someone help me!

[catch2otwo]

alright so i used to mess around with my neighbors on an xr80. that was about 8 yrs ago.

i just picked up rm 125 so i could ride with some of my friends at college and im lost. riding around the trials around here and its like ive never been on two wheels before. so i have a few questions.

1. how come i cant "slip" the clutch out like on my cbr. its like i have to rev this thing to the moon and then dump it. unless the back wheel is throwing up roost, it wont really go. if i just rev it up a bit and slowly slip the clutch out, it will either stall or get going and bog way down.

2. how come i cant push this thing in gear even with the clutch is in? ive been told that suzuki clutchs tend to drag a bit but damn. its weird though, if the bike is off, i can push it and feel the piston moving if its in gear and the clutch is in. but if its running, and i have the clutch in i can rev it and it wont lurch or nothing.

3. and got any general tips on riding this thing? its like i have no real control over it, and im just along for the ride. ive tried to move up a bit on the seat and grip the tank more, but doesnt seem to help much. is there throttle technique or something im missing?

4. i dont want to blame the bike for my crappy riding, but i hear flywheel weights will help with tight trails. there are alot of areas where i kind of have to coast around the turn in first and after the turn i get on the gas and i got no power and itll just kind of bog and then go. i know its a 2 stroke but will these weights help? are they hard to put on?


sorry for the long post, but just trying to get going on this thing.

[airgary]

is it stock or ported? smaller 2 stroke bikes tend to be high rpm whores. they dont build power till the top of the rpm range. i used to ride wide open throttle upshift downshift barely letting off. that bike is probably not really a good candidate for woods riding, between the power band being so high, and the buildup of heat not moving the bike fast enough.

how to ride it.

put your ass right up near the gas cap, if you have to coast through the corner do so in first, rev it up and drop the clutch. after you pick up a bit up speed shift up to 2nd 3rd (about 2 seconds)

this is mostly all personal opinion preferance, but its like a 600cc on the street compared to a 1000. both go plenty fast, both handle well but you can be lazy on the big bore and not shift if you don't want. while the smaller bike takes more effort to do the same thing. the smaller bikes corner easier and are much more manageable.
keep the bike real high in the rmp range and you will always have power.
flywheel weights ( i know nothing about using them in the smaller bikes) they do help some with bigger bikes but if you are not in the powerband of the rpm range, it wont make a difference ( i dont think) . a port job might make it more rideable but it pobably is not worth doing.

stick to open area riding , track, sand pit, open high speed trails and you should not have much problems. tight trails and it will fall flat on its face and over heat too

i am sure someone more knowledgeable can give more insight this is mostly just my worthless $.02

[Paul_E_D]

I don't know, I'd have to ride it to tell, but it sounds to me like you have some jetting problems. It shouldn't make much power low in the revs, but it should certaily be able to pull away from a stop in first without needing to rev it to the moon and slip the clutch.

Set the air screw to 1.5 turns out and see if it changes. Then turn it to .5 turns out, better or worse?

I'd get on some kind of RM list and ask for some baseline jetting data.

As for the clutch, they do drag a lot. Fresh oil helps, as does adjusting the cable to have only a little slack. (It needs a little or it will slip when you turn the bars)

[catch2otwo]

thanks, unfortunatly i was afraid of that answer. guess ill just find somewhere new to ride. pretty sure the motor is not ported, but its pro circuit piped and silenced. i rode a pit a few weeks ago and it seemed to do alright.

any idea on starting out? as in dumping the clutch with it wound out? is it possible to start off easy instead of reving it and dumpin the clutch? i know 2 strokes like getting a bit of gas to get them going but i didnt think it was that dramatic.

[catch2otwo]

I don't know, I'd have to ride it to tell, but it sounds to me like you have some jetting problems. It shouldn't make much power low in the revs, but it should certaily be able to pull away from a stop in first without needing to rev it to the moon and slip the clutch.

Set the air screw to 1.5 turns out and see if it changes. Then turn it to .5 turns out, better or worse?

I'd get on some kind of RM list and ask for some baseline jetting data.

As for the clutch, they do drag a lot. Fresh oil helps, as does adjusting the cable to have only a little slack. (It needs a little or it will slip when you turn the bars)

oops you posted when i was writing my reply. so for the air screw i should turn it all the way in, and then turn it back out 1.5 turns ride, and turn some more. sorry if i sound retarded, but im so new to 2 strokes its not even funny. i got the clymers manual, but it doesnt have much in terms of specific troubleshooting.

[mycirus]

What year is your bike? Maybe it needs a clutch?

[catch2otwo]

its a 2000 rm 125. i think in the ad it said fresh clutch. how can i check?

[ChR1s]

Just ride the thing in an open area and get used to it.

[catch2otwo]

Just ride the thing in an open area and get used to it.

well thats the next plan of action. going back to school in a couple weeks so i hear they got some nice wide open snowmobile trails they ride on. we'll see

[Paul_E_D]

oops you posted when i was writing my reply. so for the air screw i should turn it all the way in, and then turn it back out 1.5 turns ride, and turn some more. sorry if i sound retarded, but im so new to 2 strokes its not even funny. i got the clymers manual, but it doesnt have much in terms of specific troubleshooting.

Correct, the useable range for the airscrew is from .5 to 1.75 turns. If it likes .5, then you can go with a richer ilot jet, if it likes 1.75, you can try a leaner pilot. This effects very small throttle openings, like when you first crack the throttle.

from 1/4 to 3/4 throttle is the needle. If it goes booooooowah as you roll on from 1/4 then you should raise the needle by moving the clip down.

These are the most important setings for woods riding. The main jet doesn't affect you much cause you aren't holding it wide open for any length of time.

[Awesome]

Sounds like you need a tune up and a clutch.

[out thumped]

Flywheel wtshelp alot. I just put one on my son's 65SX. It took the wheel spinning hit out of the equation, stopped the bike from stalling on take off and made the power much more usable and broader. It is darn near impossible to stall the thing out. Just what he needed for Hare Scrambles/ Woods riding.
Look up Steaghly Off road.
They are cheap and if I can install one any idiot can, cuz I'm not just any idiot!
Good Luck,
OT

[catch2otwo]

thanks for the tips everyone. ill try the air screw this weekend and then go from there.

[catch2otwo]

Flywheel wtshelp alot. I just put one on my son's 65SX. It took the wheel spinning hit out of the equation, stopped the bike from stalling on take off and made the power much more usable and broader. It is darn near impossible to stall the thing out. Just what he needed for Hare Scrambles/ Woods riding.
Look up Steaghly Off road.
They are cheap and if I can install one any idiot can, cuz I'm not just any idiot!
Good Luck,
OT

damn 100 bucks for a simple weight and some bolts. im in the wrong business. got to pay to play i guess

[typeone]

if you do look into flywheel weights after you get it tuned up, check out SFB as well, they make a weight for RM125. i can't load their site right now but they have a chart that shows the effect of different weights, e.g. novice mx vs. intermediate woods, whatever.

i went 13oz. (a lot) on my CR250 and that thing would chug so sweet in the woods, felt like you could never stall it. that will be too much weight for your 125 so try to scope that chart... IF you go that route. def. makes the power more useable and less explosive.

[catch2otwo]

typeone: ill be sure to check them out too. im sure once its tuned it will feel like a different bike. also not sure where im riding this fall yet, so i might not need weights yet if we're riding open stuff

[catch2otwo]

well what do you know. putting the air screw all the way seated, turned it out 2.5 as per the manual and whaaala. she runs alot better. dont have to roost the shit out of the lawn when getting out of first, i can kind of idle through a hairpin and then give it gas and it wont die, and the throttle response is much better! i counted turns when i seated it and it was around 2.75 turns out. who knew it could be so sensitive. Thanks for everyones help cant wait to ride it this weekend.

o yea what exactly does the air screw do anyway?

[Paul_E_D]

bleeds air into the idle circuit. Turning it in allows less air, richening the mixture. If it got better with .25 turn in, then try another .25 turn in and ride. Continue adjusting til it's giving the best possible response off the bottom. Then tell us where it's at. try all setting from .5 turns out back up to 2.5

[catch2otwo]

yea, i was going to play with it a little more tomorrow when we go riding. i didnt have the time to really take it out yesterday but i noticed a good difference in the yard.

typically would you have to turn it in after you get things like a pipe? i assume with better air flow you would want to richen the mixture up a bit along with jetting?

[Paul_E_D]

Yes. Pipes change airflow. It's directly related to the pilot jet. If it runs best at .5 turns out, you can go to the next bigger pilot. If it runs best at 2.5 turns, then try the next leaner pilot. Again, this is just zero to 1/4 throttle. After that i's the needle. That's where you biggest tuning improvements will come.

[catch2otwo]

thanks paul, youve been a big help. bike seems to run good and pulls strong at the moment. so this pilot air screw runs at optimum performance .5 turns out? since im running good so far out you suggest replacing it with a leaner one? if so should i just look for a complete carburator jet kit? i wont have much time to ride it in the next few weeks but will be riding every weekend when i get back to school so ill have more time to tinker.

[Paul_E_D]

Next richer pilot. turning an air screw IN is richening the mix. Don't bother with a kit, optimize each jet one at a time...