New, old guy in the house
#1
10-31-2012, 07:24 AM
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Pugetopolis
Posts: 25
New, old guy in the house
Hey folks,
New to this forum, here as a member of the KLX250S community. 30+ years riding (600K + total miles), on bikes 18 & 19 currently, and this is only my second year playing hard off road. I'm a full time moto instructor, teach 6 curricula currently, getting certified on 2 more over the winter, and writing 2 for fun.
I tried pimping out a DR650 a while back for the off road fix, went to great extent to try and make one bike do all... I knew better, but I had to **** away a few grand to prove it to her, if ya know what I mean. GREAT bike, but, too big for more technical ADV and single track play, it was bigger and heavier than what I wanted, hard pans were a mistake, and air cooled clearly wasn't the right solution for many of my riding environs. Bagged that this spring, bought a GSX1250FA for my ST fix, and traded the DR for a new left over KLX250S.
The thing that sold me on the KLX over other offerings in the segment was the suspension... damned decent out of the box, $400 installed some new springs and now it's damned good!
Mods done:
Moose bash plate
Rear MC guard
HT rear rack
HT SL side racks
Full Muzzy, rejetted
Moose hand guards
Protaper SE bar
Folding bar end mirrors
Silly expensive Touratech dampening, locking Zumo mount
Magnetic drain plug and oil filter ring
Tractor Manual tube/30 oz MSR fuel bottle
Kolpin 1.5 gal fuel cube
Wolfman Exp. pans
Wolfman Exp. tank pans
Wolfman fender mount tool bag
Some nice plush grips
in-line 90 degree fuel filter
Uni Foam filter, No-Toil treat/clean
wrapped exhaust header
RAM ***** in stock mirror holes for Zumo and SPOT mounts
Moto Pro spec springs
Mods left to do:
Replace the torture device know as the seat... holy $#!T!
Beefier foot pegs... maybe lower to improve standing ergos
Beefier lower chain guide?
Probably go back to Pirelli's when the 605s are done
Other than that, I'm quite pleased with this bike. Full long ride off road kit (full camping kit) with fluid capacities topped off (2 gal aux fuel, 1.5 gal water) is about 85-90lb, about 50-55lb behind me (pans and Kolpin on tail rack w/ small duffel on top) and 30-35lb in front (tank pans, tool bag). This combo works out well, feels great and keeps the weight low and even, hardly know it's there.
John at Moto Pro knows his stuff, and he knows this bike... hands down this is one of the best suspension set ups I've had on any bike... solid, solid work.
Maiden ADV voyage was 1500 miles (800+ off road) in OR, NV in September, one of the best rides of my life! Looking forward to quite a few more on this bike, it's a keeper. I found little desire (read as no NEED) for more power even on the steep stuff, fully loaded. If I cook something and have to replace internals down the road I'll likely take the 300cc option as the cost difference is about nothing at that point... $700+ to replace perfectly good parts at the moment simply doesn't fit the plan.
Ride well, ride far, ride safe :-)
New to this forum, here as a member of the KLX250S community. 30+ years riding (600K + total miles), on bikes 18 & 19 currently, and this is only my second year playing hard off road. I'm a full time moto instructor, teach 6 curricula currently, getting certified on 2 more over the winter, and writing 2 for fun.
I tried pimping out a DR650 a while back for the off road fix, went to great extent to try and make one bike do all... I knew better, but I had to **** away a few grand to prove it to her, if ya know what I mean. GREAT bike, but, too big for more technical ADV and single track play, it was bigger and heavier than what I wanted, hard pans were a mistake, and air cooled clearly wasn't the right solution for many of my riding environs. Bagged that this spring, bought a GSX1250FA for my ST fix, and traded the DR for a new left over KLX250S.
The thing that sold me on the KLX over other offerings in the segment was the suspension... damned decent out of the box, $400 installed some new springs and now it's damned good!
Mods done:
Moose bash plate
Rear MC guard
HT rear rack
HT SL side racks
Full Muzzy, rejetted
Moose hand guards
Protaper SE bar
Folding bar end mirrors
Silly expensive Touratech dampening, locking Zumo mount
Magnetic drain plug and oil filter ring
Tractor Manual tube/30 oz MSR fuel bottle
Kolpin 1.5 gal fuel cube
Wolfman Exp. pans
Wolfman Exp. tank pans
Wolfman fender mount tool bag
Some nice plush grips
in-line 90 degree fuel filter
Uni Foam filter, No-Toil treat/clean
wrapped exhaust header
RAM ***** in stock mirror holes for Zumo and SPOT mounts
Moto Pro spec springs
Mods left to do:
Replace the torture device know as the seat... holy $#!T!
Beefier foot pegs... maybe lower to improve standing ergos
Beefier lower chain guide?
Probably go back to Pirelli's when the 605s are done
Other than that, I'm quite pleased with this bike. Full long ride off road kit (full camping kit) with fluid capacities topped off (2 gal aux fuel, 1.5 gal water) is about 85-90lb, about 50-55lb behind me (pans and Kolpin on tail rack w/ small duffel on top) and 30-35lb in front (tank pans, tool bag). This combo works out well, feels great and keeps the weight low and even, hardly know it's there.
John at Moto Pro knows his stuff, and he knows this bike... hands down this is one of the best suspension set ups I've had on any bike... solid, solid work.
Maiden ADV voyage was 1500 miles (800+ off road) in OR, NV in September, one of the best rides of my life! Looking forward to quite a few more on this bike, it's a keeper. I found little desire (read as no NEED) for more power even on the steep stuff, fully loaded. If I cook something and have to replace internals down the road I'll likely take the 300cc option as the cost difference is about nothing at that point... $700+ to replace perfectly good parts at the moment simply doesn't fit the plan.
Ride well, ride far, ride safe :-)
#2
10-31-2012, 09:09 AM
Welcome to KF and congrats with the new ride and adventures. Any pics of the new ride or of these adventures?
#5
10-31-2012, 07:29 PM
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Pugetopolis
Posts: 25
Pics coming soon... I'm about a year behind! Still need to get though the stuff from the last long tour on the DR last fall/winter, the three summer trips on the FAntom, and the desert trip. Now that the work schedule has calmed down, I'll get to all of those sooner than later.
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