(klr650) : good candidate ??

[Vik Banerjee]

Hi Walt, I found 810mm as the width for the bars on a KLR650 spec page online. I'll go down to the dealer next time I am in their area and confirm on the bike. Unfortunately my yard entry has the house on one side and the gate opens the other way to form a tunnel so I need to be able to just roll the bike straight forward into the yard or I have to remove the gate and replace it to do what you suggest. That could happen, but I'm not particularly stoked to do renos so I'd like to see if I can make it work as is. safe riding, Vik Banerjee threeohm@... www.thelazyrando.com

On 2011-05-19, at 6:01 AM, wrote: > Welcome back Vik. I don't know the measurement you are looking for but keep > in mind that unless the gate is up against a wall on both sides you can get > through with bars that are a few inches wider than the opening by > approaching at a slight angle then tilt the bike and turn the bars to get > one end past the opening. Roll forward and tilt the bike and turn the bars > again to get the other end past the opening. > > Walt > A14 Warhorse > > > -----Original Message----- > From: DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com [mailto:DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com] On > Behalf Of Vik Banerjee > Sent: Wednesday, May 18, 2011 21:30 > To: Randall Marbach > Cc: KLR Group > Subject: Re: [DSN_KLR650] Thinking of coming back from the dark side... > > It's not just a gate or I'd do that. > > If someone can tell me how wide the bars are on the current generation > KLR650 I can see if I have a problem and if so how much of one. > > safe riding, > > Vik Banerjee > threeohm@... > www.thelazyrando.com > >

[Daniel]

Why waste a perfectly fun thread on an accurate and to-the-point answer? On the 2008, about 3 ft 1" including the bar end weights. You may need to fold your mirrors in if it's tight. I now have a set of Barkbusters on the bike, making the width around 3'4". Daniel

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Vik Banerjee wrote: > > It's not just a gate or I'd do that. > > If someone can tell me how wide the bars are on the current generation KLR650 I can see if I have a problem and if so how much of one. > > safe riding, > > Vik Banerjee > threeohm@... > www.thelazyrando.com >

[Vik Banerjee]

Thanks! Ya I hadn't included the bar end weights which is why grabbing a number off a website can be a problem. There is no way I'll get a KLR650 in the backyard as is. I'll have to reno the fence and gate. Not a show stopper, but given how darn slow I am about such things it will give me a decent amount of time to ponder a new bike! I appreciate you taking the time to measure your bike Daniel...=-) Vik Banerjee threeohm@... www.thelazyrando.com

On 2011-05-19, at 8:45 AM, Daniel wrote: > Why waste a perfectly fun thread on an accurate and to-the-point answer? > > On the 2008, about 3 ft 1" including the bar end weights. You may need to fold your mirrors in if it's tight. > > I now have a set of Barkbusters on the bike, making the width around 3'4". > > Daniel > > --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Vik Banerjee wrote: >> >> It's not just a gate or I'd do that. >> >> If someone can tell me how wide the bars are on the current generation KLR650 I can see if I have a problem and if so how much of one. >> >> safe riding, >> >> Vik Banerjee >> threeohm@... >> www.thelazyrando.com >>

[revmaaatin]

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, wrote:

> > Welcome back Vik. I don't know the measurement you are looking for but keep > in mind that unless the gate is up against a wall on both sides you can get > through with bars that are a few inches wider than the opening by > approaching at a slight angle then tilt the bike and turn the bars to get > one end past the opening. Roll forward and tilt the bike and turn the bars > again to get the other end past the opening. > > Walt > A14 Warhorse

Excellent Walt! It works the same for 'tightly spaced trees', uh, cough, DOES NOT work [as] well with tightly spaced trees, muddy boots and a heavily laden bike. revmaaatin.

[revmaaatin]

Vic, How about measuring the 'opening' then looking/asking at 'Fred' at Arrowhead Sports Rocky MT ATV catalog/online Chapparal etc at handle bars/replacement. A couple of inches narrower sounds like all you need. revmaaatin.

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Vik Banerjee wrote: > > Hi Walt, > > I found 810mm as the width for the bars on a KLR650 spec page online. I'll go down to the dealer next time I am in their area and confirm on the bike. Unfortunately my yard entry has the house on one side and the gate opens the other way to form a tunnel so I need to be able to just roll the bike straight forward into the yard or I have to remove the gate and replace it to do what you suggest. That could happen, but I'm not particularly stoked to do renos so I'd like to see if I can make it work as is. > > safe riding, > > Vik Banerjee > threeohm@... > www.thelazyrando.com > > On 2011-05-19, at 6:01 AM, wrote: > > > Welcome back Vik. I don't know the measurement you are looking for but keep > > in mind that unless the gate is up against a wall on both sides you can get > > through with bars that are a few inches wider than the opening by > > approaching at a slight angle then tilt the bike and turn the bars to get > > one end past the opening. Roll forward and tilt the bike and turn the bars > > again to get the other end past the opening. > > > > Walt > > A14 Warhorse > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com [mailto:DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com] On > > Behalf Of Vik Banerjee > > Sent: Wednesday, May 18, 2011 21:30 > > To: Randall Marbach > > Cc: KLR Group > > Subject: Re: [DSN_KLR650] Thinking of coming back from the dark side... > > > > It's not just a gate or I'd do that. > > > > If someone can tell me how wide the bars are on the current generation > > KLR650 I can see if I have a problem and if so how much of one. > > > > safe riding, > > > > Vik Banerjee > > threeohm@... > > www.thelazyrando.com > > > > >

[dat brooklyn bum]

Hack saw is pretty cheap, too. da Vermonster (used to cut 'em down for NYC traffic, now I cut 'em down for trees)

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "revmaaatin" wrote: > > Vic, > How about measuring the 'opening' then looking/asking at > 'Fred' at Arrowhead Sports > Rocky MT ATV catalog/online > Chapparal > etc > at handle bars/replacement. > > A couple of inches narrower sounds like all you need. > > revmaaatin. > >

[Vik Banerjee]

The opening I have to work with is ~31-32" so I'll have to do some renos. I don't see anyway to get down to that width. That's not a show stopper, but it means I have another project to get around to this summer. If I replace the gate and hang it a different way I can get a stock KLR in the yard. safe riding, Vik Banerjee threeohm@... www.thelazyrando.com

On 2011-05-19, at 10:52 AM, revmaaatin wrote: > Vic, > How about measuring the 'opening' then looking/asking at > 'Fred' at Arrowhead Sports > Rocky MT ATV catalog/online > Chapparal > etc > at handle bars/replacement. > > A couple of inches narrower sounds like all you need. > > revmaaatin.

[sh8knj8kster]

~~~Vik, I thought you were strictly a bicycle guy, dumping your KLR ions ago never to return...what happened, did you find religion? Best, Jake Reddick Fla. A flute w/o holes is not a flute, a donut w/o a hole is a Danish ...Ty Webb quoting Zen philosopher Basha http://www.shakinjake.blogspot.com/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/26137108@N04

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Vik Banerjee wrote: > > Thanks! > > Ya I hadn't included the bar end weights which is why grabbing a number off a website can be a problem. There is no way I'll get a KLR650 in the backyard as is. I'll have to reno the fence and gate. Not a show stopper, but given how darn slow I am about such things it will give me a decent amount of time to ponder a new bike! > > I appreciate you taking the time to measure your bike Daniel...=-) > > Vik Banerjee > threeohm@... > www.thelazyrando.com > > On 2011-05-19, at 8:45 AM, Daniel wrote: > > > Why waste a perfectly fun thread on an accurate and to-the-point answer? > > > > On the 2008, about 3 ft 1" including the bar end weights. You may need to fold your mirrors in if it's tight. > > > > I now have a set of Barkbusters on the bike, making the width around 3'4". > > > > Daniel > > > > --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Vik Banerjee wrote: > >> > >> It's not just a gate or I'd do that. > >> > >> If someone can tell me how wide the bars are on the current generation KLR650 I can see if I have a problem and if so how much of one. > >> > >> safe riding, > >> > >> Vik Banerjee > >> threeohm@ > >> www.thelazyrando.com > >> >

[Vik Banerjee]

Hola Jake, I'm still a bicycle guy and I won't be changing that. I'm still working on the whole KLR idea and one important element will be deciding how it fits into my life without taking away from my pedal biking. I'm about to get rid of my old Ford Ranger 4x4 pick up. I replaced it with a F150 Supercrew which is awesome except it takes a lot more gas than the Ranger. I don't mind the $$ when I have 4 people on board headed to the coast to surf or if I'm going to Baja for 2 months with my camping gear in the winter to kiteboard/surf and ride my pedal bike. What I don't want to do is drive it a lot by myself. The question is how much of that do I need to do that I can't pedal bike? My business mailbox is a 8km round trip from where I live which is easy bicycle distance. OTOH I have been driving my Ranger 2hrs down a forest service road to a remote lake to kiteboard - up to 20 times a summer. I'm not keen on beating up my new F150 on the rough road just to get me there. If I can leave my gear stashed at the lake I could KLR there which would turn part of the current trip I don't love [bouncing down a dirt road] into a fun activity. I've also got quite a few friends up and down the west coast I would like to see more and my job allows me to be flexible I just run into the cost and wear and tear on my F150. Racking up 2000-5000kms on my F150 for a visit gets expensive. On the KLR the trip would be cheap and fun. Finally I have had some pedal bike tours that I wanted to do that just don't seem like they are going to happen due to lack of time vs other interests. I'd like to pedal down to Argentina, but taking off 1.5 - 2yrs isn't happening given I want to surf/kiteboard mtn bike, etc... My GF is into shorter bicycle tours, but not that sort of epic haul. I'm okay with that, but I still want to see those areas from a bike and on a KLR I can cover 5 - 10 times the distance/day that I can on a pedal bike. So in a month I can hit Costa Rica and come back home with a bit of surfing when I am down there. That would work in my life at the moment. I could even see getting 6 months off to ride down to SA and back as long as the GF could fly down to a couple prime spots and meet me for a bit of a holiday. I knew I would get another bike at some point. I kept all my KLR stuff in a couple large bins - including my Ortlieb soft panniers and my Aerostich tank panniers - score!. One thing I learned from my last KLR life was soft luggage and going minimal are the way to dualsport! So my bike will see only minor tweaks and I'll keep it simple & light. Anyways....I still haven't settled on getting a KLR 100%. I need to think about it some more and check out the other dualsport options. I won't be buying another motorcycle for a long time - possibly ever so I want to cast a wide net. Having said that at first glance the KLR seems to be the best combo of performance/cost/fun as always. Glad to see some of the old crew still rocking and rolling....=-) Vik Banerjee threeohm@... www.thelazyrando.com

On 2011-05-20, at 12:15 AM, sh8knj8kster wrote: > > > ~~~Vik, I thought you were strictly a bicycle guy, dumping your KLR ions ago never to return...what happened, did you find religion? > > > Best, > > > Jake > Reddick Fla. > A flute w/o holes is not a flute, a donut w/o a hole is a Danish > ...Ty Webb quoting Zen philosopher Basha > > > http://www.shakinjake.blogspot.com/ > http://www.flickr.com/photos/26137108@N04 > > > > --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Vik Banerjee wrote: >> >> Thanks! >> >> Ya I hadn't included the bar end weights which is why grabbing a number off a website can be a problem. There is no way I'll get a KLR650 in the backyard as is. I'll have to reno the fence and gate. Not a show stopper, but given how darn slow I am about such things it will give me a decent amount of time to ponder a new bike! >> >> I appreciate you taking the time to measure your bike Daniel...=-) >> >> Vik Banerjee >> threeohm@... >> www.thelazyrando.com >> >> On 2011-05-19, at 8:45 AM, Daniel wrote: >> >>> Why waste a perfectly fun thread on an accurate and to-the-point answer? >>> >>> On the 2008, about 3 ft 1" including the bar end weights. You may need to fold your mirrors in if it's tight. >>> >>> I now have a set of Barkbusters on the bike, making the width around 3'4". >>> >>> Daniel >>> >>> --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Vik Banerjee wrote: >>>> >>>> It's not just a gate or I'd do that. >>>> >>>> If someone can tell me how wide the bars are on the current generation KLR650 I can see if I have a problem and if so how much of one. >>>> >>>> safe riding, >>>> >>>> Vik Banerjee >>>> threeohm@ >>>> www.thelazyrando.com >>>> >> > > > > > ------------------------------------ > > List Sponsors - Dual Sport News: http://www.dualsportnews.com > Arrowhead Motorsports: http://www.arrowheadmotorsports.com > List FAQ courtesy of Chris Krok: http://www.bigcee.com/klr650faq.html > Member Map: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DSN_KLR650/app/peoplemap/view/map > Group Apps: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DSN_KLR650/grouplets/subscriptionsYahoo! Groups Links > > >

[Jud]

You could cut the bars down. I don't know how much you can trim the stock bars and still fit everything on there, but there are no doubt some alloy bars available that would allow you to shorten them even more. Woods riders have been doing it for years.

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Vik Banerjee wrote: > > Thanks! > > Ya I hadn't included the bar end weights which is why grabbing a number off a website can be a problem. There is no way I'll get a KLR650 in the backyard as is. I'll have to reno the fence and gate. Not a show stopper, but given how darn slow I am about such things it will give me a decent amount of time to ponder a new bike! > > I appreciate you taking the time to measure your bike Daniel...=-) > > Vik Banerjee > threeohm@... > www.thelazyrando.com > > On 2011-05-19, at 8:45 AM, Daniel wrote: > > > Why waste a perfectly fun thread on an accurate and to-the-point answer? > > > > On the 2008, about 3 ft 1" including the bar end weights. You may need to fold your mirrors in if it's tight. > > > > I now have a set of Barkbusters on the bike, making the width around 3'4". > > > > Daniel > > > > --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, Vik Banerjee wrote: > >> > >> It's not just a gate or I'd do that. > >> > >> If someone can tell me how wide the bars are on the current generation KLR650 I can see if I have a problem and if so how much of one. > >> > >> safe riding, > >> > >> Vik Banerjee > >> threeohm@ > >> www.thelazyrando.com > >> >