Finding 1st DP
Andrea Raiser
suggestions as far as models/years. I have
a little over 1yr street riding experience with
500cc bikes. I have test ridden (on the street)
a KLR650 and an 84 XL250R. I originally thought
I wanted the larger bike for dirt riding and touring
but found to my surprise that I had so much fun
on the 250 that I would rather stay with the
street bike for touring and a smaller DP for
around local area and dirt riding.
I have been through Clear Creek near Coalinga on my
89 GS500E and did minor dirt/gravel riding at
the Mammoth Lakes gathering last weekend on same
bike and that is the extent of my off-road experience.
Don't know if if makes a difference but am about 5' 7or8"
with a 32" inseam and weigh about 120/125. Would like
to spend around $1000 give or take a couple hundred.
I'd like something that I can be a bit rough on and
not have to worry about too much because I figure it's
going to get dumped a lot. Also, something that's
not too hard to kickstart as that is something I am
just beginning to learn. I'd like to be able to
ride whatever I buy :^)
Thanks in advance for any help.
-be
--
o " o " o "
Ma din sjal finna frid tills vara vagar anyo motas.
Bright Eyes
'89 GS500E
Blaine Gardner
>I am looking for a 1st DP bike and would like
>suggestions as far as models/years. I have
>a little over 1yr street riding experience with
>500cc bikes. I have test ridden (on the street)
>a KLR650 and an 84 XL250R.
This wouldn't be Bob's & Eric's bikes at the Joust would it? Dirt fever
can set in quickly! :-)
>I originally thought
>I wanted the larger bike for dirt riding and touring
>but found to my surprise that I had so much fun
>on the 250 that I would rather stay with the
>street bike for touring and a smaller DP for
>around local area and dirt riding.
I think you're on the right track here. When you're getting started the
lighter weight of a 250 will be worth a lot more than the power of a
larger bike. When I decided to give dirt riding another try I bought a
Suzuki DR250, and it kept me happy for years. (Until the demon horsepower
overcame me this year, and I bought an XR600. :-) A 250 will have plenty
of power for normal riding, but not enough to get you in trouble if you
make a dumb mistake (who, me? there weren't any witnesses!). Below 250cc
D-P bikes tend to be smaller all the way around, with smaller wheels and
shorter frames & less suspension. On the other hand, 350's usually aren't
much bigger or heavier than a 250, but have a stronger engine. Given the
choice, I'd pick better (longer travel, more adjustments) suspension over
a larger engine.
>I have been through Clear Creek near Coalinga on my
>89 GS500E and did minor dirt/gravel riding at
>the Mammoth Lakes gathering last weekend on same
>bike and that is the extent of my off-road experience.
>Don't know if if makes a difference but am about 5' 7or8"
>with a 32" inseam and weigh about 120/125. Would like
>to spend around $1000 give or take a couple hundred.
>I'd like something that I can be a bit rough on and
>not have to worry about too much because I figure it's
>going to get dumped a lot. Also, something that's
>not too hard to kickstart as that is something I am
>just beginning to learn. I'd like to be able to
>ride whatever I buy :^)
I think you're probably tall enough to be able to handle most of the D-P
bikes, they tend to be shorter than the pure off-road versions. Being
able to flat-foot the bike isn't strictly necessary, but it sure is
nice. My new XR600 is quite a bit taller than the old DR250, and I've
dropped it (at low or no speed) a few times because of that. Once you're
moving, seat height really isn't a problem.
Things to look for in dumpability (is that a word?) are folding
footpegs, folding tips on the shift and brake pedals, very, very, very
flexible turn signal mounting (assuming you have to have the signals, if
you can get away with hand signals, you can remove the signals before
you break them :-), and good handholds (not too close to the exhaust)
for picking the bike up. Easy tweaks you can do yourself are making sure
the brake and clutch levers don't stick out past the end of the bars,
and adjusting the clamp bolts on the lever perches _slightly_ loose so
that the levers can rotate on the bars in a spill, instead of bending
or breaking. A plastic gas tank won't dent like a steel one, but I think
all D-P bikes come with steel tanks. With an air-cooled bike you don't
have to worry about snagging a hose or puncturing a radiator. Fake
radiator scoops on air cooled bikes are likely to get mashed too.
Probably the best thing you can do to avoid spills is to use real knobby
tires instead of dual-purpose tires. Tires make a huge difference, and
there are a number of DOT-approved, street-legal knobbies these days. (I
can mail/post a summary of Dirt Bike tire test if you're interested.)
If you do you own maintenance, I'd suggest an air cooled SOHC engine
with screw-type valve adjusters. I wouldn't want to do regular valve
adjustments on the Kawasaki and Yamaha DOHC engines.
For ease of starting, generally the smaller the better, though an engine
with an automatic compression release can make starting even easier.
I don't really know prices on used D-P bikes, but you ought to be able
to get something several years old in the $1000 range. The NADA "blue"
book for RVs' & motorcycles and the local paper ought to give you a good
idea of local prices.
As far as specific bikes go, the Suzuki DR250S (and 350) of the last few
years are good bikes, but they probably haven't been around long enough
(3-4 years?) to drop to the $1000 range. The early-mid 80's Suzuki D-P
bikes bore the SP name instead of DR. The Honda XL250/350 is probably
the most popular, which means there are lots of 3rd party suppliers for it.
(The one thing I didn't like about my '82 DR250 is that there was nearly
no aftermarket support for it, unlike the current DR's). I'd stay away from
the old twin-shock Hondas with the 23" front wheel, it's too hard to find
tires for that odd-ball wheel size. Yamaha's older single cam XT250/350
aren't bad either, but the suspension wasn't as good as the Honda or
Suzuki. More recent Yamahas have twin cams, complicating maintenance some.
With a little luck you can probably find a several year old D-P bike
that was ridden mostly on the street. I know it's a cliche, but I've
seen a lot of small D-P bikes ridden only on the street on sunny days by
gentlemen near retirement age. :-)
--
Blaine Gardner @ Evans & Sutherland 580 Arapeen Drive, SLC, Utah 84108
blga...@sim.es.com BIX: blai...@bix.com FJ1200 XR600R LT250R DoD#46
"We usually don't stop until friction and gravity are finished." Merf