Easiest/cheapest way to get started

[byke95]

Hi,

For a while now I've been looking to get an off road bike; a supermoto would be great but I have a feeling getting a decent one is well out of my budget!

I've got a ZX6R and want a cheap/reliable off roader to commute and have a bit of fun on. I considered a 125 for a while but after having a go on one I just can't take the lack of forward momentum! As money/insurance/running costs is an issue I'm thinking about getting a 250/350 - maybe supermotoing it after a while or (if all goes well) selling the ZX6R for a decent supermoto.

Anyone got any suggestions where I should start, around the 1k mark would be ideal.

Oh, and although I'm happy to do basic services and simple mods I'm not quit up for something that needs rebuilding/blows up all the time so reliable is important.

Many thanks ,

Phil

[spitfire]

im in a similar position myself, I have made a short list of bikes, I have a limited budget for a second bike so some of the below may not be realistic, im not interested in supermoto just a weekend off road bike winter commuter while I hibernate the R6.

DR 350
DR 400 (most likely too expensive)
XR400 (most likely too expensive)
KTM 200 exc*
KMX 125 (derestricted)
KMX 200
DT125 (derestricted)
KLX250/300
XT350
KDX200*
XR250

*I'm not sure if these bikes have separate 2 stroke oil tanks or whether you need to pre mix it yourself, if you need to premix then forget it for day to day use.

IF you are looking at supermoto then the XR400/DR400 would be the best bikes.

[knockout_bar]

Thats a pretty good list Spitfire.

However, if you want something for road use, I wouldn't get anything under a 400. Simply because pretty much all off road bikes aren't geared for the road and you end up having to pull 7,000 + rpm just to get 70mph.

An example of this (not an "off road" bike, but a trials bike); A mate of mine has a 270cc trials bike. I had a go on it once, I got the bike up to 1,000 rpm and let the clutch out slowly, next thing I knew the bloody front wheel was off the ground, and I was only a hairline above tickover! , but that bike would struggle to reach 70mph, even though you could climb a wall on it (yes, i've seen it been done).

400cc + bikes can be geared for the road and still wheelie in 3rd gear, which still gives you plenty of whack for off the tarmac.

The DR400 would be an excellent choice, although it seems to me like it's a bit bulky, never ridden one tho.

Again, the XR400 would be just right, but it depends on how much you want to spend. They're made by Honda so you shouldn't have any major problems with it (unless you seriously abuse it, but you'd have to have some balls to do that ).

How about an old CR500? Ok, they aint the best lookers, but they pack punches meaner than Tyson. The old XT500's are pretty nice, they sound sweet aswel.
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125 trail bike, custom bars, handguards etc. - ?500.

"egg flied lice" - R6jonny (inspired by McGee)

[byke95]

Nice, cheers guys!

That is one impressive list spitfire. Just let me know if you're planning to go bidding on ebay: no point in going up against each other if we're on a budget!

[G]

Are you intending to take it off road for fun, or on road?

What sort of top speeds are involved in your commute?

[spitfire]

[spitfire]

[byke95]

[G]

Anyway, if you want to do motorways, I'd be looking at something with an absolute top speed of at least 80-90.

My DR600 actually wasn't too bad, wasn't as agile as Korn's xr250, but would sit at 91 on the motorway (full throttle, head ducked right down ) - which meant that if you were sitting at 70-80 it wasn't under quite so much strain and had a bit of acceleration left.

Dry weight of 134kg I think, which isn't too bad compared to some of the others.


If you're doing mostly on road stuff, expect off road tyres to get eaten up, or so Korn tells me.

[Korn]

The 400cc enduros are a pretty good balance for on/off road use, Honda XR400 comes to mind as they are user-friendly and pretty bulletproof. You can pick up right bargains on the older ones, and there are often Supermoto conversion kits to be found on eBay if you're that way inclined. Like G says tyres are an issue with using dirt bikes on the road, if you use 'proper' knobblies they will wear very very quickly, one month from a set of tyres is not unknown!

For mostly off-road use my favourite tyre is the BFG Crossengo, it's a road legal enduro tyre and will handle anything up to very deep mud but the tread does disappear fairly quickly on the road:
https://www.fittersmotoren.nl/img/bfg-corsego-2.jpg

For mostly on-road usage the Bridgestone TW301 / TW302 tyres are very good, they still work fairly well off-road but won't mind being used on tarmac. Softer mud or loose sand will bog them down but the compromise is worth the extra life on-road:
https://www.tiresnstuff.com/bri-tw301,tw302.jpg

As for motorways... they're no fun! If you really must use one there's usually a nice patch of field/forest running alongside...
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3516 Miles, 11 Countries

[byke95]

Spitfire, Knockout, G and Korn: You're all true gents, thanks for the help, I'm feeling much more prepared!

[spitfire]