HUK- New bike on the horizon

[zeRax]

So even thou my DR650/KDX200 combo is fucking rocking my world, i want to go down to one bike, Again..

I love the dr650 with pumper carb, and it could be just be the one bike easily, except i would still need to sort out suspension, and as much as i love rocking it up trail riding on the thing its a bit too heavy picking it up.


So im selling up, bits and all, both bikes.

Been raping my mind, reading as much as i can about certain bikes

namely these bikes....

Husky TE510
KTM EXC 525
Yammy WR250R 09 onwards

even thought about going back to a DRZ400 but ive been there, done that, lack of 6th always bugged me


Love the idea of TE510 or EXC525 and ive been reading about adding an oil cooler for extra capacity to the 525 for longer distance stuff,

also as i understand it the valves will stretch and stretch untill the valve faces get so thin , then you replace them with some really awesome ones that will last and last

te510 i thought much the same, small oil capacity and maintenance.

wr250r good maint, fuel injected, great things like super stator output, great economy,
i would think after seting up suspension and bigger tank, to go for 290 kit and full arrow exhaust, and of course all the removing of things..

my only fear is head winds, my xr250l struggled in head winds, and was heavy for what it was, it also has no after market too thou, so yeh, different animal.

toss up between EXC525 and WR250R, as much as id like to be orange, probably wiser to have the more road reliable one, yea ?

please give me your thoughts guys! :D

[marks]

there is a simple answer for this one - and you should know it by now :yes:

one bike will not do it all WELL

it will either be mediocre at everything (and probably boring ) or good at one end of the spectrum and crap at the other.

ANYTHING that is comfortable for longer road rides will be shit at PROPER trail riding and visa versa.

two or more bikes is the only solution

[CrazyFrog]

EXC, EXC, EXC, EXC, EXC!
IMHO, Speaking from experience of course. Get a larger tank, and do some work on the seat. You'll love everything else.
You'll get over the oil change frequency, it only holds 1.2 litres, so they ain't that bad. Doing gravel road km's, expect to do oil every 15 hours, approx 1000km. Used for enduro riding/racing you'll change it more often. Expect to pay $7-8K for lowish hours EXC 525 05-07 model, $6-7K for 450 EXC.

I rode a WR250R last summer, great revving little bike, massive service intervals, economical and handled superbly, but it ran out of puff at 125 kmph, long highways could stretch it a bit. I wouldn't be comfortable having one as a full time only bike, there's no replacement for cc's. Mainly 'cos I'm a hefty buggar.

DRZ/KLX - you've been there, and know what they're about. Good bulletproof compromise tho.

How about one of them lovely Husaberg FE570's ....or the 450? Real purdy ain't they??

[Crisis management]

Talk to Anthrax about the 525 EXC, I had a brief ride on his last weekend with the motard wheels on gravel, dirt and seal and it was a lot of fun, good power, light weight and precise handling, more fun than the 640 Adv! The seat got old in about 10kms and he does trailer it to events.......

[cooneyr]

Back the hell off K! All the low hours 450/525 EXC's out there have my name on them till I say otherwise. I'm selling my 950 for a 450/525 (dont really care which) at this point. Just got to sell the 950 first so I'm told. If you have too this (http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=306585720) is the one I'd be looking hard at if I had the cash.

I'd not get that fussed about the HT oil cooler (about $600). Would be a good idea to change the oil like Froggy says anyway. I'd save me money, get kibblewhite valves when necessary (need significant adjustment each check), appropriate springs (well your just a little tyke so prob dont need) and a 6.6 gal mother of a Aceribis tank for adv rides (factory tank for trail rides).

Just need to take a HTFU pill to get past the 4x2 pain.

Cheers R

[zeRax]

yes, that 525 is on the watchlist :)

i need to sell the dr650 and bits and the kdx200,

but i can always sell them after.... :P tempted to pull the pin, just want to make sure i make the right decision,

thing is i hardly ride really, unless its a lil trail ride, or with you lot from here,
so the exc is kinda perfect

but i also like the idea of doing the long haul or commuting, where the wr250r would be quite radical i think.... ( in the sense that it can do it )

im really curious as to how the wr250r would do in a head wind on highway thou.


i thought i was close to being sorted on my decision, now u guys make me want the 525 more :P

[pipe]

+1 for the WR250R compared to the DRZ400 I had it is better off road and on road you do need to add a few bits to get the best out of them (lower gearing, EFI programmer,pipe ,speedo corrector, rim locks etc) there is also a lot of junk that can be stripped off to drop the weight.
Check this link for mods and ride reports
http://rickramsey.net/WR250R.htm

Cheers

[dino3310]

Had a short squizz on a 525 :drool:

know i want one.:Punk:

the one on here with the big tank etc :drool: http://www.giantloopmoto.com/pages/moto-photos

[MXNUT]

there is a simple answer for this....one bike will not do it all WELL

two or more bikes is the only solution

Have to agree wth that one.

Whatever you buy will always be a compromise one way or another.

Like someone else said, talk to Anthrax about the 525exc as he has just sold his because it was no good for long distance rides ( bought a 640 Adventure ).

[Waihou Thumper]

Have to agree wth that one.

Whatever you buy will always be a compromise one way or another.

Like someone else said, talk to Anthrax about the 525exc as he has just sold his because it was no good for long distance rides ( bought a 640 Adventure ).

We are all going Orange, over to the Dark Side...:)
My 625sxc was ridden for the first time today - in the pouring rain I might add.
It is light, unbeliveably quick and suprisingly comfortable with the Enduro comfort seat.
With the extra 10 litres on the back - fuel pillow it should give a nice range...400Km or so..I will have to try it out..:)

[dino3310]

Have to agree wth that one.

Whatever you buy will always be a compromise one way or another.

Like someone else said, talk to Anthrax about the 525exc as he has just sold his because it was no good for long distance rides ( bought a 640 Adventure ).

:gob: i thought he was still keeping that for trailing and short distance rides, both would be awesome

[Padmei]

Please please get a Hoosaberg:love:... I need to ride one:innocent:

[zeRax]

i know its all a compromise :P i think a wr250r would be the better small road/offroad mix of the bunch, , with athena 290 kit and zorst maybe 31bhp at wheel or so , may be ok in head winds

hmmm , expensive tho~ surely be able to lighten it up more than most people have done so far on forums ~_~, few ideas

[zeRax]

Please please get a Hoosaberg:love:... I need to ride one:innocent:

stuff all around at the moment :P not going to buy brand new ;P! , you buy one ;D and then we can both ride it :)~

[dino3310]

what about the 400 range XR,DRz, Ktm

[buggsubique]

stuff all around at the moment :P not going to buy brand new ;P! , you buy one ;D and then we can both ride it :)~

You my friend are like a slutty blonde girlfriend - never happy with what you've got. And I mean that in a blokey, riding buddies, drinking buddies kinda way.

What was wrong with the 400 you had if you had've geared it up a bit for the road? It had more hoof than any 250 adv you're gonna get. Lighter than your 650, lower maint than any orange peel you're gonna toy with...:2guns:

But hey, everyone roots differenter. Just givin ya shit.

[andy mac]

I bought a WRR a year ago & I‘m stoked with it. It’s a go anywhere dual purpose bike that is WR in name only there are no common parts. Each weekend I ride 50km each way to the Mungatooks and MarkS leads us astray thru some tight & gnarly tracks. I’ve geared it down for the woods and it still does the highway speed limit. The EFI makes it snatchy off idle & prone to stalling. But it’s easy to manoeuvre despite being relatively heavy at 135kg and you only notice the weight when lifting it out of a bog. Last week on the MMMM I went up one tooth on the front sprocket but I had to hammer it to accelerate with the big bikes on the road – dropping 2 gears into the corners. Yes headwinds do knock the bike back & you need to change down but it revs out smoothly. Now I’m more keen on trail than adventure riding because the bike’s so capable. Have you talked with Kevin from Nelson who has done 30k on his WRR?

The KTMs are alluring but they are full on enduro machines and are you tall enough? The WRR can be lowered. The XR650 has no electric start which put me off. The KTM LC4s have electric start but are probably too big for tight trails. Have fun choosing :scooter:

[CrazyFrog]

Zerax, here's the bike i rode last year, a mate in CHCH is selling it. He's gone orange and big, like 990SMR big, so is getting off trailies for a while. He loved the 2fiddy otherwise.

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Motorbikes/Motorbikes/Dual-purpose/auction-306395736.htm

[zeRax]

You my friend are like a slutty blonde girlfriend - never happy with what you've got. And I mean that in a blokey, riding buddies, drinking buddies kinda way.

What was wrong with the 400 you had if you had've geared it up a bit for the road? It had more hoof than any 250 adv you're gonna get. Lighter than your 650, lower maint than any orange peel you're gonna toy with...:2guns:

But hey, everyone roots differenter. Just givin ya shit.

this is all so true, i am such a bike slut, but things are changing, im going to be a poor student with fuck all room, so it makes sense for me to go down to one bike again right :D?

the 400 is good, and i have been thinking and thinking again of going back to one, like u say it can do it all, and i rev'd the hell out of mine on highway and it never complained at all.

i am a short fucker, so easy adjustable suspension on the wr250r is a plus, but i still have profiles of 1.75" lowering links saved on pc for drz400s too somewhere.

its always going to be a problem, and i dont think the ktms would be too bad, always get around it somehow, hard seats dont bother me so its a non issue there. hmmmmmmmmmmm

im not too worried about things ive read saying the wr250r wont be any good off road, or its too heavy etc, i can lighten it up, and besides i still took the dr650 trail riding and hill climbing, it was a hoot, just a bit tooooo heavy!!!

wr250r supposed to carry it pretty low i think,

ive got an idea of being one of those guys that trys all sorts to lighten it, even might try out those nuetech tubeless jobbies...


sounds like ive got my mind made up doesnt it, guys?


thing is my mind is never really made up :P just swings and roundabouts haha

might have to watch that auction ward....

[marks]

if you are committed to one bike idea then stop fooking around and put a bid in on that wr250r - you wont find a better deal

it'll probably be smoother and more comfortable on road than the 450/525's and they feel nimble like a trail bike should - the weight feels no worse than my WR or DT. Cheaper to run/maintain than just about anything else you could imagine.

Its like a modern slightly gutless DT230 with awesome suspension -
would be vastly better than a DRZ400 off road or on.

if there was a WR450R I'd buy one (but still keep the KLR for real adventure riding)

[Padmei]

Hey Zerax
I've ridden that Wr on Trademen if thats the one you're looking at & it's in fking good cond. Lenny has got the KTM 9x0 erzburg special & hardly gets time to ride. It is well worth the bucks my friend.

If you get it I have to be allowed a whole days ride in the forest tho:yes: You can take gonzo :shutup:

Just reread & saw crazyfrogs post - as you were...

[Woodman]

I would have one of them WRs in a heartbeat. They look just the shiz IMHO.

I would keep the klr. Not worth selling and who here would buy it anyway.?

[zeRax]

you scared me craig, was hunting ur tradme profile to make sure it was you, then i saw r80 shit in ur feedback, only just saw on here that you have an r80, oh the relief ;D stay away! ;D

[zeRax]

was anyone watching :)?

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=306395736

[topo]

Give that ma a beer!!!!

[Woodman]

Cool, good work that man:yes::yes:

[warewolf]

Woot!  

[andy mac]

Congrats, but blue ones are cooler :Punk:

[yafeetup]

625 sxc true dual purpose, run the 18 litre tank and comfy seat for long trips. It will run with the twins all day on the open road and go like stink when it gets hard. For hard gore rides put it back to the 9 litre tank and race seat. I run my 18 litre all the time you just have to tame the beast

[Padmei]

Oh goody goody goody I'vegot a weekend blat around owed to me now:Punk:

[Rosie]

Congrats, but blue ones are cooler :Punk:

Uh, no, I believe the white ones are actually cooler :innocent:
But they do show the dirt a bit :mellow:

[Willdat?]

was anyone watching :)?

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=306395736

I was! Told my wife that it had gone for a good price, I thought there would have been more competition, seems like everyone will want a ride...

[marks]

Uh, no, I believe the white ones are actually cooler :innocent:

sorry
you are WRONG and Andy is RIGHT
all cool yamaha's are BLUE BLUE BLUE :Punk:

white ones are a poor substitute rideen by riff raff

[NordieBoy]

So you're bringing it to the pre BBQ ride for everyone to abuse on Sat?

[clint640]

blue... white... bah! If it's not orange it's a lemon :shutup:

Congrats on the new bike! The WR-R is definitely one of the most versatile machines around today & is a generation ahead of any other small adv bike in terms of tech.

Clint

[NordieBoy]

The WR-R is definitely one of the most versatile machines around today & is a generation ahead of any other small adv bike in terms of tech.

I think it's ahead of just about any adv bike in tech terms.

They will sell metric shitloads of the 450 when it comes out.

[zeRax]

So you're bringing it to the pre BBQ ride for everyone to abuse on Sat?

damnit !

sorry dude >_< plan is tammy to come over to blenheim friday night then we drive down and get it saturday morning and stay night in chch >_<

cause i wouldnt go back to nelson for the weeekend because im working mon-fri in blenheim D:!!!


but yea, exciting stuff all round! ;D

[Woodman]

I think it's ahead of just about any adv bike in tech terms.

They will sell metric shitloads of the 450 when it comes out.


When or if ???

[bart]

Awesome bike. :Punk:

What does HUK mean???? :scratch: Horrible Ugly Krap? Has Useless Kickstart? Hideous Unsightly Kak? :confused:

[NordieBoy]

What does HUK mean???? :scratch: Horrible Ugly Krap? Has Useless Kickstart? Hideous Unsightly Kak? :confused:

Yes. &nbsp;

[Padmei]

Awesome bike. :Punk:

What does HUK mean???? :scratch: Horrible Ugly Krap? Has Useless Kickstart? Hideous Unsightly Kak? :confused:

I thought it was something about hong kong:mellow:

[Woodman]

I thought it meant Heavy Ungainly Kawasaki.

[warewolf]

Heads
Up,
Knuts

:shutup:

[NordieBoy]

Harden Up Kyle.

[Aslan]

nice looking bike Zerax - enjoy :scooter:

[Oscar]

blue... white... bah! If it's not orange it's a lemon :shutup:

Congrats on the new bike! The WR-R is definitely one of the most versatile machines around today & is a generation ahead of any other small adv bike in terms of tech.

Clint

What are they like for longevity?
When I go into my local KTM/Suzuki shop, there are an awful lot of CRF/RMZ pistons lying on the workshop bench.

[NordieBoy]

What are they like for longevity?
When I go into my local KTM/Suzuki shop, there are an awful lot of CRF/RMZ pistons lying on the workshop bench.

The WR-R is based on a cylinder off a road bike engine.

5000km oil changes.
40000km valve checks.

[clint640]

The WR-R is based on a cylinder off a road bike engine.

5000km oil changes.
40000km valve checks.

Yep, that's what makes em cool, near enduro spec power, weight & suspenders but with a motor made to last & a subframe you can hang luggage off. The WR250R is a totally different bike to the the WR250F, only the wheels are the same I've been told.

Clint

[Woodman]

i wonder if you could successfully de-tune a wr450 for reliability and adventurise it .?

maybe drop the rev limiter a bit etc.

[marks]

i wonder if you could successfully de-tune a wr450 for reliability and adventurise it .?

maybe drop the rev limiter a bit etc.

sitting by my knee is the piston for my wr450. It is supposed to be replaced at 70 hours. This one has 200hrs on it and looks like new (as did the bore). The WRF yamahas seem very long lived as long as regular servicing is carried out.

Andy's WR250R would be much much nicer on the road than my WR450F and neither are my idea of a 'long distance' adv bike.

[clint640]

sitting by my knee is the piston for my wr450. It is supposed to be replaced at 70 hours. This one has 200hrs on it and looks like new (as did the bore). The WRF yamahas seem very long lived as long as regular servicing is carried out.

Andy's WR250R would be much much nicer on the road than my WR450F and neither are my idea of a 'long distance' adv bike.

Then again there is my mate here at work who's WR450F has done 200 well maintained hrs of trail riding & has just come back from the dealers workshop with a $4000 bill for fixing a whole lot of worn out engine bits.

A WR450R would indeed be tha shizz. Mind you the KTM 690 fits the hi tech, lightweight, well suspended, horribly expensive, bigger, gruntier, single cyl adv bike niche pretty well too.

Cheers
Clint

[Oscar]

Mind you the KTM 690 fits the hi tech, lightweight, well suspended, horribly expensive, bigger, gruntier, single cyl adv bike niche pretty well too.

Cheers
Clint

And as soon as the make an Adv690 I'll buy one...:angry:

[marks]

Then again there is my mate here at work who's WR450F has done 200 well maintained hrs of trail riding & has just come back from the dealers workshop with a $4000 bill for fixing a whole lot of worn out engine bits.


he needs to adopt my patented 'long life riding style' - its called :scooter:RideLikeaNana :scooter:

your mates unfortunate experience aside - It seems generally accepted that Yamaha make the most reliable long lasting Japanese high performance 4 strokes - and have done since 98

[clint640]

he needs to adopt my patented 'long life riding style' - its called :scooter:RideLikeaNana :scooter:

your mates unfortunate experience aside - It seems generally accepted that Yamaha make the most reliable long lasting Japanese high performance 4 strokes - and have done since 98

Yeah, the guy is around 100kg & a bit of a hard charger...

If I wanted to adventurise an enduro bike I'd be looking pretty hard at the 400EXC KTM, lower compression ratio & a lower stressed motor than most other racy dirt bikes.

Cheers
Clint

[warewolf]

Heck all the big EXCs run 11.0:1 CR... the 640 runs 11.5:1 :shit:

[zeRax]

just had my first ride of it,

can be summed up in one word, "smooth"

it is smooth in every sense atm, throttle, gear changes, thats one big thing ive noticed, gear changes are the nicest out of any bike ive ever had. suspension is smooth and nice as, handling is light as and smooth


lacks the power im used to, but i realise with smoothness comes speed too!

of course i will go ahead with pipe and re fuel map, and possibly a 290kit after i get everything else sorted out :D

woohooo!!!


now i just gotta sell my dr650 and kdx200 :P anyone :)?

[Padmei]

just had my first ride of it,

can be summed up in one word, "smooth"

it is smooth in every sense atm, throttle, gear changes, thats one big thing ive noticed, gear changes are the nicest out of any bike ive ever had. suspension is smooth and nice as, handling is light as and smooth


lacks the power im used to, but i realise with smoothness comes speed too!

of course i will go ahead with pipe and re fuel map, and possibly a 290kit after i get everything else sorted out :D

woohooo!!!


now i just gotta sell my dr650 and kdx200 :P anyone :)?

How much do ya want for the KDX?

[zeRax]

How much do ya want for the KDX?

rafe
i wanna get 3k for it, gonna go on trademe next week i thinks~