Oh Gatecrasher!!!!

You know you want to........  

Gave the Salesman your cell Gatecrasher

Ha ha. I have to steal one or two rides on Stormfly before I make up my mind. Rooster, I am not as decisive as
you when it comes to bikes. But I suppose I can't really go wrong with a 93kg KTM. I spent a lot of time thinking about the 350 vs the 250 Freeride - there is a R8k price difference and around 7kgs weight diff.

That 350 is now talking to me as well!

350 4 T is due to be discontinued in ZA according to KTM... For that kind of money, go for the one you like. In all honesty all the KTM's feel very light I had a sit on most of them.

They have a special of the 300 exc -w's right now where you get 10K of extras.

Ja, I heard bike manufacturers are going to increase the production of 2Ts over 4Ts. 2T is already the biggest
number sold around the world, BUT 4T have won 3 consecutive USA national MX titles (considered the most difficult MX season in the world).

So what's up with that?

I am going to KTM Edenvale with Lefty tomorrow morning!

You need a 4T for MX. It has the instant throttle response you need to jump.

Can't compare MX and Enduro

2T vs 4T - I can rant for Hours...

MX is more like a sprint, and as Astrid mentions instant brute force is required as acceleration is the key.

As for Enduro, its all in the name ENDURE. 4T's are very prone to mechanical issues compared to 2T's and thats no fun in the bush (Just ask Top Shelf). Also, 4T's have a lot more of what is known as "Arm Pump" - ie the force of acceleration and deceleration that occurs when changing throttle inputs. Ass to that the fact that they way between 10 to 20 % more, and cost 10 to 20% more, and you can see why 2T's are getting popular again.

The main reason for the 2T's demise in the first place was due to emissions legislation and a notoriety for them being screaming monsters that eat beginners for lunch... This has all changed thanks to technology advances in both power valve technology and computer modeling, as well as modern 2 stroke mixes.

In fact, I met Ruaan Smit the other day at Rhino (He has done multiple Roof''s and competes on the National enduro circuit) His view when asked on the 2T vs 4T debate was that 2T's are for beginners, and 4T's for pros!! Just shows that you should really talk to the experts...

Another factor is to look at your riding style and size. 4T's are more suitable to a rider who likes to sit all the time and is strong enough to man-handle the bike. This is particularly true of the bigger ones. Shorter and Lighter individual's like ourselves tend to go 2T as they are much more manageable.

Down side's of 2T obviously includes mixing your Juice and splooge on your stuff. They are also a bit more sensitive to jetting than 4t's in my experience.

While they are much simpler to maintain, this is off set by the fact that they are relatively thirsty.

Other than that, only the newest 2 strokes have happy buttons - this is a huge factor for those who have not mastered the dark arts of the kick.

The upsides are huge though - they are virtually indestructible.

We have a nice variety of bikes in the group now, Ride them all and see what you like :-)

Another factor - how much are you planning to ride? To qoute from another forum's user who has one of each:

i have both the SXF450 a SX250 , at the track i am a bit faster on the 450 but i have a lot more fun riding the 250 2 stroke , its so light and it feels like you are flying .

if i was doing more enduro off road type of stuff the choice would be easy 2 stroke all the way .

another thing the 4 stroke i replace with a new one every year before i need to rebuild it, the 2 stroke a can fit a new top end in 1.5 hours and it cost f*** all

Says it all really.

Rooster, I wish I had read this post before going to KTM. First news, KTM Edenvale, the chops have MOVED. They are now just down the road (from me - home and work - in Rivonia).

So wait for it, I went into the store and, shame, I bent the oke's ear for like an hour. They have sold ALL the freerides they had. None left. Gone, finito. (Not that I was buying, I was still "looking").

But all this info on 2T v 4T has really got me thinking so that you for that. I am tempted to go 2T. But the sales
oke says that the 4t is only R1000 more (one grand) and i told him I like, like to ride easy.

"Thank you for that"

Choices Choices...

Rooster, what does this mean exactly? You wrote this in your previous post:

"They are also a bit more sensitive to jetting than 4t's in my experience"

It means that they may need a bit more setup - the advantage of this is that they can be set up for differing conditions and prefferences.

Jetting. ok got it. I thought jetting had something to do with the fuel intake!

The reason I am putting so much thought into this is that i don't want to be unhappy after buying the freeride. I want to be able to just ride, do the odd repair, but be happy with the bike. My Honda is a lovely bike, but it is (as we all know only too well) just not suited to enduro. And I LOVE Enduro, the kind of riding we do at WW and Rhino.

I am only going to Chestnut as this is where Lefty is most comfortable.

Freeride is a great bike, but consider a EXC, its only 9 kg's more

Ok, will do some spec research on EXC. I sat on maybe 5 different bikes on Saturday. All were too tall for me, but
I dont know who they were set up for as they were all used. RAD have maybe 25 different KTMs in used stock ranging from as little as R30k all the way to R75k.

Of course, for R75k I would just buy the Freeride new.