Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/935202
Project KX 250 Woods Weapon By Bill Patterson Southeastern Contributing Editor Converting MX bikes into woods mounts is not exactly a new subject. Many riders have actually pre- ferred to go that route as opposed to lighten up a dedicated woods bike. In other cases, manufacturers don't make a dedicated off-road bike. Kawasaki is one of the Japanese companies that no longer man- ufacture a full-size woods bike. Although quite a few of their KX motocrossers have been modified for woods riding, it's not quite as common as converting a Yamaha since they continue to cater to the off- road scene. This is why we jumped at the opportunity to help Jack Vaughn of Hope Hull, Alabama with his KX 250 woods project. Like many of us, the author included, Jack grew up trail riding but took a long hiatus for the first part of his professional and family life. He purchased an old XR to get his feet wet again but soon discovered that he wanted to take advantage of new technology. He purchased a 2013 Kawasaki KX 250. The bike had EFI, much updated suspension, and a higher power to weight ratio. The bike was a virtual screamer compared to the old XR but the suspension was set up for a lighter rider who rode MX and the gearing was off. Furthermore, the power delivery needed help. The first order of the day was to fix the gearing. One can't retrofit wide ratio gears like in a Yamaha, but adding a tooth to the rear sprocket is easy and helps the ability to lug at the low end of the power band. Simply moving to a 53-tooth sprocket was easy and made a huge difference for Jack. Next on the agenda was the power delivery. It's best to tackle suspension first but this seemed like an 22 Trail Rider www.TrailRider.com