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Is a 350 really capable?

dooman92

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I was skeptical till few weeks ago. my buddy on 450sx and 129 freeride, 16 yr old, good rider, on 350sx with 129ss, im on 18 500 with 120 yeti. 350 went everywhere and at times I struggled to hang with him in tight and steep. it was hard to notice much of a difference between the bikes, riders bigger determining factor as to who made it where. 350 worked great although the 140lbs mx rider probably helped..
 
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Jaynelson

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Nov 26, 2007
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Those 350 KTM motors rev to the MOON and hold up good. They work good in a snowbike...use more RPM than a 450, which seems to have advantages in certain scenarios, and disadvantages in others. I would run one no problem if that's what you have in the garage.
 
N
Mar 21, 2016
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NW oregon
They can hang for sure. I was riding with one one day and we left the lot and started a long, gradual uphil road, actually a highway so it was very smooth gradient, and some heavy heavy cascade concrete pow. I was on my 478 husky which is pretty powerful, maybe down a few hp from the top dogs these days but it ran right and had power. I was not able to pull away from him and I was in the right gear, and the meat of the power band. When we got to the top of the hill my bike was so hot it puked out the exhaust coupler insulator, melted it. And his 350 seized and was totaled. So, not a great sample, but that was my experience. I lived to ride another day, but that bike never did. But when it ran, it gave up nothing to the bigger bikes.
 
E
Dec 19, 2007
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They can hang for sure. I was riding with one one day and we left the lot and started a long, gradual uphil road, actually a highway so it was very smooth gradient, and some heavy heavy cascade concrete pow. I was on my 478 husky which is pretty powerful, maybe down a few hp from the top dogs these days but it ran right and had power. I was not able to pull away from him and I was in the right gear, and the meat of the power band. When we got to the top of the hill my bike was so hot it puked out the exhaust coupler insulator, melted it. And his 350 seized and was totaled. So, not a great sample, but that was my experience. I lived to ride another day, but that bike never did. But when it ran, it gave up nothing to the bigger bikes.
You guys ever hear about a temp gauge or tunnel coolers? But I've boiled mine dry when a hose blew and rode it out on a powder day by removing the wrap.
 

ultrasks700

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Jul 7, 2009
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Yes...and No... I'll give you my take and what to expect
This year was my first year with a Timbersled set up. I have rode moto and backcountry sleds for years, and had about 5 rides on Random Timbersleds before I decided to build my own. Got a cheap deal on a 17 ST120 and decided to throw it on my 15 FC350. Felt in love with the sport 1st ride had my sled for sale the very next day. The 350 will get you out there having fun. Its got great linear power and revs up strong. Great entry level bike. Downfalls are your gonna want more power in the steep n deep. In climbs you are really gonna be holding the bike off the throttle stop and track speed to going to be critical. Just stuff for you to know. Also take a serious look at the hours/usage on your current bike, your gonna be giving it a workout. Mine had 80 hours at the start of the season, and at 90 hours i had to replace the top end due to some wear issues, so if your bike is on the verg of needing a rebuild, get it done before you put it through its paces. Don't go any bigger than 120". An older ST kit, RAW, or ARO 120 will pair great with your 350.

With the sled being sold I decided to buy a 21 TE300i as i really like the way the 2 strokes ride, it will be on snow next year. the ST kit will probably be up for sale soon and will be jumping on a ARO 120.

I summary, YES 350 makes a GOOD T-sled bike, but in the end you will be wanting more, use it as a stepping stone and find a more appropriate machine after you have a season on it.

I'm gonna be making a Youtube vid here soon about my set up and experience on the 350 here soon, along with some gopro footage, I'll post it once i do.
 
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Jaynelson

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You think the 300 is going to be a step up in power from a modern 350? Our experience has been quite the opposite on the snow. Have run 137 LT’s on 350’s no problem. Given that we were talking about the SX/XC 350 motor, and not the softer EXC/XCW motor from the wide ratio bikes
 

ultrasks700

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Not sure i agree with what you guys are talking about, Rode all day yesterday with a 19 300i. bike pulls way harder than my 350. AND I just like the fact you are dealing with a way simpler and cheaper to rebuild engine. Plus the daily 4 stroke oil changes are starting to get old. Opinions are Opinions

I had another great day on my 350, all around runs excellent, but in the steep climbs its looses its juice real quick. I don't think its a BAD bike to choose to use, you just have to understand the Upsides & downsides of using one.
 

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E
Dec 19, 2007
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I like 2 strokes better personally so when I said the term better in my comment above I meant more power. Stock 300 around 50 on a good day. Stock 350 are 55 and broader but they need to be revved past most people's comfort zone. I know a guy who sold his 350 because he would not Rev it but it had more power than his sherco 450 that he kept instead because it has more grunt. 450s get worked over almost as hard on deep days so comparing the engine wear is negligible unless comparing to a 2 stroke there is way less maintenance.
 
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Jaynelson

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Nov 26, 2007
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Yes if you are scared to rev a 350, you won’t get what it has to offer. In other areas, people seem to like 300 snowbikes and, per snowest, often prefer then to many other options. I sell KTM’s for a living and 300’s are amazing dirtbikes. That all said... everyone I can think of that ran one here for winter use has since converted to a 4 stroke, including numerous die hard 2s guys. They get the job done, but just don’t make the power of a 350, 450 or 500 in interior BC’s deep snow and steep terrain. I have seen guys lose good $$ on new bikes to make the switch over and over because the 300’s (very powerful on tires) just aren’t as fun in the snow. Like I say maybe it’s a geographic thing, cause I know I’ll get some disagreements on this...but I’ve seen it play out many times. No 4S needs an oil change every ride unless it’s pumping a ton of fuel into the oil...which is not typically a big KTM issue
 
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jrlastofthebreed

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Oct 24, 2016
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5th year on bikes and this year i converted my 17 350 xcf paired with a cmx 120. I rode a lot with a friend who has a 15 350sxf on a aro 129S. I only put around 45 hours of snow on mine this year for a total of 270 on the stock top end. Still running great but ill put a new one in this summer. First gear theres not much difference in power between the 350/450. 350 revs and 450 has that low end grunt. After that the 450 pulls away. You have to use your RPMs. it makes peak power around 11k. Now that said I love the 350 on snow and will be using it again next year. It feels quicker in the trees, and ya its not a straight up hill climb champion but thats not where i ride anyhow.
 

cbc76am

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the 300 pulls harder yes, but it redlines at 8500 and the 350 redlines at 13500. it's a false sense of power... drag race a field or a hill and your shifting on the 300 will end up losing the battle against the 35% more you'll get out of each gear. that's how my 500 is compared to a 450 also. The 350 will be on the rev limiter most of the time on deep days, but it gets it done better than a 2T.
 

NBD925

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Dec 5, 2021
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I know this is an old post but I wanted to give my thoughts on the 350.

My Bike:

2017 KTM 350 XC-F
Hours 392
2019 Timbersled 137 ARO
Rider is 6’4” 250 and then add Gear

The 350 is amazing! You do give up 5hp and 10 Foot Pound of Torque to the 450’s and that can bee seen climbing steep hills in Powder. Yes the 350 is near or bounces the Rev Limiter, at times, on those days. I just have to pick a little shallower line than the 450’s

The Timbersled 137 is too much track for the 350 but it is getting the job done. I have gotten to all the same places the other 450’s have gone but with different lines. Those places are steep tall mountains in Montana.

Besides the large 137 track, My opinion The Timbersled sucks too much power from the bike as seen in rolling resistance on the garage floor. A Timbersled 120 does not have enough float for my weight. So a CMX 120 with the wider track (129 timbersled equivalent surface area) will be in my future. The CMX has MUCH less rolling resistance and that combined with the shorter track should really help this 350.

350’s are bullet proof! My bike has only needed a valve shim once so far. I did the job at Hour 206 and can say it should have been done at hour 150 by the measurements to be safe. Compression and Leak Down test were almost perfect. I missed the Valve shim job this year at the beginning of the season and now have 392 hours and things are still working great but should be checked. The engine may need to be sent out for service for reliability reasons this year but I will make that call when I see the numbers. I expect, I will be at the 430 hour mark or so by the end of spring riding.

My worries besides the valve shim job I missed are the Cam chain and guides and maybe the bearings but I am not getting any excessive metal in the oil.

On the subject of oil I did some Blackstone Oil Analysis tests on my 350. I wanted to know if I needed to change my oil every ride. I sent in may tests but long story short, I started with one ride and then did up to 4 rides. The tests came back with no water in the oil and no breakdown of the oil properties. It was like brand new (Although Dark colored). I settled on 2 rides for piece of mind but know if I didn't have time I could go to 4 no problem. I change the oil filter every other oil change. Oil used is the Timbersled oil.

The 350 will get the job done no problem. Stay high in the revs, 8000 and up. Its the bike I had because I wanted to be able to ride trails too (although very little). The 350 is the best dirt/snow bike you can get. That being said, if I had to choose a bike for just Snow, I would get a 450 in a heart beat because they do pull harder and steeper hills.

Feel free to comment on what I said here I love to hear other opinions and would love to hear someone that has had a 350 and a CMX 120. That combo is what I hope to pair with this bike next.
 
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