Question for those that have rode both, which do you prefer and why? Also, most importantly which is more FUN and can help IMPROVE skills better? For the xr it's more comfy but drum brakes and lack of power seems like a big downfall. Kx is more compact but with more than twice the power and discs it seems like the ideal bike for mini.
not sure where youre riding it... but in most orgs the 100 will be eligible for more races (like stepping up to faster classes) The KX might be eligible for 2 or 3 races which you'll be indexed against 150rs, 85cc 2t bikes, metrakits, nsrs, etc. So in terms of power... one is a butter knife and the other is a serrated pocket knife. The drum brakes can be made to work well enough to endo a 100. No its not a disc and yes the suspension on the 100 is spindly. When you see fast guys riding the stickers off bikes with clapped out suspension, stock handlebars, and rusty chains... put less onus on the bike and more on the rider!
I've only owned a 100, but the difference you highlight on the 65 would make it more fun to practice on alone. It would not make it more fun to race, IMHO. the 100s are bullet proof fun. A 65 is more "serious" in the most and least desirable ways. I borrowed a 150R once, and that thing stops like you wish the XR would stop, and it accelerates like you wish the XR would accelerate. It was fun to play with, but I wouldn't race one.
Related topic: racing a 2 stroke against 4 strokes has to be frustrating. I have watched a ktm 85 set the fastest laps of a race and end up third.
I have a KTM65 no a XR100, the KTM is more fun to me but if racing the XR100 has more classes and better turn out.
Agreed as to duriblity and class allowance preference for the XR at tracks like Herrins though in WERA they are both mini 50 eligible and you will not beat a KX 65 with an XR 100 (or 123 built one) Zach and Kevin B. ran 1:19s on KX 65s at Tally last month.
In the mid-'90s, I raced a punched out YSR (air-cooled 64cc) against water-cooled KX65 powered YSRs. They handed me my ass. The 4t 150s (whatever they were) couldn't get away from me and I had to work to get by them. If you really wanted to do somethin', you put a water-cooled CR or YZ 80 in the YSR chassis...stretched swingarms were almost mandatory to keep the wheels in line. FWIW, I think a Grom would have its hands full against my YSR, depending on the track. A KX65 would eat it alive.
