On the subject of choosing the right bike for the TAT trip.

[Beer_me]

Blakebird, that is exactly how I want to roll. I'm bummed because I was going to buy this sweet '08 TE250 with a 310 kit and all the right accessories. Dude was far away and I couldn't get there before it was snatched up. Anyway, thanks for confirming that I'm on the right track for bike choice.

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[Beer_me]

Blakebird, what are you thinking on how to handle the recommended maintenance intervals?

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[Blakebird]

Originally Posted by Beer_me

Blakebird, what are you thinking on how to handle the recommended maintenance intervals?

on the trip?

I won't be able to do it in one shot, I can usually get a max of two weeks PTO between projects at work... so it will be done in 2 or 3 sections depending on where we start. We're leaning towards starting at the CO/NM border and not doing the OK panhandle and TN dirt roads, etc. I can do that section on the Stelvio

I have a buddy from OR that will probably join me, so we're going to work out a way to have a haul rig on each end. Neither one of us wants to ride the bikes we've chosen out or back.

In other words, I'll prepare the bike for a section, ride it....and do maintenance when I get back.
I've got the bike ready to do a couple weeks in Baja, and the most I'd do on that trip is drop the oil and swap the air filter skin.

[AC909]

Check out my sig line We are getting ready to start our second leg of the trip. Why wrestle a huge bike for 5,000 miles, or any amount of miles for that reason? Good luck in whatever you choose. Just remember you'll be riding a motorcycle so whether its a Goldwing or a Whizzer you should be having a great time!!!

[Beer_me]

Yeah, I was asking about performing the required maintenance at the factory frequency assuming you were doing the whole thing in one go. It's still only a rough plan but I'm hoping to do coast to coast in 30 days. I'm in VA and my parents live in OR so I plan to ship the bike back at the end. The biggest wild card in making this happen isn't my job or the right bike...it's my wife. I have only briefly alluded to what I'm scheming. ;) I'm shooting for departure in June 2014.

Back to the (minor) bike issue, although I'm loving nearly everything I read about the Huskies, the maintenance intervals might be a deal killer for me. But I'm not ready to completely rule 'em out.

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[Mk5mike]

How about something like a crf250l resprung for more weight ? You could do the whole trip I think before it would need anything except maybe an oil change.

[Blakebird]

Originally Posted by Beer_me

Back to the (minor) bike issue, although I'm loving nearly everything I read about the Huskies, the maintenance intervals might be a deal killer for me. But I'm not ready to completely rule 'em out.

they're just bikes.

Keep clean oil in them, clean filters, and check the valve lash from time to time. For a recreational rider, they stay put pretty well. If you ride hard, fast, and continuous.... you'll need to do it more often.
It's not rocket science, they're really well made and as tough as anything out there.
I'd take my 310 to Baja tomorrow and do 1300 miles of offroad without a second thought, knowing I prepared it well before the trip

Remember when the KTM RFS came out more than a decade ago.... "ready to race", holds a liter of oil, race interval maintenance looked scary.
People wrung their hands over their "high maintenance"...and they turned out to be XR bulletproof.
Many folks (myself included) prefer the RFS to any of it's successors. I've had two and they've been indestructible.

[jwnsc]

Originally Posted by Beer_me

Back to the (minor) bike issue, although I'm loving nearly everything I read about the Huskies, the maintenance intervals might be a deal killer for me. But I'm not ready to completely rule 'em out.

The new Terra has 6.2K mile service intervals, but the TE630, seems to me to be a better TAT mount, and has more aftermarket support.
Are they still making them?

[Beer_me]

How about something like a crf250l resprung for more weight?

That is on my short list for consideration, but I will probably only go with it if no good used WR250R's or Husky TE250/310's pop up between now and however long my patience holds out. Reviews are pretty universally good for it but also pretty vanilla -- they're all of the "First Ride" variety with no good head-to-head comparisons. All that said, I keep getting hung up on the fact that the 250L's weight is listed at 312lbs, which brings us back to larryboy's point:

At some point smaller isn't really smaller, it's just a smaller engine. Bikes in the 300 pound range like the DRZ and WRR would have me looking at XR650R's or TE610's at nearly the same weight and nearly twice the HP.

Then again, if you throw enough money at whatever machine you choose, you can build it to be what you "need," as http://bestdualsportbikes.com apparently did with the 250L as reviewed here:
http://www.dirtbikemagazine.com/ME2/...33371B89BB148F

Decisions, decisions.

PS. No, Husky no longer makes the TE630.

[Blakebird]

The WR250R is a great choice.

Originally Posted by Beer_me

PS. No, Husky no longer makes the TE630.

Sadly, a one-year bike but an excellent one and a great choice for the TAT that you could ride back when you get to the Oregon coast.
There are a couple in the Flea Market.

I occasionally wish I hadn't sold mine.

[Beer_me]

When I asked the question about maintenance intervals on the Husky, I now realize I was mistakenly looking at the *racing* intervals. The street use table looks like what I would expect. I've found a low mileage 2011 TE250 for sale; might just have to snag it this weekend. FYI, the TE250 is somewhere between 230 and 240lbs dry. That's what I'm talking about!

PS. Good looking "world-beater" TE630.

[Deacon66]

You might want to look at Husqvarna. Several options, all are relatively light. The TE310 is just under 250lbs, but storage would be limited. Some of their bigger displacement bikes are still very light and when properly uncorked are really powerful. KTM doesn't suck either. Good luck.

[Deacon66]

Originally Posted by Deacon66

You might want to look at Husqvarna. Several options, all are relatively light. The TE310 is just under 250lbs, but storage would be limited. Some of their bigger displacement bikes are still very light and when properly uncorked are really powerful. KTM doesn't suck either. Good luck.

sorry didn't see previous messages. looks like you are already looking at Husky.

[Deacon66]

Originally Posted by Beer_me

When I asked the question about maintenance intervals on the Husky, I now realize I was mistakenly looking at the *racing* intervals. The street use table looks like what I would expect. I've found a low mileage 2011 TE250 for sale; might just have to snag it this weekend. FYI, the TE250 is somewhere between 230 and 240lbs dry. That's what I'm talking about!

PS. Good looking "world-beater" TE630.

I have a TE250 and LOVE the bike. Lot more power than many other 250's (need to uncork it, but worth the effort.)

[Beer_me]

I'm all set to drive about 200 miles one-way on Sunday to pick up a low mileage 2011 TE250. The guy put a really understated ad on CL but upon talking to him, sounds like he's done a ton of trick stuff. Can't wait.

Deacon66, what's the longest ride you've put in on your TE250? I'm not *that* concerned about comfort because I know there'll be a certain amount of breaking-in to do to my body no matter what, but if the seat is absolutely rock hard, I reckon I'll look into having Fisher saddlebags do their thing to it. Curious about what other stuff you might recommend ... I suppose there's a TE250 thread around here I ought to read. OK, found it ... "only" 15 pages? I'll knock it out tonight.