2007 MC 250 1st ride

[gasgasman]

I finally bit the bullet and got an MC250.
A friend of mine was looking for a new bike, he rode my 2001 SE 250 and loved it. So we started talking and he ordered an EC300 and I got the MC 250. The shipping worked out cheaper with two bikes shipped to his Honda car dealership.

The bikes came in two crates, all we had to do was put the handle bars and front wheel on.

The bikes arrived on April 31st.
As faith would have it, we had to leave for a vacation trip on June 1st. Which meant I could not prep the bike for another week.

When we got back I put the bark busters on-which took 3 hours. I had to do some bending to make them fit properly. I used the Atek inserts for the bar ends.

Mounted the enduro computer and the Scotts dampner. All the clamps etc. came right off my 2001 SE 250.
Put on new M1 Spider grips-big mistake! More on that.

Adjusted the front forks equally-they were off.
Did not mess with the shock at all.

Took the bike out on Saturday to do some minor breaking in.
Bike ran spot on with no jetting changes.
Fuel tank easier to fill.

Did a shake down run Sunday, all out riding.
Very dry and hot conditions, lots of sandy corners.

The suspension worked flawlessly. It soaked up whoops and roots with no sharp spikes to the handle bars. I could double some of the whoops.

This bike weighs about 20lbs (guess) less than my '01 and it feels it while riding.

The handling is the same as my '01.
Which means-surgical precision.
Had to swap the front pads half way thru the ride. The metal pads had too much of a on-off feel.

Power suits my riding style perfectly-snaps out of corners like a bullet. If the power falls off, a quick blip of the clutch and throttle picks it back up.
Could not tell any difference with the map switch.

Motor is buttery smooth, trans shifting is just the same.
Motor almost has no vibrations while riding, my '01 buzzed the pegs.
Longer kick starter is very Yamaha like.



The new air box makes standing up a lot easier. My boots would grip the air box side covers and provide support.

After riding about 30 miles my palms looked like I ran them across a cheese grater. This was caused by the new M1 Spider grips. I'll be going back to the enduro style Spider grips, which I've never had a problem with. But you know how that goes- wanna change stuff up.


Misses:
The seat is very hard, so I was standing more often.

Clutch seems a little stiffer. Not by much though.

Front fender hits front wheel on G-outs.

Shift lever too low, if adjusted would be too high.

No brake pedal height adjustment.

Rear tire seems too narrow-120/80 19 Michelin.

MC vs EC:
The MC has a few differences than the EC.
MC has:
50mm forks (zokes)
Excel rims- 19" rear
No fork lock assembly
No coolant over flow bottle.
No lighting coil/related wiring
MX style chain guide
Non O-ring chain
Billet triple clamps
No rear fender tail light mount
Michelin M12s front and rear.
No spark arrestor

Shameless plug:
Thanks to GoFasters for making my buying experience a pleasure.
I'm totally happy with the bike and feel like I made the right decision.

Fine print.
I'm very biased towards Gas Gas'.
So my ride report may reflect this.

[GMP]

Nice Girard, good luck!

I have the ATek inserts also, they work very well. The brake pedal height is adjusted by the clevis, which now has a hole rather than a slot. I replaced the pin with a bolt for eaiser R&R, but I have a new setup in the works that uses a heim joint like a KTM, eliminating the wear and slop from the steel pin in the aluminum pedal.

The MC has a map switch? My bike too is tough to tell the difference, maybe its more noticable with the heavy flywheel 2K-3. It also revs hard and fast, maybe its the same setup.

I just mounted Spider M1s, didn't ride it yet. I liked the stock grips, but couldn't get anything to hold then to the bars securely, like the rubber was slick and did not want to bond. I wear the kevlar glove liners, hope that helps.

Just got my suspension back from LTR today, will put it back together tonight. The fork worked decent stock despite the goofy valving Les pulled out. Once my shock broke in, I noticed the rebound was a bit light, but not too bad. Are the 50mm Zokes twin chambers?

Are you swapping the rear wheel for an 18"?

[gasgasman]

Glenn.
I'm keeping the 19", tires seem to be cheaper. I will put a wider tire on there.

My Bullet Proof guards came in today, we'll see how they fit.

Photos are now posted.
Thanks Jeff.

[ggrider]

Conrats on your new ride, awesome looking bike and pics !!

Are your gearbox ratios the same as your 01 SE250 ? Thinking of getting an used MC250 and put my 99 EC300 barrel on it along with the primary gear weight and a 10 oz FW.

Nice feature having a kickstand on a motocross bike, cant think of a current Jap strictly motocross bike that uses it.

[myosin]

Nice!!!!!!!!!!

[gasgasman]

Originally Posted by ggrider

Nice feature having a kickstand on a motocross bike, cant think of a current Jap strictly motocross bike that uses it.

The kick stand came off my friend's 300. He said he did not need it. So I gave him my triangle stand.

The transmission gear ratios are probably the same.
I will have to put a 50 tooth sprocket on the rear.
The 48 is too tall for our riding area.

[GMP]

Girard,

Did you get a triangle stand with the bike? I would like to get one or modify one from a Jap bike. I heard the GG axel hole is smaller than the Jap bikes and the stands need to be ground down, but I never checked myself.

I can't wait to get out and try my new LTR suspension.

[gasgasman]

Originally Posted by gasgasman

Glenn.
I'm keeping the 19", tires seem to be cheaper. I will put a wider tire on there.

My Bullet Proof guards came in today, we'll see how they fit.

I mounted some Dunlop 756s on last night-the rear tube was an 18".
The rim locks are the same as the '98 models.

The '06 Bullet "Poof" guards did not fit, so I'll have to wait until the '07 versions come out.

[Boomhauer]

Originally Posted by gasgasman

I mounted some Dunlop 756s on last night-the rear tube was an 18".
The rim locks are the same as the '98 models.

The '06 Bullet "Poof" guards did not fit, so I'll have to wait until the '07 versions come out.

You will have to ride it to hurt it!

[GMP]

Girard,

I could send you a template I made for my custom headstays. They enable you to mount the '06 Flatlands with relocated rear mounts. About a nights work in fabrication. Very strong.