XR650L or XR400 or XR250

[Jeephoto_imp]

I just sold my KLR to buy my '14 CB1100 DLX and I love this bike. I decided I needed three bikes; my CB1100 street/tourer, a street legal dirt bike for jeep trails, dirt roads & some singletrack, and my TLR trials/very tight trails bike.

I want to stay all Honda, so my candidates are XR's (250 or 400) with Baja Designs kit or the already street-legal XR650L. I like the E-start on the XRL.

I'm 5'8", 30" inseam, 175 lbs & 58 years old. I don't go fast, just putter around and explore.

Can anyone offer insight or opinion?

[Cormanus]

Jeephoto, sadly I can afford only one bike, and it's a CB1100. Luckily, I'm very happy with that.

Good luck with your musings. I'm sure there's a Honda to meet your every need.

[Inline4_imp]

I've been wanting a dp bike for quite some time. It MUST be a Honda (although the new KLR650 almost pulls my strings),
but this 80's model XL600R is the only bike I would go in to debt for. In to debt means if I could find one in pristine shape I would buy it and sacrifice modding my 1100 for. (Yea, right!!!). Can't wait to see long long that commitment would last!! :-)
The only reason I haven't aggressively pursued one is that it is kick start only. Just don't know how long my 60 y/o abused knees could handle owning one in real life. Dang, she is purty though!
[url=http://smg.photobucket.com/user/z1zr7/media/86XL600R_zps746726c3.jpg.html]
That red engine and gold fork legs/rims are better that a bowl of Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla with a bottle of Hershey's on top!

[the_undecider_imp]

I've been wanting a dp bike for quite some time. It MUST be a Honda (although the new KLR650 almost pulls my strings),
but this 80's model XL600R is the only bike I would go in to debt for. In to debt means if I could find one in pristine shape I would buy it and sacrifice modding my 1100 for. (Yea, right!!!). Can't wait to see long long that commitment would last!! :-)
The only reason I haven't aggressively pursued one is that it is kick start only. Just don't know how long my 60 y/o abused knees could handle owning one in real life. Dang, she is purty though!
[url=http://smg.photobucket.com/user/z1zr7/media/86XL600R_zps746726c3.jpg.html]
That red engine and gold fork legs/rims are better that a bowl of Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla with a bottle of Hershey's on top!

They sell Blue Bell in Tennessee? I always thought it was a Texas thing...

I never understood the red engine on these. It always looked like someone rattle canned it. Maybe I am used to seeing the red paint worn and flaking off and thinking it looked like a cheap rattle can job. These bikes are going on 30 years, so that's to be expected. Powder coat might be the way to go with restoring one.

[emptysea]

What's a DP bike?

[the_undecider_imp]

I just sold my KLR to buy my '14 CB1100 DLX and I love this bike. I decided I needed three bikes; my CB1100 street/tourer, a street legal dirt bike for jeep trails, dirt roads & some singletrack, and my TLR trials/very tight trails bike.

I want to stay all Honda, so my candidates are XR's (250 or 400) with Baja Designs kit or the already street-legal XR650L. I like the E-start on the XRL.

I'm 5'8", 30" inseam, 175 lbs & 58 years old. I don't go fast, just putter around and explore.

Can anyone offer insight or opinion?

I'd go with the 650L just for the electric start. They are tall bikes, but I doubt any taller than the 400. Having that little magic button is nice when you stall the bike in a dip where the ground is a little farther down than you expect.

What's a DP bike?

Dual purpose

[emptysea]

Whew.

[pechorin75_imp]

I have no experience with the smaller XRs, but I've owned a 2006 XR650L since late last summer. I'm a few inches taller than you, but still only a 31-32 inseam. The guy I bought mine from had installed a lowering link and raised the fork tubes an inch, but it's light enough that I don't think I'd have any problems at full height. I've left it alone for now, though.

So far it seems like a great bike (I've only put about 300 miles on it). I know it's heavy compared to "real" dirtbikes, but it makes my buddy's KLR feel like a pig. Much less work offroad. It's no hot rod, but everything I've read indicates that the engine is bulletproof...and really, the power is totally adequate, esp down low (mine's had the emissions stuff taken off, full exhaust, airbox mod, and re-jet). Mine's also down a tooth on the front sprocket, which I like for offroad....not so much on the highway. It also has a Clarke 4.5 gallon (I believe) tank...which seems like a must if you're gonna go any distance at all.

Otherwise...I found the oil change process kind of weird/awkward the first time (though maybe it's standard stuff for dirtbikes). A lot of the oil is actually stored in the frame. Was glad I had the manual for that. I'm considering a fairly serious offroad trip w/ it this summer. If I do that, I'll probably install an oil cooler. Meantime, it's nice having a dipstick oil temp gauge (I think that's one of the most common mods).

Since they've been around essentially unchanged forever, most people seem to say that overall condition is more important than model year. Here are a couple of pics of mine. I installed a CRF230L front fender...never liked the look of the original. In the second pic I'd just ridden through that "lake" behind the bike...churned up a bunch of gunk, and the smell was horrendous. Good times.

Btw...those reflectors on the front forks are off my CB1100. The originals were long gone, and I needed a set to pass MD safety inspection


[url=http://s103.photobucket.com/user/pechorin75/media/IMG_0545_zpsb050b0a4.jpg.html]


[url=http://s103.photobucket.com/user/pechorin75/media/IMG_0720_PS_zpsylwpgfla.jpg.html]

[rboe]

I've owned a XR650L (2008, bought new) for about four years now. At 1600 miles the motor toasted because the dealer messed up the oil feed line into the lower strainer causing it to kink and restrict oil flow. &*%$#@

Fix, added an oil cooler to be on the safe side (thumper talk.com) after reading thread on oils and how they broke down - in the 650L after about 500 miles until a cooler was installed. Since you are in Texas I highly recommend one (Sutton is your man, he's in Scottsdale and his instructions will impress the heck out you).

CDI will strand you when the solder joints cold work and crack. Easy fix but a PITA.

No cush drive so if you do a lot of road riding you will ruin the counter shaft with a stock L counter sprocket. Get a cush drive or upgrade to 650R counter sprocket (just ordered mine this week as I'm going to 95% road).

Just recently the pulse generator went belly up, cheap fix again, but annoying - again.

Mileage sucks for a bike with only a 650cc single sucked too - about 35mpg. Bought a arcibis 5.8gal gas tank to get reasonable range. Before, I'd be on reserve at 80 miles!

This has been the most unreliable bike I have ever owned. I have so much money into her I don't dare sell it. Got to get some use out of it.

I have a 36" inseam and can flat foot her and bought her because I found the 570lb Quota was NOT a dirt bike for a guy with my limited dirt skills, shady back and advancing age. The 650L was about 200lbs lighter. Not nearly enough weight loss as she is still a heavy pig.

I have bought a second set of wheels so knobbies are one set, dual sport sport tires on the others. I've added wolf man side racks (no longer made!), Giant Loop tank bag, bark buster hand guards (worth it!), EXP fat handle bars (love 'em but so fat you can't get farkles to fit) and now a NC windscreen - really enjoying it. Perhaps a custom seat next.

After the engine rebuild I had the 2nd gear upgraded to the one from the NX650, not so big of a jump, rejetted and added the UNI air filter. Seems to have a bit more poop now. She is a hoot on the road now. I'm too scared to really lay her down in a corner, I bet she will drag the bar ends......

I only have 2500 miles on her (a lot has happened in such a short time) but I think it is sorted now.

It is too much bike in the dirt for my limited skill set and if I had know what I know now I would have gone with a DRZ400 or 650. Now Honda has the 300cc dp, I'd need to look close at it.

Guys that have ridden the KLR and the XR say the KLR is much better on the freeway, but I find the XR just fine on the interstate. She will start to head shake around 75mph while on knobbies, but with dual sport tires she is pretty steady up to 90.

I weight about 165lbs so the suspension is tuned for my weight; guys on the forum that complain about shocks and such are well into the 200's. No really a fault of the bike.

If your dirt experience is limited, go smaller. A lot smaller. You may end up getting a 650 later on, but you won't kill yourself do it. I still think the 650L is a good bike; but she has these niggles and once addressed she approaches the built like an anvil rep that I think is not really deserved.

My take, the 650L would not be a good choice for you and I would highly encourage you to look at the DRZ. Yamaha as a 250, very expensive, but the king of the hill in its' calls. Four guys in the Phoenix and Prescott area that had 650L's sold them and bought the YZ250's. Like us, they are more mature and wanted something more manageable in the desert.

The advantage of e-start, in my humble opinion, can not be over stated. A buddy has the 650R, a regular hot rod, but kick start only. Meh, I'll take the e-button over the hot rod.

If you have not yet, get over to thumper talk.com and check out the forums. There is good natured kidding over brand choice, but you will good advice. Good bikes are recognized as such, no matter the brand.

[pechorin75_imp]

Probably good advice, Rboe. I haven't had reliability issues with my XR...but I also haven't had it very long (it has 6,500 miles, not many of which are mine). I rode a stock DRZ400 prior to buying mine and was surprised at how gutless it felt...but I'm 225 lbs. And, frankly, I think my sense of "adequate" power has been skewed by too much time spent on liter-plus bikes.

If you want to stick with Honda, Jeep, I think I'd agree with Rboe that a CRF250L (or hopefully the larger version people keep hoping they'll come out with) might be a good bet. Probably not that much more money, even new, than a gently used XR. Also, you gotta love fuel injection.