want to learn something about these swingarms

[IRISH-RACER-14]

so ive been told that the 250r swingarms are differnt in the years? whats different about them, do the use same linkage and axle/carrier?
thanks

[sameltoe]

from what I gather from reading is "link" and "no link" Not sure about lengths....

[IRISH-RACER-14]

i think in stock form they had links but aftermarket companies made no-link frames. id love to see a side by side pic of both 250r swingarms

[Chino886]

I am new to the 250Rs, but I will give it a shot....

86/87 are longer and heavier

88/89 swingarms are made of aluminum and much lighter, I believe it is 1" shorter (most prefer the 88 swinger)

I have also heard you can run an entire 450R rear end on the early model frames.

[CODY_M11]

I think if you check the sticky forum of cross compatibility there is a comparison of the differences of the two swing arms

[hartwill]

the 88/89 are aluminum 86/87 are steel and are open in the middle for the engine mount. they are also 1" longer. also the linkage and shock for an 86/87 are a little longer. you will know if you have the wrong combination of swing ARM, linkage, and/or shock because it will either sit way high or way low. I had this problem. other than that I think every thing else is the same. I'm not sure if one is really preferred over the other but if I had to say I think it would be 86/87 style its stronger, its already +1 (which a lot of people switch to anyway) , and you can use it with any year r with the proper sleeve for the engine mount.

[danhung11]

I've attached a few pictures of swingarms, the gold one is a 86/87 style and the black is a 88/89 style. The frame picture includes a 86 on the left and a 89 on the right. You can see the rear motor mount in the picture is built into the frame on the 89 where the 86/87 utilizes a rear engine mount that is removeable and bolts to the motor. The mount is then held in place by the pivot bolt, that's why there is a space. The use different linkage set ups, I believe the actual dogbone is about an inch shorter for the 86/87. I've heard the 88/89 style swingarms can take a beating if the rear suspension is not set according to rider specifications. They are pricey if in good condition, so I just prefer the Laegers. Also, if you use a 400EX brake stay bushing, you don't have to worry about the c-clips use to hold the R ones on. It's a much better design.

I hope this helps. The black swingarm is for sale if anyone is interested, it looks just like in the picture, High gloss black never mounted. It's standard length with is the -1 compared to the 86/87 OEM model.

http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd228/danhung11/000_1838.jpg

http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd228/danhung11/000_1839.jpg

http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd228/danhung11/000_1832.jpg

[deathman53]

85-87 swingarms are steel and longer ~1" than 88/89. 85 and 86 used different dogbones(both same length, shock bushings different). 87 still had the steel swingarm, but used a shorter shock and short dogbone(same as 88/89). 85-87 had rear motor mount in the swingarm. In 88/89 the swingarm became aluminum, even shorter shock and kept the 87 length dogbone(part number is the same for 87-89). Some different bushings, collar and bolt were used for the 88/89 swingarm. 86-89 atc/trx carriers are the same, 85 atc is a one year only carrier, as most of the rear end is. The linkage from the frame to shock stayed the same from 86-89 atc/trx, as did the the bolt and bushings. 85 used a smaller bolt(easy to bent, I bent 2 of them), so it had different linkage parts all together. 85-87 rear linkage to swingarm bolt is the same, in 88/89 it was changed for the new swingarm. Rear axle for 86-89 atc/trx is the same, 85 axle will fit, but sprocket will not be in line. For some reason, you can't use an anti-fade brake hub on a 85 setup, it does fit, but rubs the carrier.

[IRISH-RACER-14]

are the 89 swingarms hard to get?