Hi All. Not been on for a while..2yrs has anyone seen this M1NSK TRX 300i also available in the uk as a HonleyRX3 imported by Earnshaws of Huddersfield

A little heavy @ 155kg dry but still a dam sight lighter than a GS when you drop it but it has a lot of good quality parts (luggage is a bit naff.. alright for sandwiches !) I'm going up north to have a look soon, Tdamalcolm

Nice looking bikes!
I didn't see any prices posted on the web site. Any idea?

As you say ... bit heavy at 155 kg. for a 250cc bike.
Those crash bars probably add a bit. But it looks GOOD!
Question? Where are the pioneers? :confused1: I'm guessing if these machines are inexpensive then they could sell. VERY hard to break into the market. Takes a decade minimum.

My Suzuki DR650 is 324 lbs. dry, 368 lbs. wet. (147 kgs./167 kgs.)

I see no reason why Minsk can't make a perfectly reliable bike ... but they're 50 years behind the Japanese ... who've been trimming weight off dual sport bikes and improving components since 1970.

The big four push suppliers to improve components too, to make them stronger, lighter and better .. if KYB isn't giving them what they need, they go to Showa. If Denso's ignition have problems, they switch to Kokusan. And so it goes ... F.I. systems, suspension, brakes, engine internal components.

Not sure the Russians have such requirements or are as obsessed with weight reduction and quality control the way the Japanese are.

Bikes today did not come out of thin air ... but were evolved over decades of slow and careful refinement.

The Russians will get there ... but the Chinese will get there first. ... with the Indians right behind them. (Hero, Bahai/KTM)

I've done a little research on these things, they are sold under several brand names, but all made by Zongshen in China. I suppose it's unlikely we'll see them in the USA. I think one of the Chinese manufacturers needs to start building some actual brand awareness, and stop letting every distributor badge the bikes with their name, too hard to keep up with who makes what.

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Andy Tiegs
https://new.horizonsunlimited.com/ts...lsouth-america

Exactly! A few years back you'd see random Chinese mini bike (AKA pit bikes) sold everywhere: street corners, malls, auto parts stores, flea markets. A thousand different brands. The Chinese govt. stepped in and slowed things down but the damage was done.

It's well past time one Chinese company step up and build brand awareness and get serious. At this point no one I know trusts Chinese bikes much.

I remember reading a Brit mag a while bike talking about one of the big bike shows in EU or UK. They said there were something like 20 Chinese companies there. Turns out most source parts elsewhere, add paint and graphics, bolt parts together and VOILA ..."OUR NEW BIKE!" ... very few actually build a WHOLE bike from scratch, let alone the motor. Lots of get rich quick schemes going on, or so it appears.

In Latin America there are also many random brands for sale who's names change with every new boat load of bikes. The bikes are getting better but no one company has emerged to really take the lead ... like HONDA did here in the USA in the early 60's.

The Koreans are doing a better job and Hyosung has emerged as a pretty good bike from a company that stands behind the product ... as has Bahai (India) for scooters.

Here in the bay area we are still inundated with dozens of Chinese scooters ... yet there are few brick & mortar dealers that I've seen. A lot of these scooters are junk, some or OK ... I couldn't even remember ONE name of any one of them. No steady stream of bikes from one or two brands.

The bike got a mainly positive review here...

Honley RX3 - A 250cc adventure bike | Bike Social

Its heavy for a 250 ccm for sure, but man it got the look indeed....

Says it got a 18" front rim - but it looks like it got a 21" in the photos - doesnt it?

I wish Honda could make something similar out of their Crf250L model. 15 litre tank, a little windshield, a more comfortable seat, crash/engine bars and panniers as well.....

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In the end everything will be fine. If its not fine its not the end....

Yes, I could see that with a few Yamaha stickers plastered all over it.

Hard to tell from the pics - or even from the review - how far along the Zen quality spectrum it sits but the specs sound good to me. OK it's a bit overweight by modern standards but it's almost exactly the same as the old Honda CB77 I ran round Europe for years and I don't remember that as being particularly heavy. Be interesting to get one of the heavyweight reviewers to do a side by side comparison with the new CCM (although with all the pre launch tease time we've had that's now starting to sound like yesterdays bike!)

The pick and mix wild west world of Chinese bike manufacturing does sound a bit like the UK situation back in the 20's, post WW1, with companies buying in Villiers engines, Sturmey-Archer gearboxes, Webb forks etc and just making their own badges. Or post WW2 in Japan before the big four emerged in the early 60's. Anyone remember the contempt heaped upon the early Japanese offerings or even the dumping compaints about their pricing. Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.

If one dealer in Huddersfield can bring these into the UK via Belarus and sell them for £3500 with (presumably) everyone in the chain managing to chip out their margin on the way I wonder what a bit of direct sales competition could reduce it to? Get it much lower and the bike could almost be a disposable item on a long trip.

Hi Guy's. I found out from a web site the other day that the "Trade" price for these appear to be about £2850 gbp to dealers... now it comes with a two warrantee one year parts & labour and Second year parts only even with this if you go to earnshaws web site it's listed at £3699.... on their ebay listing (contact them via phone) it's £3500!! both on the road prices I think so there appears to be some leway in the pricing:confused1: TDMalcolm

Excellent comments!
Maybe they would sell in UK, but I don't think they'd go in US. £3500 is about
$5200 usd. For that price you could buy a new Honda CRF250L ($4500) KLX250 ($5100) and for a bit more ... a WR250R ($6700). All those are well established brands, very hard for a Chinese made bike to compete. But my guess if it came to the USA it'd sell for around $3500 usd at most.

I would think they would sell them in US at a price that would suit the market as you have quite a few good quality machines available at good prices.compared to the uk it would need to be lower to compete Burger!... I want to go have a looky :-) as I have been offered the chance by Rob @ Earnshaw's... so when I can manage the time to visit I'll let you all know...Tdamalcolm

Love to hear your thoughts Malc. Maybe you can blag a short test ride?
They will for sure be needing "real rider" ride reviews at some point.

Yes, we're two countries joined at the hip on prices - except yours are in dollars and ours are in pounds. I suspect if HomeDepot or Walmart started selling them the price wouldn't be far from $3500. We get the prices we deserve over here and the EU doesn't seem to have done much to market muscle prices lower.

Part of the problem trying to sell a 250 over here is that they're flat out dead as an engine capacity (for road riding anyway) thanks mainly to legislation. Too big for learners and "just a toy" to the real bikers, it could well become a bike without a niche. It appeals to me though and I'll probably see what they're fetching on LebonCoin or Ebay in a year or two.

What it really needs is a Honda CRM engine (or something similar) with about 40bhp but then it wouldn't be what it is (or legal probably). Maybe the CCM engine would fit.

The 250 market has been dead here in the USA too ... but last few years it's made a resurgence. Mostly due to fuel prices (still cheap compared to UK/EU) and poor US economy in general.

Also, the USA Moto press has jumped on board with little bikes, giving major positive INK to bikes like the new 300 Ninja, CBR250R, KTM 390 and others. Also, the 250 dual sport class are getting more and more attention, centered mostly around the 3 bikes I listed a few posts back. All good!

The press have finally quit insisting an 18 year old novice rider needs to run out and buy a Hayabusa. Now we see more realistic advice, suggesting 125's or 250's as the sensible starter bike. Much better for ensuring life long riders.

What I see is the Chinese are going to figure all this out. India as well.
The Indians are smarter in their approach, IMO, as they are partnering with name brands to work their way into the markets: IE: Bahai & KTM, Hero & Buell, Harley & and some unknown Indian company)

Of course the Japanese have been in India and China for years. They saw all this coming 25 years ago. They are concentrating on small capacity bikes and supplying economically upwardly mobile populations in countries with HUGE populations. Smart.

Honda have been in Thailand over 15 years (CRF250L made there) Kawasaki have been there about 10 years. (KLR650 and Versys made in Thailand) Suzuki make cars and bikes there. Yamaha? Not sure.

I'm not sure about what partnerships the Chinese have made other than the fact they own Benelli and make engines (and parts) for BMW. (Loncin and Kymco)

The Chinese may get a late start but once the smoke clears I'm betting they'll get this small enduro bike thing well sorted out and will become major players, producing world class bikes at bargain prices. But it will take some time for one or two winners to emerge.

But by then climate change/global warming will have got control and RTW travel by bike may be impossible. Do It Now!
And as UK BIKE's Ogri always said: "Any bike is good!"

I Agree, but wouldn't we all be going round on small capacity bikes because of fuel shortages...overlanding in big 4x4will be a thing of the past, I'll be taking me riding gear with me to Huddersfield when I go! not missing out on a free ride TDMalcolm

It's true, small bikes would rule ... and IMO, would be "the last man standing" in terms of bikes still able to travel ... if the worst were to happen. On a 125 or 250 it'll be easy to toss you and bike into a small boat to get across ever encroaching sea levels or flooded areas. If there is any fuel ... a small bike won't need much to carry on.

In the case of severe floods or catastrophic storms the little bike will win ... getting through mud and deep water better than any big bike. Also less likely to be the target of a thief or bike-jacker.

OK OK ... enough of this dark vision.
Let's think positive thoughts ... all Roses, Kittens in our Garden of Eden.

Nothing like a nice reality check I'll report back when I've had me test ride and had closer look at the quality of the bikes build and parts, after all if it can stand up to an english winter and come out the other side with only a few battle scar's..... now were did I put my rose tinted glasses?:confused1:
TDMalcolm

STOP PRESS! Just got a email from Rob at Earnshaws, On a prev rweview ride it was reported as having fueling probs rob said "We have be waiting till the end of the month for delivery as we have had a new ecu map inputted on the bikes to cure the fueling due to our different climate conditions" so there you have it..... A dealer/manufacture who listens:-D :-)