Dual-Sport GS750

[drhach]

More free advice

I've had a DR650 dual sport for a little while now. I just wanted to pass along some of the things I have learned. I use it for more dirt stuff than you probably intend to use your bike. As far as tires go, look around for 80/20 dual sport tires. You will find lots of recommendations out there. You don't have to spend a ton of money. 80/20 means 80% street 20% dirt. Get rid of those trials tires, even if they are.

There are tons of dual sport tires out there that handle just fine on the pavement and won't get all squirrelly like that. My DR handles like it's on rails with the knobby looking tires that I have. One thing to be aware of is that all dual sport tires stink on wet pavement. Some are better than others ,but non really compare to a good full-street tire. just be prepared for that.

Last of all, you will drop your bike. I repeat, you will drop your bike. That is part of the deal when you go off road. Just be prepared for it. Make sure that you can pick it up again. You are a brave man. I'm sure you'll have tons of fun.

[witttom]

I've had a DR650 dual sport for a little while now. I just wanted to pass along some of the things I have learned. I use it for more dirt stuff than you probably intend to use your bike. As far as tires go, look around for 80/20 dual sport tires. You will find lots of recommendations out there. You don't have to spend a ton of money. 80/20 means 80% street 20% dirt. Get rid of those trials tires, even if they are.

There are tons of dual sport tires out there that handle just fine on the pavement and won't get all squirrelly like that. My DR handles like it's on rails with the knobby looking tires that I have. One thing to be aware of is that all dual sport tires stink on wet pavement. Some are better than others ,but non really compare to a good full-street tire. just be prepared for that.

Last of all, you will drop your bike. I repeat, you will drop your bike. That is part of the deal when you go off road. Just be prepared for it. Make sure that you can pick it up again. You are a brave man. I'm sure you'll have tons of fun.

I have a set of Pirelli MT60's mounted on spare rims for my Triumph Trophy. I occasionally use these in Winter as my "Snow Tires". They are an 80/20 (on/off). Some suppliers refer to them as a 50/50 tire. They are an exceptionally good tire for wet pavement, and pavement that has some debri on it like sand and road grit after the snow has melted away. The amount of dry-pavement performance that they give up over a pure street tire is surprisingly (and almost unbelievably) minimal... and I'm talking edge-to-edge parts-draggin sort of riding too. They also do halfway decent offroad, but taking a 650lb Sport-Touring bike off the pavement is not something I would suggest to anyone. Hehe... but I've done it (and like to occasionally brag about it, hehe).



I wanted something MORE aggressive with the GS though. As mentioned before, I really liked the D606's and TKC80's. I know those handle well on the pavement but also have a very aggressive tread pattern for offroad use. ...but they're expensive. I was looking for a cheap alternative. Had I known that these Trials tires did not handle as well as I was hoping, I probably would have coughed up the extra cash and went with something else like those. But these were cheap (in comparison) so that's the route I took. Other brands/models would have cost me about 2x to 3x as much. Even though these were cheap, I'm still in it for about $120. I feel committed to making them work and can't bare the thought of yanking them off the rims, tossing them to the side, and starting all over again. I'm determined to make them work. Hehe... IF it gets to the point that I simply can't, then I'll strike it up as a lesson learned and bite the bullet on a different set. My gut tells me that it is just gonna take a little time for ME to adapt to THEM. Besides, with as soft as these tires are (and as heavy as the GS750 is)... I suspect they'll be gone in 2k-3k miles anyway. Hehe... here in Ohio, crappy road conditions have already started and it's only gonna get worse.

[drhach]

It sounds like you know what you're getting in to. Maybe you could try to sell the tires that
you have in order to get some of your money back. They basically have no miles on them. Just a thought.

[witttom]

Just a quick update. I've not had to chance to log any decent miles on my new tires up until this past Sunday. I was originally going to take this bike to go get the latest LocalRiders tag (landmark moto game), but when I was heading out it was still only about 30ºF. The GS currently doesn't have a hookup for my 'Lectrics, so I took my new-to-me RS. When I got back, the GS was feeling a bit neglected and it had warmed up to about 45ºF. So I hopped on it and started cranking. Battery was weak, which doesn't surprise me. It took about a half a dozen kicks and it started up no problem. I set out after another tag for a local scooter landmark game.



I had dropped the pressure in both tires and lowered my rear shocks. Within the first few miles out, I could already tell a difference. I took it on some fairly straight roads heading out and ran it up to an indicated 85mph. It felt quite stable all the way up through those speeds. On the way back, I took it down some of the tightest twisties in my area. I certainly would never expect to be dragging any knees with these tires, but they really weren't that bad. My short ride got stretched out into a longer ride, and by the time I got home I was feeling comfortable with the new tires and really wasn't even thinking about them anymore.

They obviously don't handle as well as the street tires, but they don't handle bad. Just different. With all the salt, dirt, and debri on the roads this time of year, these Dual-Sport style tires really seem to be quite appropriate for the conditions and appear to be the tires of choice right now. I was regretting it when I first hit the road with them (which I'm sure many could see my disappointment), but now that I'm ironing out the bugs, I'm glad I went down this path.

[bwringer]

Glad you got it sorted out!

There's a dirt road adventure ride afoot in Indiana December 6-7 if we just happen to catch a lucky break in the weather...

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=134608

Hmmm...

[Zooks]

Great thread. Keep us posted.

Dirt tyres on road bikes always remind me of the bikes that were 'modified for duty' during WW2. There are some great pics from that era of BMW's, Harleys and BSA's with knobby tires and all sorts of weird attachments.

[BentRod]

hmm how odd i find this thread now..

I was working at the Rally of the Tall Pines this past weekend, and while the cars are nice, I began thinking about building a street bike to take the rally roads ( not reall off roade I suppose)

I suppose the candidate for the conversion would be the GS400 right now, unless I could get my hands on a CL350, or a Xl 400V.

I also want to mount extra batteries, first aid kit, and a HAM radio.

I've been looking at the Pirelli tyres. and on the topic of tyres.. those knobbies you have on there, wonder what happens on sheet bridges? doesn;t look pleasent.

[zig06]

You know, I'd bet that any one of the "smaller" GS twins would work great for a dual sport conversion. You may have to bend up a custom exhaust, but those little twins definitely have the torque and they really are not that heavy...

[Sunburn]

yes, I like the idea. Need to graft some moto susp. and clearance with the finders. Longer wider bars. Make a a trail rider out of it with little more comfort. It would be fun.


Who can post up some pic's of good examples for such a converasion?

I likw the VX800 thread who just put the duel sport tires on....


Mark

[witttom]

I'm glad to see that this thread is still here. I thought once an account was deleted due to inactivity that all posts/threads tied to that account were gone too. I guess that's not the case.

Even though these Trials tires worked pretty well, I did not stick with this Dual-Sport GS adventure. The GS750 works great for dirt and gravel roads or even just busted up pavement, but I was trying to go for something more off-road. It did not work out well. I had it buried up to the axles in mud a couple times, and it was a real work out. It's just too heavy for something like that. The knobbies also start to walk around on the pavement at about 80mph. That's probably not a problem for most sane riders, but I'm a speed junkie and I exceed that on a regular basis. So I slapped my street tires back on it. I do still have dirt bike bars mounted though, as I like the riding position AND the wide bars offer a lot of leverage in the twisties.

Those wheels that I built for that dual-sport project are for sale on my local CL.

http://cincinnati.craigslist.org/mcy/2809626940.html

[pete]

Tom, when I saw this thread I went... cool!!! So a little disappointed to see you abandoned it, but I do understand why

I chucked some dual sports on my 450 for a "scrambler" look as well as some hand guards and motorcross guards but at this point I don't intend to head off road as I really don't wanna scratch up the shiny new paint...

Having said that, I have no expectation it would cope with anything more than some light gravel or something...

I had a guy wanting to sell me trials tyres like what you have there for it when I had trouble finding suitable dual sports in 18" front/rear, but I was really not convinced they would go all that well on the road, and reading your comments I'm glad I didn't go that route.

I ended up with Pirelli Scorpions, a Trail on the front and a MT90 A/T on the rear. So far they've been going well on the road for me, although to be honest I'm not exactly the world's quickest rider...

[salty_monk]

I turned my 1000 into "bajazuki". It was ok on dirt roads but a lot of bumping, vibration etc quite tiring.
The KLR I bought was like riding a sofa on the same road...

What did I learn from this? Buy something made for the job....



Shinko 705 tyres, engine guards, V&H to allow use of the centrestand, fairing with mesh light guard, Handguards (available for sale if anyone interested as I'm now turning it back to stock).

[pete]

I turned my 1000 into "bajazuki". It was ok on dirt roads but a lot of bumping, vibration etc quite tiring.
The KLR I bought was like riding a sofa on the same road...

What did I learn from this? Buy something made for the job....



Shinko 705 tyres, engine guards, V&H to allow use of the centrestand, fairing with mesh light guard, Handguards (available for sale if anyone interested as I'm now turning it back to stock).

Aaaah but I have a big soft spot for Bajazuki Dan, still love it...

If I got some case savers for the 450, a sump guard, and some way to protect the pipe, I might be tempted to give it a go... maybe... or maybe not... Don't scratch the paint job right?

[salty_monk]

That's a "sacrificial" 1100 tank I'm running there. The rare skunk tank stayed at home. In the finish I didn't scratch anything up high...

[pete]

That's a "sacrificial" 1100 tank I'm running there. The rare skunk tank stayed at home. In the finish I didn't scratch anything up high...

Yeah... I get ya... my ceramic coated pipe would take a beating me thinks, especially the right header...