kern
01-08-2006, 10:32 AM
Kerns Field Pro Reveiw - Part One
The First Look
Introduction
This will be a Two part review, first part will be my first impressions of the looks / parts of the bike and how I think it compares to the other pit bikes I have reviewed.
Over a year now, pit biking has become a respected sport, in many countries, from spending
£200 to have a play around in your garden, to spending £5000+ on compotition racing, I have been riding bikes for over 6 years, pit bikes for almost one year, so far I have ridden and reviewed 2 bikes, now I have more experience in riding these machines and reviewing them I can go into more detail with other reviews as I have something to compare them too, you are now going to read part one of my two part review on the Field Pro.
The Bike
Another early morning, I heard the TNT truck outside at around 9:30am which was carrying my Field pro, I worked my way downstairs to find the box sitting in my garden, I signed for it after checking for any external damage to the box, gave it a wobble, no funny noises, it was all fine.
http://img487.imageshack.us/img487/4478/dsc0042bm0.jpg
I quickly made way and cut the cardboard box which was covering the steel cage frame what held the bike secure in place, which is good just incase the transit man decides to drive like a loony!
http://img45.imageshack.us/img45/6057/dsc0043oa9.jpg
As you can see you will have to do some slight D.I.Y which consits of putting on the front wheel / rear shock and handlebars, after that you have a fully built bike, I would suggest getting a friend or some kind of MX paddock stand whislt doing this, once I put everything together, I went round the bike to have a proper look visualy, I was very impressed, I continued to check over all the bolts just incase one had come lose, after the 15 mins going round the bike I was happy enough to say the bike was in complete order.
Here are some pics after it had been put together and checked over.
http://img122.imageshack.us/img122/1396/dsc0049xz9.jpg
http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/1500/dsc0053cy4.jpg
http://img319.imageshack.us/img319/8934/dsc0059pn1.jpg
Parts
Ok I named this part of the review "parts" as I will be giving my opinion on the shocks, tryes and other parts.
Tyres
Tyres, 'aka' the boots of the bike, the more tread, the better traction / grip you will have off road, 90% of pit bikes will not come with top of the range tyres, the rubber on the Field pro looks suprsingly better than other stock tyres I have seen, At the end of the day you have paid for them so get your pennies worth and put them to there work, I personally think they will do the job, and quite well, these pics do not do them any justice but here you can decide for yourself.
http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/7260/dsc0046wj0.jpg
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/4223/dsc0051sc7.jpg
Suspension
Another important part of any pit bike, the shocks, I personally prefer big chunky looking ones, ie. USD's, the field pro just happen to have big USD's so I instantly fell in love them, No matter what riding you want to want to, from general field use, racing, supermoto or jumping, your shocks are the parts which will make you go faster, corner better, land softer, so when I set up my bike up I gave it a little bounce, front and back to see if I was comfortable with it, of course I wont really know untill I actually go riding, but I was satisfied enough with them for now, the field pro, in standard trim comes with big USD (Up Side Down) forks, with good travel, there are also adjustable for personal preference, the rear shock is nothing like ive ever seen a long travel, gas shock and adjustable, all standard, I was very impressed, althought a bit of a pig to set up, probably due to doing it myself with no MX paddock stand.
Here are some pics of the shocks on my Field pro.
http://img45.imageshack.us/img45/6918/dsc0047av6.jpg
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/4223/dsc0051sc7.jpg
Engine / Carburetor and Exhaust
This will be the first time I have used a Loncin engine, As the other two pit bikes I own where both ducar, which are very reliable / good power engines, after I put in fuel It started on the second kick, it wasnt as loud as the other pit bikes probably because of the silencer, it sounded just as nice non the less, very nice purr to it with a growl as you rev, I dont know the actual BHP of this engine, the carb, a MIKUNI rep 25mm carb, a very desirable carb for pit bikers, very good looking flick choke and a big air filter with a double layer protection to make sure no dust / dirst gets in.
Now for the exhaust, I love the look of it, nice black endcan with a steel tip, as the field pro has the unique frame the exhaust isnt your straight foward CRF type. it has to work its way around the frame.
Heres some pics of the Engine / Carb and exhaust.
http://img58.imageshack.us/img58/1768/dsc0050qk2.jpg
http://img306.imageshack.us/img306/9724/dsc0055ot3.jpg
http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/5926/dsc0058ui5.jpg
Brakes
Ok this will be a hard one to review as I havent actually ridden it yet, so will have to wait for part 2 to get a more detailed description, so this will be very brief, alot of people where expecting the wavy disks, but I do belive these only come in the normal round ones, I dont think wavy disks will make any difference in stopping power, if so, not much, apprantly these where said to be better anyway, they are quite big and well made from what I see, with a little push test they both did the job, which was grabbing the disk, so thats all I can really say for now.
Heres some pics.
http://img470.imageshack.us/img470/9904/dsc0048ik7.jpg
Conlusion
Well my conclusion on my first look on the bike is that its a nice looking bike with performance parts to match, it has colour coded wheels, aluminium parts, ie, fuel cap, a good clean smooth working engine, All I have to do now is to go out and ride it so I can get on with the second part review, from what I can say from just the looks its a desirable looking bike, maybe the graphics doesnt suit everyone, but oh well! for the price you cannot go wrong in the looks deparment, lets just see how the bike puts up with some harsh riding!
Heres some more pics of the Field Pro,
Thanks for reading, Kern.
http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/5107/dsc0057za3.jpg
http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/3299/dsc0054fa6.jpg
http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/6894/dsc0045pf7.jpg
http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/2444/dsc0044nc0.jpg
Last but not least a small video clip of me going around the bike and starting it up
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4271210729459684524&hl=en-GB
Stay tuned for part two of the review on the poweroff road forum
The First Look
Introduction
This will be a Two part review, first part will be my first impressions of the looks / parts of the bike and how I think it compares to the other pit bikes I have reviewed.
Over a year now, pit biking has become a respected sport, in many countries, from spending
£200 to have a play around in your garden, to spending £5000+ on compotition racing, I have been riding bikes for over 6 years, pit bikes for almost one year, so far I have ridden and reviewed 2 bikes, now I have more experience in riding these machines and reviewing them I can go into more detail with other reviews as I have something to compare them too, you are now going to read part one of my two part review on the Field Pro.
The Bike
Another early morning, I heard the TNT truck outside at around 9:30am which was carrying my Field pro, I worked my way downstairs to find the box sitting in my garden, I signed for it after checking for any external damage to the box, gave it a wobble, no funny noises, it was all fine.
http://img487.imageshack.us/img487/4478/dsc0042bm0.jpg
I quickly made way and cut the cardboard box which was covering the steel cage frame what held the bike secure in place, which is good just incase the transit man decides to drive like a loony!
http://img45.imageshack.us/img45/6057/dsc0043oa9.jpg
As you can see you will have to do some slight D.I.Y which consits of putting on the front wheel / rear shock and handlebars, after that you have a fully built bike, I would suggest getting a friend or some kind of MX paddock stand whislt doing this, once I put everything together, I went round the bike to have a proper look visualy, I was very impressed, I continued to check over all the bolts just incase one had come lose, after the 15 mins going round the bike I was happy enough to say the bike was in complete order.
Here are some pics after it had been put together and checked over.
http://img122.imageshack.us/img122/1396/dsc0049xz9.jpg
http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/1500/dsc0053cy4.jpg
http://img319.imageshack.us/img319/8934/dsc0059pn1.jpg
Parts
Ok I named this part of the review "parts" as I will be giving my opinion on the shocks, tryes and other parts.
Tyres
Tyres, 'aka' the boots of the bike, the more tread, the better traction / grip you will have off road, 90% of pit bikes will not come with top of the range tyres, the rubber on the Field pro looks suprsingly better than other stock tyres I have seen, At the end of the day you have paid for them so get your pennies worth and put them to there work, I personally think they will do the job, and quite well, these pics do not do them any justice but here you can decide for yourself.
http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/7260/dsc0046wj0.jpg
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/4223/dsc0051sc7.jpg
Suspension
Another important part of any pit bike, the shocks, I personally prefer big chunky looking ones, ie. USD's, the field pro just happen to have big USD's so I instantly fell in love them, No matter what riding you want to want to, from general field use, racing, supermoto or jumping, your shocks are the parts which will make you go faster, corner better, land softer, so when I set up my bike up I gave it a little bounce, front and back to see if I was comfortable with it, of course I wont really know untill I actually go riding, but I was satisfied enough with them for now, the field pro, in standard trim comes with big USD (Up Side Down) forks, with good travel, there are also adjustable for personal preference, the rear shock is nothing like ive ever seen a long travel, gas shock and adjustable, all standard, I was very impressed, althought a bit of a pig to set up, probably due to doing it myself with no MX paddock stand.
Here are some pics of the shocks on my Field pro.
http://img45.imageshack.us/img45/6918/dsc0047av6.jpg
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/4223/dsc0051sc7.jpg
Engine / Carburetor and Exhaust
This will be the first time I have used a Loncin engine, As the other two pit bikes I own where both ducar, which are very reliable / good power engines, after I put in fuel It started on the second kick, it wasnt as loud as the other pit bikes probably because of the silencer, it sounded just as nice non the less, very nice purr to it with a growl as you rev, I dont know the actual BHP of this engine, the carb, a MIKUNI rep 25mm carb, a very desirable carb for pit bikers, very good looking flick choke and a big air filter with a double layer protection to make sure no dust / dirst gets in.
Now for the exhaust, I love the look of it, nice black endcan with a steel tip, as the field pro has the unique frame the exhaust isnt your straight foward CRF type. it has to work its way around the frame.
Heres some pics of the Engine / Carb and exhaust.
http://img58.imageshack.us/img58/1768/dsc0050qk2.jpg
http://img306.imageshack.us/img306/9724/dsc0055ot3.jpg
http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/5926/dsc0058ui5.jpg
Brakes
Ok this will be a hard one to review as I havent actually ridden it yet, so will have to wait for part 2 to get a more detailed description, so this will be very brief, alot of people where expecting the wavy disks, but I do belive these only come in the normal round ones, I dont think wavy disks will make any difference in stopping power, if so, not much, apprantly these where said to be better anyway, they are quite big and well made from what I see, with a little push test they both did the job, which was grabbing the disk, so thats all I can really say for now.
Heres some pics.
http://img470.imageshack.us/img470/9904/dsc0048ik7.jpg
Conlusion
Well my conclusion on my first look on the bike is that its a nice looking bike with performance parts to match, it has colour coded wheels, aluminium parts, ie, fuel cap, a good clean smooth working engine, All I have to do now is to go out and ride it so I can get on with the second part review, from what I can say from just the looks its a desirable looking bike, maybe the graphics doesnt suit everyone, but oh well! for the price you cannot go wrong in the looks deparment, lets just see how the bike puts up with some harsh riding!
Heres some more pics of the Field Pro,
Thanks for reading, Kern.
http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/5107/dsc0057za3.jpg
http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/3299/dsc0054fa6.jpg
http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/6894/dsc0045pf7.jpg
http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/2444/dsc0044nc0.jpg
Last but not least a small video clip of me going around the bike and starting it up
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4271210729459684524&hl=en-GB
Stay tuned for part two of the review on the poweroff road forum