the bike. We decided to sale it and buy a YZ 125. I knew the KTM was faster than the YZ and I would need to mod it. The day after the purchase the motor was in the cooler and being shipped to Terry Varner. After Terry worked his magic we by no means down on power and my son said the bike was faster and easier to ride. His confidence took off and I was glad we made the switch.

The KTM will be faster in the upper mid through top-end but the YZ has more bottom and way better stock suspension. If you don’t want to build a National level motor you could have the cylinder/head mods with an FMF Pipe or HGS if you want a little more top end. Those mods will make the YZ competitive with the KTM and the suspension will be superior. Not to mention you will not have PV sticking issues that are common with the KTM 125/150.

Anyway that was my experience.

Good Luck with your choice.
The PV sticking issue is easy to fix with the F1 moto PV arms. I did those in my 125 and 150 and never stuck. I'm ok with the KTM suspension until i ride the YZ then it feels super harsh and hard to read the front tire. Its not that the KTM stuff is bad the KYB stuff is just miles better.

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brocsdad
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brocsdad 7/22/2020 1:44pm
7/22/2020 1:44pm
brocsdad wrote:
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence...
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence to push the bike. We decided to sale it and buy a YZ 125. I knew the KTM was faster than the YZ and I would need to mod it. The day after the purchase the motor was in the cooler and being shipped to Terry Varner. After Terry worked his magic we by no means down on power and my son said the bike was faster and easier to ride. His confidence took off and I was glad we made the switch.

The KTM will be faster in the upper mid through top-end but the YZ has more bottom and way better stock suspension. If you don’t want to build a National level motor you could have the cylinder/head mods with an FMF Pipe or HGS if you want a little more top end. Those mods will make the YZ competitive with the KTM and the suspension will be superior. Not to mention you will not have PV sticking issues that are common with the KTM 125/150.

Anyway that was my experience.

Good Luck with your choice.
kage173 wrote:
Why didn't you send the YZ to EBR? I thought they were big on Yamaha. Were you dissatisfied or just trying something different?
The KTM was a Loretta's bike I bought from one of the top amateurs. It was only raced at Loretta's.

I spent about $1000 on the forks and even installed a steering stabilizer and we just couldn't get it to work.

It seems the KTM 125 chassis doesn't work that well for smaller riders making the transition. If you notice the test riders in the magazines are normally adults or older teens so the headshake issue may never come up.
brocsdad
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brocsdad 7/22/2020 1:46pm
7/22/2020 1:46pm
brocsdad wrote:
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence...
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence to push the bike. We decided to sale it and buy a YZ 125. I knew the KTM was faster than the YZ and I would need to mod it. The day after the purchase the motor was in the cooler and being shipped to Terry Varner. After Terry worked his magic we by no means down on power and my son said the bike was faster and easier to ride. His confidence took off and I was glad we made the switch.

The KTM will be faster in the upper mid through top-end but the YZ has more bottom and way better stock suspension. If you don’t want to build a National level motor you could have the cylinder/head mods with an FMF Pipe or HGS if you want a little more top end. Those mods will make the YZ competitive with the KTM and the suspension will be superior. Not to mention you will not have PV sticking issues that are common with the KTM 125/150.

Anyway that was my experience.

Good Luck with your choice.
Ray Knight wrote:
The PV sticking issue is easy to fix with the F1 moto PV arms. I did those in my 125 and 150 and never stuck. I'm...
The PV sticking issue is easy to fix with the F1 moto PV arms. I did those in my 125 and 150 and never stuck. I'm ok with the KTM suspension until i ride the YZ then it feels super harsh and hard to read the front tire. Its not that the KTM stuff is bad the KYB stuff is just miles better.
I bought the F1 arms and sent the cylinder to Terry Varner to polish the PV and it worked fine.

Though there are other issues with that design besides the arms. The barrels that fit inside the cylinder can wear uneven and cause sticking.

I had issues with less than 10hrs.
danman
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danman 7/23/2020 5:59am
7/23/2020 5:59am
If you are going with a yz, just buy 2 of them that are like 2008-2010 and go through them completely and make them identical. One for practice and one for racing. It's nearly the same bike as a 2020 anyway. Save the money.

I'd personally go with the Orange one, mainly because the YZ is 15 years old from the design/R&D department.
MotoChris
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MotoChris 8/5/2020 12:06pm
8/5/2020 12:06pm
idiotic isaac wrote:
Hey motards, I’m returning to the reddit of Moto to ask a question about 125s. So I’m wondering wether it’s better to get a Yz125 and...
Hey motards, I’m returning to the reddit of Moto to ask a question about 125s. So I’m wondering wether it’s better to get a Yz125 and put money into engine work or to get a Ktm or Husky 125 and put money into suspension work. I need to race school boy 1 and 125 B/C so I can’t put a big bore in the Yz btw.

Thanks

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MotofactioN
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MotofactioN 8/5/2020 1:09pm
8/5/2020 1:09pm
navalseabee wrote:
I’m in the camp of having spent tons of money on KTM suspension only to end up unhappy. Tried it all, valving spring conversions etc. based...
I’m in the camp of having spent tons of money on KTM suspension only to end up unhappy. Tried it all, valving spring conversions etc. based on how good the KYB stuff is I‘d go that route personally.
Markee wrote:
Lets swap bikes next time at south fork.
I’ll bring my 97 YZ125 to South Fork... WhistlingSmileCool
endurox
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endurox 8/6/2020 1:33pm
8/6/2020 1:33pm
brocsdad wrote:
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence...
My son had an EBR Mod KTM 125 but we could never get the forks to work right. He experienced really bad headshake and lacked confidence to push the bike. We decided to sale it and buy a YZ 125. I knew the KTM was faster than the YZ and I would need to mod it. The day after the purchase the motor was in the cooler and being shipped to Terry Varner. After Terry worked his magic we by no means down on power and my son said the bike was faster and easier to ride. His confidence took off and I was glad we made the switch.

The KTM will be faster in the upper mid through top-end but the YZ has more bottom and way better stock suspension. If you don’t want to build a National level motor you could have the cylinder/head mods with an FMF Pipe or HGS if you want a little more top end. Those mods will make the YZ competitive with the KTM and the suspension will be superior. Not to mention you will not have PV sticking issues that are common with the KTM 125/150.

Anyway that was my experience.

Good Luck with your choice.
kage173 wrote:
Why didn't you send the YZ to EBR? I thought they were big on Yamaha. Were you dissatisfied or just trying something different?
brocsdad wrote:
The KTM was a Loretta's bike I bought from one of the top amateurs. It was only raced at Loretta's. I spent about $1000 on the...
The KTM was a Loretta's bike I bought from one of the top amateurs. It was only raced at Loretta's.

I spent about $1000 on the forks and even installed a steering stabilizer and we just couldn't get it to work.

It seems the KTM 125 chassis doesn't work that well for smaller riders making the transition. If you notice the test riders in the magazines are normally adults or older teens so the headshake issue may never come up.
What year KTM was this?
brocsdad
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brocsdad 8/6/2020 1:36pm
8/6/2020 1:36pm Edited Date/Time 8/6/2020 1:39pm
kage173 wrote:
Why didn't you send the YZ to EBR? I thought they were big on Yamaha. Were you dissatisfied or just trying something different?
brocsdad wrote:
The KTM was a Loretta's bike I bought from one of the top amateurs. It was only raced at Loretta's. I spent about $1000 on the...
The KTM was a Loretta's bike I bought from one of the top amateurs. It was only raced at Loretta's.

I spent about $1000 on the forks and even installed a steering stabilizer and we just couldn't get it to work.

It seems the KTM 125 chassis doesn't work that well for smaller riders making the transition. If you notice the test riders in the magazines are normally adults or older teens so the headshake issue may never come up.
endurox wrote:
What year KTM was this?
KTM was a 16 model and the YZ was a 17 model.

Though I sent off an 18 model KTM for a friend to modify. It was a little stronger on top but still lacked the bottom end compared to the YZ. The YZ is an easier to ride motor. That is the reason they still do very well at Loretta's.

Honestly the fastest bike out of the box is the TM 125.


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