My uncle rode a KLR650 for a couple years. IIRC he put on about 20k, because his commute was 60 miles each way, mostly interstate. It's very possible to ride the bikes on the interstate.
He did complain that it ran hot on slow trails.
My uncle rode a KLR650 for a couple years. IIRC he put on about 20k, because his commute was 60 miles each way, mostly interstate. It's very possible to ride the bikes on the interstate.
He did complain that it ran hot on slow trails.
wherethefmi wrote: CRF450R converted to road would be pretty bad ass, though I don't know what those are going for these days.
No way! Rebuilding the top end every few months would get old fast.
My buddy had one of these for offroad and he hated the titanium valves. He had to rebuild it twice a year...
My boss had a CRF 450 and hated it on trails. All he would do is dig holes.
I have DR400 and freaking love it, even on the street. lame on high speed roads, but great for bombing up to the store. So my vote goes to the Dr250
thatsnowinnebago wrote:suprf1y wrote: How big are you, and how mechanically inclined?6'1" 180ish and decently so.
I was going to say, don't rule out something like this
http://www.chinariders.net/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=8405&highlight= You can usually get a new one for under $1500, or a good used one (with the little stuff already taken care of) for about $800. Not a modern jap bike by any means, but good value, if thats all you need.
Well most of them are retro engineered Hondas so they should be fairly reliable, if underpowered
For a beginner dualsport, I'd look into one of the mid '90's Honda XR250L's. I would not, under any circumstances, take it on the highway!!! It simply can't keep up and will get you hurt. BTW, in Hondaspeak the 'L' models are street legal, the 'R' models are offroad use only.
If you have a need for occasional highway travel, the DR400 is probably the best bet. They may tend to be a bit pricey, though.
Probably the most common and nearly bulletproof DS with the biggest aftermarket is the Honda XR650L. This is the air cooled bike, not to be confused with the liquid cooled R version which was not available street legal here in the States. Its drawback is that it is a big heavy bike and thus maybe not well suited to a beginner. The XR600R looks almost exactly like it but is not street legal and does not have electric start. I likes that 'lectric leg, mang. 
The Kawasaki is even heavier than the Honda. They seem pretty tough, though. The Suzuki 650 DS was a joke offroad, though it would probably make a pretty good commuter bike.
I'd avoid the European D/S's (KTM, Husqvarna, Gas Gas, Husaberg etc) as a first bike, they tend to be temperamental and pricey compared to the Jap bikes. Once you get your feet wet, if you decide to step up to more performance then they are the way to go. I still harbor major lust for the one year only KTM 450 dualsport. One day...
Awesome, thanks for all the help so far guys. Lotsa things in here I didn't know. How does everyone feel about the NX250?
Probably the most common and nearly bulletproof DS with the biggest aftermarket is the Honda XR650L.
Was the XR650.
It's been taken over by the DR-Z400, which is now widely regarded as the one of, if not the best all around DS.
Those Huskies are sexy, reliable, and cheap, but more race, than anything. My local dealer just sold his last CR125 $3900 special. You have no idea how hard it was not to buy one.
Oh yeah, I had a DRZ. If only it had a 6th gear, it would be about perfect. But, imo, the only thing it did better than my Yamaha was vibrate, make torque, and more available (cheaply) used.
The NX250 looks neat looking at its wikipedia specs, but I'd be worried about finding parts for it with such a short production run nearly 20 years ago. Also, odd wheel sizes might make it hard to find tires. Probably be a fun fun bike if you have one for sale local for the right price though.
Not sure if you mentioned it, how much riding on and off road do you plan on? Do you just want to be able to go down dirt roads and light two track in addition to road riding (including highway) most of the time, or are you looking for a dirt bike with plates that will only need to be street legal to link trails and will never see the interstate? If you need to get on the freeway at all, get a bike with more displacement than the small 200 and 250 DS bikes (unless you do decide to afford the Yamaha). If you're not sure about where or how you'll be riding, get the DRZ. You can turn it into just about anything depending on how you find yourself riding as there are tons of mods out there for it that are well documented and well supported. Its small enough that its not too intimidating for a new rider (it was my first bike), a great motor with a nice broad powerband that (stock) isn't too intimidating even having only ridden the school Nighthawk 250's but not boring either, and good enough everything else to get you through the first few months, or years, of riding.
Also, if you're worried about the seat height, at your height don't be. My DRZ had and Yamaha have ~36" seat heights, and with a 31" inseam I can still nearly flat foot the bike at stoplights, and I've only had problems getting back on them after an off when the terrain made it hard to stand or get back to the left side of the bike.
Another vote for the DR-Z400. After about 8 years riding, that was the first bike I rode offroad, and I wondered why it took me so long.
...And then it took me down the highway about 15 miles at 75 mph in relative comfort. Impressive little bike.
I just sold myself. Off to Craigslist I go...
I think I would honestly be more on road riding than off road, considering where I live currently. There really isn't anywhere that close to ride off pavement. Would I be correct in assuming that the hitch carriers I've seen would work for one of these bikes?
Hitch carriers work, but add a ton of tongue weight, so really only work with a full size truck. I'd get a lightweight trailer - there are several options that are light enough to stand on end for storage.
For a mostly street, occasional off-road, I'd get the motard version of the Yamaha 250 and add some 17" dual-sport/motard tires (vs the 100% street tires with which they tend to come).
You can also get some good street biased tires, also called sportsman tires in the 18", and 21" dualsport sizes. The kenda K761 is good for street, with some trail, or dirt road use.
So my best bet for transport would be one of the Harbor Freight trailers?
thatsnowinnebago wrote: So my best bet for transport would be one of the Harbor Freight trailers?
Probably. If you use one of the generic utility trailers, just add a wheel chock (or whatever it's called) and some eye-bolts for hooking tie-down straps.
If you have a truck, just put the bike into the bed but a HF trailer would work too.
Or ride it there, most of the dual sports are or can be made comfortable enough for road trips and there are a few decent DOT knobbies out there (lovin' my Dunlop D606's). 21/18 wheels are much much better off road and there are plenty enough street oriented tires available for them (such as what comes stock on 90% of them). Its two hours by highway to the "good" riding areas around me, four hours if you take the fun roads ;), half the fun of a dual sport is the pavement imo.
A while back Kenda came out with a knobby which was DOT legal, the K270. I've ridden Kenda's true offroad tires before and come away happy.
Never used them myself but the pattern looks pretty good, it's similar to a lot of intermediate true offroad tires. They are affordable too, like $45 each.
You'll need to log in to post.
