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Tourer for rough roads, RE Him. CBR250, Fz150, Duke?
Hello,
I am planning on moving to Nepal / India exclusively for the purpose of motorcycle touring, and general tourism. I already bought my plane ticket, and I will arrive in Nepal in June, at which point I plan to buy a bike, and ride for the Golden Temple. I really want to see Mauryan architecture, as well as Kalinga stuff, so from Punjab I may well head for Orissa.
I have owned two Yamaha WR250X's, one of which was stock and made 26 horse, and one which had intake, exhaust, and a dyno tune and made 30 hp. The WR250 weights only 136 kg, has dual disc brakes, a rear monoshock, fuel injection, and a seat height of ~890mm. I am 5' 7" (170cm) and could only touch with my toes on my WR's, but due to the light weight, and 95% on-road use they saw, this was not a problem. The best thing about the WR is you can be almost completely leaned in cornering, hit a pothole, or even a curb, and the suspension will eat it up! (This is very important to me.)
I'd like a bike with a seat height around 800mm or less, a rear monoshock suspension (must have), dual disc brakes, and fuel injection, although I can live without the fuel injection if I must.
(^SKIP READING ALL OF THE ABOVE IF YOU WANT.)
Bikes under consideration:
KTM Duke 200 - Pros: The transmission sounds like it has much better ratios for poor road conditions (off road type stuff) than the Duke 390. The price and weight are attractive.
Cons: The stock tires suck compared to the Duke 390's. No fairing and a light weight could mean bad wind-fatigue on the highway.
Burning question: Can the suspension handle bumps / holes when cornering?
KTM Duke 390 - Pros: It makes good power, and is heavy enough it won't get tossed around in the wind.
Cons: None?
Burning question: Same as above!
Royal Enfield Himalayan - Pros: Is similar to the type of bike I am comfortable with. The suspension looks like it will eat up potholes, even when cornering.
Cons: https://www.motorbeam.com/2017/03/bi...-way-too-many/ (...soul crushing.)
Burning question: ...Is it really as bad as it sounds? (*cries in adventure bikelessness*)
Honda CBR 250R - Pros: The fairing should make wind-fatigue nonexistent. Reliable.
Cons: Carbureted. I can't imagine this thing takes bumps too well (?), poor off-road performance.
Burning question: Is a CBR or an FZ a better bike at eating bumps?
Yamaha FZ - Pros: Many models have fairings. Affordable. Reliable.
Cons: Carbureted. Poor off-road performance.
Burning question: Same as above!
Bajaj AS200 - Pros: Fuel injected, ABS, dual disc, fairing; all the features anyone could desire. Affordable.
Cons: Questionable reliability. Poor off-road performance.
Burning question: Vs a carbureted, non-ABS bike like an FZ or CBR which would you take?
Overall I am leaning towards a Duke 200, but I am worried about having a bike with stiff, sport bike-like suspension; even in the US I insist on riding bikes with suspension that can eat up potholes, even during cornering.
Also if the Himalayan is too crappy to get, so I'm stuck getting a bike with stiff suspension (assuming the Dukes have a sport bike-like, and not a dual sport-like suspension,) I may as well get a bike with a fairing, and avoid wind-fatigue.
Well, thank you for reading; thank you for your time! I have enjoyed reading many of your trip logs, and bike selection questions, and look forward very much to entering the world of Indian touring!
Cheers,
James Boatwright
I am planning on moving to Nepal / India exclusively for the purpose of motorcycle touring, and general tourism. I already bought my plane ticket, and I will arrive in Nepal in June, at which point I plan to buy a bike, and ride for the Golden Temple. I really want to see Mauryan architecture, as well as Kalinga stuff, so from Punjab I may well head for Orissa.
I have owned two Yamaha WR250X's, one of which was stock and made 26 horse, and one which had intake, exhaust, and a dyno tune and made 30 hp. The WR250 weights only 136 kg, has dual disc brakes, a rear monoshock, fuel injection, and a seat height of ~890mm. I am 5' 7" (170cm) and could only touch with my toes on my WR's, but due to the light weight, and 95% on-road use they saw, this was not a problem. The best thing about the WR is you can be almost completely leaned in cornering, hit a pothole, or even a curb, and the suspension will eat it up! (This is very important to me.)
I'd like a bike with a seat height around 800mm or less, a rear monoshock suspension (must have), dual disc brakes, and fuel injection, although I can live without the fuel injection if I must.
(^SKIP READING ALL OF THE ABOVE IF YOU WANT.)
Bikes under consideration:
KTM Duke 200 - Pros: The transmission sounds like it has much better ratios for poor road conditions (off road type stuff) than the Duke 390. The price and weight are attractive.
Cons: The stock tires suck compared to the Duke 390's. No fairing and a light weight could mean bad wind-fatigue on the highway.
Burning question: Can the suspension handle bumps / holes when cornering?
KTM Duke 390 - Pros: It makes good power, and is heavy enough it won't get tossed around in the wind.
Cons: None?
Burning question: Same as above!
Royal Enfield Himalayan - Pros: Is similar to the type of bike I am comfortable with. The suspension looks like it will eat up potholes, even when cornering.
Cons: https://www.motorbeam.com/2017/03/bi...-way-too-many/ (...soul crushing.)
Burning question: ...Is it really as bad as it sounds? (*cries in adventure bikelessness*)
Honda CBR 250R - Pros: The fairing should make wind-fatigue nonexistent. Reliable.
Cons: Carbureted. I can't imagine this thing takes bumps too well (?), poor off-road performance.
Burning question: Is a CBR or an FZ a better bike at eating bumps?
Yamaha FZ - Pros: Many models have fairings. Affordable. Reliable.
Cons: Carbureted. Poor off-road performance.
Burning question: Same as above!
Bajaj AS200 - Pros: Fuel injected, ABS, dual disc, fairing; all the features anyone could desire. Affordable.
Cons: Questionable reliability. Poor off-road performance.
Burning question: Vs a carbureted, non-ABS bike like an FZ or CBR which would you take?
Overall I am leaning towards a Duke 200, but I am worried about having a bike with stiff, sport bike-like suspension; even in the US I insist on riding bikes with suspension that can eat up potholes, even during cornering.
Also if the Himalayan is too crappy to get, so I'm stuck getting a bike with stiff suspension (assuming the Dukes have a sport bike-like, and not a dual sport-like suspension,) I may as well get a bike with a fairing, and avoid wind-fatigue.
Well, thank you for reading; thank you for your time! I have enjoyed reading many of your trip logs, and bike selection questions, and look forward very much to entering the world of Indian touring!
Cheers,
James Boatwright
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