Convince me that a FE570 is a bad idea.

[MarkusCo]

I'm finally in a position to be able to plan and actually do a ride I've been wanting to do for ages.

My original plan was to ride around the US with my wife, but it's now extended to include Central and South America too - mostly because now I don't really have any time constraints, my wife decided she's a lesbian, and I no longer have a mortgage etc. All that makes things a bit simpler for the trip - albeit in a really messy, complicated way

I've fallen in love (lust?) with the Husaberg FE570, and no matter what negatives it has (eg no cush drive, short service intervals, low fuel capacity, plastic/minimal sub-frame), the weight, power and off-road capability of it just keeps bringing me back.

I want to stay on the dirt as much as possible, and I like the idea of being able to try out single-tracks that people I meet along the way might suggest.

The other thing is that it's been a while since I've actually owned a bike - is the power-to-weight of the FE going to be an issue? I grew up riding dirt bikes, and the last bike I rode was a two-stroke YZ250 a couple of years ago that I loved.

Also, the trip is most likely going to be a solo one, mostly because at 31, all my friends are busy having kids instead of riding bikes around the world

Anyway, back to the original point - will I regret doing a longish-term trip a FE570? Convince me it's a bad idea, or tell me it's brilliant, or suggest other bikes. I'm pretty open to other options, despite my infatuation with the Husaberg...

-Mark

[colebatch]

I cant help you in terms of talking you out of it. I have one and love the bike and am starting to build it up as an adventure bike.

I would advise two things.

(1) DO care about the non cush drive hub. You want to protect your output shaft. If you damage that, its a large PITA to sort out (split the engine open?).

Dunno where you are based (Europe / North America / Other) but Woodys in the US will lace up a cush hub for you. Haan Wheels in Europe will do it. Some KTM cush hubbed wheels will also drop in (google to check which ones).

I did about 3000 miles (5000 km) on a 570 in South America last year, and a mate I was riding with rode his 570 20,000 miles (32,000 km) back to Montana from Southern Chile, mostly off road. He did not have any mechanical problems and he did not change his oil that frequently either. From memory about every 2500 miles (4000 km).

(2) The other thing I would change is the stock enduro gearing. For travel, you can effectively dilute the extreme power to weight ratio, give you a much more comfortable cruising speed rpm (less engine stress and wear) and improve your economy by changing to a less extreme gearing. We used 15-47 for touring

Apart form that, go for it. There are plenty of fuel solutions out there, both bike specific and in terms of non bike specific solutions like bladders.

[MarkusCo]

I'm in Australia. I'll have to have a look/call around to see what I can find regarding cush hubs availability here. Maybe the KTM ones would be the go here.

Did your mate have any mods regarding oil capacity/coolers etc for his trip? I do like the sound of that longer oil change interval. Also, did he post any info on his trip on the net? I'd be keen to see what route he took...

The gearing changes sound like a great idea.

Thanks for the info, I appreciate it. Now I've just got to find a nice low kms one to buy

[DR650Bandit]

Jeez id certainly be getting a cush drive hub laced up. When planning my Cape Town to London trip I (briefly) considered doing it on my WR450. I spoke with Gary Benn who builds the rally bikes for a Yamaha race team. They do all sorts of stuff like adding a bash plate which is also a sump and adds another liter of oil. Heaps of mods like that, that joe blow can't do.

If you want to do it on the 570, good on you - Just take it to an upholsterer and get 1-2 inches of foam put in the seat. for $50 it will save your arse. Good luck!

[Steve Pickford]

Another option is the KTM 690 Enduro.

They weight 30kg more than the 570 (I have a 390 as well as a 690), have a greater stock fuel capacity with larger capacity aftermarket options available from Rally Raid & Safari. Service intervals are every 3,000 miles on older bikes and 4,500 on newer versions. My valves have not required adjustment in 12,000+ miles.

Like the FE 390/450/570, the 690 has the adjustable power setting which is a great benefit in slippery conditions and they come with a cush rear hub as standard. They also have more luggage capacity if required, as long as you replace the tank mounts with updated parts from Rally Raid.

Just returned from 8 days riding in Portugal on 690, couldn't fault it, which is more than can be said for the rider at the start of the ride. Link here to RR:

Portugal October 2013 - The Anthill Tour - ADVrider

Overall, there is more aftermarket support for the 690 than the FE's and this will continue as KTM have stopped making Husabergs.

[MarkusCo]

DR650Bandit, after yours and colebatch's posts, I'll definitely be sourcing a cush drive hub. I didn't realise you could get one for the FE. And thanks for the seat tip - my arse is worth more than $50 to me

And Steve, I looked at the 690, but the extra weight turned me off it a bit, though I guess it's still heaps lighter than most other adventure bikes. At a smidgen over 5'7" and 71kg (156 lbs?) I'm not exactly a big guy, and when I'll potentially be picking up the bike on rough trails on my own, I feel like I'll be cursing any extra weight pretty quickly.
The idea of it being more set up for adv as standard is appealing though (as is the lower seat height), but I do really like the FE's offroad orientation and weight (I did say I'd fallen in love with it )
That trip through Portugal looks amazing by the way. I noticed a 501 in there - that's the new, essentially-KTM model, right? Do you know how it went compared to the more adventure-style bikes?

While we're here, does anyone know what differences there are in the '09 through '12 570s? I've read about the fuel-pump changes, but can't seem to find much else?

[colebatch]

Originally Posted by MarkusCo

I'm in Australia. I'll have to have a look/call around to see what I can find regarding cush hubs availability here. Maybe the KTM ones would be the go here.

Did your mate have any mods regarding oil capacity/coolers etc for his trip? I do like the sound of that longer oil change interval. Also, did he post any info on his trip on the net? I'd be keen to see what route he took...

List of mods was extensive (but no extra oil capacity) ... you dont have to go the whole hog of course.
But you can find them here
Andes Moto Extreme: Equipment
and Andes Moto Extreme: Partners

No full on blog but a kinda foto blog was on here
https://www.facebook.com/HusabergAdventureTeam (see posts from May to October 2012)

[colebatch]

Originally Posted by MarkusCo

While we're here, does anyone know what differences there are in the '09 through '12 570s? I've read about the fuel-pump changes, but can't seem to find much else?

Try and send a PM (you need 5 posts first) to LukasM ... he will know it in superfine detail. I do believe changes were predominantly superficial.

[Steve Pickford]

Although lighter, a stock 570 is taller than a stock 690 Enduro. Also note that although the FE range weigh the same as their KTM equivalents, they feel heavier to pick up when dropped because of the higher centre of gravity caused by the engine design (DAMHIK).

At 5'7" tall you'll struggle with either bike. I'm 5'10" with longish legs (32"+ inseam) and can flatfoot the 390 with nearly straight legs and flatfoot the 690 with bent legs.

The 501 in Portugal was great, nice and light but the owner was planning an oil change at some point (900 mile trip). Only issue with was that it was a nearly new bike and we think the forks were overfilled with oil from new. They became pressurised and blew the damping adjuster out of one of the fork tops, covering the rider in oil which led to him jetwashing himself at a garage and then rigging up this drinking tube to prevent further oil splashes:



I know that later models of the Husaberg FE range came with some sort of closed cartridge fork, possibly the same as those fitted to the KTM Six Days EXC range. They work better or not depending on your riding style and the terrain involved is the feedback I've read.

Have uploaded three more videos on You Tube from Portugal, all in the Advrider thread. I'm on the 690 with TT racks and Wolfman panniers and a white Shoei.

[MarkusCo]

Originally Posted by colebatch

List of mods was extensive (but no extra oil capacity) ... you dont have to go the whole hog of course.
But you can find them here
Andes Moto Extreme: Equipment
and Andes Moto Extreme: Partners

No full on blog but a kinda foto blog was on here
https://www.facebook.com/HusabergAdventureTeam (see posts from May to October 2012)

Thanks colebatch. That info is great, and that's a solid effort getting the altitude record

[MarkusCo]

Originally Posted by Steve Pickford

Although lighter, a stock 570 is taller than a stock 690 Enduro. Also note that although the FE range weigh the same as their KTM equivalents, they feel heavier to pick up when dropped because of the higher centre of gravity caused by the engine design (DAMHIK).

At 5'7" tall you'll struggle with either bike. I'm 5'10" with longish legs (32"+ inseam) and can flatfoot the 390 with nearly straight legs and flatfoot the 690 with bent legs.

I hadn't thought of the weight vs the different engines/height. Love that drinking tube setup, and those videos are great btw.

Went to my local KTM dealer today and sat on a couple of bikes (probably should have done that ages ago). They had a FE570 there, but it was set up for a tall, heavy rider (via seat and suspension) and so it was freaking tall - I could hardly reach the rear brake when I had one foot on the ground.

Sat on a new KTM 500 to get a vague idea of what a standard FE570 might be like (which is 15mm taller than the KTM), and it felt pretty good. I mean, there's no way I'd flat-foot it, but I haven't managed to do that on a bike since my XR80 when I was 13...

Sat on the 690 too, and it was noticeably shorter than the others. Felt pretty good too. One issue with the 690 that I'd forgotten about is that I'm on a restricted licence at the moment (haven't had a licence until recently, having previously only ridden on private property and in the bush), and so I'd have to wait about a year before I can legally ride one.

I guess I could get a cheap second-hand WR250F or something in the meantime. The 690 is pricey though, and seems like there's almost none second hand here (at least at the moment).

I found a post on advrider of a guy about my height lowering his FE570 35mm with shorter front springs, and a shimmed rear shock - anyone here done that, or have any advice on it?

[Simple_One]

Hi mate,

Just curious what path you ended up taking?

I'm facing a similar dilema to you and also based in NSW. Currently looking at the TE630 Husky, KTM 500 EXC, KTM 690 Enduro and FE570/501's, would be interested to know what bike you ended up with and how you have found it!

Cheers

EDIT: I ended up going with the TE630, Hussy is cool, but everyone loves a Husky (plus it was more suited to my purposes!)

[MarkusCo]

Hi Simple_One,

Sorry for the ridiculously late reply, and clearly I'm too late to be of any help cos you've already bought the TE...

But for the sake of completeness, I haven't bought either yet. As happens, life changes and the trip now may or may not go ahead in the form I was hoping, but other (shorter) trips are definitely on the cards.

But apart from that, I ended up taking the 570 off my list of options, simply because you can't buy it new any more, and I really wanted a bike where I knew its full history.

In the end I bought a second hand KLX250s for relatively smaller trips - it's way more fun to ride than I expected - and the plan is to also get a 250 2T for blatting around the bush. When/if the 'big' trip happens, the 690 will be back on the cards, though I might be completely addicted to the smaller bikes by then, so who knows!

Cheers,
Mark

[Simple_One]

Sorry for the ridiculously late response to your ridiculously late reply

Hope the KLX goes well for you!

The Husky has been good but I too am eyeing off a smaller, lighter and cheaper bike for blatting around the bush....