Here she is....

[Gasman]

This is a cut and paste of my post from another site, not 250EX specific, thus the reason for explaining every little thing about it. Being 250EX riders, I'm sure you understand.

Finally done and ready to race. Actually, it's kinda weird to be ready to go on Thursday before a race. I'm usually burning the midnight oil the night before I have to leave trying to button things up.

It's actually a '99 Recon with later-model 250EX plastic and seat. They're the same quad except for front drums on the Recon vs. discs on the EX. When I got it it already had the ITP T-9 wheels, new front Holeshots, and a K&N filter, which I still need to swap for a Twin Air. Since then I've added:

HMF full system
Elka race series front shocks, comp adj. (from a 300EX, modified frame to fit)
2001 Raptor rear shock, comp and rebound adj.
Razr rears
Uni vents in airbox lid
Longhorn 7075 fatbars
Tusk big bar adapter kit
Spider A3 grips
Pro Taper bar pad
Acerbis Rally Pro aluminum/plastic handguards
Tusk nerf bars
Pro Armor chassis skid
Ricochet A-arm skids
Pro Armor tether
Tusk gas cap vent valve

I had to move the key switch, indicator lights, and choke from the original plastic clamp cover to various places on the front plastic. It also had a neutral safety switch, so it would only start in neutral. I figured out how to bypass it with a ground wire. I ran it through a toggle switch I put in the dash, so when I turn the switch on it will start in gear, but with it off it reverts to normal and will only start in neutral. All the shocks are too stiff, but I'll just have to deal with it until I can be without it long enough to have them revalved. First gear is almost worthless, and it tops out about 50-52, but in between it's a fun little ride. Really light and really sharp handling, it reminds me of a mellower, better handling version of my Blaster, with more torque down low. Should be fun.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v483/Doorider/100_0890.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v483/Doorider/100_0889.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v483/Doorider/100_0885.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v483/Doorider/100_0884.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v483/Doorider/100_0882.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v483/Doorider/100_0894.jpg

:D :D :D :D
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v483/Doorider/100_0883.jpg

[tedwilley]

Sweet looking 250!

[04250EXer]

Sick 250, dude! Really!

However, I have to ask. Please don't take offense, I'm really only wondering. But..why would you put that kind of money into a 250EX? You'll never get that money back and the performance will never equal that of a say a 400EX. You could have easily purchased a 400EX or Z400 for the money that you put into this 250. I do commend you for the work, it looks great! But, it seems as though it may have been a large amount of money you'll never get back or even get the performance for the dollar.

[klutchbuster250]

yea nice bike bro but why did u spend so much money, i was in the proces to make mine race ready but im like forget it il just wait till i get my 450 to race and i have quite a few things on my bike but not like urs o u should get rear spacers i have them with teh razers and it handels amazing i can do donuts all day on the street lol :devil:

[klutchbuster250]

notice how wide the rear is

[07250ex]

Originally posted by Gasman


It's actually a '99 Recon with later-model 250EX plastic and seat. They're the same quad except for front drums on the Recon vs. discs on the EX.

thats not true ... the 250ex engine makes 10 % more power and its wider in stock form to

[coolkid91]

klutchbuster250 how big are your spacers?

[klutchbuster250]

2.5 each side so 5 inches alltogether

[Gasman]

I race XC in District 14 in the S-class, which is for fully automatic transmissions, or shifter trannys with an automatic clutch. I've run to this point in the season on a Polaris 500 Scrambler, lightened and converted to 2-wheel drive. I'm 10 points out of first place in the State, but the Scrambler is VERY ill-handling and weighs 560lbs. dry. I needed something much lighter and better handling if I want to make a run at the championship. Current 1st place is Dan McConnaughey, who is factory-sponsored by Kymco and races a balls-out 300 Mongoose in the GNCC's. The 250EX, Z250, and Kawasaki 300 Lakota are about the only options out there that would be considered sporty enough to do what I need to do and still be light (I was considering a V-Force, but they're too heavy, wide and bulky for me), and the EX has by far the most available in the aftermarket.

In just the last five years I've owned, or still own, this 250, my 500 Scrambler, a 250 Trailblazer, a very modified XC 400EX, a crazy XC 240 Blaster (which I still miss), a fully aftermarket Arens-framed MX 250R, and an '89 500 Quadracer. I recently sold the 250R, which is where the money came from for this project. I've never gotten my money back out of any of them when/if they were sold. I even parted the Blaster and still took a bath on it. I just have this thing about taking quads that others think are useless and making killers out of them. Nothing pisses off a 450 rider more than to have a 560lb. Polaris pass them in the woods, or clear a 50 ft. tabletop when they're too chicken to launch it. Plus I'm addicted to shiny gold trophies, and if you want the tallest one you have to spend some money. Plus, most of my stuff comes from eBay or private parties, so I don't spend as much as one might think. I picked up those front Elkas for under $400 shipped, the Raptor rear for $90. Most of the rest was new from Rocky Mountain ATV, but I'm not afraid to buy their own brands (Tusk, Longhorn, etc. Both my sets of riding gear are A.R.C., my new helmet is Torq.) Their shipping is free for orders over $99, which saves money. Total investment, just how you see it in the pics, including the quad purchase price, is about $3400. I didn't think that was too bad at all considering what I ended up with. If it's competitive and lives through the rest of the season, over the winter it'll get a Durablue axle, ASR a-arms, a high-comp piston or possibly a big bore, a Web cam, and some good valve springs.

[Gasman]

Originally posted by 07250ex
thats not true ... the 250ex engine makes 10 % more power and its wider in stock form to

Are you speaking of your '07, or all 250's in general? What makes the extra power, different cam?

And now that I look on bikebandit.com, I see the part numbers for the axle and a-arms are different from the Recon to the EX. How much wider is the EX?

[07250ex]

All the 250ex's have a better engine and i belive it has to do with the cam shaft, its about 2 - 3 inches wider

[Gasman]

Wow, looking at the valvetrains, they are totally different from one to the other. Even the way the rockers are arranged is totally different. Hmmm....

i believe the gearing in them are different also...not 100% sure though

[07250ex]

Originally posted by speedyquad
i believe the gearing in them are different also...not 100% sure though

Yeah i forgot to mention the 250ex has taller gears

[honda450rider33]

Originally posted by Gasman
I race XC in District 14 in the S-class, which is for fully automatic transmissions, or shifter trannys with an automatic clutch. I've run to this point in the season on a Polaris 500 Scrambler, lightened and converted to 2-wheel drive. I'm 10 points out of first place in the State, but the Scrambler is VERY ill-handling and weighs 560lbs. dry. I needed something much lighter and better handling if I want to make a run at the championship. Current 1st place is Dan McConnaughey, who is factory-sponsored by Kymco and races a balls-out 300 Mongoose in the GNCC's. The 250EX, Z250, and Kawasaki 300 Lakota are about the only options out there that would be considered sporty enough to do what I need to do and still be light (I was considering a V-Force, but they're too heavy, wide and bulky for me), and the EX has by far the most available in the aftermarket.

In just the last five years I've owned, or still own, this 250, my 500 Scrambler, a 250 Trailblazer, a very modified XC 400EX, a crazy XC 240 Blaster (which I still miss), a fully aftermarket Arens-framed MX 250R, and an '89 500 Quadracer. I recently sold the 250R, which is where the money came from for this project. I've never gotten my money back out of any of them when/if they were sold. I even parted the Blaster and still took a bath on it. I just have this thing about taking quads that others think are useless and making killers out of them. Nothing pisses off a 450 rider more than to have a 560lb. Polaris pass them in the woods, or clear a 50 ft. tabletop when they're too chicken to launch it. Plus I'm addicted to shiny gold trophies, and if you want the tallest one you have to spend some money. Plus, most of my stuff comes from eBay or private parties, so I don't spend as much as one might think. I picked up those front Elkas for under $400 shipped, the Raptor rear for $90. Most of the rest was new from Rocky Mountain ATV, but I'm not afraid to buy their own brands (Tusk, Longhorn, etc. Both my sets of riding gear are A.R.C., my new helmet is Torq.) Their shipping is free for orders over $99, which saves money. Total investment, just how you see it in the pics, including the quad purchase price, is about $3400. I didn't think that was too bad at all considering what I ended up with. If it's competitive and lives through the rest of the season, over the winter it'll get a Durablue axle, ASR a-arms, a high-comp piston or possibly a big bore, a Web cam, and some good valve springs.

yes i totally under stand what you are saying and it looks great, great job on that but even with the axle, arms, high comp piston, big bore, cam, and valve springs you are probrably looking at 4500-4700 for an extra 700 you could get a 400 or look into some 450s which will beat that 250 anyday. take my advice as you will dont get all mad and defensive. anyway great job on the bike looks great

[450rJam]

you saying that you needed a light/good handleing sport atv to compete with a mongoose 300? and you sold the "fully aftermarket 250r" to build a 250 recon ?

am I the only one confused ?

I mean you wouldnt sale a 1300cc turbo hayabusa
to build a 600 katana.


in "district 14 S-class xc" is there no cc limit?
you can run a 700 v-force aginst the 250 recon?

[450rJam]

dist. 14 ama for s class youngsters
200cc 2 stroke limit and 300cc 4 stroke limit

a 300ex with the money you dropped into that recon would rule

[Conman007]

^^^^ Same here. But why would u use such a old Recon with all that money. Seems like you would have bought a nicer ex.

It looks sweet tho.

he needed something that was NOT a manual transmission quad...

[Gasman]

Some of you guys need to slow down and read the words on the screen. S-class in District 14 is for FULLY AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS or shifter-type transmissions with an AUTOMATIC CLUTCH, age 16 and older. In other words, a quad with a manual clutch that you pull with your hand is not eligible for this class. I don't know of any 450's with automatic clutches. And no, there is no c.c. limit in this class. I could literally run anything from my daughter's TRX90 to the new Arctic Cat 950cc Thundercat. Sure, I could run a V-Force, and I could have spent this money on one, but the V-Force is a ton heavier, bulkier, taller, and wider. For what I do, I'll take the small size and light weight of the EX over the V-Force on ALMOST every track we run on. If you could see some of the woods sections we run in, you'd understand.

This class is ALSO for 14-15 year old YOUTHS running 200cc max 2-strokes or 300cc max 4-strokes. They can have a manual clutch. I see what you're thinking 450rJam, but I'm 38 years old. A bit too old to be able to use one of those bikes in this class. :cool: (I've only seen one youth run in this class though, the first two races of the season. He was 15 running a clapped-out Blaster. I whipped his *** with my Scrambler both times.)

[m.h.s.c.#527]

no worries we have aboutt he same money in our quads i race xc in missouri i know y u spent the money

[450rJam]

<---------------foot in mouth

I apoligize, who am I to tell you what to run or how to spend your money?
that is with out a doubt the best looking recon I have ever seen
and I do wish you good season

[bigconig]

Looks great Gasman. Good luck goin' after first place.

[Honda10]

IF i Am 14 years old and have a 250ex, and live in Florida what division would i be racing in?

[klutchbuster250]

u would be in beginner or junior , check floridatrailriders.org for all the info , wut part of florida do u live in?

[Honda10]

Spring Hill,FL its just North of tampa

[250exkid]

so wait is that the recon motor in there also? and whats the big diff, on the recon motor and the 250ex cuz i noticed there are 2 black hose's going from the motor to the oil cooler and back in, but on the recon it doesnt have the same 2 hoses? whats all different and is the top speed the same?

[Gasman]

That is the Recon motor also. It's pretty much all Recon. The Recon does not have an oil cooler, but I will be adding one as soon as I can and when I figure out how. The Recon has a different rocker arrangement in the head. The OEM cam part numbers are different, but the cam mounts the same way in the same place, so I would assume that aftermarket EX cams will fit it.

I raced Sunday, 1-1/2 hour XC race. I did eight laps on a short 2.5 mile track, which was a total mudfest after an overnight thunderstorm. My first four laps were pretty fast, working the bugs out getting used to things. The last four laps sucked because the mud got really bad and guys were getting stuck everywhere. It slows you down a lot and ruins your flow when you start having to stop and pick your way around giant mudholes and stuck quads. I took second. My fourth lap was 8 seconds faster than the winner of my class (the Kymco-sponsored GNCC guy), but my last four laps sucked so bad I couldn't catch him. This thing eats the tight woods up, and actually jumps pretty nice on the MX sections, but I miss my power. I blame most of the lack of power on the mud, but my jetting was way rich too. It popped and spit all day. I was constantly hitting the rev limiter too, so I may look into a different CDI after all.

[m.h.s.c.#527]

like the resevoir idea but i waas talin to an elka guy and he said the resevoirs should be in front of the shockand above them if possible

ie.

[BlasterEaten250]

the valve design on the ex is also different than the recon. and if I'm not mistaken I believe the muffler is slightly different too?

[250exkid]

yes what do you plan to do to make it as fast as the 250ex? cuz i just raced a 05 recon down the road and spanked him but theres gotta be a way to make it top out the same right??? but man that is a sweet recon/ex!!! one awsome ride

[Gasman]

I don't race on the road (nor should you), I race in the woods. In fact, on most of the tracks I race on I may only see 5th gear once or twice per lap if I'm lucky. Yesterday's track was three miles, 60/40 woods/mx split, and there was only one short straight on the MX section where I was touching 5th. Plus I don't race against any other EX's, so I really don't care whether they're 3-5mph faster on top. I'm more interested in quickness, agility, and handling than top speed.