Hi everyone

[Debi]

Hi everyone,

Well new to this site and also new to the Gas Gas motorcycle. I just picked up a 2003 EC250 and have not been able to ride it yet due to the weather, but oh well.

I have been riding many many years but took off a few years and got back into it in 07 when I purchased and DRZ400SM and love it but not to great for the trails. Well I found I think a great trail bike that I might be able to handle. So please anyone with insight to this type of bike would be much appreciated

[HydroDog]

Welcome to the group. Looks like you bought a very clean bike with a plate to match your other interesting scoots in the garage. Did you get a chance to ride it before you purchased it to see how it ran?

[Boomhauer]

The bike looks very clean. I noticed in the picture that it has Ohlins all the way around. You will quickly find out that these gas gas bikes are amazing.

Welcome to the dark side!

[GMP]

Hi Debi,

Welcome to the site. Anything you may need to know you can find here. Bike does look clean, tell us a bit more about it.

[jeffd]

Hi Debi,
I grew up in Renton along with Les Tinius. We used to be able to ride for miles right from our homes near "fairwood". Les is well known here as a mechanic/suspension tuner/maker of gasgas jetting kits & parts, etc.

There is good winter riding about an hours drive from you near bremerton at "Tahuya" - others refer to it as 'belfair' - which is the smallest town close to the area. The ground has topsoil - but once you break through that it is glacial sand and rock. A few big puddles but great traction in the winter. If you need a tour guide - hook up with Roscoe (aka REVERUP) - he knows the place very well.

As far as the bike goes - it has come in two configurations over the years - one with a lighter (more zippy") ignition with less flywheel. And the other with a higher output stator that gives more flywheel effect and throttle control. When you say trail riding - do you like tight trail or more wide open stuff? As a 2003, your bike more likely has the larger 2k3 ignition - see here for identification and details :

http://www.gasgasrider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=164

The heavier ignition will be better for NW trail riding - given that the bike has a plate - I would imagine it has the heavier ignition - if not, you can add a flywheel.

For my old 2001, in that neck of the woods - I ran a honda tlr200 reflex throttle for a longer throttle pull and more throttle control - many here use the g2 throttle tube for better low end throttle control.

The engine has the squish band set up way loose - check the squish and, if necessary, send the cylinder head down to portland to Ron at RB-designs to have it cleaned up - low cost and big bang for the buck. The compression is set to an optimal amount for your riding altitude(s), the bike will run cleaner and more efficiently (improved mpg). Look in the tech articles section of the website for more details.

The clutch drags - using a better oil helps. I like shell rotella 5w40 diesel rated oil -they sell it at walmart. Les mounted a cannondale clutch master cylinder on my bike and it helped quite a bit - he has a spare one - now needs a lever though - we robbed the lever off of the spare master for my husky txc510...

The kickstarter on the 2003 is kinda short and is a bit soft where it meets the knuckle - the newer kickstarters are much better. Hawkeye here figured out that a yz 2 stroke kickstarter fits right on - it is longer and seems like it is made for it - makes for easier starting. You can either buy new or pick one up on e-bay, they get parted out fairly often.

For jetting, it's personal preference and the stock jetting for 2003 wasn't ideal. The previous owner may have installed his own jetting or a jetting kit available from LTR (my friend Les' company, or if you are lucky you might have the carb modified by Ron at RB-Designs. He modifies the carb internally, bores it out to 39mm and installs divider plates to improve throttle response.

For suspension setup - I would highly recommend Les at LT-Racing in Port Orchard, WA (but I am very, very biased as he is a longtime friend of mine). He has springs in stock,etc. He also lowers bikes for many riders - he specializes in gasgas and husky, the latter tend to be tall for many riders. He is also a machinist and has a lathe and mill in his shop -so he machines custom spacers, etc for each application/person.

In summary :
For carb & head work -> www.rb-designs.com
For suspension & general bike advice -> www.lt-racing.com
For parts fiche & aftermarket parts -> www.gofasters.com

That's enough from me for now...

jeff
aka webmaster here...

[REVERUP]

Hey Debi, welcome to the club!
Its nice to see Gas Gas rider numbers increasing in Washington again.
For the riding we have around here there is no doubt that the Gas Gas is a better weapon than the DRZ would be. Not sure if you have rode 2 stokes in the past, if you haven't that may be the thing that takes you the most time to get used to. Power delivery will be a bit more abrupt than the 4 stroke. But as far as 2 strokes go these bike are about as smooth and tractable as they get.

As Jeff mentioned Les LTRacing is the guy for suspension period. Local resident and a great guy. He will make sure its right for you.

Just a curiosity thing where did you get your machine?
I have known a couple guys with that exact model in the past. One of the 2 was the guy that let me ride his, my first Gas Gas ride. It looked so trick and worked so well! I was hooked and shortly there after I reeled in my new 2004 EC 300 and now am on my 3rd one, and see a 4th one in 2010.

Anyhow I do know alot of the riding areas around here very well and always love showing off what alot of people don't know exists around here.
Keep your eye on the N.W. section of this forum. I plan to organize another Washington Gas Gas meet and greet soon. I need to get out, haven't been on the bike in a few weeks.

Roscoe

P.S. Pretty sure I recognize the apartments in your pictures. Initials of the name of the complex are B.D I believe.

[PEB]

Nice rides! That truck looks like it will get your bike anywhere you need.

[Grampy]

Hi Deb. I was at Cliff's Cycle Center the day you bought your Gas Gas. He had two identical 2003 Gas Gas 250EC's. I bought the other one two weeks before you bought yours. When I bought mine I also bought all of the Gas Gas parts Cliff had left in stock so if you can't find something, let me know. If you want more zip out of your scooter, I have the lighter ignition set up. I went out to Tahuya this morning because I have had my bike for three weeks and haven't ridden it yet. Still 4 to 5 inches of snow there so couldn't ride more than a couple of miles. It will be a week or so before we can ride yet. If you are ever over this way for a ride, let me know, I live about 5 miles from Tahuya and am familiar with the area.

[Debi]

Originally Posted by HydroDog

Welcome to the group. Looks like you bought a very clean bike with a plate to match your other interesting scoots in the garage. Did you get a chance to ride it before you purchased it to see how it ran?

Ty, nope just heard it run so no clue yet, but soon

[Debi]

Originally Posted by Boomhauer

The bike looks very clean. I noticed in the picture that it has Ohlins all the way around. You will quickly find out that these gas gas bikes are amazing.

Welcome to the dark side!

Ty and I will see LOL..used to my DRZ SM so this will be fun.