SUZUKI TS OR TM 400

[albrid-3]

PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME, IS A TS 400 AND TM 400 ARE THEY GOOD TO RIDE, I PERSONLY HAVE NEVER RIDDEN ONE AND DO THEY HANDLE OK, ARE THEY HEAVY.

I AM STARTING TO THINK THAT A HYBRID RACE BIKE IS THE ANSWER.

[mx250]

Back in the day I can't remember ever seeing one at the track let alone on the podium . That might say sometink .

Like SC500's they were for play racer fire trail drag races weren't they - face it straight, light the blue taper and stand well clear .

[albrid-3]

What about the kx 400, is that a better bike.

[DR]

This little extract below I stole from another forum. It was written by a Californian Suzuki test rider of the late 60's and early 70's by the name Willie Harden and this was written 38 or so years after the fact with no paid advertising. Until I own or ride a TM400 I can't really comment but along with the widowmaker tags you get quality riders such as these who disagree with the general concencious..

Well, I'll jump in here as you did in your next post. You were not there, I was! I tested the TM400. I weighed, maybe 135 lbs. at the time. The TM400R was a very powerful bike for the time, probably the most powerful two-stroke dirt bike ever at that time. The reputation it got was from the press that reported on their impressions from possibly two weeks to a month that they had the bikes for their roadtest. That being said, it took a different style of riding and prudent use of the power to come to terms with the TM. The photos I have attached are of me in 1972 on a used (Rich Thorwaldson's practice bike) '71 TM400R at El Mirage Dry Lake. Both Rich and John DeSoto did well on these in competition at the time.
Not trying to "Flame" you, just stating that the "Evil" aspect of the bike was overblown.

Oh yeah, I was 23 when they came out.

[albrid-3]

credit where it is due., so he is saying that the suzuki ts / tm its not a bad ride.

[DR]

he's saying the '71 wasn't as bad as the publicity it copped or the publicity it received was from a rider who had not lived with the bike long enough and had not adjusted their style to suit. The later models were better apparently but it's the '71 R model that caused most of the stir. What suits one person maybe evil in the eyes of the next so it really depends on what 'you' like not what someone else says or puts in print. The TS is quite detuned and both aren't the lightest in their classes but I'm sure all this could be sorted out over time if 1 were to persist. Entirely up to the individual. The early TM400 frames also broke around the headstem area but this too was overcome in later models. It's weird but nowdays it's the '71 orange model that is probably the most desirable yet this was the specific model that copped all the flack and bad publicity.

  

[albrid-3]

doc, l read another test, they put a 4 pound fly wheel on the tm 400 and it made a big differents to the bike more power to the ground, its common sence to have a heavy fly wheel, cz had it, bultaco had it, montesa use a big fly wheel.

[pokey]

A 400 with a bullet proof gearbox. yeah its heavy. if your use to riding 125's .. its heavy.... if your use to 250's . yeah its heavy.
 Any bigbore is heavy , both the Apache and the Cyclone have the Kahunas to pull that weight around any track in fine style. Its up to the rider to have bigger  Kahunas than the bike to hold it on the track

A lot of bikes are easier to ride at pace but few develop more torque, Learn the bike and you might like riding them

[mainline]

Doc, why isn't the girl in the pic identified? she must have daughters by now

[jimson]

The bloke on the bike looks like a young Burt you know smokey & the bandit  jimson

[DR]

  yeah I've always thought that too Jimson. I guess they wanted someone with moviestar looks and not just you're everyday racer joe

[Freakshow]

hey , he looks sunburnt to me.      though i wouldnt mind seeing her tan lines.