Other 1980 185 xl frankenstine..posibly

my names is john. i have always wanted a dirtbike but my mom was a nurse was to afraid to let me ride. long story short i turned 18 and have been trying to get a bike of my own so i dont have to ride my friends bikes. last week my friend gave mee 1980 185 xl. right now i like the power it has (fun but not enugh to kill my self with). anyways im a big guy and the suspension bottoms out just cornering. i was wondering how haqrd it would be to swap for a mono shock swing arm and front fork off of a newer bike to stiffen up the suspension on it. also how difficult would it be to swap these to disk brakes. will i need rims with disk?

thanks, john
 
It's really not worth modifying that bike. It's just not an effective user of money. My advice is to ride it for now and save you some $$$. When you have enough cash sell that 185 and buy something newer.
 

James

Staff member
Hey John, welcome to DBA. :cheers: Also congrats on getting a bike. :banana:

First off what type of riding are you doing? Trails, MX, etc? Next, the type of stuff you're wanting to do (swapping out suspension, forks, etc.) isn't cheap. In my opinion you'd be better off trying to sell this bike and getting a very early 2000's model bike. 125's are going for fairly "cheap" (check Craigslist) and you'd probably end up saving a bunch of money in the long run.

How does the 185 run?
 
it runs great once it warms up, when its cold it doesnt like to run unless iits choked or gassin it.
i would like to be able to buy a 250 or bigger mid 80s n up but everything were i live is atleast 2k if its not a little 50cc.
 
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