News:

Come on, summer...

Main Menu

2008 Wee

Started by loingrader, October 12, 2011, 11:35:35 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

loingrader



a couple weeks ago i traded this...





for this.





it's a 2008 DL650 ABS that is loaded up with most of the farkles i would have put on it anyway.

race tech springs and gold valves in the forks and a sasquach worked oem shock with race tech gold valve.  it has givi crash bars and luggage mounts along with a decent little skidplate and a madstad windshield bracket.  the sargent seat is amazing and the shinko 705's work pretty well too.  a fork brace, stomp tank texture stuff and loobman chain oiler round out the package.

the suspension was setup for a heavier rider than me, but i've done some tweaking and have it set so that it works pretty darn good on the dirt considering the pitiful amount of travel it has.  high speeds on minimum maintenance roads is a blast.  mud holes are not quite as much fun.  interstate speeds fully loaded with a passenger are no problem but mpg will be to the tune of 36 or so.  32mph if you are heading into a stiff headwind.   42 is what i have been getting on the commute which is about 70 mph average.  decent but certainly not great.  a lot of these bikes use a bit of oil too, especially when running synthetic.  it's not much but it's more than my 20 year old klr which never uses a drop, and also gets better mpg out of it's ancient carb vs the wee's fuel injection.  klr always has flawless fuel delivery while the wee's fuel injection is pretty good, but not perfect.  i echo NDave's remark about the klr being his favorite bike, followed by the vstrom.  the wee is nice but the klr is superb, but only one can stay in my garage so the klr is going to africa.

the wee does have abs which is nice.  even on dirt it doesn't bother me.  it is fun mashing on the brakes and seeing how quickly it stops on gravel roads.  i for one think abs is awesome on motorcycles. 

i think this would be a great alaska bike or a ride to moab and then hit the easier trails kind of bike.  on the interstate the wind protection and seating position are top notch.  off road it has aluminum wheels and pitiful suspension travel and ground clearance, but surprisingly holds it's own, especially with the race tech innards. 

i had been thinking r1100gs but kept seeing comparisons to v-stroms with very happy suzuki owners and so chose the japanese route over the german.  heck, it's what i know, why change now...

i had been very happy with my new to me "adventure bike" until i saw this picture.



which made me seriously question what i was doing taking this bike off road. 

but for now,  i will just keep riding it and enjoying it. 


You live more in five minutes on a bike like this going flat out than some people live in a lifetime - Burt Munro

jacin theis

that is one sweet bike. looks like it will be easy to "touch up" the paint after a spill too. Cant wait until you get it out here to ride. Looks like a great choice to me!
Whos in for a big trip? Alsaka? Moab (again)? Baja?
1100 GS

Bogus Jim

The all-black paint looks pretty bad-ass. At first glance I thought it was Plumber Mike's bike, until I noticed there wasn't a big box of tools on the back.  :D  Nice list of farkles too, I bet that made the purchase decision a little easier.

loingrader

yea, the flat black, the farkles, and the ABS all made the decision pretty easy.  that and the fact that it booked out over $1000 more than my honda.

i'm really looking forward to the june rally so i can see how it does on the trails i like to ride in the hills.  and i'll have the kdx200 for backup.
You live more in five minutes on a bike like this going flat out than some people live in a lifetime - Burt Munro

torgo

#4
How do you like the Shinko 705's?  I just put a set on my KLR.  They say they work well in the dirt but you need to air them down to 10-15psi.  Long life and good road manners is what I hear.  I am looking forward to providing my own report.


Nice bike.  I hear lots of good things about the Wee.  I saw a guy on a 1000 in Dawson City this summer.  He had ridden it from Florida and was headed for Deadhorse.  Funny part was he couldn't have been 5' 4" tall.  BUT he rode the heck out the bike.

;D

So the little red bottle is the chain lube?
Time heals all wounds. But it usually leaves a pretty big scar.

jacin theis

my guess is its the shock oil resevior? are we taking bets??
Whos in for a big trip? Alsaka? Moab (again)? Baja?
1100 GS

loingrader

Quote from: jacin theis on October 13, 2011, 02:12:16 PM
my guess is its the shock oil resevior?

that is the loobman chain oiler.  pretty simple system but it works very well.  squeeze the bottle which puts about 4cc of oil into the tube, every time i get fuel.  the oil slowly drips out the tube and lubes the chain.  simple.

i like the shinko's so far.  in the dirt they do alright.  i'm used to the k270's on my klr and the 705's are a far cry from those.  mud sucks with them, obviously.  they do awesome on the highway, even in the rain.  i won't be airing them down off road because bending or breaking a wheel is a bigger risk than losing some traction.   on deep gravel or sand there is a bit of a pucker factor but a lot of that is the 500lb street bike they are attached to.
You live more in five minutes on a bike like this going flat out than some people live in a lifetime - Burt Munro

Hank

Its a cool wee for sure.  Despite my best effort, spending two weeks trying to talk you out of it, looks like it turned out well.  :)

I'm anxious to see it in person and twist your arm for a ride!

greatbuffalo

Sweet ride man.

Here a strange question. Why is it that these smaller machines get far worse fuel mileage than my pig (tiger)? On my 2300 mile ride this spring, fully loaded and lots of highway miles in excess of 85 mph I still managed an average of 45+ mpg.   I was under the understanding that the Wee would get 54 mpg all day long with a moderate load. I'm surprised at your estimates. Not saying your wrong just surprised.

I never woulda thunk it.
Did I ever tell you: " I HATE MUD!" ?

loingrader

Quote from: greatbuffalo on October 14, 2011, 11:34:27 AM
I never woulda thunk it.

me either as most say the wee gets excellent mileage.  i think that must be at 55mph.

it is not too uncommon though for bigger bikes to get better mileage on occasion.  when my brother and i rode to duluth a couple years ago, i had my sister on the back of my cbr1100xx and givi saddlebags and topcase.  my brother was riding his cbr600rr solo without saddlebags and at every fuel stop i got better mpg than him. 

in that case, the cbr1100 had so much hp that idle speed was all you ever needed where the smaller 600 needed to be clicked thru the gears a little more.

since my wee is a new to me bike, i am enjoying actually having to use the transmission and wringing it out a bit, which would have put me into triple digits non stop on the xx.

i.e.  i'm not riding it gently so that obviously affects my mileage as well.  most wee riders who get the 50 or 60mpg must be riding them pretty easy.

another curious thing is my clapped out 83 silverwing 650.  basically same engine size, v-twin too, but the silverwing has 1 less transmission gear, weighs 50 lbs more, has some hp losses in the shaft drive, has a profile of a barn door, carb instead of fuel injection and yet it has basically the same hp and mpg.  i don't understand how 30 years of engineering fails to improve more on the mpg and hp numbers.

but the honda is an awesome machine, as is the wee. 
You live more in five minutes on a bike like this going flat out than some people live in a lifetime - Burt Munro