Supermoto Questions

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blueninja1

New Member
Hi Everyone,

I'm looking to get into supermoto's and I have a few questions. I'm hoping someone with a bit of experience in the sport can chime in.

First up is, what is the best SM to get (qualities expected: good bang for the buck, not too hard to maintain/work on, good parts accessibility, etc.)I want to buy a used (converted/turnkey SM) yamaha/honda 450, husqvarna 510sm, or ktm450sm. Preferably not older than 2005 model year, the more recent the model the better. Approximately what price should I expect to pay? My budget for the bike is around $3,000. I don't think that is unreasonable to find for a decent bike. I understand that the bikes that are street legal carry higher value, but I don't need all that. As long as the bike comes with a title and bill of sale that is all the documentation I need. I will only be using the bike on the track, so no need to register for the street. I don't need turn signals/lights, etc. All of this considered, should knock a bit off the price if I can find a bike without all these extra luxuries.

I'd like to store the bike at a local track to avoid expensive hauling fees. I live in Queens, NY and I am willing to travel a little to find a good track, but the closer the better. Are there any tracks that run a racing series over the season and usually how long does the season last? Usually how many races are run? Is there a track where I can practice all day?

How much should I expect to pay for consumables and maintenance over a season? I have a decent set of tools and I know my way around a 2-stroke dirtbike (not an expert but good experience), so this should help a little, even though the SM's I am looking into are 4-strokes.

I appreciate all the help/advice.

-Brendon
 
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blueninja1

New Member
Thanks, I posted there as well. Found the site this morning. I figured why not utilize both forums to get answers faster. :)
 
G2G

G2G

Member
For that price your best bet is a DRZ. You mentioned street legal which rules out many race motards (pretty much all dirtbike conversions aka 450's) Easy to maintain but heavier and slower than its compititon. You can not get ur cake and eat it too lol. I race and ride sumos on the street. 2 seperate bikes YZ450 for a race bike and Aprilia SXV 550 for a street bike. Both are far from $3000 though.
 
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blueninja1

New Member
the ktm 560's look sweet.

Mike do you have any pics of the yamaha that you can PM me? Can you include the details of what is on the bike.
 
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booboo1

New Member
Buddy races a CRf450. Bad ass machine. Track only. I bought a 08 smr510 Husky. Does street and track duty. The most fun I have ever had on 2 wheels. Cost little more but dam I love it. My 600rr feels like a pig compared to it. And cheap to insure etc. Do yourself a favor, get something with electric start.
 
mike574

mike574

Member
These are the only pic I could find. He converted it back to dirt and stoped riding it (bought KX250 2 stroke for dirt) but he still has all the parts to convert it back to SM. I know it had a custom Doug Dubach exhaust marcassi wheels andberinger brakes. it was a nice setup and was a real nice bike for SM and gocart tracks. I know NJMP does SM days check out NJMiniGP, and beaver run also had a nice track, other tracks I used to ride was Cherry valley , english town NJ , OVRP in orange county NY. He might have white plactics for it to. It was AMA supermoto rider Jimmy Lewis ex AMA supermoto bike (he's an ama flat tracker now) only change is he put a stock motor back into it, instead of lewis's high strung motor









Picture of Lewis riding it

 
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blueninja1

New Member
BooBoo, I hear you on the e-start. Kick starts will drive your ass crazy if the engine decides to flood or if compression is low. Once I was kicking the thing over for a good 5 minutes in the middle of summer in full mx gear, sweating freakin bullets. I forgot to turn the fuel on :banghead:

I'm actually going to do the racing series at OVRP next year. The northeast supermoto and 4 hr endurance. Perhaps we can hook up and ride together. Would be fun.

Mike, the bike looks pretty nice. I think I got my hands on a ktm 450smr though, pretty nicely set up. What size is the front wheel on the yammy, looks smaller than a 16.5?
 
mike574

mike574

Member
16.5 it was what all the AMA guys were using. It was a pretty trick bike . Anything that the AMA riders were doing in 2007 was done to this bike, I know the forks are not standard MX forks they are supermoto forks (lower and resprund for SM). good luck with the KTM
 
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dickiedoo

New Member
Here's what I can tell you after owning 5 of these.

The DRZ 400 SM's are dogs. Nothing you do to them will make them competitive. We've tried jetting, gearing, air-box mods, exhaust, etc. They are simply underpowered.

The Yam 250's are nice bikes, but also underpowered.

The KTMs come out of the box a little better then the others. The WP suspension is nice and tunable, and the bikes don't leave you wanting for power. You also pay for this power/suspension.

I wouldn't buy anything less than a 500, and my KTM 520 was my favorite.

Here's what would be on my short list.

CRF 450
KTM 520-640
Husky 500+ (511)
 
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blueninja1

New Member
Awesome feedback bro, I really appreciate it. The ktm 450 I want is setup with WP all around and SMS parts. I think the bike will be perfect for me.

How many hours can you put on one of these things until you have to start rebuilding the internals. What parts are usually involved for the 4-strokes. How expensive is the maintenance? Can a set of Q2's last a race season?
 
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dickiedoo

New Member
blueninja1;288561 wrote: Awesome feedback bro, I really appreciate it. The ktm 450 I want is setup with WP all around and SMS parts. I think the bike will be perfect for me.

How many hours can you put on one of these things until you have to start rebuilding the internals. What parts are usually involved for the 4-strokes. How expensive is the maintenance? Can a set of Q2's last a race season?
Click to expand...
The 450 would be a great bike.

I never had to rebuild my 4-strokes, so I can't say. My mini moto was built by Livingood, and it has 50 hours on it with zero issues.

A set of Q2/3's won't last a whole season if you are riding fast, and often. They will last a good while though. Maintenance is pretty cheap compared to a big bike.
 
G2G

G2G

Member
a rebuild is not cheap if you do it correctly. You are looking at 2 grand to do the engine from the bottom up. Don't skimp out on dunlop Q'2 get full blow slicks. The front will last most of the year.
 
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blueninja1

New Member
was speaking to a national racer over the phone who personally knows the bike. He recommended that I keep the front rains (still in good shape since the bike is light) and put on a new set of bt003's on the rear. I will give it a go. He said the rains will help keep the bike feeling good/planted if there's moisture on the track.
 
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booboo1

New Member
My buddy just won the pro sumo race at VIR Sunday. CRF450. Bad machine and i dont think he has done a lot to it. I may go up there this weekend if they are running the sumo track
 
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