New bike for me - 2000 KTM 380 SX

[citabjockey]

My first "modern" bike in 20 years or so. Picked this up a week ago. Starting to go through the usual stuff to make sure its ok to ride:

[citabjockey]

Plenty of power in this bike. I think the engine is completely stock with some sort of jet kit in it. Jetting is blubbery down low, I have a couple of pilots to try when I get it back together.  Only thing really wrong with it was one of the upper subframe bolts was missing.  Besides that it clearly needs a new chain, a new rear tire, and the fork seals are weeping. The rear suspension is great -- some sort of work was done by 3 Brothers Racing for the original owner (I am number 3). Bike looks like it has pretty low hours on it. Went through the shock mounts and swing arm pivot today:




Cleaned up the shock, regreased the upper heim joint. Leaving it alone:

[streaks383]

I was always curious about these bikes.  IMO 300 seems to be the Magic 2 stroke number and 500 is just plain crazy.  I always wondered what the power delivery on these was like.  When you get some seat time let me know if you don't mind.

[citabjockey]

After picking up the bike and doing a quick visual inspection I did a short shakedown run. Here is a bit of video from that. The engine rocks. Plenty of off-idle response -- even more than my '92 WR500 (that's with a YZ490 engine which is not known for low end power). When I get the jetting sorted out the power should be even better/smoother down there. Its really rich right now. It revs out nicely too with pretty linear increase in power with the revs. There is a ton of power but seems to be easier to control in comparison to a friends CR500 I rode some years ago.

Anyway, here is some video from the shakedown.  A *somewhat* steep hill is at 0:30 into it. Trivial for the 380:

I was always curious about these bikes.  IMO 300 seems to be the Magic 2 stroke number and 500 is just plain crazy.  I always wondered what the power delivery on these was like.  When you get some seat time let me know if you don't mind.

[eprovenzano]

I am sooooo jealous...  When i was shopping for a bike, I was unable to find a 380...  I purchased a 300 instead.  The only bike I'd trade mine for is a 380. 

As far as the jetting goes, I had to change the slide, and all the brass.  KTM's are very susceptive to temp changes.  I know on my last ride, the temp?s dropped more than I anticipated and I should have dropped the needle one spot as it was starting to run lean.   

The 380 can be a pussy cat, and will allow you to crawl in the tight woods, or twist the happy stick and she becomes a tiger while you hang on for arm ripping fun?

[streaks383]

Where do you live/ride at in the video.  I am moving there!

[maicoman009]

 One of my all time favorite KTM's is the 380sx! I've never had the opportunity to ride one to be honest but I do think that a 380cc. 2-stroke would be the perfect size bike for us riders that like to ride or race the 450cc 4-strokes. No doubt in my mind that a KTM-380sx ,mxc or exc would give any 4-stroke a run for it's money.Especially a properly jetted 380 2-stroke....Awesome ride to say the least!!!.....

[Dirt Addict]

I have owned 2 380's. An 01 mxc and a 02 sx. I prefered the sx. That bike would idle down to individual pulses and still not stall. It was a cheater bike climbing up anything. Mess with the jetting, they are finicky from bike to bike. Gas mileage sux even when leaned out. But all in all an excellent bike that will last you a long time. Lots of info on ktmtalk in the oldies section.
btw that bike looks time capsule clean. nice.

[citabjockey]

Mine seems to stall easily. Did you add flywheel to your SX?

I have owned 2 380's. An 01 mxc and a 02 sx. I prefered the sx. That bike would idle down to individual pulses and still not stall. It was a cheater bike climbing up anything. Mess with the jetting, they are finicky from bike to bike. Gas mileage sux even when leaned out. But all in all an excellent bike that will last you a long time. Lots of info on ktmtalk in the oldies section.
btw that bike looks time capsule clean. nice.

[citabjockey]

Some more cleanup.

[SachsGS]

I think it was Donny Elmer who said 400cc is the magic number for 2Ts.I've owned a 380 Maico for a number of years now and the bike is silky smooth off the bottom yet revs like a 250 and pulls almost as hard as my 500 (Maico) on top.Nice looking Ktoom you've got there.You never see the 360s/380s for sale which means people aren't letting them go.

[scotty dog]

That is a sweet bike! Looks very nice, when i bought my 01 250sx i wanted a 380 but we couldnt get the sx after 2000, only the exc. They are pretty rare as i never see em for sale here in Aus either. I would still love to own one and in the latest 250 chassis would be awesome! 450 eater for sure. :-)

[ford832]

Sweeeeeeeetttttt.Nice bike,congrats.
The 380's were famous for jetting woes.I'd look into a JD kit.
I had two KTM's of this era and their wedge shaped,hard as a rock seats are what taught me to ride standing up.
These years were prone to leaking fork seals as the dust wipers didn't seal and allowed everything to pass.Yours may have been corrected already.
Watch your wheel spacers as they,like all ktm spacers,are made of cheese.The seal wears a groove in the spacer and dirt/water destroy your wheel bearings in short order.I had a buddy machine the part where the seal rides and press on a stainless sleeve and machine it smooth.End of problem but harder spacers are available aftermarket.

On the upside,all KTM bearings(wheel,engine,head)are all standard sizes so,unlike the japs,you can get a top of the line bearing from any bearing supply place for about 1/4 the price of the factory stuff.
Pivot works makes a good heim joint set for the rear shock that will outlast KTM's.The original KTM has a coating that will deteriorate if you grease it and they don't last that long anyway.You grease the PW stuff and it stands up much better.
Likely you've been there multiple times already but if not,KTM TALK is a great resource.
Awesome ride.Enjoy.

One last thought.One mandatory mod,if you do nothing else,is to get a set of one touch fork bleeders.These forks pump up a lot making the front end harsh and prone to deflection the longer you ride.With my first one I wondered why I was ok at the start of a race,and bouncing off everything later on.When I got home to wash the bike I put it up on the stand and unscrewed the bleeder and the pressure blew it off in to the grass when I had it almost out.
I got a set of the bleeders after that and would stop  for a second in the middle of a race,grab the front brake,pull back on the bike and touch each bleeder.Night and day difference.I'd do it often trail riding as well.They're pretty cheap and a must have for these imo.
One last,last thought.What can I say,old age-things come to me slowly at times 
Have a look at the lower mount for your rear shock.If there is a groove worn in it on the rear,it's from the corresponding raised section on your mudguard.Shave it off with a razorblade and it won't wear anymore.

[TMKIWI]

Nice bike.
I have always wanted to have a ride on one of those.
There seems to be a few of them down this end of the world.

[citabjockey]

Thanks, ford, and I think I can confirm almost everything you said about the bike already.

Spacers are wearing and I had to put in new bearings in the rear. I did grease the heim joints as they looked near dry. I guess I will have to swap them out soon. The forks are leaking plenty. When I get that fixed I will also add those quick bleeds you mentioned.

New pilots made no difference to the low throttle blubber. Ktmtalk folks say JD kit is good, some say a number 7 slide is a win too, still others say do a squish mod. I will start with the slide and JD kit. Have the new rubber on the back, swingarm pivot is re-greased, ready for another test run if I can find the time.

Bike takes a massive boot to kick over. My WR500 yamaha was child play in comparison. Must have pretty high compression.

Thanks for the nice comments guys.