New 17 300 re vs 17 KTM 300 xc

[3pine]

Hello everyone ! After scouring the net about Beta's and making a few visits to dealers I decided on a 300 re. I actually have a 17 KTM 300 xc that I haven't even started yet . I bought it before ever looking at or sitting on a Beta. I road a 16 501 Husky last year and although it is a great bike I realized that I wanted to go back to a lighter 2 stroke. The Husky is fine but when it gets tight and steep it was more than this old cowboy wanted to handle. So I looked into a 300 KTM and decided on the xc. After reading some of issues with the jetting and reeds and lack of bottom end I wondered whether I did the right thing. The Beta seemed to have almost everything covered right out of the box. Also lower seat height and bottom torque is real attractive. The extra weight of the Beta had me concerned so we thought we would do a real weight comparison. The 300 xc weighs in at 224 with about a gallon of fuel . The Beta 300 re weighed 246 with 1.5 gallons of fuel.
To compare apples to apples the Beta exhaust is heavier I'm sure. Beta has lights KTM don't. Tires look heavier on Beta. Beta has computer/ speedometer. KTM don't. Beta has AER forks Beta has spring forks. 3 lbs. Beta battery might be heavier. IDK Beta has skid plate. KTM don't. We came up with possibly 15 to 18 lbs of extras on the Beta that would be eventually added to the KTM which would put it close to 240 to 245 lbs.
My wife is looking over her glasses at me and tells me ONE bike not 3 ! I know I'm selling the Husky but really want to ride both 300s for a bit. I'm sure the Beta is here to stay.

[mrquick68]

For our sake, would mind fully outfitting your 300XC like the Beta and then see what it weighs?

[3pine]

For our sake, would mind fully outfitting your 300XC like the Beta and then see what it weighs?

Gonna try and do that. I got a chance to ride both bikes tonight for the first time. Went back and forth several times. It isn't very warm out (low 40's) . We are at 4000 asl. Beta is jetted pretty good stock. KTM very fat on the bottom , won't idle just dies. I pretty much expected this . I just kept it cleaned out as much as possible . Everyone talks about the lack of bottom the 17 KTM 's have but I know once jetted properly it will be very livable. Beta definitely has more bottom and linear power as they are bone stock. Didn't want to ring them out too hard on top when they are so new. My biggest curiosity was the transmission ratio differences. Beta has a 13/49 gearing and 1st gear crawls pretty slow and 6th has some legs . Had it up to 65 mph and there was a lot left. The KTM was pretty surprising at slow speed even with the fat bottom . Gearing is 13/50 but first gear is a higher ratio than the Beta according to the technical data. 300 xc has no speedometer so hard to say top end speed but seemed pretty fast with a lot more to go. Vibration : KTM very smooth. Beta vibrates more but way smoother than any previous 300 KTM's I've had. I know both bikes aren't sprung for my weight and the suspension has to break in. Initial ride I gave the KTM the nod. The Beta seemed choppier but the harder I rode it by the third ride I came away impressed . It lossened up very noticeable. I think both Beta and KTM have went huge strides with suspension in 17 . Just my humble opinion. Handling : I can definitely feel the extra 23 pounds the Beta has over the KTM. Adding the accessories to The KTM as equivalent to the Beta would possibly change the handling. Too early to tell. I'm an old veteran trail rider not a racer but have lots of experience. The Beta is a very nice bike right out of the box. Needs a pipe guard and link guard and bark busters . Good to go! The KTM needs the same plus skid plate,lights, extreme jetting help, reeds and possibly a shaved head or after market head . $$$ Don't know how reliable the AER fork will be long term but they are impressive so far without even touching the dials . Same goes for the Sachs. Very nice. Thanks for reading !

[mrquick68]

great report! For such similar bikes, they sure are different! Keep us in the loop! And I agree, I sure wish the Beta weighed less. I'm currently building my 390RR RE, and my goal is to help it loose as much weight as possible. LW battery, Ti bolts, FMF exhaust, all the lights removed, race wiring harness, etc. Hoping to pull 14lbs off it. We'll see how I do.

[3pine]

great report! For such similar bikes, they sure are different! Keep us in the loop! And I agree, I sure wish the Beta weighed less. I'm currently building my 390RR RE, and my goal is to help it loose as much weight as possible. LW battery, Ti bolts, FMF exhaust, all the lights removed, race wiring harness, etc. Hoping to pull 14lbs off it. We'll see how I do.

I could possibly do some lightning on the Beta but everything I look at I don't want to live without. Maybe the silencer could go with a lighter replacement. I'm gonna need a spark arresstor eventually but don't know if it will save any weight. Titanium bolt kit ? $$ 100 dollars per pound of weight savings ? I'll pass on that one. I think a lot of the heavier weight on the Beta vs KTM is in the frame and a little in the exhaust . All the rest is extra wiring , battery little heavier, head light tail light , skid plate . A better comparison would be with a XCW not the XC .
I'm going to add the stock lighting kit on the XC , skid plate, trail tech computer , map switch . Then I will weigh it again . That would be a close apples to apples to the Beta. I'm going to add more to each bike beyond this like bark busters and pipe guards and link guards which would be irrelevant in comparison.
Since my initial ride of both bikes I worked on the jetting on the KTM with very good results . I went on the recommendation of Dave Simons on ktmandhusky.com . I filed the slide as per his instructions and tried his jetting but went one step leaner on the pilot and dropped the needle one clip.
Motor is now almost electric with no stumbles or loading up. The bottom torque is very close to the Beta. I'll give the Beta the nod on the very bottom by just a sliver and the KTM slightly better on top. I haven't played with the power valve springs on either but would like to hear from any of you that have and also any other mods. Heads, Lectron , pipes etc.

[mrquick68]

that was mostly my hope to see the difference. Is it 20lbs of accessories and battery, or real differences in engineering... Hopefully you find out.

FYI, I found the powerband nicely moved upwards (if that's your hope) with a FMF Fatty pipe. I personally really liked the power delivery change with the fatty when racing... haven't really tried it out on trails.

I agree the Ti, is probably a waste of money. oh well. It's gone now!!!

[twowheels]

A couple things - KTM pipes are made of tin-foil - the 2017s around here are getting replaced at about the 1/2 hour mark, and it's not even rocky. They also seem to have found the thinnest rubber that will (for a time at least) hold air to use as tubes.

On the 4T front, the FMF Q spark arrestor weighs in at almost exactly the same as the stock can.

[Darkside]

From what I've read. KTM went on a serious weight loss campaign this year for both 2T and 4T. Though not as heavy as a GasGas, I feel beta is on the heavy side. I know what people say about how a bikes feels while riding, but I'm 150lbs and physical weight matters

[mrquick68]

A couple things - KTM pipes are made of tin-foil - the 2017s around here are getting replaced at about the 1/2 hour mark, and it's not even rocky. They also seem to have found the thinnest rubber that will (for a time at least) hold air to use as tubes.

On the 4T front, the FMF Q spark arrestor weighs in at almost exactly the same as the stock can.

selling bikes (light weight!!!!) and funding the aftermarket. KTM's building the future of the sport. HA HA

Good info. Thx Twowheels

[chasejj]

Regarding the weight comparisons between KTM/Husky and Beta which is a valid discussion.
I have had a Beta (not a recent one but my 2008-they don't appear to have been redesigned all that much since then either) stripped and powdercoated. At the same time I had a KTM 300 frame stripped and coated as well.
I can state pretty confidently that the Beta frame is giving up somewhere around 10lbs to the KTM. The rest of the 23 lb difference is in the suspension components,linkages,axles,wheels and battery and small miscellaneous items.

Beta is nicely done but when you tear them down and compare the little bits and pieces. It seems the KTM/Husky optimizes their designs to a higher level of engineering on the chassis. The Beta probably has better power for the average rider though and a very comparable motor.

It will be interesting to see if Beta puts their version of a counterbalancer in the motor next year as I recall seeing a stripped set of cases that appeared to show a bearing cavity already present in the casting.