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**mollydog** · #16 26 Jun 2014

[QUOTE=Farkles;471343]
Available and cheap. You get to charge one or two phones off of a single dropin cartridge for something like USD$6. How much does it cost of a Powerlet cable for your phone, and then Ipod, and then something else.
Good info there. I don't run a lot of electronics. But will look into these options. SAE plugs are about $5. But you're right, some adaptors are expensive getting over to USB.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

Interested, will watch.

Yea, for a $30 HID, you're not risking much. I get my kits from DDM Tuning.
(Chinese) But you can call them in SoCal and talk to a real person ... but kits are shipped from China.

As I said, traveling, I carry a complete HID spare kit, plus my original H-4 Bulb, which is useless. The other thing is how easy the HID is to install cleanly into the DR650 headlight. Some DR riders go for the twin filament HI-LO bulb. But wiring is more complex for that. Now, my 35 Watt single bulb kit is ON in the low beam position (handlebar switch). In HI beam, it's OFF, which is good when starting or when saving watts in general.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

Cold weather performance is advertised. Takes a bit. After one accidental discharge, and cold start, didn't feel like a miracle battery. Ran it in DR650 and DRZ400. Would I use it again (locally)? Yes. At time of departure, for long trip, did not feel tested enough.

I tend to agree with you on this. I'd love for the Shorai and others to get good enough and reliable enough to count on when traveling. For now, I'll start with a NEW, sealed, MF battery. Thanks for confirming ... I've never used a Shorai ... still learning about it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

This is a tricky one. If we were to carry paper filters and change each time we would be at around 16 paper filters between the two of us. We like to start changing oil at 3000km and max at 4000km.

Carrying all those filters is OUT! I agree ... it's a tricky problem! How about some weird compromise? I know we can get away with doing a new oil filter every OTHER oil change.
OR ....
So how about this? ... figure 20,000 miles (30K kms) total. On the road I change oil at 3000 miles (5K kms), using GOOD synthetic oil. At this point, oil is still clear, not opaque and well within grade. A good thing.

So, 7 oil changes for the trip. I would be willing to carry maybe 2 or 3 filters. Also, it's possible one may find the COMMON Suzuki DR filter at a Suzuki dealer on the road? This size fits many bikes. (not just Suzuki)

But I would use the Scott ... and run it every other oil change. I think cleaning he Scott filter is key. Must be done well, from what I've heard.
So, 3000 miles on the Scott, then 3000 mi. on paper filter?
Then back to Scott. Crazy? Probably ..

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

Pretty sure that your advice had directly led to our chain and sprockets choice.

Great, glad to be of help.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

I concur with the multiple front sprockets. It makes sense. Any time we are riding in mountainous areas, or off-road tracts, we like to switch to 14 tooth. We did not bring 16 tooth sprockets. We never really found 15 tooth sprockets insufficient, but wouldn't exclude 16 for the next time. With regards to 14t sprockets, why not add an extra one. By definition, they are going to work harder than stock. They also wear more than stock by definition, and are harder to find than stock.

I agree, you don't need a 16T. I've never used one and have spent many long days sat on 80 mph ... with 15T sprocket. The 14T isn't bad on highway either, and I'm comfortable at 70 mph with the 14T. Off road, I could use much lower gearing .... but you can't have everything!

Just carry a few extra fronts (whatever size) and all should be well. But like I say (and you know this) rain, mud and sand are very hard on chain/sprockets and can shorten life. Clean and lightly oiled seems to work.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

Guys, it depends on your range. I haven't done a "RTW". I suspect that if I was riding down to South America, I would choose to do some replacements before starting the next hop (either side of the hop)., say Africa. You can get most things sent anywhere. Hell, I have seen more stores in Latin America carrying SPF bearings than back in Canada. Bearings are commonplace items.

Good to know you've seen bearings for sale!

I know in Mexico big Truck parts stores have just about every bearing ever made. FAG, SKF, KOYO and more. Better than ANY typical auto parts store in US. In the US, you have to go to a Bearing house or order on line.

I'll be carrying a inner Hub bearing and replacing Steering head bearings before departure. Mine are original and have suffered some off road abuse, so as preventative, I'll install these. The wheel bearings will stay, as my mileage has been split between two sets of wheels. I'm hoping any I need can be found on the road if needed! I've cleaned and greased mine since NEW at every tire change. All good so far! (knock wood!)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

YMMV. I chose to buy some Motion Pro clutch cables in 2010. One clutch cable broke pre-trip (under a week prior). I assumed it was random. The second clutch cable popped in Colombia *exactly* where my new friends did not want me to stop due to FARC activity - I passed just after federal elections. The cable was prerouted and took about 15 minutes to swap out - back to original! (Would not be the case if it was not pre-routed). I believe that these cables where faulty. Vendor nor manufacturer had much to say. I brought it up with the vendor but nothing much came of it. I did not chase them either That said, I will buy MP tools, but not parts that I stick to my bike. I might still have the cable head in which the solder let go revealing a hole all the way through the cable head.

My preference for cables is OEM Suzuki. I would consider pre-routing a clutch cable ... I've got a 10 year old spare I could use. I would NOT do this for throttle ... to easy to foul the routing causing stuck or dragging throttle. Very tight with IMS tank. I see so many done WRONG!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

OK. So above poster does not recommend hard luggage. Fair enough. To each his own. There is sense here. You have suggested that you would like to do an RTW with a lot of off-road. You probably have a computer and a camera, and probably want to hang on to them. What makes you feel comfortable? Where does this stuff go when you take a piss? When you go eat lunch? When leave your bike unattended as you sign into a hotel?

Good observations and questions!

For me, I don't keep valuables easily accessible on the bike. I use a Camel Back, which has room for extra stuff in it. (iPad, cash, paperwork). Camel Back stays on me. Camera in Jacket pocket.

But walking away from the bike is always a challenge!

None of us can afford to lose anything ... if it's on the bike ... it's needed!

Security? ... generally try to check into hotel/camp ground before going into town. Everyone handles security differently. Some are Ultra Paranoid, use HUGE metal boxes or Pelicans ... and never trust locals for anything.

I used hard bags too .. but true security is an illusion. All easy to crack into, screw driver and hammer. Gone in 60 seconds.

Riding partners are good for security. Solo is tough ... I've done plenty and not always easy.
OPTIONS: I often hire kids to watch, or park in Police stations or private homes or private lots. (PAY!) I've been lucky ... only lost minor stuff.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

"Latin America" is a diverse place. To make any statement about cost associations universally would be incorrect, and "cheap" is relative. Per person per night? USD$7, $USD10, $USD15, $USD30. I personally have got stuck with paying +USD$100 in the past having to find a place that would take a bike overnight having excluded what I saw as my other options. Now we are travelling two for much longer period.

IMHO, the choice to camp is mostly personal opinion. For example, "back home" if you just hate camping, why start now? That said, for us Boy Scouts and Girl Guides, we learned to camp from an young age. If you are doing a whirlwind tour, probably not bother. If you are heading to the "more expensive" SA countries (Argentina, Chile, Brasil), you might find that these countries are beyond your travel budget.

For motorcycles, if you follow the RV, car and truck people, you will probably be able to camp. Look up the camping section at Life Remotely and similar sites. We stayed at a whole bunch of the places they (LR) recommended in our tent and were generally pretty happy about it. For us, we prefer to camp when we are staying more than one night somewhere. We stayed at many places for 3-4 nights in our tent for what it would have cost for one night in a room. We started to camp in Mexico on the Baja, camped mostly on Mexico, Guatemala, Panama, Colombia and Bolivia. If we were travelling in "their" summer, we would be camping more further south.

Wow!
All good points for camping!

I get it. You can save a ton of money. Using Hostels/Hotels requires some planning, work ... and LUCK! ... but more and more there are tips on decent places even in the most remote villages. Amazing! Sjoerd Baker's book has been my guide since 2007 for Mexico.

With camping I've found it best to shorten your riding day to allow time to search for a place. If you find organized camping ... then ALL GOOD! I know things are expensive in Chile and Argentina ... so camp grounds there make perfect sense. For Hostels ... you need to make your target town, if you don't ... this is how you can get screwed by Gringo prices. (Done that too!

)

In parts of Mex and Cent. America ... I found it more a challenge to find clean, safe camping. Very dense with people. But that's just me. If you cook, then more time needed to cook, clean up, then break camp then pack it all back up. Over and over again.

It's personal preference. I prefer spending time in town, conversing, shopping, eating, drinking, working on my Spanish and just hanging out, working on my bike ... OR ... doing absolutely NOTHING!

Camping is constant work. If you find great place and STAY there a few days ... then that really works. But UP - DOWN with the camping set up everyday ... wears on me. YMMV. :confused1:

I've found a few great long term camping places. Always good to take a few days OFF THE BIKE after a few travel days. Paying hotels for a week adds up, so can't argue just how much sense camping can make to many $$$$!

It's all about trade offs, risk management, budget and comfort levels.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Farkles

***A tent is not for everyone*** What a tent can provide:

* Cheaper accommodations
* less tarantulas than the place next door
* 100% mosquito-free compared the expensive bamboo cabañas
* 100% less scorpions
* 73% less venomous snake bites
* 110% more stars than other dwellings
* 33% percent more air than similar tropical dwellings
* 0% chance of less rain.
* 85% chance of better pricavy

Excellent! ... but I have to say I've seen MANY spiders, snakes and HUGE scorpions camping. Been bitten by giant Centipedes. (painful) But point made ... some Hostels are REAL DIVES ... filthy, Bedbug and insect infested. Some times you would be better off outside.

But I have some stories for you about what happens when you set your tent up in the dark ... and where you end up being when you awake in the morning.

or .. some interesting middle of the night interruptions.

**stevesgonewalkabout** · #17 28 Jun 2014

Hey all

Just stopping in to let you know I'm still here, so far the advice has been fantastic. I'm adjusting my list accordingly and will repost the first post possibly shortly. Just been flat out at work - 14hr days, 7 days a week!

Not sure if I mentioned it in the first post. But I WILL be going around the world, long term. So my carried / worn gear especially will have to suit that.

Also I've taken your advice and am looking into flying to USA in November to buy and build a dr there. Seems much smarter weather and cost wise.

Cheers!

Steve

**stevesgonewalkabout** · #18 29 Jun 2014

Hey all,

Really appreciate the advice given so far. Slowly adjusting my budget to suit (mostly upwards!)

I've ridden this 100cc's of fury through Vietnam:

And then tried something similar through the Philippines on this:

I said "tried":

And driven the old girl almost all the way around Australia:

A few of you asked more about what type of riding / route I'll be taking and it's looking a little something like this.

The route is yet to be determined after South America. Currently looking at how long I may take for that section, along with shipping costs (or even possibilities) to eventually get to Vladivostok or just to Africa.

There's a possibility of me doing some months with a certain young lady on the back. This will be mostly on road riding, the odd bit of dirt roads thrown in for a laugh. I'll follow the sun as much as possible, but am quite happy in the cold / rain, camping and riding.

The majority of the ride will be solo, and I want to be able to attempt / focus on mostly off road riding. I've ridden more than enough sports bikes and bitumen tends to bore me when it's not ripping the skin off my bones.

-----

With my current budget, which is mostly a wish list really, I'm looking at around:
$16,000 for the DR650 and quite a lot of mods. Can easily drop this down by about $2k.

$4,000 in camping, riding gear, all clothing, personal equipment and the like

$14,000 Visas, Shipping, Flights, Travel & Medical insurance for two years.

This is mostly rough estimates along with some numbers off Hubb. But it also assumes that I own ZERO equipment, camping gear or underwear so there shall be savings.

This just leaves my daily cost, which varies. Once again, parts of this are purposely inflated estimations and parts are prices off the web / hubb.

Cheers!

**Gipper** · #19 30 Jun 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevesgonewalkabout

With my current budget, which is mostly a wish list really, I'm looking at around:
$16,000 for the DR650 and quite a lot of mods. Can easily drop this down by about $2k.

$4,000 in camping, riding gear, all clothing, personal equipment and the like

$14,000 Visas, Shipping, Flights, Travel & Medical insurance for two years.

For a late, low mileage, lightly used DR650 in the US with some modifications already done, you should be looking at no more than $5000 usd and even with most of the mods you've mentioned you should be able to sort the bike completely out for under $10,000 - the main problem/cost is finding a place to stay and do all of the work - with a shipping address, so if you have friends in the US ask them nicely....

You should be able to make savings off the other costs too, the US is THE best place to buy gear. What are your plans for shipping ? South America to South Africa and then North and East ?

**stevesgonewalkabout** · #20 2 Jul 2014

One possible route is:

North America - Darien Gap - South America -> Africa -> Ride to Europe -> East across Russia -> SE Asia via Korea / Japan -> Indonesia -> Home.

Although I would very much like to find out if I can get from South America directly to Japan / Korea and from there up to Russia. Then west across Russia -> Europe -> Africa -> back up Africa -> somehow -> SE Asia -> Indonesia -> Home.

**Gipper** · #21 2 Jul 2014

Hey Steve,

Cost wise the Easterly route will be more efficient and cheaper, heading West you will have 2 major shipping costs, but it is doable I'm sure to ship from South America to South Korea, get to Vlad and go West to Europe, Africa. To SE Asia might be a little trickier but you could go anti clockwise around Africa, head up to Kenya and Ethiopia, then head back South and maybe ship from Durban to Bangkok before heading home. You may run into problems bringing a US registered bike back into Australia as an Aussie citizen without a Carnet, look into that issue or sell the bike in Asia.

Re other points raised:

As for car type 12v power sockets, IME they do not work so well on thumpers, smooth multi cylinder bikes fine, but on thumpers you end up taping, cable tying, bodging plugs into sockets to keep a good connection and its easy to pop fuses or wreck sensitive electronics with poor intermittent connections. The BMW type plugs positively click in and don't rattle loose. Also if you have a Powerlet /BMW socket you can borrow all the shiny expensive gear the BMW crowd carry (compressors etc) when yours (and mine) breaks. Like I said, having a few different options is a good idea, one $25 socket and a couple of plugs isn't much cash on top of a $10,000 bike build, if you want to save money, buy a bike that has already been farkled up with someone else buying all the new parts and taking the hit with taxes and shipping. (that's normally me!)

Oil, buy motorcycle oil when you can, use car oil when you have to, Ive had to use Castrol car 10-40 oil in Bolivia, couldn't find any motorcycle oil anywhere, ran with no problems, just make sure it doesn't say 'energy saving' on the bottle (friction modifiers that will ruin the clutch) that's the beauty of the venerable old DR - they aren't too fussy with oil or gas!

16 tooth sprockets are good if you have to do long stretches of pavement, Nevil used one to ride across Europe and I believe Canada last year on his RTW, I wish id had one a few years ago for some long highway stretches in Chile. At 60 mph/100kmh with 14/42 sprockets the DR pulls 4500 rpm, with 16/42 it sits at 4000 rpm at the same speed or 70 mph/120 kmh at 4500rpm, less engine wear, better fuel economy or you can go a bit faster

makes sense to me. If you are staying off highways/motorways don't use one, if you have to do a bunch of highway riding they work well. I have found with my DR keeping it at or under 4500 rpm is the cut off for better fuel economy.

This is how mine has ended up after 4 years of tweaking.....

I have the Pelican 1500 box mounted fairly well to the rear because we ride 2up, but its not too heavy or big and I like having at least one fairly secure storage, if I use a DR250 light it cant be seen so easily from any angle with the HT rear rack and indicator extensions, yes its big, but its also more visable, im running a stock tail light bulb with the Procycle LED plate light, toolbox holds compressor/tools/tyre levers. Pannier bags are Happy Trail Mojave which fit straight onto the HT SU pannier racks, they have an aluminium plate on the rear and 'pucks' so no straps over the seat, the same mounting system as the HT Teton aluminium panniers. Aerostitch tank panniers, Laminar B king screen with a removable MRA lip works ok, GSXR 40F0 can sounds sweeeeeeet........

**stevesgonewalkabout** · #22 5 Jul 2014

Gippers your setup looks just like what I'm going for

Some great advice there re power let / BMW sockets, I'll adjust the list accordingly.

Did you find the storage space enough for two? I'd be looking at taking a small tent and the likest some stage, really don't want to end up with a bike drowning in luggage!

The pelican was used for expensive equipment I assume. Do anything crazy like run power to the box? And yes, I'm searching for a GSXR can, everything points towards it. May just have to wait till I'm closer to heading to the USA and try to buy one on eBay or the like, post it to a friends till I get there.

I've put up a post in route planning to try to get some more information for my route. It's all well and good to SAY I'll go here, here and here. But without any idea on how long regions will take it's hard to then plan where to go re the weather.

Cheers!

**Gipper** · #23 5 Jul 2014

Hi Steve,

Check out some photos on our blog under 'trip prep' for photos of our SAmerica setup. For that trip we used the HT Teton ali panniers with 12v power going to the top box which worked ok.

Pretty much all of our trip was 2up, it sounds like the majority of your trip will be solo, so there's some compromises, all I can say is prep the bike to enjoy the longer solo part of your trip and when you ride 2up carry as little 'stuff' as you can.

The HT Mojave bags are OK for a solo rider, but IMO don't have enough volume for 2up extended travel. However if you can pack super light it would be ok for a while. But there are plenty of other larger soft bag options out there that would make 2up travel easier. I will be putting some footman loops on top of the Pelican case so I can have the tent tied on it for 2up - when we ride 2up we are not generally doing hardcore routes these days.

For charging electronics Id take a smaller camera and maybe a small tablet instead of a laptop/netbook and keep them in your tankbag and just put a USB outlet on your bars with the charge cable straight into the tankbag.

The tankbag goes with you when you leave the bike, so do you need a Peli case ? maybe not, but it is handy.......

Its better to have slightly larger panniers and keep the weight low and as close to the centre of the bike as possible instead of having a huge duffel bag high up on the tail. But if you do end up with a duffel/roll top bag on the tail, make sure only lightweight bulky stuff goes up there.

You could maybe start the trip with a Peli case and if you don't have enough room for the 2up part sell it or ship it home.....

**stevesgonewalkabout** · #24 12 Jul 2014

I'll check out the setup section on your page, thanks mate.

I was looking at Magadan AS panniers. Seem to keep the weight low, and are relatively waterproof for when the bike is dropped in a river. It's going to happen I mean cmon.

Really hard to judge how much storage is needed at the moment, but that'll come once I start buying gear for the bike. Now that I've a complete list I'm definitely trying to cut down / downsize items on it. I'll hopefully have a pelicase on the rear at the most, light is key I believe.

**Gipper** · #25 12 Jul 2014

The Magadan panniers are a great bit of kit, expensive but good quality, I think they would be perfect, definitely more room than the HT Mojave.

If you ship them to the US you will probably get dinged with big customs fee's- maybe pick them up in UK in person on the way through to the USA ?

Pack your clothing in a small dry bag and your sleeping bag too, don't rely on soft panniers to be 100% waterproof.

Ive asked Happy Trail to make the Mojave's slightly bigger and have external bottle holders on them - as US competition to the Magadans, but they don't seem to be interested. Wolfman have the best over range of soft luggage here at the moment, but I still hate loads of straps over the seat everywhere.

**stevesgonewalkabout** · #26 12 Jul 2014

I didn't even think about custom's fees. I thought about buying and shipping the Magadans to Aus, and using them as my luggage when I fly to USA. Did you use / need heated gear on your trip Gipper? Right now I'm looking at riding clothing, wet weather gear AND heated gear. Seems like a lot of space required just for that.

**Gipper** · #27 13 Jul 2014

Lisa had a heated jacket and gloves, I had heated grips, the DR's stator cant keep up with all three under 4000 rpm, I don't use heated clothing personally, even riding solo, good heated grips, merino wool layers and Gore-Tex jacket and pants - and a lightweight down jacket if its really cold, then you can keep warm away from the bike too.

I don't even normally take a thick pair of waterproof gloves, I just use a thin windproof liner glove under my summer leather gloves and larger hand guards with the heated grips, if they get wet then tough, its when you start to take 2 pairs of everything that room becomes tight - keep it simple, if you need more airflow through the hand guards when its hot, drill some holes in them and then tape them up when its cold.

Yeah Im not sure about customs fees in Australia, give them a call and ask them what the duty would be, is there anyone who sells the AS gear there?

**snatchy** · #28 6 Aug 2014

I had a very similar DR650 shopping list for a lap around Sth America last year.

I have more info on what worked FOR ME if you want more info. Everyone I met travelled differently and had different ideas on what worked, so keep looking around and getting ideas and you will sort it out. Plenty of good opinions so far!

here is my opinion

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevesgonewalkabout

and here it is...

1. ELECTRONICS
1. Trailtech Vapor Speedo Yes but I would get the Striker instead based on the idea that volts is more important to know than rpm
MX1 Australia - Product Details
2. For above – need dash? depends on how you do your dash
MX1 Australia - Product Details
3. GPS / Mounting – Gamin Montana 650 sounds good
4. 12v / auxiliary power – check shortwayround for info. yes. SAE plugs work well
5. Headlight – replace bulb? Just add relay kit
H4 Kits - relay kit.
6. Spotlights – 10 watt LED sounds Ok
DR650 Aux light mounts - ADVrider
7. flexible buell indicators – LED? I wouldn't bother
8. Battery – Shorai Li-Iron? maybe if you have spare cash. standard one works
9. Grip heaters yes definately heated grips, but get the best ones that have multiple settings and can use less poser at low power (not resistor type)
VSM Vince Strang Motorcycles DR650 Grip Heaters
10. Stator standard stator is a bit limiting, but the replacement needs to be proven before replacing the stock one. I have this one but didn't fit it due to unknowns and didn't have time to test it - being cautious only. you will get by with less watts if that is all you have (as long as you have a mounted voltmeter to tell you you are pulling too much)
Suzuki DR650 Parts, Accessories, & Performance - ProCycle

2. MECHANICAL ETC

1. Carby – Stock? Breather vent tubes? Do some simple jetting & airbox mods and get the drivability benefits
2. Airbox? Do some simple jetting & airbox mods and get the drivability benefits
07 DR650 Kientech airbox mod ? - ADVrider
3. Oil filter – Scotts stainless reusable yes. gold. do
4. + In line fuel filter? yes if you want.
5. Braided brake lines – front only I wouldn't bother
VSM Vince Strang Motorcycles DR650 Brakes
6. Stator rewire??? as above somewhere
7. Rear suspension – Rebuild OEM shock yes. good suspension that you can rely on is well worth the $, especially if you want to do a lot of dirt road
8. Front? Big job to swap forks. Req? Maybe just – I would just do the more basic but proven spring and valving upgrades. Too many things to change for USD to work (head lock/ignition barrel, headlight, bigger brake) that will cost $ and time. As you say - big job to swap forks, plus all the other small things that you will need to change for everything to work together on a heavily modified bike.
9. Sprocket? Two x Yes bring a spare or two
10. Auto chain oiler yes. wish I had one. beats messy manual oil application
Scottoiler
11. Remove chain roller yup
12. Output shaft seal – retainer fitted yup
13. Remove clutch and side stand safety switches yup
14. Chain – Swap ? easy to do it before you go, but not a big deal
15. Magnetic sump plug yup
16. Tool kit yup
17. Spares
18. Wheel bearings my standard ones are still good 52,000kms later.
19. Cush drive bearing my standard one is still good 52,000kms later
20. Change above to sealed?
21. Rimlock I added one each end, but fully loaded i was never comfortable in dropping pressures below 20psi so in hindsight all it did was make changing tyres more difficult.

3. BODY
1. Strip and weld gussets to subframe / luggage rack – Paint / Powdercoat? I wouldn't bother.
2. Safari Tank - 30L yes. If nothing else it will make a lot of people come up and ask you how much it holds... and start many conversations. For that alone it is absolutely worth it. Otherwise it is a good backup having heaps of fuel... you never know when you need it. I almost ran out twice (with a 37L safari) on backcountry missions, but they were my favourite parts of the trip
Suzuki DR650SE 30 litres | Safari Tanks - Safari Tanks
Replace ally brace with steel yes I did, and other parts of the mounting system needed work to make it fit easily and properly
3. Bark Busters yup
4. Bars – Pro Taper CR High Rise depends on your preference. I did
5. Remove Speedometer if you want
6. Build new plate for dash?
7. Side stand – weld wider plate maybe, but you will find a rock or stick if you need it. main thing is to cut the sidestand length so it works better when fully loaded. This is a must do in my book
8. Bash plate – B&B yes
B&B Off-Road - Suzuki DR650 Bashplate
9. Windscreen – screensforbikes yes
Suzuki DR 650 96-14 � Screens For Bikes
10. Custom seat – Sargent better seat well worth it. I had seat concepts soft (for lighter people)
Sargent World Sport Adventure Touring Seat Suzuki DR650 1996-2009,2011-2013 - RevZilla
11. Engine case armour? I had that. Is it needed? I don't know. Can't hurt and relatively cheap insurance
Suzuki DR650 Parts, Accessories, & Performance - ProCycle
12. Replace rear wheel? 18inch? Wouldn't bother
DR350 interchangeability wheel question. : General DR650 Discussion
13. Change out rim tape – check shortwayround

4. LUGGAGE AS magadan bags work very well for me. Keep the weight low and forward to have better handling (most noticeable offroad) and you can still carry a passenger
1. Top - Pelican 1600
Pelican 1500 with Foam Black
Need to work out size
2. Run power to pelican?
3. Luggage plate for top box?
B&B Off-Road - DR650/DRZ400 Luggage Plate
Wolfman Suzuki DR 650 Top Rack
4. Tank Panniers – Soft
5. Rack to mount above
6. Tankbag – Waterproof / Backpack conversion . Whatever you get, make it waterproof

5. CLOTHING sounds good. Like everything, keep it to a minimum for bulk and weight
1. 3 Synthetic T-shirts
2. 2 Light Trousers
3. 3 Pairs Socks
4. 2 Long Sleeve Shirts
5. 3 Underwear Shorts
6. 2 Casual Shorts
7. 1 Pair of 4 Season Socks
8. 1 Water-proof Jacket
9. 1 Sandals (Teva)
10. 1 Thongs
11. 1 Runners / Hiking boots

6. RIDING GEAR ATGATT

7. CAMPING I found that this was was definately the way to go in some countries, and others not at all. Whatever you do, keep it small and light so you are still able to go offroad easily

8. PERSONAL
1. Cameras, lots of cameras. Yup but keep it as small and light as possible

9. What the?
1. Swingarm water tank? Interesting idea. tell us more
2. Passenger setup! should be no worries, but might get a bit limiting if you need to take camping gear too
3. Hidden storage – key / money etc. yes - $US. you might need it when ATM's don't like your card, or the bank/ATM system stops.

Links
Parts + Accessories + Performance = ProCycle
VSM Vince Strang Motorcycles DR650 Shop

**JediMaster** · #29 13 Sep 2014

A little late to the party but there may be something here that helps...

Final incarnation...

Prep talk - Suzuki DR650 | Short Way Round

Prep Gallery - Suzuki DR650 Preparation - ShortWayRound

Shipping the Bike

Regional Forums

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Horizons Unlimited presents!

Links Page - wow, what a resource!

Bike Tech

Other Gear

Bike Forums

Stuff

Other Forums

Horizons Unlimited presents!

Links Page

Shipping the Bike

Crossing Borders

Staying Safe & Healthy

Getting There

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Links Pages - A few samples...

Tell your Travel Story - Blog on HU!

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Horizons Unlimited presents!

Horizons Unlimited Presents!

HU Travellers Meetings

Non-HU Events

Participate!

Photo Contest!

Horizons Unlimited presents!

New to HU? Start Here!

Your Hosts

I haven't been everywhere... but it's on my list!

Announcements

Next HU Events

What others say about HU...

New to Horizons Unlimited?

Membership - help keep us going!

I haven't been everywhere...
but it's on my list!