KX500 2 Stroke

That's a vicious piece of kit; he was lifting it and putting it down at will; it would have spat me into the trees within the first 100 yds;:D.:okay
 
That was good fun to watch :) buuuuut........I was chating about this the other day with Mikey having riden the Bultaco for the first time. It's a 400 high compression piston ported stroker (no reed valves) so by rights should be an animal. It's not, yeah it's got a narrow power band but it doesn't try and spit you off, it's dead easy to ride.

Likewise, back in the day when I was into SM I had lots of rides on CR500 SM's. Again, they really aren't the monsters that we pretend they are.............don't get me wrong, I no way have ever had the skills to ride one fast on a MX track but 'vicious, untamable beast that only the few can ride'? Nah, no way ;)

I think much like the 'widow maker' Kwacks and all the other suspossedly vicious, evil handling, extreme power bikes of our youth there is a hoooooge amount of emeblishment going on here and anyhting the guy was doing on that KX could be done on a nice litle KTM Freeride. Mind you, it wouldn't sound or smell as good :D

Andres
 
Thanks, loved that.

The rider really keeps the rear end under control, big respect on those slippery tracks.

I'd be very wary of its power but as Andres says, at least a big stroker has a degree of depth to its delivery. A YZ125 of the same era could be more challenging to ride with its knife edge power band.

Anyway, great footage, and whilst the sound of 4 strokes never quite comes across in video (in for sale adverts for instance) that 2 stroke crackle is just sublime, esp at the start-up. Takes me back to happy days!
 
Mate had one of those back in the day, we used to take it over the tank tracks at Camberley along with my 82 YZ250 (first of the LC and YPVS)... That KX was a fooking animal....

Happy care free days (with the occasional A&E visit on the way home :blast)
 
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Went with a mate to see one, the first casualty was his expensive leather baseball boot when it kicked back and ripped the side out, he didn't think it was funny. I had a go on it and was doing ok, spinning up everywhere, then it found some grip and had to jump off sharpish as it came over. Nice bike.
 
Andres nailed it, we remember those bikes as being beasts because they were at the time but now they’re just bad handling crates with shit brakes. I borrowed an IT465 for an afternoon and was bordering on being scared of it before I even got on the thing yet they put out less than 30bhp at the back wheel :blast
 
I used to enduro an IT 465 back in the 80s. It was a big old bus, but the power was more wide spread 4 stroke than screaming 2 stroke mayhem.
 


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