what first bike..on a budget
 

Hello....am quickly getting bitten by the bike bug...Up till now have always travelled 4x4....apart from when i went rucsacking at 18......
Need help on decideing what type of bike for a new rider(who has riden before)for a 6ft 3 person....and on a bit of a budget......Would be looking at a trial run on whatever i get to a place i know well Northern italy and do some tracks...So would need to be able to take my weight and luggage.. Really not bothered by old bikes as have always driven classic landrovers,,,,many thanks stu.

Hmmm,
possibly Suzuki DR650SE or Yamahas XT600, as a compromise for the all purpose bike. If more offroad would be applicable, maybe Suzuki DRZ400S or SE, if more road biased Kawasaki KLE500 or Honda Transalp 600.
Except for the Suzuki DRZ400, all the others should be out there for reasonable prices, second hand. All the best, and welcome
cheers Michael

Many thanks....must admit i do like the look off the Tenere and they are quiet reasonably priced......Thought if i get one thats cheap enough and needs a bit off work doing......it will give me something to do through the winter and get a chance to learn about the bike....(Just going through a move to Scotland)so ive got a good place to start to practice sleeping by the bike etc...Also it looks a lot cheaper to do my test up in Aberdeenshire......

One end of the country to the other :eek3: That'd be a good test for a new bike (& rider) :thumbup1:

Get out there & try a few first. Money's still tight, so should be able to pick up a bargain.

Yes ive never been one for a small move up the road....when visiting the other week to Stirling for a job interview......ended up going to loch lomond just for a chill and a sleep in the car.......while sat their couldnt beleive how many Bmw 1200 gs,s went past....everyone was on new bikes with nice new top notch gear on......prefer old dirty used stuff myself....very nice bikes but a lot out of my price range.....although i do like the 650 dakar and have seen a few reasonably cheap that need tidying up....

You can get a 2003 DRZ400S for about £1400 !

Thats probably cheaper than the 650, Transalp or even the KLE !!

:thumbup1:

Think about the KLR
 

What about the KLR 650. A great bike and is really cheap. A few mods and rtw you go. Lots of options available and is very reliable. The seat height is perfect for you! :thumbup1:

My Short list
 

Honda Africa Twin 650 or 750 (not so cheap)
Suzuki DR 650SE
XTZ Super Ténére

Having just come from that area, I hope your shed is heated :cool4:

Hi,
if you can get a DRZ400S for 1400, as one member mentioned here, that is cheap, provided condition is good. They have the best reputation here in downunder, excellent trail bikes. I had a Honda XR400R myself, but would prefer the DRZ400 over the Honda. A friend of mine rides one. If trails are the target, the DRZ400 is a bulletproof funbike, and lightyears ahead of all 600/650 dual purpose so called Enduro bikes. Just look at the weight and quality parts for suspension used, it says a lot.
All the best Michael

DRZ and KLR What are these???

Suzuki DRZ400.. Comes in 3 flavours but you really want the "S" for overlanding but they are very similar.

Its 80% offroad bike, 20% bike road... Don't buy one unless you like to explore the rough stuff. (this one is mine below).

Let down by the horribly uncomfortable seat and general MX bike rattle. Very capable though.

http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos..._8139000_n.jpg

The KLR is cheap as chips and hard as nails but built to a budget...The Yanks LOVE them and I can see why.

Much more of an all purpose bike and probably ideal for your needs.

http://www.mcnews.com.au/NewBikeCata...R650%20RHF.JPG

:thumbup1:I do like your bike very nice :thumbup1:....specially the fluffy seat......I do intend to get it muddy and do some rough stuff.....Have been looking into the enduros as a hobby too looks like fun....Just one question on the Suzukis though.....My mates into raceing bikes and has an R1.....When i said to himone day that i liked the clourful Gsxrs to look at he said ooohh you dont want a Suzuki the build qualitys crap......is this true with enduro type bikes?????

Kawasaki Suzuki collaboration ?
 

Is the KLR one of the bikes that Kawasaki and Suzuki collaborated on ?

Nice DRZ tedmagnum how long at time do you disappear into the bush for ? I see you are carrying lots of fuel.

As a previous Suzuki salesmen I'll have to admit that the finish on the ROAD bikes was pretty crap in the late 90's and even into the naughies...

This was just the quality of the finish on the fairings, forks, cases etc.. It was purely cosmetic and it's IMO completely irrelevant on an Enduro bike.

The fluffy seat is just a sheepskin thrown over. A very common modification and costs about £10 :)

The KLR is way older than the collaberation days I think...

I got the DRZ solely for a trip to Capetown. After taking an XT600E to south america and HATING the weight and basic suspension offroad, I decided I wanted something more up to the task. I have an Africa Twin which I use for more road based trips.

That tank is only 14 litres (original is 10l) and the 10L jerry is 10L giving me 24 Litres and hopefully 300 miles !! Nothing compared to some lol.

Quote:

Just one question on the Suzukis though.....My mates into raceing bikes and has an R1.....When i said to himone day that i liked the clourful Gsxrs to look at he said ooohh you dont want a Suzuki the build qualitys crap......is this true with enduro type bikes?????

As Suzuki road bike man I would disagree with the suzi's having crap build quality as tedmagnum said. I've 3 GSX-Rs (97, 2000, K4), 96 RGV and worked on many others. Although I would say the build finish lacked a little here there, not as good as say Honda. The mechanical side has always been great.

I ask about the DRZ tedmagnum because I took a XTZ 660 Tenere to cape york and found it too top heavy off road but was great on the way there and back on the black stuff. I had a DRZ a bit later but only ever used it for short trips, never more than a weekend.

I recently sold an old '89 DR600 and now have an '04 TTR 600 RE Yam. The Suzuki was a much tougher bike, all round!

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g9...a/DEC08007.jpg

My TTR is a good old lump, and I am currently having a great laff on it. The reason I got the TTR is that its a lot of bike for not much ££££'s. I paid £1900 for mine, second owner, 4000 miles, new tyres & MOT. I've started "modding" it now though.

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g9...wakz1a/TTR.jpg

Its also a nice basic air cooled motor (same as the early 90's XT600) so easy to fix.

Gissa shout when you're on the road & we can meet in Salisbury (halfway) and do some of the Tank Tracks !!!

Im getting spoilt for choice..........thanks for the responces.........would love to meet up pigford and do some lanes but im afraid in a few weeks or so im moveing up to Scotland:scooter:So it,ll be a long way to go for a days laneing.....but when im visiting family and i come down on the bike i,ll be sure to take you up on that offer......before we lose all the lanes...:(

http://img7.travelblog.org/Photos/11...n-Desert-0.jpg

I know it isn't a 'typical' adventure bike, but I cannot recommend the Honda CG125 highly enough. In my opinion it was perfect for Africa, and I wouldn't hesitate to take it anywhere.

You can get a good one with a lot of change left from 500 quid, it is childs' play to fix, it is bulletproof, it doesn't attract as much attention as bigger bikes, it is difficult to crash, but easy to lift if you do. It's frugal (120mpg), and will run on anything, it is good for shorties, but spacey enough for my 6 foot frame. It's perfect.

Birdy

Love it.....think in todays world with all the techno and keeping up with the joneses we do lose sight of how much fun you can have on something like that....:thumbup1:whats the top speed fully loaded?????and how would it fare climbing at altitude?

Hi Birdy,
the bike is only a tool, and the trip itself what its all about, good on you,
cheers Michael

The little Honda would be a great choice, as spares are so eadily available, not that you'd ever need any!!!!

The top speed, is around, *cough*50Mph*cough. That is downhill with a backwind. The altitude knocks a fair bit out of it, especially if the road is steep. There were points in Ethiopia where we found ourself cruising at less than 10mph up hill, in first gear, overheating reguarly and having to stop.

There wasn't one place we managed to find in Africa where consumables weren't available within a days ride. As for major breakdowns, they can pretty much all be fixed with a hammer. The only actual work we needed was a new rear hub and bearing assembly. The bearing went, and we kept on riding until the heat fused the bearings and melted the hub. We didn't have to buy a new one, we just got it fixed by a guy with a welder for a silly small amount of cash.

Simon Gandolfini also used one of the newer CGs, which are almost as cheap and probably even better for the task.

Birdy

I started overlanding on a R1150GS, on which my girlfriend and I clocked up 7500 miles in Argentina and Chile: mostly road, but some gnarly tracks and dirt roads too (especially to an off-road novice as I was and still am, really...).

That got written off in a prang and I got a little Honda XR 400R. I thought this perfect overlander, albeit only fit for one person (I now have a sidecar outift for trips with my girlfriend: more stalbe and can carry our dogs too). Light, relialbe, excellent off-road and punchy enough for tarmac, but for me, it really was not the best choice: prohibitive service intervals and a seat designed by the Spanish Inquisition.

I now have a Honda Transalp 600. Nowhere near as good off-road as the XR, not as light, but doubltess capable of getting me to my destination at the other end of a stony mountain pass. For me it seems a great choice: my first full day's ride was 1000km and I was not overly tired and i was still able to walk....

My point is this: Once you've decided on the type of trip, distances and terrain you are likely to spend most of you time on, then you can narrow your choice of bike, but in my experience, comfort is paramount.

No matter how competent a bike is off-road, on-road, wherever, if you are not comfortable your enjoyment of the trip and your willingness to be diverted to this spot or that will be grealy affected. IMO, road handlung is secondary: as long as the bike has some off-road pretentions you should be fine: after all it is not a race:it's a trip, so cutting edge enduro is probably overkill for most of us.

HTH

Have my eye on a XL 600 L Honda if im correct?????and intend to ,,,If i win......Strip the whole bike and engine to learn inside out.....I had to decide on one bike as it was just driveing me insane with all the choice....