Touring on a 125cc? Would you and if so which?
 

Now I know it's theoretically possible to tour on anything from a GS1100 to a Velosolex, but practically is a 125cc enough?

And if so, what would anyone recommend? I'm not meaning serious overland touring, here, more a pack stuff on for a five day tour in Europe, with perhaps the odd cheap hotel thrown in.

I know, I should probably go look and come back with more specific questions, but as dealerships are scattered far and wide and few have much in the way of stock, I thought I'd start simply.

Unless you have a specific 125 that you love and cherish, I'm not sure why you'd want to. What is the reason? this might affect the answers!

Honda make a 125cc Varadero which might be OK. :)

Matt

Well Ok the main reason would be that I've inherited a spare bit of cash, have always fancied a bike of my own, instead of various borrowed bikes I've ridden over the years and don't have a full licence, so I'd have to buy a 125cc to get my err "eye in" before I could take a test and if I'm going to I may as well buy something I could vaguely tour with this summer - as I won't get a test now till October.

125 touring?
 

Hi I'd choose the honda 125 valadero looks and feels like a bigger bike, reliable and you sit a little higher, better views of the road and other sites:oops2: almost a mini road biased gs:innocent: all with Honda build quality:thumbup1:
Tdmalcolm
PS Have a looky here....Honda Varadero XL125V Review in 125s at Review Centre

Seems like a good enough reason! :)

The only problem you might have is getting insurance to cover you in europe as a learner. I have no experience of this, so it might not be a problem, but worth looking into before you get too commited, I'd say.

You could certainly tour on a 125. I've toured on a 350 Enfield which probably has the same sort of power as a modern 125, although it might have more torque which is nice for the heavy luggage. Just stay well away from dual carraigeways/motorways, which are no fun on an under powered bike.

The nice thing about a low powered bike is that it teaches you patience. You get used to pottering along with the local traffic, instead of trying to hare past it like you might do on a bigger bike.

I think one of those Varaderos might be a good bet. Alternatively you could try a Honda XR125 or a Yamaha DT/XT 125 with Andy Strapz panniers thrown over the back. Exploring the tiny little windy roads in amongst the Alps on one of those things might be real fun.

For your camping gear look to lightweight hiking and cycle touring kit and you should be able to keep the loading to a really neat minimum.

Have fun!

Matt :)

I've just spent a month touring China on a 125 - 7,500km in 28 days.

Eminently doable, and given Chinese road conditions, probably better than doing it on a bigger bike. You just have to accept that your touring speed will be around 70-75kmh (in China my average speed was more like 50kmh due to the road conditions).

Garry from Oz.

Oh, see now I think I'm in love
 

Why did you guys have to start with the Varadero?

how about the Yamaha tw125 or the suzuki vanvan?
i don't know where you licence is registered but in i know that in belgium people are allowed to drive a 125cc motorbike with a car licence. as for holland, your not. but if if you have a belgium licence..you can legaly drive a belgium 125cc in holland.

ain't one united europe great? :eek3:

Ah, good onto cheaper and shall we say "less-handsome" bikes. The licence thing is odd isn't it? I've got a British licence but live in France but can ride a French registered 125, but only in France.

Now I look though I can see a whole range of things, I'm reading good things about the Derbi Terra right now, and in a bit I'll no doubt discover another fifty bikes !!!


Now I see why you guys like bikes so much.

Yammy DT125 if you want to go "off-tarmac" a bit

Honda CG 125 for bullet-proof, loads of miles to the gallon, go on forever biking.

My son had a CG that he tried his very best to kill through neglect and abuse. Sold it after two years commuting 40 miles a day, for more money than it cost him. It got stolen once and the police recovered it. He got a phonecall saying that they had found his bike but it had been wrecked. It hadn't, it always looked like that !!!!!

Check you can reach the ground with both feet, and can balance the bike stopped on an adverse camber using feet. The seat has to be comfy, because you will be in it for a long time.

Now plan your routes on teh old 'D' roads as I do for my BMW :) The money I save on peage pays for my BnB stops :)

Honda CG125 and/or Yamaha YBR125 could be my kind of choice. These YBRs are being highly recommended by courier services and I read many people touring all over Turkey with them.

Though in Turkish, check out for some YBR touring and bike images:
Ikiteker Motosiklet Fan Kulübü Web Sitesi
Ikiteker Motosiklet Fan Kulübü Web Sitesi


Dunno if they are also available in EU countries.

cozcan

:)
 

If fuel prices continue to rise, I think that all of us will be touring on 125 cc bikes!
:scooter: :)

four stroke
 

personally i'd stick to a 4stroke for reliability and fuel economy. i once met a guy on a cg125 who'd been all over the world travelling on it for 14yrs! he was on his own for 10yrs and 2's up for 4 years after meeting a girl whilst wandering. suzuki rv125 van van looks a good little thing which can take you up and down dirt track's no problem. the only bad thing i see is a small tank but it has a big wide seat and room for luggage. these are cheap here in the uk at £2000 new(if you bargain) which is great compared to £3500 for the varedero. i will be buying a van van myself after the summer to play on as my scooter is boring me now.
another thought is to buy secondhand if it's only for a couple of months until you do your test. lots on e-bay.....
bonne chance mon ami

My first bike (a total beater) got stolen. When it was recovered they wouldn't let me see it since they thought I would just let them keep it. I took the risk and it was as beat-up as the day I got it -- only the lock was punched out.

--Dave

I would consider the Qingqi 125 enduro--I know the Qingqi 200 enduro is actually the Suzuki DR200se (Qingqi is the OEM for Suzuki's DR200's engine and frame), so if the 125 version is also the OEM for the Suzuki DR125 (if there is such a bike), you are so there! Heck, for price, you would probably be better off on the Qingqi 200

What about a CCM RL-125? Not bad for just over a thousand UK pounds.
http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/5...trocr40pz0.png

Here is the Qingqi enduro in 125cc

Jinan Qingqi Motorcycle Co.,Ltd

and the 200cc

Jinan Qingqi Motorcycle Co.,Ltd

and the way cool motard in 200

Jinan Qingqi Motorcycle Co.,Ltd

Well I made my trip to the bike shop today, first time I've been in one since I was about 20 - what a find, I could spend hours in there, I'm really beginning to see the appeal now, not only do you get the freedom of the open road, but you get a never ending supply of gadgets and doodads to try and possibly buy.

Anyway, back to the bikes, started with the CG125 as they had a secondhand in stock and I've ridden them in the past, very nice, but I did feel a bit cramped - a bit like a frog on a stick, all arms and legs everywhere. Tried the Van Van, which was new and felt much the same.

Then I moved onto the Varadero, which felt a very different machine, much more solid, bigger of course and much more of a bike to ride, not just one to get about on. there was none of the folded up feeling I got from the previous two, but my legs are long enough to reach the ground properly. I didn't get the unfolding feeling on the Vara when I got off. That said, it's a fair bit heavier and I can imagine combined with the higher frame it'd be a bit more of a handful loaded for touring, but nothing compared to what some oof you lot have to put up with.

This afternoon, I'm off to a different bike shop who stock the Derbi which I'm quite drawn to as it seems to have a lot of the Varadero's riding benefits, but not the Honda price. Mind you, you get what you pay for and perhaps that price equates to better reliability, something it seems hard to test on a short ride. I'll just have to see if I can spot a load of broken down Derbis in the back of the shop.

At the moment I don't see myself moving up from a 125 even after the test (I'm emigrating to Finland fairly soon, and the riding season's too short for me to justify the expense - my girlfriend tells me). Mind you she's raving about a 125 Sachs Madass "scooter" she's seen, but I think perhaps not.

http://www.cybermotorcycle.com/galle...125%202005.jpg

Then again it is kinda cool.

Interesting look--but no place for luggage of any sort; other than a backback

To ride I can't say there was much of a difference, the riding position seems to be pretty much the same, but I did find it slightly more comfortable at the lights on the plain Terra, the Adventure had me reaching for the ground a tiny bit (I've only got little legs). That said it didn't feel like I'd be doing a Ewan and ending up underneath it.

Compared to the Varadero? Well the Honda felt more solid and a little better built, but it is almost €1000/£800 more expensive, and I can't say it felt that much better. Throw in the fact that the Vara would need aftermarket panniers/top box etc which are also more expensive that the Derbi's boxes and I reckon the Terra/Terra Adventure pair are the ones for me. I was almost ready to put down my cash for the Adventure + boxes and then the dealer pointed out that they'd also fit on the Terra and that the GPS mount was available too.

Sorry this has turned into a bit of a mini-test, and I've still not actually chosen anything. Thanks for the suggestions, and if anyone wants to pitch in with anymore. If not watch this space to see which one I chose (And it won't be the Sachs)

Interesting reading, Alex. Yeah, keep it up. With fuel prices going up daily, we'll all be on 125s soon and you'll have got there before us.

I think you've sussed out the Derbi and the Honda pretty well and it's a tough job to weigh up all the pros and cons but why are you buying new? Isn't there a used market in your area? A 1-2 yr old Varadero would probably represent best value.

This has been a good thread.. A real reason to have a specific CC ( legislation) and sensible road tests. Note though if you are tippy toeing on teh flat, stopping on a camber can leave you 'legless'. I will be interested to hear what you settle on.... I qyuite like teh cg125, but I am biased as it is a copy of teh old Triumph cub :)

Hi Alex.
Sorry to rain on your parade but I'd be very surprised if you can legally ride a 125 in France on a UK license. If you trade your UK car license for a French one - no problem, but on a UK license I believe you are only entitled to ride or drive in France or anywhere else in the EU what your UK full license entitles you to.
But as to a cheap 125 - I'd be happy with a Chinese Jinlun 125-11. Physically a large machine and good value for money.

Harleyrider - if you like the Jinlun (Texan?) I have a Hysoung Aquila 250 for sale in Sheffield, long story how I came to have it but it only has 3000 miles on the clock... am about to do a stage 1 tune to improve the engine characteristics, should be a great bike

The Pulse Adrenaline is supposed to be a good 125, all it would need is knobblies for overlanding (maybe strengthen rear subframe), looks cool too.

My personal recommendation would be spend 600 quid doing your DAS course while you still can (easily), then spend the change on a cheaper older bike (any capacity) - this way you can go anywhere on anything

I'm a bit more French now.
 

I checked this with the prefecture today and yes indeed a British person in France but retaining their British drivers' licence is allowed to ride a French registered 125cc bike in France because in France you just need a car licence to ride a 125cc (like the UK?). If you think of all the scooters for hire on the Med, this makes sense.

Mind you while I was there I thought "why am I keeping my British licence, when I'm resident here, just so that I can keep the licence for a tracked vehicle steered by its tracks?" and decided to swap, handed over my old licence and a couple of truly terrible passport photos, and went back an hour or so later (filled the time looking at helmets) and I'm now the proud possessor of a French driving licence (and so no legal worries there) and I've managed to retain the tracked vehicle category on my new licence too.

I wouldn't say I was on tip toes on either of the Derbis, just that on the Terra Adventure I was straight legged with most of my foot on the ground, and the Terra I was flat footed.

I think so far it looks like the plain Terra is in the lead, it's got a larger tank, it's cheaper than the Terra Adventure and of course it's got road tires as standard and I have no plans for long off-road travel. Throw in the fact that all the accessories are available for both anyway, and I slightly prefer the look, and it pips the Terra Adventure to the post.

As to why not a secondhand Vera? Yes, i could get a 2-3 year old for the price of the new Derbi, but there's a few reasons why I think the Derbi's a better option for me.

Firstly - distance. The nearest Honda dealer's 45kms away the nearest Derbi dealer's 22kms. The Honda dealer doesn't have any secondhand and the nearest on their network is 250kms from here.

Secondly - support. There are more Derbi/Piaggio dealers in France than Honda dealers.

Thirdly - accessories. Yes I know I can get panniers and racks for the Honda, but I'd have to source them and fit them, with the Derbi they're in the dealer's.

Fourthly - friendliness. Mr Honda-Dealer was a bit snobby with me, nice enough but I only got a short ride round the block and he was a bit sniffy when I mentioned the "Touring" word. Mr and Mrs Derbi-Dealer were very friendly, gave me loads of time for a test-ride, answered all my inane questions, gave me a coffee, said I'd get a discount on accessories (panniers, gloves, lids etc) if I bought them all at the same time, and will help me fit all the touring equipment.

Amazing. Every time you ask the authorities for help in France you get a different tale.
I have a friend who exchanged her UK car license for a French one just so she could ride her 125 in France without taking her test.
I have another friend who has been repeatedly told by the gendarmes to transfer his UK license to France so they can put points on it for speeding. He's sent it off 3 times now and each time it's been returned with a note to say he doesn't need to transfer it.
Others I know have transferred their licenses because the French one doesn't expire at age 70 like the UK ones.
Two people I know have managed to obtain HGV class 1 entitlement in the exchange without even asking for it.

The Aquila does look a nice bike. My wife had a Hyosung 125 before she passed her test. The Jinlun 125 we have is my daughters. It seems much more of a bike than the Hyosung we had earlier. We bought it new nearly 3 years ago for £900, when the same money would only have bought a clapped out and thrashed Suzuki Marauder or Honda Shadow. No contest. It's still going strong after 8,000k and my daughter still prefers it to the physically smaller 250 Virago she has been riding recently. I've replaced most of the fasteners as the originals were like cheese and I've just taken the clapped out chain off to replace it, but I'd trust it on a long trip if I had to.
Both wife and daughter long past their test now so not really looking for another small bike but thanks anyway.

Agreed

This is very true, I have imported three vehicles into France, each time was different :)
I have been asked bythe gendarmes to get a new 'EU' ( they mean credit card type with a photo) UK licence. I would do it, but, that means sending my old paper licence back which would leave me without a licence for a few weks.. Here in France you 'have' to have your licence with you. The Spanish cop who stopped me for driving across the garage forecourt without lights, was not entirely happy that I should have a french registered bike on a UK licence.

The general principle with licences is that if you have one of the newer EU type licence (green paper or the new credit card type) which you can recognise by the 12 stars on it and a whole bunch of languages, then you don't need to change it for the one of your new country of residence.

You'll notice on these that there are a bunch of categories A-Z on it. Each of these categories is in theory standardised across Europe so if your licence allows you to ride/drive that category in the country where you obtained it you can ride/drive the same in any other European state (subject to local variations). Unfortunately it's these variations which cause confusion.

Anyway I now have a nice French one - although they pointed out I didn't need to change it - which I feel is much better, mainly because if I lose it I won't have to go through the hassles of replacing it via the DVLA which took me weeks last time. Mind you it'll farly shortly become Finnish, which will no doubt cause much fun.

OLDBMW - You don't send your licence back to the DVLA(C?) the local authorities do it for you. In France you go to the prefecture and hand them your old licence and a couple of photos (here in the Cotes d'Armor you don't even have to pay). They then issue you with a "recipicé" on the spot (well a short wait) which shows any eager gendarmes that you are licenced. You'll then be issued with a full French licence after a number of hours/days/weeks (in my case an hour and a half as they weren't busy). At some later date they send your UK licence back to Swansea, who will then remove your UK licence from the system.

Beware though, if you've got any point on your UK licence which aren't actually marked on it, at this point the DVLA(C?) will contact the French authorities who will then be in touch with you sharpish. I've got a "friend" who traded her provisional UK licence for a full French one, and five onths later had the gendarmes on her doorstep who took away her French licence and considered prosecutuon for fraud.

And having a UK licence in France no longer has the benefits of any points not being put on your licence as the French and British are now both within the European notification network which means the points will find you.

Hi there without a shadow of adout a dt125r.My first bike 30.000 trouble free miles.bigger bike bigger bills.:mchappy:

*update*
 

In the end the Derbi Terra Adventure won me over, even over the plain Terra which I'd previously prefered. It was the little things that swung it between the two, like handguards, and not liking red, they really are the same bike after all. Also the dealers I'd tested them at had sold the Terra, and were willing to give me a good price on their demo model Adventure so in the end the Adventure worked out cheaper than the Terra plus extras, so that was another great reason. And they gave me more coffee, a good deal on a jacket and gloves, serviced the bike before I rode out the door and said come back in a month or two for us to check it over once it's run in - free. Put that in your pipe and smoke it Mister Honda.

I've not yet toured on her (she's a she I'm sure) but she's got about 1400kms on her now, and all's going well, tip-toeing on cambered roads hasn't been a problem because the bike's plenty light enough for her size and anyway I do what all French bikers seem to do and sit myself in the middle. The luggage looks to be pretty good quality too, although so far it's held my shopping and not my camping gear, I'm sure it's made by someone else but it's branded as Derbi, one day I'll have to try and work out who it is. I'm waiting on my top box from them though but the built in luggage rack seems sturdy enough and theres plenty of things to bungee onto if I wanted to put a stuff sack on instead.

Quality of manufacture seems excellent, the paint's good and thick looking and very scratch resistant, all the welds look good (but what do I know) and the everything fits together well, and most things come apart easily if you want them to. There's a couple of annoyances - the tank's a bit small, and there's no fuel guage, just a warning light that comes on when the reserve level has been reached, it'd be nicer to have a proper fuel guage. Mind you I fill up so rarely because the consumption seems so low that perhaps that doesn't matter too much, and I have made myself a nice dipstick. I've noticed that Derbi now have a 250cc engine in their range, how long before they pop this in the frame I wonder? I reckon that'd be a great lightweight tourer too.

Performance has always been fairly brisk, at least compared to memories of old CG125s, and I've never felt I couldn't keep up with the traffic even on the RN (110 kmh 70mph limits), although there's one sharp bend followed by long hill on my way home which does seem to sap that a bit and I end up at the top doing about 85kmh when the speed limit is 90, but I've noticed as she frees up a bit this is improving. Off-road I've done nothing more serious than gravel fire tracks which are all hard-packed and quite well maintained, but she' grips well and the potholes don't end up shaking my teeth out.

So the next thing is the tour, she's due for her free service in a couple of 100kms and hopefully the top box will be in by then so the plan is to head off for a few days after that, and get some touring miles in, I doubt I'll go far from home, but I want to give her a good test on a variety of roads to see how she feels fully loaded. Then off to wheelie-school so I can be a right proper Charley.

Oh and I stumbled on THIS website yesterday for those who doubt a 125 as a tourer. Argentina to Australia - four years and two Yammie YBRs.

Would I recommend ithe Terra Adventure? Well Ok My bike experience is very limited, and I've only ridden something with an engine bigger than a 125 a couple of times so I have little to compare to, but I have to say - YES, if you want a lightweight, but full-size feeling bike she's excellent, and the Adventure equipment is a big plus. There might be a trade off speed against weight, but from might point of view touring is about looking at my surroundings, not watching the blur as I whizz past.

Hi,

I have done it on little honda nxr 125 in peru, bolivia, chile, argentina and paraguay, with my wife, survied, lot of fun - it is here:

last four icons on the page

Podró¿ dooko³a œwiata


rgds
konrad

pannier makers
 

hey alexlebrit. i believe that touratech manufacture the panniers, although they denied this when asked! but a few close ups on promo shots reveals the tt logo. maybe they were just demos though.

Hi there, what about the Suzuki GN125, after I saw this guys riding in the patagonia and the carretera austral, I made my mind and I bought the GN. The bike is sweet, and has an excellent fuel range, 100 mpg and it isi very reliable.

Here you go the video

YouTube - Patagonia Aventura 2008, Suzuki GN 125

Great vid victor

Hi Alexlebrit, just wondering have you managed to do some touring on Terra Adventure yet? Any new experiences? I'm really curios because I've planned to buy some 250cc "versatile" bike (YBR 250 probably) but then I saw Terra - perfect look, perfect idea... Most other 125 cc are around 10 hpw and Terra is 15... (half way to 250 cc which are usually around 20 hpw or so). I'm acctualy not concerd about riding solo, but what if I want to take passanger with me? Do you think Terra can managed it with some normal travel speed (70-80 km/h)?

Thanks a lot!

I've ridden two up a few times and she's fine at 70-80kph; we were fine on the dual carriageway as well even at 100+kph. Two up with all the gear though? I think it might be a bit of a struggle in some places. One thing I haven't done is any real off-roading either with a pillion or with all the gear, just a couple of very hard packed dry gravel roads which are almost as smooth at tarmacced.

One thig to look out for apparently Derbi have had a falling out with the suppliers of the ali cases and they're not on their options list at the moment. They reckon they'll be back on before the end of the year though, and I'm guessing they'll be much the same, but for now, packing isn't going to be as easy.

yeah i have had real trouble with getting hold of some panniers to modify for my cross city, and after using soft luggage which i didnt find so good, i have had to buy a 39 litre louis top box. looks the part but will find out for sure this weekend when i go camping. those ali top cases look the bomb!

btw if you need to find any decent off road trails over in the UK alexlebrit, i have a wayfinder account and would be happy to share information

much love and peace out.

Thanks for your reply Alexlebrit. Enjoy the ride!

chech out my facebook page learer legal adventure touring

I got a: Sorry, this page isn't available The link you followed may be broken, or the page may have been removed.

Yes 125cc are deffinitly enough even for overland trips. Specialy in Southamerican countrys 125cc bikes are very comon so if you use one of them you not only save the cost of shiping your big bike but you also dont need to carry spare parts as they are available everywere:

http://adventure-travel-experience.d...en_suedamerika

mines would have to be a xr 125 for ease of getting parts worldwide check out my page
www.facebook.com/learner legal adventure touring

Like this one? Which I am riding from the UK to Central Asia on, currently in Tirana, Albania, a fantastic little bike as long as you avoid motorways, it is comfortable, light and giving well in excess of 100 mpg.

http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/O.../0/M/034-M.jpg

Touring
 

You could always get a proper bike like a vespa,lol
Serious though the guys have given you a lot of good advice,,,
I'm simply posting as apart from having my Ducati i have pretty much toured the world on my old px vespa..the old two stroke italian workhorse has never let me down and looks visually beautiful and also turns heads everywhere you go
It also packs a punch with almost double the luggage space compared to any big tourer withe front and back chrome rack plus pannier bags.

As for you the varadero is a good choice then again so might be CBR
The funny thing with the vespa is it was perfectly fine on dual carriage ways and and motorways although there is more pleasure in riding the and B roads.
As for your licence to be honest there as far as I am aware are no restrictions in most countries to riding a 125 ? Maybe just not some or all motorways
There are some rules yes particularly in italy and others by to be honest the likelihood of being penalised is minimal as long as you don't compromise your insurance..you should be ok
.i double checked with carole nash and the fact that they include euro breakdown in my cover shows there are no restrictions in most nations and they never said I couldn't
there again I may completely wrong,lol but I have been in germany ( on the autobahn) holland Spain france and italy and never had any issues at all
Hope you get yeh right back and happy riding.

I am just about to buy my first bike and I am looking at a 125. I am in Phu Quoc, southern Vietnam and what I find here is the Suzuki GN125 (USD500-700) and I have been offered a Daelim vs125 (USD600-900). I know there are some Yamaha YBR125, but haven't seen any for sale.

I have two months to get used to it on a low traffic area, then will hit the road. I have a few months experience riding smaller bikes (Honda Waves, Air Blade, etc) and I take it slow and easy. I am getting licensed here (it's the only way to ride legally) and will be doing safety training. Just to give you peace of mind that I am not just a kid who saw Top Gear.

Anyway, this will be for touring Vietnam. What do you guys think of the Daelim? Thank you.

G'day
We were on Phu Quoc for Viet New Year on our 125 Honda Future (underbone)
It did the job,with pillion, soft panniers and rack bag,for our 8,000km tour of SVN but a real bike,not underbone like the Future,Wave,Air Blade etc,would be a much better choice for touring Vietnam.
Solo the underbones arnt too bad,even 2 up with 50-60kg locals they do OK.Just. If you weigh 90kg,without luggage or pillion,and you really want to explore the country buy a proper motorbike. I think the GN is such a beast and if so should do the job. With MORE SUSPENSION,stronger frame, a clutch and manual gearbox,more adjustment for ride position & comfort and the ease of fitting a rear rack/throwover panniers, tank bag etc its a much more comfortable and practical way to tour.Daelim equivalent of the Suzuki should be fine.The Daelim City (underbone) I bought there in 99 was a good little thing.
On our return next year to complete our tour of Central and north VN we will purchase a EN150A Suzuki for the reasons above.
A wonderful country to tour but if possible keep to very minor back roads away from buses,mini buses and trucks.The drivers are nuts:eek3:We also found the minor roads were in much better condition than the over used/bad condition main routes.
One for you to keep in mind Gia Nghia to Buon Ma Thout.Lots of this road was absolute hell.Has to be one of the worst rides in my 50 years of motorcycling, turned me off underbones forever.:cursing::scared:
Cheers, Macca

Interesting thread. I'm heading to Cape Town in November to buy a Honda XR125L that I will ride to Norway. I've decided to go with a 125cc bike because:

• I am not in a hurry - I will take 6-9 months just to go Cape Town to Egypt
• I am only 166cm tall so can't touch the ground on most 250cc dualies
• I want a dualy rather than a road bike
• My favourite touring bike so far has been the Honda CBF250 but I want an off-road bike this time
• 125cc is cheap to run and light to throw around
• I want to force myself to travel light - not point carting a whole house with me
• I noticed that 125s are very common in Africa so might as well blend in a bit

I was particularly interested in the pic of the XR125 with the Beemer panniers.

Personally I'd chose a Honda XR 250, weight difference, price and economy is negligible plus you can sit on 100Kph without ringing its neck!

That might be alright for some people but I can't touch the ground on an XR250 ... not even with my tip toes. To put my 125 choice into perspective - I originally was hoping to go RTW on a bicycle until I realised that a 125cc motorbike can cover 100km on the road in less than 2 hours while a bicycle will take me all day.

Guess it's all about what you're looking for. bier

Very true, although a 250 will do 100 K's in an hour easy! If you so desire, getting an XR 250 lowered to suit your height wont break the bank, neither will getting an Acerbics tank for long range, there are heaps of accessories for the XR range that, in my humble opinion make them an excellent choice!

Good luck with it all, Cheers Dave :mchappy: