fast, reliable, light, cheap, dualsport

[JMZ]

Drz 400. Or dr650. But for Riding far like you are saying , I would say klr


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[RollingJ]

All the modern 250s (wr, crfl, xt, klx) will run for days close to redline. That's what rev limiters are for! They are light and easy to work on. They have very long service intervals. They are 6 speed, so you can drop the rpm on flats or a downhill, but 5th will pull faster uphill. The seat height makes dabbing a foot in the tough stuff easy as pie, and you won't have any trouble picking it up if you need to.

If you find one in your price range that has decent farkles (skid plate, handguard, etc), don't hesitate to pick it up. When (if) you sell it a couple years down the road you will sell it for very close to what you bought it for.

Edit: The XT250 is 5 speed and you will want bar risers for any of them, I recommend Rox Risers for their adjustability.

[DFW_Warrior]

I would say the WRr, and CRFl would be my top two choices with the KLX and XT coming in not far behind that. Yes there are plenty of lighter and faster bikes out there. But holding 70mph on them for a couple of hundred miles is a recipe for having them grenade.

Having ridden the WRr I can attest to it's smooth street manners. And after being followed in some ultra tight and technical trails this past weekend by a WRr I can honestly say that is can hold it's own on single track as well. We rode through some stuff that I'm not exactly sure that I would feel comfortable taking a WRr if I was the owner.

[offcamber]

So in y'alls opinion the DRZ400sm or plain drz400 would more suseptible to grenading than these 250's y'all speak of?

[DFW_Warrior]

IMHO yes, but only because of the lack of 6th gear. That being said, Suzuki did very well on their 400's by not trying to make them HP monsters so that helps quite a bit in keeping things together longer.

I have never ridden a DRZ before, but have a few friends that have gone from the 400 to the WRr's just because they seem to cruise better at the higher speeds. But things like vibration and freeway manners can be so subjective that it may not really amount to a hill of beans. Know what I mean?

[offcamber]

Originally Posted by DFW_Warrior

But things like vibration and freeway manners can be so subjective that it may not really amount to a hill of beans. Know what I mean?

Veeery much so! The way i have my Subaru set up, most people would describe as falling on a pile of rocks (suspension wise).

I'm at the point in my life where comfort does not mean a whole lot. After all, i've riden from San Marcos to San Antonio and back in the rain no problem on my XT225. The only thing holding me back was fear of over reving the bike and the lack of speed the bike could do. Well, there was fear that my lack of experience might do me in on the rain soaked road of 46 and scetchy traffic of 281...but that's a different story all together.

[bronco78]

Originally Posted by offcamber

So in y'alls opinion the DRZ400sm or plain drz400 would more suseptible to grenading than these 250's y'all speak of?

NO, not even close.

The DRZ in all flavors, will happily motor down the road at 70mph for as long as gas is available.

In stock form it weighs a little more then a severely outdated, under powered, suspended, breaked XT or an older KLX 250.

If those bikes work well for a rider, then great, nothing wrong with that..

But as dated as the DRZ is, next to a XT225, it's modern marvel of machine and will turn as many mean hours before failure or rebuild as an underpowered older 225-250 will being flogged.

If power, suspension and brakes are what is top of the list, look at a KTM 450, SM'ed WR450.
If you want to trade some longevity for some small amount of power, consider the DRZ... it can easily be brought up to most any standard of power level, suspension or brakes you may want later, with no reliability issues.

If an older bike, with much less power, lightly suspended, minimal brakes BUT LIGHTER WEIGHT lower seat height is a better fit.. an XR250, XT220 may be the better fit. They will definitely go down any road paved of dirt you choose.

If a brand new bike is in order, the 2013 KLX250 seems to be a decent little bike.. But the darn thing weighs almost 300 lb..and is just a 250.... I see no reason to trade all the good stuff, then limit is power, suspension and still have a 297lb bike
It's always going to be a compromise as no bike does it all.

So a rider just has to prioritize all the needs, then wants and top it off with has to haves and can not haves... then make a choice.

[SilverBullet]

Quote:
Originally Posted by JMZ
What about an xr650 ??

Originally Posted by offcamber

Too Heavy, tall, bulky.

Just keep your current bike then and either change the gearing or wring its neck at high speed until it blows up. Seriously the XR650 is lighter than any of the 250cc or 400cc dual sports and shorter than most also. Anything lighter will be a plated dirt bike and much taller. This thread will never come to a conclusion. Whatever you end up buying will not satisfy all your requirements because that bike doesn't exist.

_

[Irishcoffee]

Originally Posted by offcamber

Too Heavy, tall, bulky.

I think in the end i just want something that i can throw around in the dirt (fun) and won't blow up if i ride non-stop to Big Bend or some other far flung place. I don't mind the bike beating me into submission, i just don't want it to be able to beat up the bike and be left with another repair job on top of all my other projects. I understand that any bike you pin the throttle on(for an extended period of time) will end with weird banging noises and a puff of smoke, but i don't want something that if i don't let it rest every so many miles it blows up...

Basically i want the asymptote of true freedom...

Asymptote??? Do you not realise you are speaking to motorcycle trash here?

[Rman of 237]

Originally Posted by Irishcoffee

Asymptote??? Do you not realise you are speaking to motorcycle trash here?

Yeah, I had to look that one up too.

[offcamber]

Originally Posted by Rman of 237

Yeah, I had to look that one up too.

It's all good. I knew the concept i was after but had to ask my engineering buddy what the actual name was for it.

[JMZ]

Originally Posted by SilverBullet

Quote:
Originally Posted by JMZ
What about an xr650 ??



Just keep your current bike then and either change the gearing or wring its neck at high speed until it blows up. Seriously the XR650 is lighter than any of the 250cc or 400cc dual sports and shorter than most also. Anything lighter will be a plated dirt bike and much taller. This thread will never come to a conclusion. Whatever you end up buying will not satisfy all your requirements because that bike doesn't exist.

_

yep trying to tell him From what he is asking , I am now thinking the xrl would be on top of the list .

[Rsquared]

Originally Posted by bronco78

NO, not even close.

The DRZ in all flavors, will happily motor down the road at 70mph for as long as gas is available.

As a former DRZ owner myself, well said...

Originally Posted by bronco78

It's always going to be a compromise as no bike does it all.

Exactly!

[sodapop]

Originally Posted by offcamber

Too Heavy, tall, bulky.

I think in the end i just want something that i can throw around in the dirt (fun) and won't blow up if i ride non-stop to Big Bend or some other far flung place. I don't mind the bike beating me into submission, i just don't want it to be able to beat up the bike and be left with another repair job on top of all my other projects. I understand that any bike you pin the throttle on(for an extended period of time) will end with weird banging noises and a puff of smoke, but i don't want something that if i don't let it rest every so many miles it blows up...

Basically i want the asymptote of true freedom...

Look hard at a used WR250R. It sounds perfect for what you want. They sell like hotcakes if you decide to flip it later.

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[ed29]

Originally Posted by SilverBullet

Quote:
Originally Posted by JMZ
What about an xr650 ??



Just keep your current bike then and either change the gearing or wring its neck at high speed until it blows up. Seriously the XR650 is lighter than any of the 250cc or 400cc dual sports and shorter than most also. Anything lighter will be a plated dirt bike and much taller. This thread will never come to a conclusion. Whatever you end up buying will not satisfy all your requirements because that bike doesn't exist.

_

I'm sorry to say that this is quite incorrect on the weight point. The XR650L is listed on Honda's own site at 346 pounds curb weight. Giving the benefit of the doubt and presuming that is full of fuel it is still 40 pounds heavier than my fully gassed WR250R. The DRZ is right about the same weight as the WR.

I do however completely agree with the last sentence in that post.

Light is subjective. 300 pounds is light to me, but a pig to others. As for fast, reliable, and cheap.... pick two. All three will never come together on a given motorcycle. You want reliable and cheap, get a KLR. You want fast and cheap, get an older race bike and plate it. You want fast and reliable, buy a newer bike of any color and trick it out with go-fast goodies.

Then come on out and ride with us.

[JMZ]

Originally Posted by ed29

I'm sorry to say that this is quite incorrect on the weight point. The XR650L is listed on Honda's own site at 346 pounds curb weight. Giving the benefit of the doubt and presuming that is full of fuel it is still 40 pounds heavier than my fully gassed WR250R. The DRZ is right about the same weight as the WR.

I do however completely agree with the last sentence in that post.

Light is subjective. 300 pounds is light to me, but a pig to others. As for fast, reliable, and cheap.... pick two. All three will never come together on a given motorcycle. You want reliable and cheap, get a KLR. You want fast and cheap, get an older race bike and plate it. You want fast and reliable, buy a newer bike of any color and trick it out with go-fast goodies.

Then come on out and ride with us.

I guess I was not thinking about " light" To me , my xrr is light , compared to my vstrom But to a smaller person an xr might not be light .

[ed29]

Compared to a Strom the XRR is light. The original comparison though was to any 250cc or 400cc dual sport bike.

The XRR is lighter than the XRL, but still heavier than the 250s and 400s. Adding lights abd other street gear to the XRR closes the weight gap on the XRL too.

[SilverBullet]

Originally Posted by ed29

I'm sorry to say that this is quite incorrect on the weight point. The XR650L is listed on Honda's own site at 346 pounds curb weight. Giving the benefit of the doubt and presuming that is full of fuel it is still 40 pounds heavier than my fully gassed WR250R. The DRZ is right about the same weight as the WR.

For the XR650L agreed but I was talking about the XR650R since suggestion came from JMZ I assumed that was the XR650 he was talking about. Almost all XRRs out there are already plated. The L is definitely heavier same weight range as the other big bore DS bikes except the lighter KTM690.

_

[Rman of 237]

Dude (OP), this thread is a year old. Just buy something! Looking back to post#1 you need a 400-650 plated bike. Bite the bullet and you'll figure out what you ultimately want/need via experience. Sell it and upgrade from there.

[Irishcoffee]

Originally Posted by Rman of 237

Dude (OP), this thread is a year old. Just buy something! Looking back to post#1 you need a 400-650 plated bike. Bite the bullet and you'll figure out what you ultimately want/need via experience. Sell it and upgrade from there.

Bingo!!! Even if you find nirvana bike, in six months you will be looking at something else. Just the way it is.