Welcome to the Two Wheeled Texans community! 
Feel free to hang out and lurk as long as you like. However, we would like to encourage you to 
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2005
- Messages
- 4,465
- Reaction score
- 1,228
- Location
- Buda, TX
- First Name
- Rich
- Last Name
- Gibbens
Cycle World gathered four dual sport bikes - Beta 430 RR, KTM 500 EXC, Husqvarna FE450, and the Honda CRF450L - and compared them to each other. The report is posted here and is worth a read, especially if you are in the market for a dual sport motorcycle.
For those who don't want to read the entire thing, here's the summary:
"While each of the dual sport motorcycles in this shootout has its strengths and weaknesses, at the end of the three-day test, the rankings were clear. The 2019 Honda CRF450L is an impressive machine, especially in its first year on the market, but it’s held back by its weight, short powerband, and stiff clutch. For these reasons, it finished fourth in this very competitive shootout.
The 2019 Husqvarna FE 450 performed well in most situations, most notably when traction was hard to come by, but it lacked the low-end grunt and overall suspension performance of the two front-runners, which put it on the final podium position in this comparison test. The 2019 Beta 430 RR-S fought tooth and nail for the top spot, but its slight nervousness at speed and overly aggressive power delivery slotted it into the runner-up spot.
The best dual sport of the rigorous three-day test was the 2019 KTM 500 EXC-F. The orange machine checked all of the boxes in the wide variety of terrain Moab had to offer and, at the end of the day, was the preferred choice among test riders."
For those who don't want to read the entire thing, here's the summary:
"While each of the dual sport motorcycles in this shootout has its strengths and weaknesses, at the end of the three-day test, the rankings were clear. The 2019 Honda CRF450L is an impressive machine, especially in its first year on the market, but it’s held back by its weight, short powerband, and stiff clutch. For these reasons, it finished fourth in this very competitive shootout.
The 2019 Husqvarna FE 450 performed well in most situations, most notably when traction was hard to come by, but it lacked the low-end grunt and overall suspension performance of the two front-runners, which put it on the final podium position in this comparison test. The 2019 Beta 430 RR-S fought tooth and nail for the top spot, but its slight nervousness at speed and overly aggressive power delivery slotted it into the runner-up spot.
The best dual sport of the rigorous three-day test was the 2019 KTM 500 EXC-F. The orange machine checked all of the boxes in the wide variety of terrain Moab had to offer and, at the end of the day, was the preferred choice among test riders."
