looks like these bikes may be coming to the USA.....

http://www.advpulse.com/adv-bikes/cl...-cyclone-rx-3/

some links if your inclined

California Scooter Company | Genuine Quality Scooters

ADVers, Your 250cc Prayers Have Been Answered

M1nsk TRX 300i - Ready for a 250cc Adventure Bike? � ADV Pulse

Youtube has some vids (search Minsx trx300 and Zongshen rx3

Derbi make something similar Terra Adventurer 125cc

An actual ride thread--this guy is not too mechanical, but still rides from China to Istanbul


Zongshen RX3 report


Here is the blog from the US importer:


Some answers… - California Scooter Company - - CSC Blog

Agree
 

Absolutely spot on!
I took a hundred pics of this at the bike show and comparing it to the CCM thought I'd fished a pearl but as usual you get 'ought for nought' it's built down to a price with the sole aim of 'looking like' the real thing

I own a Zongshen RX3, which I bought from CSC Motorcycles in Azusa, California. I have now ridden the bike about 9,000 miles, and I like it very much. The bike is very robust, and carries heavy loads with aplomb. The engine is superb, and the U.S. Delphi EFI is excellent. I haven't had any mechanical problems whatsoever, and I am very happy with my purchase. :)

http://i442.photobucket.com/albums/q...psbgwuhvwk.jpg

We'll reserve judgement until you have 50k miles, Spud! :rofl:

Yuma Simon aka 'culcune'

Early days but the Honley is on my list of possibles for 2017. So far I have two big questions for Earnshaws when I get there

The rear tyre is 15-inch. So far I can only find cruiser tyres, no proper knobbly.
The service intervals seem short, 2500 miles.

This screams commuter bike dressed up to appeal to Charlie's who aren't old enough to have a licence for a GS but maybe that's just marketing that doesn't understand what it can really do.

Andy

The Zongshen certainly looks like the 250 that is marketed as a Honley in the UK; right down to the luggage.
HONLEY 250 VENTURER, ADVENTURE TOURER | eBay

The tyres fitted in the picture above, plus those fitted in the ebay ad, look like semi-knobblie, at least.

They are certainly cheap as new buys i.e. good value in initial pricing but not many dealers in the UK?
When I saw them at the NEC 15 months ago I thought the luggage was attached permanently rather than being removeable - could be wrong on that*.

*Some pics of the bike in the ebay advert above show it without panniers fitted, but still with a topbox in place.

I would skip any bike with 15" wheels/tires ... you'll not find anything beyond cruiser or scooter tires.

The RX3 shown above (now for sale in USA) uses 21" front/18" rear. It's getting some good reviews so far.

bier

Epic Ride on the Zongshen CSC RX3 ADV Bike | MOTORCYCLIST

CSC Motorcycles RX3 Cyclone Adventure Motorcycle Review, Photos, Specs: A whole new take on the ADV-bike scene.

Spudrider is very active on chinariders.net ever since his air-cooled Zongshen bike he started with probably about 10 years now. He has 'upgraded' to the RX3 (still owns his old zongshen with over 100k kms) as posted above.

There is a growing number of RX3 owners in the US on chinariders, as well as a few UK members with Honleys, and others from different countries and their various importers. It is ultimately up to the importer as to how they will kit out the bikes from China, and CSC in the US has done quite a lot of research and long rides to figure out what works best for them. Honley would have its own ideas, but at least there is a forum of multiple owners guiding an owner no matter which country they come from, should any problems present themselves. So far, the RX3 owners have been pleased, and have been adding miles and miles, proving these bikes' worth.

Zongshen RX3 - ChinaRiders Forums

Regrettably Honley are off my shopping list. I came out of the local pit of doom (also known as the White Rose Shopping Centre) and there parked next to Cheryl was a Honley 125.

A late 2014 bike and it was dropping to bits. Rust on every "Chrome" surface, spokes you wouldn't trust not to break by looking at them, engine paint that made you think of Head and Shoulders.

I've been a student and kept small bikes outside all year round, but my 20 year old Honda looked better the day we lifted it into the skip than this 18 month old.

Lets hope they sort the tyre sizes and get their materials up to speed for 2020, because for 2017 I'd take a lot of convincing.

Andy

I had similar feelings about a Mash that I looked at last year, brand new as well.
They are not intended to deal with the UK weather but would probably do OK if based in the south of France or Italy.

Yea, it's definitely still "early days" for these bikes. The good news is every subsequent generation of bikes seems to improve. Many here may have read various ride reports of guys buying China 125's and 250's in S. America and riding round. Just a few years ago these bikes DID fall to bits ... and not just bad paint and rust.

But they seem to be getting better. I've give them a couple more years. Even then, I doubt they will match Japanese fit and finish or build quality. You get what you pay for.

For me finish and build quality aren't that important if the engine hangs together.
The rest, I can deal with myself, do my own upgrades. Things like crap bearings can be replaced with quality ones, wiring can be upgraded where needed.

Step by step ... the yellow peril is upon us. :smartass:

Not a lot to do about the fork legs chrome rusting though. At the moment I would prefer a secondhand CRF250L to this, in supplement to a quality issue I don't like China's human rights, equality and actions in the South China Sea.

I avoid buying Chinese whenever possible.

I like the effect the aggressive pricing has on traditional motorcycle manufacturers and have noted with interest the globalisation of factories - but I factor that in to any considerations. I checked out an old Toyota Avensis with an eye to buying and it was simply the worst Toyota I've ever seen with the dash cracked by the sun and a load of rattles - made in the UK....

Chinese bikes, at least in the US, are ALREADY there! The Haosen Hawk is selling for about $1300 to $1400 shipped to your house. Dozens of owners reporting good things about them, and some are actually taking them on trails and one guy even took his to a mild MX track (he crashed a couple times, so his broken parts are his fault :rofl:). The downside to be seen in the early days--these are NOT California legal as far as CARB--on road or off-road and a few other states, most notably Pennsylvania. Some are still getting plated in New York.

The true test is one guy on Chinariders is planning a trip from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Georgia where he lives, to Yuma where I live, and south to wherever everyone seems to ride to here on Horizons--tierra del fuego. He already bought his bike and is playing around with accessories for a long trip, and has upgraded his sprockets from the stock off-road oriented 15/50 to 17/45 and the stock carb to a Ebay 'Mikuni' as even the ebay 'Mikuni' carbs allow the jets to be played with (using Mikuni jets) while the stock PZ-30 Keihin clone carbs do not. Since he has about $1500 into the bike up to this point, he plans to make it a one way trip and has even called the trip a 'ride and dump' as he plans to fly out of Argentina.

Since I have had success with Chinese bikes as commuters, I am contemplating buying one and riding with him from Yuma through Baja to Cabo, and back, alone. Then again, I might find someone coming north to ride with. I am quite confident that my bike won't have major issues if any at all--least of all the engine. Keep in mind, we aren't planning US interstate speeds, nor planning on recreating either of the Baja 1000 races--the SCORE or the newer 'retro' one that has been revised not too long ago.