African Twin anyone?
- louis mielke
- Posts: 96
- Joined: July 15th, 2009, 7:08 am
- Location: Maryland
African Twin anyone?
Not a lot of chatter in here. Whats everyone think of the new African Twin? I'm kinda of excited but also disappointed. I have a short inseam so it's really tough for me to street tall bikes, not much easier in the dirt but I manage.
Also kinda sad it's a 500lb machine.
Also kinda sad it's a 500lb machine.
"Don't worry, it will grow back!"
- Rhino89523
- Posts: 1233
- Joined: November 18th, 2010, 1:45 pm
I have not thrown a leg over one but I think they look pretty cool. My Buddy at work has a KTM 950 and I have ridden that, I also used to own a GS1100 BMW and I think this is kind of the market they are after. The GS's are fun on the street but are total whales in the dirt and any comparison to a dirtbike in my mind is total false advertising, My Harley does about as well in the dirt as my GS did and I'm not kidding. I have ridden other GS's like the 1150 and 1200 and don't find them to be any better. The KTM950 is also a whale on paper and I was hoping when I rode it I would have the same feelings as a do about the GS. Not the case. My buddies has the S suspension on it so it sits tall. On the street its pretty fast and feels good. Not as stable as a GS and the windshield isn't as good but you can throw miles on it pretty easy and fairly comfortable and it has a ball bag. I don't really care how it does on the street because if I'm clocking miles down the Hiway I have never thrown a leg over anything I like as much as my Harley so I don't need another streetbike. If it handles corners to good I will kill myself so we just cruise. In the dirt I thought the KTM would suck because it's so heavy, it actually rips. It rides smooth over everything, I even single tracked it. Its fast as hell like makes a 500 feel slow. It carries its weight low so you dont really notice its girth when you are riding. The only time you notice the weight is stopping...its like a runaway freight train. Its heavy if you drop it or get stuck other than that it rides off road like a dream....I wanted one.
If the Honda feels like the KTM but it's a Honda I might need to get one.
If the Honda feels like the KTM but it's a Honda I might need to get one.
O.ne B.ig A.ss M.istake A.merica
- louis mielke
- Posts: 96
- Joined: July 15th, 2009, 7:08 am
- Location: Maryland
- Rhino89523
- Posts: 1233
- Joined: November 18th, 2010, 1:45 pm
- Rhino89523
- Posts: 1233
- Joined: November 18th, 2010, 1:45 pm
I like the XRL the best of all the street legal whales. I had a KLR and I have ridden the DR650 and had XT's. The KTM is the best pure dirtbike but the XRL does pretty good and is bulletproof. I love the 650R but they take a special breed to enjoy and for some can be a bitch to kick especially when jetting isn't right.
O.ne B.ig A.ss M.istake A.merica
Picked up a 2017 about 3 weeks ago. So far, it's a blast. Only problem is you have to add so much to them. Even though is has the mounts, Honda sells the center stand separately. I figure I'll have another $2k into it before it's got what it really needs over what you get. One other downside are the tires that come on it aren't good for any kind of offroad riding. But, it has healthy power for a parallel twin. It also feels solid on the road but not heavy. The 2017's are available in red, white, and blue with gold rims. I went with the standard model (non-DCT) as I rather have a clutch and shift gears (personal opinion). You can manually shift the DCT version, but it uses paddle shifter on the bars.
'87 CR500R / (2) '01 CR500R / '02 MPS CR500R AF / '06 XR650R / '06 XR650L / '01 XR400R / '01 FLHTCUI / '04 CRF 450R / '84 CR500R / '89 Transalp /'05 CRF450X / '02 XR200R
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