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Old 05-03-2009, 01:45 PM
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cvl05 cvl05 is offline
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Default Husky WR

I've recently started the process of research for a new ride, i'm moving my 05 DE250 to my son Tyler. He's out growing the current 200xcw he is riding and is now ready for a full size bike. I must admit i've been looking at alt to GG, I have been mostly interested in the new WR300 Husky and pos 300XCW KTM. My reason is no GG dealers within 600 miles of my home. Gofasters is great but i live in Idaho for the last 3 years and have to do all my shopping online.

Yesterday we went riding and i had a chance to ride a 09 WR, also 08 KTM 250xcwf. Let me start with the motor, the Wr300 is freakin fast!!!!! This puppy has great lugging torque down low, mid power seemed a little flat but holly s**t hold on for the topend rush, NICE!!! I do believe this is the fastest 300 i've riddien, IMO. Much harder pull than a 300 KTM. I have not ridden much on GG 300's, but i do think the Husky has a leg up for open riding. I would need to increase the mid power for my riding style, mostly tight tech single track.

Suspension was Zoke Shiver forks, they felt real good as one would expect, rear shock is Sachs dual compression unit, nice as well. Interesting note is the Wr125 comes with Zoke dual chamber fork with adjustable preload on the top of fork, 250/300 does not.

Steering and chassis. This bike feels very tall, i'm 6'2 and it's a long reach to the ground. I don't like this as i'm always in some wierd off camber rut on the side of a hill and i like to be able to get my foot down. It does have nicely positioned grab hadles on both side for when you do need to bulldog it around. Also i felt the bike did not turn into corners well, this may be setup but i think it's a chassis thing.
It is however very stable in a straight line through woops. Would do well in the SW desert.

Brakes are Brembo with wave rotor front and solid mud rotor rear. Very strong, good feed back. Clutch is cable and a little stiff to me.
Rock hard seat, the norm for Euro bikes. The spark plug is wide open and easy to get to, mostly due the the frme design and the smallish fuel tank, 2.4 gallons.

The main perk is out the door at $5900.00. That's for an 09.

With all that being said, i'm looking for another GG. The Husky would make a great dersert bike but it just does not feel anywhere near as nimble as the GG. I love the way the GG responds to minimal inputs to the bars and pegs, you can just rail through the woods, almost as nimble as the 200 KTM of my kid.
Nice try Husky, $2k is a lot of cash these days but GG still stands tall as the best bike for tight single track IMO.


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Old 05-03-2009, 03:18 PM
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My brother has an '02 WR250, and that bike has been totally bulletproof, same lower end! We put a Keihin carb on it, better linkage seals, revalved and sprung suspension, Scotts damper, and its great. It is tall, has a very forward mounted kickstarter(old school converted motor) and the plastic is kind of brittle and seems to break easy, especially the wide shrouds that catch brush easy. Personally I like GGs better but I would go Husky over KTM any day. They are a bit stiff and edgy stock but work real well in the crap when valved correctly. I heard the 300s were animals!
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Old 05-03-2009, 05:20 PM
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Before I bought my GG I tried a new WR250 as no one had a 300 yet. I was very impressed with the motor and the suspension was OK, but I am 5'9" with a 30" inseam and wow was that thing tall. Riding position was spot on, but as cvl05 alluded to, get into an off camber dog paddling situation and I'm afraid I would find myself on the ground alot. That and I concur with the clutch, after riding orange for the past decade, you do get a little spoiled. Fitment and quality did look very good, not as cobby as some past Husqvarnas I've seen. They are however still my favorite chainsaw and that helps keep my trails open, so I like Husky's .
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Old 05-03-2009, 06:02 PM
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FG, Yeah i'm 6'2 35" inseam and i could barely flat foot the bike. I was a Phx AZ resident until 3 years ago and would love this bike riding the Wickenburg area at mile post 11.5. For the fast western single track and desert this would be cool. Fit was real nice, bike felt very high quality, just not nimble. In fact was about the same as the 08 KTM 250xcwf thumper i rode the same ride when it comes to direction changes. I always installed offset triple clamps on KTM's before i even rode them the first ride so they would steer!!!
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Old 05-03-2009, 07:57 PM
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Once they break in and are set up correctly the height is not a big deal. My brother and I are both 5'9" - 5'10" and ride some very technical terrain and the height of the bike has never been an issue. Its just not as compact and nimble as the GasGas as you said.
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Old 05-03-2009, 10:30 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cvl05 View Post
I was a Phx AZ resident until 3 years ago and would love this bike riding the Wickenburg area at mile post 11.5.
Been there a time or 2, we live about 20 minutes from the MileMarkers! I was very impressed with the Husky, just not a good fit to vertically challenged mature fat guys.
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Old 05-05-2009, 08:29 PM
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I rode a Husky 250 and was amazed at the low end during several miles of tight single track. I thought first gear would be a bit tall for my liking on even modest hill climbs but the dang thing just loafed up -- thuppa-thuppa-thuppa -- at low speed. I didn't have to use the clutch at all.

I'm yet another Five-Niner, but I'm blessed with a 31-inch inseam. Still, I was tippy-tozed on the thing. The bike felt very long, like I had a caboose in back.

I can see how some would strongly consider it for a more open desert setting. As it was, I never got the thing out of second gear.
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Old 05-05-2009, 09:33 PM
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I agree on the gearing as well. It's not a wide ratio box like "WR' used to stand for, in i believe 2000 or 2001 they started using a close ratio bocx in the wr.I say "what the ****" give me that low gear, hell i drop the GG to a 12/13 50 and i would go more on next sproket change. But the WR is a tractor down low.
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Old 05-06-2009, 07:54 AM
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The '02 WR has a real nice motor, the later years a bit more mid hit and top from what I hear. Guys who have had several say they like the '02. A Keihin carb helps too, makes the bike more linear and easier to jet more accurately.

I don't think it feels long, just taller, like a Yamaha. The 4-strokes (new frame) feel very big and long to me, but lower. My brother also had a TE450 and there was a big difference in feel between the bikes. I'm a 32" inseam and have no issues. That WR goes through the woods just fine, Fred Hoess rode them to a couple ECEA championships.
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Old 05-06-2009, 08:50 PM
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Glenn.

I think they steer as good as MOST bikes, GG is just a step ahead,GG is almost as quick steering as a rm250. I like the husky but i'm no AA or A rider either, they could ride an old xr400 to a title. I'm getting finiky in my old age and want a bike to steer when i start thinking about it and not have to put so much input onto the bars and pegs. I love the way the old GG floats through the nice fast sweeping sections with little more input than shifting your wieght to one peg or the other. I found a 08 300 i think i'll saddle that baby up.....
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