New bike for Troy? DR350SE for sale?

[Hank Moody]

Speaking of two groups, Troy, you will be in the racer wannabe group with me, especially now that Husky announced today that Scott Sommers will be heading up a team of two young bucks to contest the GNCC series. Now that you have one of their best hot-shot bikes we expect nothing less of you. You are going to have to show us how it is done, Troy.

Stu

This is just me talking and is only my opinion. I enjoy riding at a higher pace sometimes, but holding on tight and only looking at the next 15-30 foot of the trail is not fun to me. I will NOT be in the High Speed group, I will be in the yes we will go up that hill, but not doing a wheelie group. I know their will be a large group in Arkansas that will want to ride fast and hard and I'm all for that. For me I will be riding at a slower pace and still enjoying the challenges.

TBM

[troy]

...I will be in the yes we will go up that hill, but not doing a wheelie group.

You and I will be riding together in the "Girly Men" group, Hank, but I just found your comment funny considering this photo of you from last year's Fall Ozarks ride! Hmmm..is that you....riding a wheelie....up a hill? Make that hill your bitch! Accidental, I know, but still!

[MoRidin]

Dang...busted by the paparazzi!

[Hayden]

All I want to know is.......does the other pant leg say BRAKE. Is this so you get your pants on straight in the morning there Hank. You know most of us just put L-R for Left and Right.


Hayden

[troy]

Good one, T! Btw, you are supposed to notice Daryl on his Husky---it will require you to take your focus off that sweet DR350 in the photo. Man that thing looks good. Not sure I did the right thing.

[Hank Moody]

Talk to the booty because the hand is off duty!

[rxcrider]

"Troy - going back to your first post on this subject: Weren't you riding the 350 for our first April Fools ride in 2006?

Yes. That should have been November 2005. I updated the post to correct it. Good catch. Btw, I'm not surprised you remembered that. As I recall, I practically had to tear you guys away from my sweet DR. When I returned home, I washed the bike--not to remove the Arkansas dirt, but to remove Ohio drool. Some of you guys will just have to make do with your KTM's until you can find your own DR.

Sorry - that wasn't drool - it was the sweat I had to squeeze out in order to fit into that cramped riding position where I couldn't quite get under the shifter - you should be faster just from the better posture on the new ride! Honestly ,the 350 was a great bike aside from suspension, brakes & ergos. Granted there is significantly more of me, than there is you so I'm sure it fit you a bit better, but I think your position standing on the pegs will be much improved on the new beast.

As for the husky you are going to let me ride, if the stains are clear, it is drool - if they are milky white... well it will have been a damn fine ride indeed.

[rxcrider]

All I want to know is.......does the other pant leg say BRAKE. Is this so you get your pants on straight in the morning there Hank. You know most of us just put L-R for Left and Right.


Hayden

If so, you'll have to zip up backwards to ride a BSA

[troy]

As for the husky you are going to let me ride, if the stains are clear, it is drool - if they are milky white... well it will have been a damn fine ride indeed.

You get one ticket for a test ride. Just like at the gym, though, you are responsible for wiping your own sweat, drool, whatever else off the seat. Btw, when you test ride my bike, I'd better not find it upside down on the trail like the last time I rode with you.

[rxcrider]

I've transcended beyond 3 point landings and can now ghost my bike arse over teacup into the woods - Yoy may want to add a spare fender, tail light & subframe to your list of parts to bring. Ok - off to the chalkboard:
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.
I promise not to abuse your bike the way I do mine.

[Hayden]

Is there a reason you wrote that 13 times


T

[rxcrider]

Is there a reason you wrote that 13 times


T

Nope - just the point where I was sick of "ctrl-v, enter, repeat." It seemed like enough for the chalkboard effect so I stopped - never counted. Why, are you a numerologist or something?

[troy]

...I was sick of "ctrl-v, enter, repeat."

WHAT?! You mean you didn't actually type that out each time?! Well then that post was worthless! There is no discipline value in Copy & Paste. You gotta actually type it out line by line for the lesson to sink in.

I have decided that I will only allow 5 test rides on the TE450. They will be raffled off to the highest bidder. Bidders that want a longer test ride are welcome to bid on multiple test rides to combine them. Let the bidding begin. Who'll give me $100? Do I hear $110?

DISCLAIMER: Each test ride is to be no more than 2 minutes or 1 mile, whichever comes first. Test rides not to exceed 6,500 RPM. Ride at your own risk. Riders will be held liable for any and all damage to the TE450, damage to public or private property, and any damage to themselves or other persons. Test riders must be over 18 and show proof of valid motorcycle drivers license. This offer not valid in the following states: AK, AR, CO, HI, KS, and MO. TE450 test rides may cause anal leakage.

[Stu]

Gee. You are going to give me $110 to ride your beastie? Just send me my Troy-paid ticket now.

Stu

[rxcrider]

Ok Troy - you brought it up

True Story

Got busted for something stupid in elementary school. Principal assigned me to write the alphabet a few hundered times as punishment. Sir, Can I do this on the computer we just got because I'm trying to learn to type. He wasn't up to speed with the cutting edge early '80s technology so he said yes. fire up the IBM PC and away we go. I don't even think copying and pasting were the terms back then, but off I went - typed it once, coppied & pasted to my hears content and then fired up the epson dot matrix - think annoying buzzing noises for the next 15 minutes - and off the hook

I think I learned the wrong lesson back then too.

[troy]

I think I learned the wrong lesson back then too.

Good story! Actually, you learned some even better lessons:

1. Work smarter, not harder
2. Even if the answer is probably "no", ask--you may get a "yes"
3. Enter data once, use it multiple times
4. It's not that school is all that bad, it's just the principal of the thing

[troy]

For those of you who "told me so".

So I FINALLY took the 2008 Husky TE450 for a ride yesterday. I did about 90 miles of backroad and found a 1/4 mile loop of off-road trail to play on. It was easy ATV-type trail. First impressions? I should have spent $3000 on a good used DRZ400 and put a little money into farkles, and been done. I would compare it to having a Lamborgini as your only car. Sure, it's high performance and high tech, but it's not exactly comfortable or easy to drive. As a daily driver, you'd get tired of all the shifting and the beat-you-up sport suspension.

Things about the bike that are generally bugging me include:

• Engineering
  I'm not convinced the engineering is the best. The exhaust pipe runs down the left side of the bike. I did not think anything of that...UNTIL I burned the crap out of my nice riding pants. Having the pipe on the left side is a TERRIBLE idea. How many of you, like me, has been on a gnarly hill or rocky mess and had to get off the bike, lean into it, and walk it through an ostacle? Well, with my TE, you'll likely need a hospital visit to repair the melted flesh on your leg. Even things like simply wanting to pick up the back end and move the rear wheel over has become a tricky proposal. Usually, I just lean the bike against my right leg, reach over with my right hand to the rear subframe, and bump the rear wheel over. Well, if I do that now while the bike is hot, I burn the hell out of my leg.
• EFI
  As for the EFI, I think it is running too lean. Maybe you gurus can help me troubleshoot. When I decelerate, it will make popping sounds, and if I don't give it a little throttle, it will die when I stop. It starts back up fine. When I take off, I usually don't have any trouble, but if I don't give enough throttle, it will pop, sputter, and die. Yes, the dealer can adjust the EFI using expensive software and an expensive cable. Glad I'm only 6 hours from my dealer!
• Vibraton
  Remember, I came off a DR350--a "sewing machine" as safiri called it--referring to the smooth hum with very little vibration. My TE vibrates so hard that I think it may have destroyed my GPS. It vibrates so much, the batteries cannot maintain a connection. When I stand on the pegs, the vibration through my feet and into my shins is intense.
• Ergonomics
  People seem to brag about the wonderful ergonomics of this bike, but I do not find the standing position comfortable. There is also the issue of the 3,000 degree pipe you have to avoid at all cost. Oh, and the "seat" is kind of a joke, but my ass is not laughing.
• General quality
  There are many report of various bolts stripping and some of the embedded nuts "spinning". Flatland Racing built me a skid plate and radiator guards, and he reported having to replace a stripped bolt and finding the quality of the fasteners sub par in some cases. I'm also concerned about the number of delicate wiring connections with various snag points.

Other than those things, I find the bike "twitchy" to ride. What I mean is, I am going to have to learn some delicate throttle control. I've not owned a bike before where the slightest throttle movement can send the bike rocketing out from under you. I suspect I will be struggling in the tight stuff until I master this beast. I also notice that although the gears are very close together (too close?), I find myself wishing 1st gear was a bit lower. I will be feathering the clutch more on the TE than I did on the DR. The DR would just idle and tractor along when needed. The TE will die (with current EFI mapping), if I allow it to lug without some throttle applied.

I think in the end, I'm just not a top-performance kind of rider. I think I am willing to sacrifice some power for comfort and ease of riding and maintenance. I want some of you guys who are used to riding your fancy KTM's to ride this TE and give me your opinion. Maybe I'm off-base.

[Kware]

Sorry to head you are so dissatisfied with the bike. You are defiantly going to have to have the EFI and suspension adjusted. The power is going to take some time getting used to well. The Pipe, well that sucks....
I do have to agree with one of your last comments and I mean this in the nicest way. I my opinion, "You aren't the top end type of rider".
I'm sure the other guys on these bikes are going to help you through this.
Now how did you find somewhere to ride yesterday that wasn't too wet?

[troy]

Thanks for the reply, Kware. I agree with your comments. As for where I rode Friday, I am down in Wicita. We rode East and North towards Eldorado. We found a doozy of a min-maint road. Actually, I'd call this an abandoned road. It was about 2 miles and included a couple water crossings with evidence of a low water bridge smashed up many decades ago. Then we looped South of Augusta where Kyle knew of a place along the river where the high school kids party. There were a few trails to play on and it was barely muddy at all. Strange because at another road, we couldn't go across the bridge because the current was too deep and too strong.

[safiri]

A guy on KTM talk was complaining about his new 690 EFI LC4 dieing as you describe. The comments from the KTMTalk gurus were "wait, let it break in" ... the owner responded a few weeks later, and a thousand miles later, and said all was well. The dieing issue was no more. Give the bike a thousand miles to loosen up ... gears, bearings, piston/rings/cylinder, clutch, etc.

As to twitchiness ... I know some guys replace some sort of throttle cam in order to smooth out the response of some of the RFS bikes. Not sure if one is available, but perhaps will be. The cam would replace the stock one on the TPS / butterfly or on the hand grip and would slow the rate of turning WRT to throttle cable pull.

As to lean condition, the pop on decel could be the opposite. My K100RS would pop on decel ... at night, following, your could see the blue flame ball inside the muffler. Excess fuel was igniting in the muffler. Cool, actually. Car engines have been running relatively lean for decades now, with no ill effects. The heads and valves are built for the added heat. The reason guys seem to richen up mixture is to make them run cooler so that the radiators don't boil over (no fan). My F650 EFI has >25k miles and is still running strong. That bike runs lean ... at 55 mph I get >65 mpg.

For riding position, how about some bar risers or similar? Made my LC4 a lot more comfortable. Not sure if Europeans are shorter, but seems my KTM and BMW were set up for shorter riders.

Look on the bright side, at least you have a license plate for your new(-to-you) bike!