Classically Styled RTW Bike?
 

All,

I have started to plan a RTW trip for sometime early 2012, starting in Sydney, Australia, heading up through SE Asia till I hit the Silk Route in China and then head west to the Middle East, round to Turkey, around the northern edge of the Mediterranean Sea, through to Spain and then basically the Long Way Down route through Africa to Cape town, before going back to Perth, Australia to ride home to Sydney.

One of the first things I would like to decide on is what bike I will complete this course with, currently I have a Vespa, which I have done some smaller (tarmac only) trips but the poor wee beast is breaking down, and before it gets too bad I want to sell it and trade up to a model that I will take next year with me, which gives me a year to get totally comfortable riding before taking off.

So I originally went for the Vespa because I love the classic vintage styling, and I do have that same passion for the motorcycles I am looking at to replace it. Top of my list is a original Royal Enfield Bullet 500, restored with some improvements (front & back disc brakes, 5 speed gearbox, electric start, better shocks etc.). One of the appeals of the Bullet aside from its classic styling is that mechanically it is much simpler than a GS1200 and mechanics (and myself) should have an easier time with tuning and repairs. Now I am aware of the downside of Bullets that they need both a mechanically minded owner and require a wee bit more attention with servicing than your average bike, but in my mind I feel that its worth it.

What I would like to know from you guys (especially any Enfield owners out there) is:
A) Is it possible to make it RTW on a Bullet?
B) If it is possible, would you go so far to recommend it?
C) If not are there any other classic styled bikes (Triumph Scrambler or Bonny, another RE?) that might be better suited for the task?
D) Are there aspects of this plan I have not really thought about?

Cheers guys.
Esquire

One big disadvantage in older Bristish bikes is thread sizing. It can be a pig to get the right size nuts in the UK (not just imperial sizes but a seemingly random assortment of pitches even on one machine). The 'new' triumph scrambler should have nice standardised metric everything but they are an unknown quantity when it comes to crushing out 30,000 miles on bad fuel!

Any bike you can think of can do anything you want it to - the Enfield would make it but would need constant TLC (or a VERY good prep including blueprinting the engine) and probably some major engine work at some point.... Old Enfields have poorer factory tolerances but are made out of decent metal at least.

For stunning 'classic' looks and modern performance the Norton Commando is a mouth-watering bike but not sure if it would be good to be the first person to long-distance test one!!

What about the new Tiger 800 XC?
If you insist on going retro I'd take a new bonnie or scrambler; I've never understood the desire to use an enfield.

I had a Bullet. The first thing is to learn the models:

UK made
Madras 4-speed
Madras 5 Speed iron engine
Madras 5 speed Aluminium engine
Madras EFi

Mine was a 5-speed iron. The tools issue is odd, you need imperial tools for the major engine parts, metric for the outer stuff doh. These things are labour intensive (2000 mile oil changes) and slow (50 mph cruising). They are also very simple. Mine had one loose connector and two busted clutch cables in two years and 12000 miles. I put this down to a massive improvement in quality at the point they went 5-speed and the fact I hardly modified it (did minor things like opening the exhaust and putting an extra tooth on the gearbox). The chap who bought it off me tried to make it do 70 mph for longer than it was meant to and it siezed. The owners treat them like mechano and usually want to try and make them into Goldies on the cheap, so Caveat Emptor. The EFI version to me would make a great RTW bike, they are low, easy to ride, simple in some places, massively reliable in others and above all frugal (I got 70 mpg with a Goldstar silencer and upped jets). Buy as new as you can and get at least 6000 miles in as practice for how these bikes ride. If you can live at the bikes natural speed and service needs you'll be happy.

I own a Hinckley Triumph Bonneville. They will prise this bike out of my cold dead hands. It is tough, efficient and easy to ride. They used modern materials with basically an early 1980's engine layout. Performance is similar to an airhead BMW, which plenty of people have used RTW. The 6000 mile service intervals and motorway performance are the big advantage over a Bullet. The tank is too small, 200 miles and you are walking. The tyre sizes are the same as an F650, so you can get knobblies. The paint will fall off the engine, which is useful to know when buying a two year old 1500 mile example from guys who've spent thousands on Chrome and less on petrol, little reaslising they had a true all round bike hidden under pictures of Steve McQueen on the posters.

I test rode a Scrambler. The guff about the 270 firing sequence making it more tractable was made up by a marketing loon, the loss of 10 HP is real. The high exhaust makes luggage a PITA. I'd still get one if there wasn't a Bonneville T100 available. Avoid the SE, the tyres are tubeless, but the front is rollerscate sized.

I'd say the choice has to be based on what you know. I prefer FI to carbs, don't worry about shims instead of pushrods and as I don't get out of Europe find 80 mph two up cruising useful. For a solo RTW where most things run at 40 mph I'd have to think hard about the Bullets range and frugality against what I know about Triumphs.

I wouldn't join the Tiger XC testers club for at least 18 months!! :offtopic:

Andy

Hello,
mabey you like these vintage looking bikes?
yamaha w650, yamaha xs 650, xt500,
or any moto guzzi.(i do not know if they are sold in Australia?)
Or an old Suzuki gs or Honda cb?

On a large trip i always like my bike to be reliable,
to do work on the bike is normal ,but when you are all the time repairing
the bike on the side off the road is really:funmeterno:.

Good luck with your choice!!

If you are the kind of guy that likes old bikes , then simply buy an old Brit bike and use it .
I'd go for a simple old bike like a BSA B33 , or maybe a RE Bullet .They are not worth too much and are reliable if treated well . If you are a real masochist ,you could try a Panther .
See "The Last Hurrah " ,which is a story about two New Zealanders who took a Panther and a Norton from NZ to Holland .Bits of it are on youtube YouTube - The Last Hurrah: PAKISTAN and there is a dvd and book .
Don't take a Commando ,they are too long a wheelbase to handle well on the rough and the frame is not very substantial ,plus they get hot when travelling slowly.
The only thing I have against the modern Bonnies is the weight ,which is about 100 lbs more than the old Bonnies .This could be a factor if you travel off the highway and will have to pick your bike up regularly .

One of the new fuel injected Bullets might be OK ,but they are rather expensive .
An XS 650 Yamaha is OK if you like classic Japanese bikes and want to travel a little faster than a single will go , or maybe an old Moto Guzzi ,yeah that would be a blast .

Whatever bike you take will need good preparation and you'll need to be very familiar with it's complexities and idiosyncracies but for some people ,like myself , that's all part of the fun .Plus you have to factor in the people you will meet who want to talk to the interesting guy on the wierd old bike.[ or should that be "the wierd old guy on the interesting bike " ?]

Don't buy a Triumph Tiger. I have had 5 Triumphs now and they have all been very unreliable. I don't know why everyone assumes this new one is going to be any different. I think it's going to let a lot of people down. Never, ever buy the first of any bike. It's bound to have troubles.
From what I hear the Scrambler is ok. Tried and tested. it's probably the only retro style bike that has the heart to get you round the world. Add to that it can handle less than perfect road conditions a little better than most. If you really like retro then what about the old air cooled BMW boxers. They have a very good history of reliability.

Kawasaki W650 - kick and electric start, great bike. Or W800 for more poke.
I don't hear of many problems with the new Triumphs including the ones my brother and I owned. What you been doin' to them JT? What were the problems you had?

No serious Triumph troubles here in 6 years hard use except a bad earth connection (rotted after the second winter).

I'd be interested to hear from W650 riders. I almost bought one to get the kickstarter but the dealer simply wasn't interested in anything but sportsbikes. The thought of trying to get the right parts for a pretty rare Japanese bike ("Is that a W650-1 from 2004, or a W650-1a from 2004-5 sir?") from those dealers put me off.

If we are talking less common another one to look for: MZ Silver Star. It's a Rotax 500. Read up on them though some required the exhaust off to change the oil filter or similar such annoyances doh The enclosed chain however is a work of genius.

Andy

I'm going back a bit. The original ST3 had sprag clutch issues, engine leaked, etc, etc. I had the T509 after that, the fuelling was all over the place. Had an 01 Daytona, that was ok at first but then went wrong (repeatedly). Tiger was just an appalling piece of junk. I had the Sprint ST, to be fair that was ok for as long as I had it apart from minor age related issues. All were thirsty machines though.

I may have misread the OP, but I don't think it mentioned classic bikes, but rather classically styled. In which case, perhaps the new EFI Enfields may be worth a look.

The running gear is supposed to be improved, front disc as standard, spectacular consumption and improved maintenance requirements. And now with FI. Perhaps more involved, maintenance-wise, than some other brands but better than the older models, I'm lead to believe.

And can be picked up quite cheap, relative to some other models.

The Woodsman has made it to the "my ideal garage" short-list of bikes, if I were to win the lottery.

I have nothing against Enfields, I admire their simplicity but I don't like EFI. It has dubious benefits for the end user but massive financial benefits to the company producing it. In my experience carbs are more reliable and cheaper to run. Modern EFI is getting better though but I doubt the unit on the Enfield is a "latest model".

I´ve had many carburetor bikes in the past (several Africa Twins, KLR650, CBR1000F, 900RR, Tiger885 for example) and now I´m on my 4th FI bike.

Carb´d bikes did not often have troubles with carburation, but they sometimes did, and needed adjustments, or possibly dismantling... while the FI is yet to give me the first indication of any problem whatsoever. Something like 180.000 kms ridden with these FI bikes altogether right now.

And when I did a 34.000km trip from Europe to Oz, that was on an FI bike, and it never missed a beat. So it works just fine these days, and (perhaps surprisingly) seems more trouble-free than carbs ever did.

Add to that the fact that when you go high altitude, carb´d bikes usually develop problems a lot sooner.

And the fact that similar capacity engines were considerably more thirsty with carbs, than they are now.

And the fact that with injection, fuelling is much quicker & easier to adjust to your liking, and when done properly, throttle response is much better compared to carbs.

Not saying you COULD NOT do it on a carb´d bike, sure you can, and there are many good choices in that category, too. But for me it´ll be FI all the way, it´s just more modern, and I like to concentrate on riding, so I won´t miss having to work with carbs.

(this is just my 0.02)

Interesting question and you may have many different answers depending of the experience of each member.

If I would go for a RTW trip today, it would be with a not too old but not too new bike, as simple as possible. Motorbikes which are 15 to 25 years old have an advantage: it is very easy to know their long term or high millage weak point and correct it prior to departure.

I have nothing against EFI and it makes our life much easier, has better fuel economy etc... EFI is reliable, there is no point about that. But EFI means also that you need a pressure pump for gas, several sensors etc... and none of those can be fixed on roadside. Which is not the case of a carburetor and a manual fuel valve. Maybe it does not fail very oftenly, but when it does, you are screwed up.

Considering that, my choice would probably be a big mono trailbike such as a Honda XL or XLR500/600/650, a Yamaha XT500/600 a Suzuki DR650.

Another big advantage of these bikes is the dealer network: all the parts are available in almost every country, which is not the case of other "exotic" brands. It is not exactly what I would call a "classic bike" (although you can build an old looking XT500 like the ones which participated to the PD race at the end of the 70's) but it is definitely a bike which would be 100% adapted to your project.

My second choice could be a BMW airhead: an R80G/S or a R80/100 GS. Great bikes, but dealer network and availability of parts is not even close to Japanese manufacturers.

Last possibility, but we are very far from the "classical bike look" you like: Honda Transalp, Africa Queen, Yam Super Tenere 750 but we are talking about heavy bikes, less simple by design than mono and airhead flats, and the availability of parts may not be as good as the monos (less unit sold compared to monos).

Good luck!

Don't know about reliability, but I think the Triumph Scrambler has the looks you want...

In Terms of reliablility you can't go wrong with a Kawasaki W650. I rode one accross europe a couple of summers ago. Even did some light off roading with it.

It depend how far of the beaten track you want to get. It doesn't have a great ground clearance but brilliant fun on mountain roads.

I don't know why people are down on triumph, I have tiger 955i and it doesn't miss a beat, It's a perfect road bike comfortable at any speed and loads of luggage space.

I'm a little bit in love with the triumph scrambler tho so I say get one of those!!

Hi,

I have a 2002 350 Bullet. Its a genuinely brilliant bike and I love it, but I wouldn't take it round the world. For me its about country lanes and summer days. Touring the highlands and islands - not the third world. Personally, I find long distance riding hard enough work without the extra headache of constant maintenance.

Having said that, plenty of people have done huge journeys on Bullets, I guess they are just made of sterner stuff! The Bullet is certainly capable of what you suggest.

However, if I wanted a 'classicly styled' bike for long distance touring I think I'd get a nice second hand Kawasaki W650. Lovely 'brit' looking bike with Japanese reliability. The best of both worlds!

Matt :)

you could always make a bike look 'classic' if the look is what you want...

DR650 with a round headlight, brown leather luggage and a cheap spray job should do it.

The best suggestion of the thread.

Here's a bike I had for a while. Late 80s/early 90s brazilian cg125 originally with various plastic bits etc etc. Turned it into this with stuff I had lying around just as a weekend project to make something I liked the look of. My vision was a 1960s trial bike.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/steven....cg150-done.jpg

Stuck a high level steel mudguard on it later.


An idea I came up with whilst travelling on my dr350, was to make a hybrid old/new off road capable bike. I was thinking an old british engine (500cc single?), in a relatively modern chassis (something like the dr350). I'm not sure about the rest, maybe plastics from an older 80s dirt bike or something? Steel is heavy. I was specifically imaging this as a bike for a trip. I decided I would love to travel on a classic bike with some character to it, but that I couldn't compromise on suspension etc as I wouldn't enjoy having to struggle along at slow speed on the bad/none roads.

I must admit I've been thinking along similar lines for a few years but it's remained an intention rather than actual metal on the ground. Just to add insult to injury though I've wanted to base it round a two stroke - a 1970's enduro bike maybe, for example a PE250 Suzuki or an IT250 Yamaha. An ISDT MZ250 or a Bultaco would be top of the pile but unlikely to fall within my price range.

Then a little bit of reality kicks in and I wonder would I really want to do a 5000 mile trip on a bike that I rejected as unreliable and fragile when they were new and that maybe a 90's CRM250 Honda would be a better starting point.

Many years ago I did make something similar to Nath's bike, but using a CB125 OHC engine, specifically to go to the Elephant rally. A week before we were due to go someone stole it!

Huge MZ fan here, but I think you are right about strokers. By the time you've taken into account the spare plugs, enough smoke oil to get you between places that only have stuff meant for chain saws, postage on spare barrels (which are now getting rare of MZ's) etc., life is a whole lot easier on a 4-stroke.

At this point however, the way MZ engines just hook up to the frame with four bolts, the welding set and cement mixer diesels usually pop into my head :helpsmilie:

Andy

Yeah, I know all that and I still want to get mixed up with smelly oily things. It's probably just me having a mid winter bike crisis. You're right, the 4Ts are a lot easier and with a bit of care and prep you can get almost anywhere on anything and arrive with a vestige of sanity left.

There's five 4Ts in my garage and with a bit of kicking the tyres / checking the oil I'd go anywhere in Europe on all of them but I wouldn't trust the the only 2T in the bunch past the end of my drive. The "biker's lament" (Please God, don't let me break down - repeat endlessly) accompanies every journey on that bike and just about every other 2smoke I've ever ridden. Your two wheel dumper truck fantasy could use a variant of it - Please God, just let me get there in this lifetime :rofl::rofl:

Metisse Motorcycles - Steve McQueen Desert Racer

:)

If you do an RTW on a Vespa you wouldn't be the first... There are many scooter adventurists, of which I am one. Giorgio Bettinelli is a person to look into, he rode more than 254.000 km on a classic Vespa and spendt years and years in the saddle.

Two Vespas even finished in the 1980 Paris-Dakar Rally, and me and two friends will be participating in the Budapest To Bamako in 2012. My wife and I have previously riden from Cape Town to Nairobi on a Vespa. It was a lot of fun, and it was quite easy.

One thing that must be said, although any machine will take you RTW, even a lawn mower, it doesn't meant that any vehicle will give you as much enjoyment. For most, it is high performance and worry free rides that will give them the most enjoyment, for others it is something entirely different - like a Royal Enfield Bullet with plenty of reliability issues, poor performance and handling (compared to newer bikes that is). Who you are only you know, but if you don't have a particular interest in the bike itself, but more the ride - get something newer.

Personally, although I am a hardcore Vespa fanatic. On an RTW, I think I might have gone for a BMW F 800 GS, or a used F650GS Dakar, a Yamaha Tenere, or something similar. I think the novelty of what you are riding will slowly die - then it is all about the riding itself and the places you are going... then again, a classic does give you special status among fans accross the globe.

If the bike is right for you, it's right for you. I can rebuild an MZ without the aid of a manual, I can tell what's wrong with one by how it feels and I know when it's struggling. The 70 mph performance suits me fine, I feel no need to go any faster but don't feel restricted. This would suit me to go anywhere with the one issue that you can no longer get a lot the parts. The fact it's a stroker and will at some point eat another piston does make it less than suitable as a RTW bike, as does the decline in oil availability and hence range issues.

Compare this to certain standard "adventure" bikes. They tick a lot of paper ideas about range and reliability, but I'd never use the 100+ mph performance and I'd need to think about security more advanced than having a kick starter on the left and too close to the pillion pegs. Now I won't name any specific internet discussion points, but lets imagine there is some sort of "well known" issue with my choice. I'm sure I could diagnose it with the right kit (hand held diagnostic tool etc.), but I be on a learning curve. The biggest issue though would be in my head. I'd constantly think I heard supposed problems and question my ability to deal with them.

I'm sort of lucky that I know Hinckley Bonnevilles almost as well as MZ's and they do solve the parts and pistons thing. If you knew nothing about bikes it would make sense to learn the Tenere/BM GS/KTM etc. If you know Enfields or similar it makes total sense to me to use that knowledge. The fact you can get this technology on bikes still in production and even E-bay common is even better.

Andy

All thanks for the comments so far, it has given me lots to consider.

I think to paraphrase all the comments you all say that it is slightly mad to go around the world on an Enfield, but if its something that i am truely passionate about then i should go for it.

Warthog was spot on when i said "classically styled bike" as obbosed to vintage or classic bike, part of the reason is that as silly as it sounds the look of the bike matters to me, even in the middle of the African dessert.

That being said i dont want to have a suckie trip because i chose the wrong bike. Given that parts of my trip will be in the middle of Africia and central Asia it seems that i will have some rough terrain to come across.

For that reason i am wondering if the Royal Enfield Bullets have the capability to transverse the soft sands of the world or would it be better to switch over to a better suited enduro bike for the sake of the trips enjoyment.

Thanks guys.

Another nice looking option are the Moto Guzzi.

Reliable and classic looks. A twin 750 with 50hp should last forever. Lighter than the Triumph plus has cardan. No chain maintenance :thumbup1:
And dont forget nothing beats the sound of a Guzzi :mchappy:

http://www.motorcyclenews.com/upload...iv7classic.jpg

A new scrambler version of it is comming soon:

http://www.ikarusbikes.com/wp-conten..._scrambler.jpg

mmm, they look nice.

how do you think they would go with off roading and wouldn't Guzzi be just as annoying as say Vespa for sourcing spare parts across the world?

Otherwise a viable contender in my books

Apart from the electrics made of spaghetti and fasteners made of cheese....

Actually for me this one's a no-brainer....if I had to set off one up RTW today I wouldn't hesitate to choose my Vespa PX 150,even if I also have a monolever G/S sitting around....

There's something reassuring about needing just one little special tool to take the whole engine apart (and I really mean, the Whole engine) by the roadside in a worst case scenario. Granted, the stock configuration is pretty much bulletproof but even if you screw up with the premix or something, a change of cylinder and piston takes about 15 minutes to carry out just about anywhere, and you can even carry most of a spare engine in the space under the fuel tank :)). A puncture can be fixed in the time it takes to smoke a cigarrette, thanks to the spare wheel stuck to the frame.
Ok, you have to sacrifice some offroad abilities, but the Vespa will get to wherever you want to go and will Chug along quite happily all day at 80 km/h....did I mention the luggage carrying ability? Just get front and rear racks and you can carry tons of stuff with you.

As for spare parts, probably the last thing to worry about in most of Asia...they're a street corner away in most places, even the official stuff is cheap and available from dozens of online retailers, assuming you need something which you can't just carry around with you.....


http://www.percitour.com/wp-content/...o/_b073548.jpg

This guy rode from Italy to Japan, using a dishwasher tray as a luggage rack...

(Percitour.com .: in Vespa dall'Italia al Giappone)

i love my Vespa GTS 250ie, but would never take it around the world, let alone up the coast of Australia. I am finding it just dosn't have the juice needed and if the wrong part breaks here it can take up to 3 months to get back on the road (happened before).

I will say though that i came across this on Friday and has i think taken over as the No.#1 contender for my RTW bike:


http://bikeexif.exifmedia.netdna-cdn...hammarhead.jpg
"The Solo X" by Hammerhead Industries (solo x ural sT by Hammarhead Industries | Hammarhead Industries via Ural Solo by Hammarhead)

Some of the comments below from others alude to the fact that it might be a hardier choice than a Triumph Bonny, has beeter speed range and potentiall less mechanical issues than a Bullet, love the fact that it still looks like the 1940's BMW it was originally copied from and I can see real potential to customise it for my needs before going.

The only issue is that Solo Urals seem to be rare as hens teeth and there dosn't seem to be a great deal of info out there about them.

What do you guys think, star performer or soviet dud?

Get to know the builder/dealer and plan a learning curve where you try and break it somewhere where getting home is just a phone call and a ride on the truck before you head off.

Out of the box these things can still be complete and utter garbage. Some dealers can find obvious issues so a weekend rider won't trash it the first day out. The US distributor takes things seriously, but are still faster at bringing out new paint schemes than getting the factory to use decent materials. Don't know about Australia, Ural UK hide behind two really good dealers but couldn't handle their poorer ones. A good dealer will find every single problem, which could involve some serious time between taking it out of the crate and handing over the keys. If the dealer will engage in meaningful conversations about the performance limits keep talking. If the dealer is some mad foil head who claims it'll cruise at 85 mph for weeks on end and can be made to look like any old BMW you like, run.

Edit: Mis read a bit of the post above here, ignore this.

I don't think they are duds, but you need to go into this with your eyes open, it is real 1940's technology with a part complete programme of modern material introduction. The price is IMHO an issue. For the £10000 the UK dealers want to take an outfit out of the box, check/fix it and send me off with a set of instructions about how to keep it alive, I can buy a Bonneville, a chair, a bigger tank and just fuel and go. I think by the time you'd made a Ural GS (you need to closely involved, the dealers like chrome and fancy paint but probably couldn't wire up a map light that'd be working after a few weeks real use) you could have rebuilt a BMW GS, made a Triumph into a GS or bought a Tenere. At this point I don't see where the Ural wins unless you know a lot about Urals and not much about old BM's and new Triumphs or Yamahas.

Edit: I think the comparison (which I have now read properly) as a Big capacity Enfield is quite close, but while Enfield have now moved on to the aluminium UC engine, Urals major bits are still very much at the cast iron stage. Maybe call it a big capacity late '90's Enfield?.

Andy

If you're still thinking "Royal Enfield" you should peruse this travel report. Man that's adventure!.

I met a guy in Bangkok traveling RTW on a brand spanking new one he'd just brought over from India.
He was having a host of problems already. The best mechanics around here couldn't get him sorted out. The poor thing would bare run!
It didn't look like he was going to get very far.
Definitely a very pretty bike, sadly even new ones appear to be Royal pieces of shit. :frown:

You'd really ride around the world with that seat? Doesn't look like a good idea to me.

Yea that seat look like a mid-evil torture device. I cant see riding around the block on that!
I suspect the OP doesn't have much long distance riding under his belt.

I did 500 mile days on a very similar looking seat fitted to the Triumph. You can never IMHO judge a seat by it's looks. The worst seat I ever tried was some plush extra wide thing on an R1100RT. Too wide, too soft and too plush to let you loose any heat, purely designed to look good in the show room and feet comfy for the 20 mile test ride. Sprung leather tractor seats might surprise you. They can of course be **** from the fashion designers like anything else related to current production motorcycles.

Seats of course are very easy to change.

Andy

I don't undestand you don't want to take a Vespa because geting parts is difficult and then you like the idea to do the same on the Ural...

Glad I didn't misunderstand.

I must say, I'd love it if you choose a 2010 Royal Enfield, but that is as far as I'd go in theis matter: the choice is ultimately yours, but Enfields are slowly edging their way into my affections and if I decide to replace my TA600, an Electra EFI (rather than the Woodsman, after all) would be a seeeerious contender.

I will say this about your concerns over their performance in some conditions.

The truth is whichever bike you opt for, there are some terrains it will excel on, others where it will suck and everything in between: unavoidable on a route as varied as the one you are undertaking.

You either choose the one that will be closest to the ideal most of the time, or choose the bike that pings your affections and enjoy it for what it is.

In other words, yes an Enfield may suck in the sands, but has a lowish CoG and is not overly heavy anyway. Then, when you are on more typical terrain and tracks, you'll enjoy the thumping single, great economy and its disarming looks when mingling with the locals.

The question is then which box is most important to tick?

Either way, I am way jealous!
New bike buying and overland riding! Right now I can't really afford either, let alone both!:(

Those tractor seats are actually really comfy!!

Only just seen that post. Nice bike, nicely made etc. But a contender...hmmm. Not sure

Performance from a modern Triumph would leave it standing. I recognise some parts. For example the exhausts seems to be the Raceways High level pair. For that price, it would be undoubtedly cheaper to build your own!!

Down side is that, assuming the engine is pretty much the same, consumption is not great, and service intervals are every 2500 KM!! Perhaps more so, given that the lump is not lugging a tub around.

Again, I am not trying to sell the Enfield specifically, but as a peer in tech and power an EFI would be cheaper to buy, cheaper to run, have similar performance, have better service intervals etc, and possibly be lighter.

As a bike, though, that Ural has flare, and owning a Ural myself I can see that they have tried to address many of the issues I have id'ed as weaknesses: the exhaust level, the airbox design etc...

Would be a first!!

If you want a classically styled BMW I would suggest buy an airhead, you should be able to get a /7 series for not too much, and them modify it to suit your needs. This will give you what you seem to be looking for with reliability, some would say more reliability than a new BMW.

Fair point from a couple of you since my last post. Bush Pilot is spot on that my long range riding exp is limited, I have taken the Vespa on mid range distances around the Australian east coast, but that was all on reliable top notch highways.

For everyone else I get the hypocrisy in some of my choices, cant find Vespa parts so lets try to get some Ural ones from Mother Russia, truth be told I am so in love with the rugged classic styling of either the Ural Solo, Bullet 500 or Bonneville GS that they have to me come out as the front 3 contenders as bike for the task.

From what everyone is saying however (ThreeWheelBonnie and Warthog especially) the Bonnie seems to be the most mechanically reliable choice of the 3.

Because getting back to the basics of my original post what I really want is a classically styled bike that is capable of handling rough conditions, wont have to many mechanical problems to detract from the experience and if it needs mechanical help is either fixable by me or simple enough that any local mechanic should have a good chance of understanding the mechanics without needing specialised diagnostic tools to fix.

The secondary criteria to this is a bike with enough power to cruise around 100kms on a highway (which the Bullet 500 makes but just I think) and something that lends its self to a couple of simple modifications to make it more suitable for longer trips (ie bigger fuel, better shocks, tires and luggage racks).

It might help you to all know that my inspiration for the (eventual) bike of choice is the British WWII bikes used in North Africa, and if an Enfield is not the best man for the job then I might just trick out a Bonnie for the same purposes.

I did (also on Bike EXIF) come across this beautiful Bonnie mod (think this bike with Tourtech panniers):

http://www.bikeexif.com/wp-content/u...lle-custom.jpg

So what do you think, A Bonnie GS up for the challenge?

And out of the 3 is it the best man for the job?

The Metal Mule Bonneville rack lets you fit either MM or TT panniers, though goodness knows why you'd bother spending cash beyond the rack (I'd sell you mine if they weren't so bashed in).

Tyres wise, Heidenau K-something knobblies fit easily and make a huge difference on snow and mud and I'd guess sand.

You'll need to make a sump cover (I wouldn't call it a bash plate), as the oil filter is just in a recess in the bottom of the engine. Mine is just 3mm ally held on with P-clips.

The rest is just practice.

To quote that credit card ad, the look on the faces of 250-trallie riders as a Bonneville arrives is priceless :eek3::rofl:

Andy

Edit to add: I'd like to know if the kicker on that green bike is real and why would would do a replacement exhaust system that still blocks access to the back wheel is beyond me, but there are a lot of "dress up" Bonnevilles out there.

There are a lot of imitation "Bonnevilles" too.

Why don't you buy a knackered real one,rebuild it,go round World.

My rebuilt '66 did'nt let me down once in 11 years.

I know, I hate name at times, too much baggage that stops them advancing in the direction I want them to go. A perfectly practical, tough, modern bike with the right technology and riding position and they named it after a range that ran from the first superbike to incontinent old Meriden rattletraps that's took the last bit of the industry down with them, through parts bin specials knocked up in sheds :censored::rofl: .

Still, after the '60's T100 and '70's SE it'll be a laugh to see what the next one will be. Maybe they can make the starter motor fail intermittantly,charge extra for the indicators and go on strike every fortnight as part of the "experience"! The OC can live without electricity two days a week. :rofl: Maybe they can do a special Edition: A blue one signed by Norman Tebbit with "On Yer Bike" on the tank and a Red one signed by Arthur Scargill !

Still, could have been worse, Rocket and Thruxton wasn't even a Triumph if the old bike book someone got me is to believed. Scrambler is the only name that makes any sense.

I believe there is some argument that the line does actually run continuously from Coventry to Meriden through the Bloor made from bits bikes to Hinckley? Think I'll leave that one to marketing people, I just like my T790.

Totally agree that if you have the knowledge to use as Meriden bike it would make total sense, but my technology comfort zone starts in about 1985 I believe the OP's does too. There again, Ted Simon made it on a bike built by the "collective". I'd have bought a Honda!

Andy

What about something like this? Other than it's being Italian, it looks perfect for a rtw trip. Borile - Multiuso And it's not too expensive either. Needs a bigger tank and a few bits and bobs and it's ready to go.

my 500 Bullet (2003 UK spec) was great in the soft sand and mud.

the rear sub-frame that holds the mud-guard was a weak point for me (african pistes/washboard). the mud-guard assembly is heavy, and I snapped the sub-frame twice. it's made from thin metal tubing. maybe try and work out how to brace them, or get a stronger set made.

the rear shocks wore out fairly quickly, and I suspect that they caused the subframe problems. so I'd upgrade those too.

however, I'd without a doubt take another one. and I'd recommend one RTW. they are great fun. mine was very reliable engine-wise. two clutch cables snapped. it'd be a rubbish bike if you were in a hurry, or were riding with someone else on a faster bike. but solo it's great.

I had to put up with the occasional chin-less wonder telling me how unreliable enfields were. even sitting in ethiopia having ridden 15,000 km people delighted in telling me how crap and unsuitable the old girl was. however, the majority of people seem to love a scruffed-up enfield.

I think a lot of unreliability comes from poor mechanical sympathy, whatever the bike. Some riders can break even the most robust bikes (the quantity of postings about AT/KTM/GS shocks breaking). you just need to pick something that you enjoy riding, and that suits you. no point riding an enfield if you like racing around and riding jumps.

Ccm sr 40
 

Resurecting an old thread but at the UK Autumn meet I had a little go on a bike I've always wanted to ride. It got me thinking about whether this is the bike to answer this question

SR-40

Not sure how available these are in the rest of the world, but it is powered by the suzuki dr 400 engine and only 120kg.

The Suzuki dr 400 has been used on countless trips on this forum and the bike looks gorgeous. Also it is low enough for my wife to ride (It says 930mm on the website but offically is 820mm). It could probably do with a bit extra bash protection and only has 12 litre tank.