what engine mods make for good woods riding power?? i want paul turner midrange pipes, but all other mods are up in the air....single carb maybe a coolhead?? i just need a more friendly engine for tight trails.
also what chassis mods to give the shee' better handling/turning ability in the woods? i don't want to trim the steering stops. does anyone have experience with shorter swingarms?? maybe more forward biased a-arms? i want it to turn tighter like my mojave and have a more usable powerband. selling for a ex or raptor is out of the question. thanks for any ideas

 

I have the Paul Turner Mid Range pipes on my Banshee and the low end power they provide is terrific. I used (before the 250r) the Banshee mainly for MX racing, but I noticed a big difference in play riding on the trails with the pipes.

Another mod would be the V-Force reeds. I got them for the 250R and love them. The throttle response is very quick. I have heard that they are the best reeds for the Banshee.

If you have not already, get rid of the stock tires. Go with whatever after market tires suit your fancy. Each has good points and bad. Overall, the Razrs I have on the Banshee have been good. Traction in a lot of different terrain.

To go further with the handling, I would shorten the swingarm and get a set of a-arms that are +1 forward. You may want to go a little wider on the axle and the arms, but depending on the trail width, it may pose a problem.

Finally there are the shocks. A good set of aftermarket shocks will improve the handling as well. Less body roll in the turns and the shocks will soak up the small bumps easily.

Depending on your wallet, you can all out. But before you go too crazy on the motor, get the pipe, aftermarket filter (K&N or Uni – your choice again) and worry about the handling.

Oh, one huge difference that is usually over looked. Steel brake lines. Especially the front. When I put these on my Banshee, I almost went over the bars the first time I slammed on the brakes. But do not buy the steel brake lines until after you have the a-arms you want. Otherwise they may be too short!

 

I agree with Lasher except for the pipes.I would look at the two into one pipes like a Dynoport or Motofast they inhance low end tremendously on a Banshee.A single carb setup will do wonders for lowend as will shaving the heads 30 thousandths.Top all that off with Moto Tassanari V-Force Delta reed cages and that thing won't sound a bit like the Banshee you knew,you would really be impressed.

88' 250R many extras

 

Most pipes out there will give the Banshee a harder midrange hit even if they advertise that they add "massive low end power." To my knowlege there is no product out there that really will give the Banshee anything that qualifies as low end power. I installed the FMF Fatty woods pipes on my Banshee and the main difference I noticed was a brutal midrange hit that was a lot of fun in an open area but in wooded trails It was a real handfull. I also had rad valves that, like VForce reeds give much quicker acceleration and again alittle bit more throttle response than I wanted in the woods. My advice is similar to Lasher, buy some shocks and good tires first. This is the best way to ride faster in the woods. It took me a lot of time and money to learn this but on my new Raptor I am doing suspension mods first, then I'll worry about power.

 

Also the only pipe that will give the Banshee a more woods friendly power characteristic is the Dynoport. It will reduce top end power a little though. I'll be perfectly honest. After I had spent soo much money on power upgrades for my Banshee, when I was in the woods I wished that I had left the motor stock. Hope this helps.

 

As for the motor; "theres no replacement for displacement",,, if you want more torque for woods riding punch out the cylinders or stroke it (if you really wany more power anyways)other than that get some real mild porting, a single carb kit, and a 2 into 1 pipe to control or at least tone down the hit of the powerband, get +1 A-arms and a negative length swingarm, some zero preload shocks with lots of sag and some good tires (Holeshots, Maxxis, etc,,,),,,but mainly good shocks will help the most,,,if you check out the top placing Banshees you'll notice they dont have a ton of mods (compared to most of the other bikes) just look at Kim Kuhlnes Banshee

 

My banshee has most of the mods listed by lasher above. It is a great handling trail/mx quad...with just enough top end.
I use FMF fatty pipes, -1 on the swingarm, 2+1 arms in the front. Smaller front sprocket, One size up on the pistons, some mild porting, Jetting, pro design kit and works shocks.
The Noticable change was the new angle of attack, so to say. The shorter swing and extended arms took care of any nose heavy tendencies the banshee is known for. Just a great bike that I cannot see myself getting rid of.

 

If money is no object then the way to go would be power valves, which I believe are available on the aftermarket, or by scrapping an RZ350.
I haven't done it myself, but I have seen the difference that power valves can make on other two-stroke motors, and there is nothing that can compare to what they will do. Lots of low end power, with no sacrifice on the top end.
No idea how much it would cost you though.

 

ok this is what I have done to my 95 banshee for woods riding.
FMF "woods" pipes, boost bottle, V-force reeds, uni filter, 13t front sprocket and 1 tooth bigger rear sprocket. 22 holeshot xtc rear and pure sport fronts, all around douglas .190 rims.
Full dg skid and swing arm skid. Durablue axle and nerfs.
No suspension mods except turning the front shocks to the top notch(less roll in the corners)

This combo works great in tight trails and in open fields. I ride with a few other banshees that are set up for top speed and i can keep right up with them in the open areas and smoke them through the tight stuff.

Hope this helps