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something like that  They had the old KDX series of playbike 2-stroke that were good for woods, hare scrambles, desert and play riding. I think they discontinued after 2025 KDX220R model year? These are updated version with modern suspension and chassis, FI and E-Start. Still pre-mix though. They also had the KLX series for 4-stroker. This new lineup is supposed to appeal to riders of both those other models.

Wouldn't it be great if this was the start of something? My first thought was that 327cc is too much displacement to qualify for the 450 class, so what's the end game? But of course I realized that Kawasaki doesn't want to compete with their own 450s, so...amateur racing?

they are not aimed at any particular racing segment- mostly just to compete in off-roading for people buying Yamaha YZX, Beta, KTM, etc in the "300" segment. Some GNCC, hard enduro or X Country and general play riding.

are the rubber inserts available anywhere in USA?

agree. imho the only real downside is weight. 

I think they should do a supercharged version of the 400. 

https://www.topspeed.com/turbocharged-kawasaki-ninja-zx-4r-trick-star/

Who could even ride something like that? Maybe 3 people in the entire world? 

compression?

that rd is a legit vesco bike, period aftetmarket rims etc. .it was actuality owned by don vesco, theres paperwork etc.  its restored but a absolute timecapsule. joah lomg has the re5. it ported and runs awesome

That 1 is a beauty for sure

Vesco related but slightly off-topic fun fact: Don Vesco Yamaha in El Cajon was my go-to shop in the 1970s and 1980s. 10 miles from home. He used to display some of his land speed record bikes in the showroom. 1st place I ever saw FPP pipes. Bought some for my 1975 RD250. Kel Carruthers was frequently hanging around and quite friendly too. Kel lived about 2 minutes from my house, and I went over there a couple times.

https://youtube.com/shorts/tr7hSFRzvts?si=GzzMYRXzE8qEHzHs

So these show the lip on the carrier that looks like strange wear.
The vid is just to show how much play there it.
I rolled the dice on an ebay part so we'll see if it is different.

I suspect the fleabay part will solve the discrepancy. A SWAG on what happened to current 1? A previous clueless owner probably ran the bike without the lock tabs and never bothered to check the nuts were secure on there leading to lots of back-and-forth movement of sprocket.

do you have another sprocket laying around to swap on there for a sanity check?

Still early, but there's expected to be some musical chairs for rides. Some guys only want to race SX and no AMA outdoors after current contract. Some speculation Malcom may go to Pipes Suzuki with Roczen. Rumors about Sexton bailing on his Kawasaki contract after 1 year. Beta may be looking to upgrade riders they can get cheap. Webb might be leaving Star Yamaha for team Tedder. Triumph could have openings.

very cool Chris  Getting that kind of weight off your shoulders makes life a million times more enjoyable and easier to think about fun in your future 

I spent decades of my life living in all the East SD county locations you mentioned. Even off Honey Springs Road in Jamul for 5 years before moving to Lakeside in 2000 and finally bailing out of CA in 2017. If you do Julian again, try the Apple Pie- was always a big deal for people every year. Did the Descanso cafe probably around 1995. My wife has family living over that way.

if someone was to fly over and pick these up in person, could it be shipped by said person back home to USA directly and avoid tariff? What about checking it as personal luggage and carrying it in a sturdy suitcase in baggage hold underneath to bring home on your flight?

started out with Hot Wheels and the orange track kits. There were hobby stores everywhere where we got our glue together models and paints, etc. Also, the model airplanes and fuel, etc. many of them had slot car tracks and sold the cars and anyone could race on their tracks for free. This was around 1968 to begin with living in San Diego. I started noticing Taco mini-bikes around neighborhood and gravitated towards the kids that had them so I could bum rides on them (I was hooked) and local Sears stores had monthly ride days in the parking lots to try out their minibikes and go-Karts hoping you'd by those or a Puch 125 or something. There were go-kart tracks all over town where you could ride on their tracks for cheap. I kept getting deeper and deeper into this stuff and my parents hated every bit of it, but would sometimes take us as a treat and to keep an eye on us and out of trouble (didn't work)

Then kids would "borrow" their parents or older brother's motorcycles, and we'd ride those at the local lake. there was 1 of those Puch's (2-Stroke, 4 speed) and an S-90 I remember, then we moved to SF for a year after 4th grade, before returning to SD and picked up where I left off and never stopped. Some good times there!

Sorry about the thread hijack but the memories came flooding back 

no personal experience myself, some here can better speak to that. Where are you seeing them- eBay? Keep in mind the tariffs and possible long delays right now. I used to buy spoke sets, replica seat covers, AL rims and even full cafe seats from Thailand over the years with no problem, but even before the current tariff environment shipping prices really jumped last couple years.

LexPaul, are you original owner of that bike, or have detailed history on it? If I'm not mistaken that is the correct color bodywork for 1974, but they came with disc brake front end. Might want to check the VIN matches for 1974. Could be a 1973 bike with 1974 bodywork, or pre disc brake front end on the 1974 there. Lots of these things are compatible for swaps.