It is funny I think...

First bike - 04 GS500F

Second Bike - 03 ZX6R

Third Bike (soon to come) - Looking at dual sports
they sip gas and are super cheap used!

not to mention parts are cheap as hell for them compared to my current super sport!

you'll have to go KTM to get a 02 700 dualsport.

So what bikes are you looking at?
I think it is goo to change bikes, it's always excitting when you when you get a new bike that you really like, like a kid with a new toy.

im not concerned with upping the displacement, i just want a dualsport to rip around town on now that I don't have to ride highways anymore

Insurance is way cheaper, too. A new '06 DR650 will only cost me $175/year full coverage, while the '94 GS will cost me $244. Also, the DR is lighter and makes 4-5 more hp.

Quote from: davipuyou'll have to go KTM to get a 02 700 dualsport.

Who's got an '01 800cc?

Been looking into a dual sport as well

Kind of partial to the BMW F650GS Dakar

Quote from: dgyverBeen looking into a dual sport as well

Kind of partial to the BMW F650GS Dakar

they are neat, but I am aiming to put money back in the bank after selling the ZX6R and buying the dualsport

Look like a good hooligan bike :mrgreen:   Would probibally get one if I was not getting an SV1KS

Probibally not real good on gas though.



http://www.einefetza.com/efza2005/mainsite2005/onclick/themes/smvsduke/

Dual Sports are alot of fun. On-road then you're off-road.

The KLR 650 is one fun bike. It's got a 6 gal. fuel tank. Great aftermarket support.  And it's so butt ugly no one would try to steal it. They're fairly cheap used and insurance is low on 'em.  The only problem I have with mine is the seat height. Stock is 35 inches. There's also the smaller 250 which is a blast.

But, any dual sport is fun. If you do get one and head out to Colorado. give me an IM - I can show you some awesome scenery in the mountains. Tons of good dirt roads the dual sports love.  

Eh,

I am not all that fond of the "dual sport" variety. Maybe it is just me, but I think of them kind of like a PDA/PHONE. Makes a crappy phone, and a crappy PDA, or a half good pda, with shitty phone and vice versa. Not really a good device, not really a solution for a problem, more of a solution LOOKING for a problem. It makes a mediocre trail bike, but a  crappy dirt bike. It is an OK street bike, but it is not as good as a real street bike. The ride height is really high and the gearing is too low for the highway, or the gearing is too high to be good on the dirt. With knobbies on it it feels like you are riding over traintracks constantly, without knobbies.. there is no sense to go off road, wich means why the hell did you buy a dual sport if you are not going to take it off road anyway? I would rather spend an 1/8th the price for a cheap 89/95 yz or kx and a street bike or two then have to give up the street bike feel or the dirtbike ride. You cant even jump the thing like you can a dirtbike. Yea, ok.. you can go off road and on road with it on trails.. but when the hell have I ever been riding and been like.. gee.. lets just go up that hill and through that patch of woods. Two different kinds of riding... two different kinds of gear and safety equipment... why would I want to pay extra for something not so good at both jobs when I can have two things for 1/2 the price that do a better job because they are made for it?

I did the PDA thing for years.. I have tried so many of them it would make you cry to hear how much money I threw out.. I tried a few dual sports.. over the years.. I felt a PDA coming on.

just my two cents

I love my dualsport.  It's the perfect urban assault vehicle.  It sits high, so I can see traffic much better than I can hunched over on a sportbike.  It's narrow and light, so it's easy to thread through traffic.  It scrapes hard parts before it loses traction.  And offroad, it's still better than I am.  My F650 was indeed too heavy for me to really enjoy offroad, but my DR is great.

throw some 17's and slicks on a DS and you have a wicked track bike. I have yet to see a 'tard NOt spank most sportbikes on the track...having said that, I'd never consider one.

Quote from: pantablothrow some 17's and slicks on a DS and you have a wicked track bike. I have yet to see a 'tard NOt spank most sportbikes on the track...having said that, I'd never consider one.

dont forget brakes, suspension, and gearing.  if you want something you can eventually convert to supermoto, the XR650 is a great inexpensive options.  KTM's are nice, but I have never seen an MX bike that was so hard to maintain...worse than my old crf450.

Check out the Buell XB12X or the Ducati Multistrada if you have the $12K to throw at a new bike, or the Duc Multi 620 if not.

The take the whole "dual sport" angle from a very street/performance perspective.

Question: How are dual sports on highways??

Being as I am new to the motorcycling scene is probably the reason dualsports don't quite apeal to me. (Maybe down the road as I log miles and years on) Maybe its because I like the full faring type look but I think they look too dirtbikeish. As I do a good amount of highway travel, I am curious how they handle on the highway.
When I took the MSF I remember a huge burley 250+ guy was riding one of the training bikes that was a dualsport. It seemed to hold him quite well as I recall. I remember images of him zipping through cones and leaning like crazy.

It's typically a tradeoff between highway-ability and offroadability.  Dualsports like the TW200 and the DR200 are going to be crap on the freeway; they're straining and buzzing at 50.  My DR650 is much better on the freeway, at the cost of some weight.  Something like an F650 is even more comfy on the freeway, but they're big and heavy for offroading beyond dirt roads.  And then when you get to a Ulysses or an R1150GS, it's really comfy on the freeway and a pig offroad.