Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Questions and comments about converting to beefier forks..
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by KDXGarage »

MAN! Looks good!
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by SS109 »

Nice! I wish mine looked that clean!
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by javjacob »

Looks great!
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by doakley »

Really like that pipe guard, especially with the extra welds at the top 3 "joints". That's a spot they can break. The welds should help.
It also looks a little longer so covers more of the pipe. What brand is it?
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by javjacob »

doakley wrote: 10:00 am Mar 21 2020 Really like that pipe guard, especially with the extra welds at the top 3 "joints". That's a spot they can break. The welds should help.
It also looks a little longer so covers more of the pipe. What brand is it?
Looks like Flatland racing. I have Flatland pipe guards on my 200 and 220. best pipe guard money can buy if you ask me. Fit and finish is unmatched.
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by javjacob »

I actually sent them my FMF rev pipe 3 or 4 years ago to make the template. If they dont have a guard for your pipe you can send them yours and they will make you one for your pipe at no extra charge. I dont think they have the woods pipe yet so someone could help out with that.
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by ericr »

Great job! Bike looks really good. I shortened mine internally 3/4". The Shinko fatty is 0.8" bigger in diameter. I slipped my forks up 0.4" to maintain the standard rake. Some people don't and like the increased stability at speed.
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by GATOROC »

doakley wrote: 10:00 am Mar 21 2020 Really like that pipe guard, especially with the extra welds at the top 3 "joints". That's a spot they can break. The welds should help.
It also looks a little longer so covers more of the pipe. What brand is it?
Thanks to javjacob's thread on this pipe guard Pipe Guards I reached out to Flatlands Racing to get the same one. Like I mentioned in that thread, they originally sent me the wrong guard, so I had to send them my pipe to get it fitted correctly. They then made several copies of the FMF Desert pipe guard to have on hand in case others wanted them. I provided his contact info as well. I really like the guard and fit/finish is nice.
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by GATOROC »

ericr wrote: 12:05 pm Mar 21 2020 Great job! Bike looks really good. I shortened mine internally 3/4". The Shinko fatty is 0.8" bigger in diameter. I slipped my forks up 0.4" to maintain the standard rake. Some people don't and like the increased stability at speed.
Thanks - I wish my bike looked half as good as your two bikes! BTW, I stole your idea of the swingarm KDX stickers after finding them on Ebay. :cool: After all of the reading and research I did on the fork conversion, I'm kinda kicking myself now for not shortening the springs. Oh well, I'll do some testing with it and if I'm not happy, I'll have the springs shortened. I don't consider myself a great rider, so I may not even know the difference!
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by Goat »

Nice! Those look beefy. My eBay kit turned up. So it’s time to get started.
Let us know how they take the first pounding.
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by Goat »

https://www.google.com/amp/s/motocrossa ... strophies/

I also like your pipe guard. But since mine came with free dent installed I figured I’d keep working on it until the hp maxes out. : )
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by GATOROC »

Goat wrote: 12:13 am Mar 23 2020 https://www.google.com/amp/s/motocrossa ... strophies/

I also like your pipe guard. But since mine came with free dent installed I figured I’d keep working on it until the hp maxes out. : )
That was an interesting read! I always "assumed" that a dented pipe meant a decent amount of power loss, but I guess not. Maybe you can add some additional dents to increase your HP? :cool:
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by Goat »

I like to scientifically pre-plan rides with scheduled rock crunching type crashes so that the cone dents are just the right proportionate smoosh depth to counterbalance the radial depression of new head pipe dings. That way the kdx can be accurately bashed into into the prime hp range for my exact style of riding.
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by TwistedRoot »

Looks awesome! Great job on the conversion.
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by GATOROC »

Thanks Wayne! I was jealous after seeing your fork swap so I had to do mine. :wink: I've been riding around the house doing some jumps and little whoops and the forks seem to work really well, but I won't know for sure until I'm able to ride some different terrain in the mountains. I still need to get my Tubliss and Fatty Tyre swapped over to the KX rim, and look forward to testing with that setup.
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by VTMTcowboy »

GATOROC wrote: 03:18 pm Mar 20 2020 Got some time yesterday to get things back together. I was able to get the fork tubes about 1/2" up into the triple clamp and still have about 1/4" of space between the bars and bleeders. I haven't measured to compare the height between the old and new forks, but I can tell that the bike sits a little bit higher now. I still need to get the Shinko Fatty Tyre switched out with the little tire that's on there now, and will get the Tubliss swapped over to the new rim as well. The weather has been really cold here with snow as well, so I haven't had an opportunity to ride it yet. A few pics of the new setup:

Image1997 KX250 Front End 11, on Flickr

Image1997 KX250 Front End 14, on Flickr

Image1997 KX250 Front End 12, on Flickr

Image1997 KX250 Front End 13, on Flickr

Image1997 KX250 Front End 15, on Flickr
The swap turned out amazing man! Looking forward to hearing your review once you hit the mountains. I did the KLX swap on my 200, but eventually I'd like to try the KX swap on my 220. Thanks again, very helpful!
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by doakley »

Looks show-room new! (Too bad Kwai won’t actually build this model).
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by KDXGarage »

Looks awesome!!
Thank you for participating on kdxrider.net. :bravo:
To post pictures from a device: viewtopic.php?f=88&t=24128
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by VTMTcowboy »

Looks great! That bike is in mint shape.
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Re: Finally Doing Swap to 1997 KX250 Forks

Post by VTMTcowboy »

What brand number plate is that?
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