Test of 300 EC in Dirt Rider

[LAWMAN]

seen the new dirt rider? has a pretty good mini-test of the 300.

[Skidad]

Jeez, spill the beans Don't leave us hanging like that


Skidad

[barkeater]

I think they have a form letter for Gas Gas articles.
They liked everything but the seat and suspension.

It was a pretty milktoast article IMO.

They liked the Beta and Husaberg the best. (Surprise, they like the KTM clones!)
They like the Beta because it was "closest to a Honda" and the Husy won their affection by using sheer brute force.

The Gas Gas and Aprilia each had strong points other than their suspension setup. They really didn't like the Aprilia FI settings or weight.

Apparently the KTM PDS standard of "excellence" was not met by any of the exotic bikes.

Only one graph silently shows that the Gas Gas had the shortest endurocross time.

As lukewarm as the article was, I guess we should be happy we got the ink.

[LAWMAN]

Skidad,

I'll leave it to someone else to post a copy, I'm not going to go there. + I forgot to bring it to work so I could quote it but I figured that if we out here in flyover country have it, you sophisticates on the coasts should be on the lookout for it.

the part that I had in mind as a positive was the subtle reference to the orange bikes, something like "you can see why some think it's better than the KTM", or something like that.

[GMP]

Rumor has it that the "PDS Standard of Excellence" will come to an end with linkage pumpkins in 2010. Perhaps they will finally admit defeat?

Those cookie cutter Dirt Rider tests are not worth the paper they are printed on.

[Ud_luz]

Originally Posted by GMP

Rumor has it that the "PDS Standard of Excellence" will come to an end with linkage pumpkins in 2010. Perhaps they will finally admit defeat?

There is apparently some thought to building a bike similar to the Scorpa T-Ride. Rumour has it this bike has a linkage.

KTM has stated that they are going to continue with the linkless rear, at least on their off road bikes. Personally I like the linkless for for off road use. There is little maintenance on the unit and honestly they have it well worked out. The motoX guys on the other hand don't really care for it. Probably by far and away the biggest problem with the PDS setup is the users, they don't bother setting sag, having the proper spring for their weight nor do they properly adjust compression and rebound. This has a vastly greater impact on performance than linked bikes.

[Skidad]

Lots of "rumors" every year about linkage making a comeback on the KTM's.

KTM does have some linkage bikes like the new 690 series and the discontinued LC4 model bikes etc. but there has not been even 1 picture of their current enduro or MX bikes with a linkage rear setup. I'm quite sure they could make it happen and fast if they wanted to but I'll believe it when I see it.

Will it happen? who knows but I agree if it does you will most likely see it on the MX bikes first and it would really be welcomed by the MX crowd and KTM would most likely sell more bikes as well. A poorly setup linkage still works better than a poorly setup PDS IMO. The PDS is very finicky for sure to setup and really seems to have a bigger effect on what the front end of the bike does also.

Off road it seems to works better but MANY still struggle with proper setup, spring rate, sag, progressive or straight rate spring etc. This is quite understandable and the majority of us are not suspension experts and just want to ride, and even the so called "experts" have a hard time getting it "right" sometimes. I think they will keep it for off road but if it does show up on the MX bikes you know people are going to be screaming for it on the off road models as well. Personally I would welcome it back.

As far as maintenance with linkage I really don't see the problem. At least from my experience with my 97 KTM that has it. Once a year is all it needs...if that. It's so well sealed that it always looks good when I take it apart for service. I think the Gas Gas bikes are sealed up pretty good as well from what I read. I have no experience with the Jap bikes. Keeping the pressure washer away is obviously important. I also think having a full spare set of the linkage pieces is a really good idea if you plan on keeping the bike for any length of time. That way one set is always ready to go should you need it quickly.

Their 250/300's still need a 6th speed as well. The tranny debates never end over on the Orange site.

Ok...back to lurking again for me


Skidad

[bondo]

On the topic of the DR test of the EC 300 . . .

First, for what it's worth, I think the Dirt Rider staff does a good job with
their tests and, speaking as an an owner of both KTM and Gas Gas woods bikes, there's no question that KTM produces a competitive product and
both bikes have their good points and shortcomings.

The thing that struck me about the opinions and analysis of the GG in the Dirt Rider article was that their testing was almost certainly done in a more open environment (with the exception of the Endurocross course) than the
tight, technical trails where the Gas Gas truly excels.

Had they done their testing on tight, technical single-track with lots
of obstacles, I predict the Gas Gas would have definitely gotten
an even more positive review.

[eff]

What month? I just looked in my new DR and there was no test????

[bondo]

Check the August '08 issue.