Any Dual Purpose Motorcycle Riders?

I had a KLR 650 for several years. I loved it but that rear tire would slide on wet pavement at the drop of the hat. Not the best thing in Seattle, lol. I sold it and got a Buell Super TT, which I find to be super-stable in the rain. It's not really a dual-sport, even though it has the dual-sport-style front fender. But then I am more likely to ride to the mall than to the mud anyway.

I am still lusting after the BMW 800 GS. It is not morbidly obese like the 1200GS, supposedly gets 60-70 mpg on the highway, has 2 cylinders, and can be had with a centerstand.
 
Hamon said:
No .22 rack, but I've got yer Pelicans:


My KLR with my dad's Suzuki DRZ400 in the background.

I'm an avid dual-sport/dual-purpose/enduro/street-legal-dirt-bike rider. I've had my '05 KLR650 for a year and a half now, racked up 27K miles so far on it, and am immensely enjoying my time with this bike. It's my only mode of transportation 9 months of the year, so the big Pelican cases (rack system by Caribou Cases) work well for groceries as well as longer camping trips I'm prone to taking.

It's served me well even if I haven't treated her the most kindly all the time:


Good choice on the KLR. They're a good, reliable motorcycle, and as long as you're not looking for race performance on or off-road, you'll have a blast.

Travis
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I thought you might be a member here after you posted that sebbie shot at the other forum. :D:thumbup:
 
ColdOne said:
I thought you might be a member here after you posted that sebbie shot at the other forum. :D:thumbup:
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And I was wondering the same after the comment on the Sebbie from you! Looks like we've got good taste in pastimes.

Travis
 
ColdOne said:
For some reason I can't pick up a cheap hobby. :confused:
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I think that applies to most people here and why I resist taking up golf. I can't afford any more hobbies that use titanium, carbon fiber or good steel in any of its hardware.
 
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wutitiz said:
I had a KLR 650 for several years. I loved it but that rear tire would slide on wet pavement at the drop of the hat. Not the best thing in Seattle, lol.
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If it had a knobby I'd say that was why it slid so badly on wet pavement.
I have a Avon Gripster on mine and it's a lot better than the knobby it came with on the street.
 
mwerner said:
I actually went through several off-road bikes back then, including one of these little guys:


That's a DKW (Das Klien Wunder) enduro model with the 125cc Sachs engine.
Had a leading-link front fork, and was actually a great little bike. The only problem with the Sachs engine was that it had 6 gears and (reputedly) at least 12 neutrals.

Usually, the neutrals would appear when you were trying to climb a hill. There were quite a lot of Sachs-engined racers around back then, circa 1975 or so.
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Now that's a cool bike. :thumbup: I grew up on Hodakas and Bultacos and while the new bikes are certainly better I'd still prefer an older one. I love the smell of Castrol R....:)
 
Hehe- I had a Hodaka as well. Raced it during my mercifully-brief motocross career.

The rumor about the Bultacos was that they were made of old Messerschmidt parts...

Sportsman motocross in the 70s. Take your "dual purpose" bike, strip off everything that would come off, add a couple of knobbies and a paper plate for your AMA number, and Go Racing!
 
ednemo said:
I ride a 2008 Suzuki V-Strom 650 DualSport.
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I just bought a K9 wee about three weeks ago. Great bike!

I will confess that I got it with the ABS — I'm going to be putting much more time in on the road than off, and I figure I can always wire in a switch if that changes.
 
holygoat said:
I just bought a K9 wee about three weeks ago. Great bike!

I will confess that I got it with the ABS — I'm going to be putting much more time in on the road than off, and I figure I can always wire in a switch if that changes.
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I too got the ABS. And I have had opportunity to use it...and I like it!
 
I have an '03 Kawasaki Concours for long distance riding and commuting, but my Ural sidecar rig gets some time off the beaten path. It is a blast on logging trails and state forest roads, and interesting in the snow too.
 
My step dad has 2 KLR 650's, I'd like to save up for one soon or another bike like that, I saw another thing that was kinda cool with the KLR's I think the military came up with a diesel conversion for it lol, it would make for quite the torque beast Im sure.
-Barry-
 
I still have my ke 175 from back in the day. I sure would like to get it running. good times.
 
I have a 97 Honda XR250R enduro motorcycle. I know its not dual sport but it does have a head light and tail light. I have a pro curcit pipe on it and it has alot of power. I wish I could make it street legal.
 
The diesel KLR 650 is an intriguing beast. The main impetus was that the military does not want to have to supply more than one kind of fuel, so they decided they wanted a diesel motorycycle. It gets about 100 mpg. Roadwarrior not withstanding, I always wonder about the wisdom of using a motorcycle in any 'survival' situation, such as military use. True it is more maneuverable and has a great power/weight ration, but a) can't carry very much; b) requires two hands to operate, for the most part; c)even the most minor accident often means a bad injury; a broken ankle or smashed hand is the last thing a soldier or roadwarrior needs.
 
mwerner said:
Not lately.... However, back in the seventies, I had one of these:


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As to dual purpose, I actually did flog the rather hefty piece of iron through an enduro once, after putting some real knobbies on. Thing had torque to spare and was utterly waterproof.

Later, I put street-ier tires on it and used it as a (rather low-geared) roadster for quite a while.
You couldn't break those Honda 350 engines with a hammer.
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Perfect. A friend of mine moved to another city and asked me to drive his Motosport 350 there for him. Had the use of it for a few days. Sweet ride. Lots of torque. Good for stop sign to stop sign city riding. Real comfortable ride, no cafe racer cramps. He had the real heavy one from the first year or two with the electric starter.

http://www.motorera.com/honda/h0350/motospor/motospor.htm
 
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Ah, good ol' dual sport bikes. I started out with a '74 Yamaha DT250, followed by an '80 Yamaha 550, '90 Suzuki DR650, and an '06 Suzuki DR650. There was a mix of street bikes and dirt bikes in the mix as well. :D
 
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