IMHO It would have to be Japanese. I'd avoid any of the junk BMW churn out. Four BMW's and all have had faults. One, F650GS, I bought brand new was so bad I got my money back. The 1200GS I recently sold was faultless for three weeks before it developed a fault and the dealer had it for ten days trying to locate the fault and that was with the aid of a diagnostic computer. What chance would you have in the middle of nowhere ? LB.

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\"Bon Chance\"

Although it hurts me to admit it,i must agree with the above comment.I've had BM's and Jap's of various ages/sizes over the last 20 years and although i really,really want to convince myself that the BM's are better....i can't.And of all the Jap's i've had,the ones that have come out tops as far as strength and hardyness are concerned,are Honda.

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Just going for a short ride on my bike....

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Just going for a short ride on my bike....

I have a question regarding the "easily fixed by a local" bit. Is there really a good reason for not knowing how to fix your own bike? I understand that you may not have certain special tools, but arrangements can be made. I know a lot of people are not that mechanically/electrically inclined, but it is really not a difficult subject to learn (my opinion only, of course). Why do people prefer to not know how?


Just my two cents on some of the others...

If you don't go that fast, you don't need a lot of power, what you really need is just a good range of gears. A smaller motor with a wide range of gears is smaller, lighter, and will get better fuel economy.

I just bought a Honda VTR 250 motor on eBay. I am going to try to convert it to turbo-diesel. If it works, I will post. The next step would be a 3 or 4 speed rear wheel (overlanding really only needs two, but I want to see how high I can get my fuel economy on the highway). If that works, then I make a unibody (body as structural member like a newer car) chassis. Why unibody? A unibody is the most efficient way to make a structure. If I make the luggage an integral portion of the structure, the whole thing gets lighter weight. I intend to make the structure out of composites (mostly kevlar), which allows repairs to be made on the side of the road with spare pieces of cloth and little packets of epoxy. The last thing to do will be to make sure that enough nooks and crannies are sealed luggage (front and back panniers, etc.) that the whole thing will float. Why does everybody need a floating motorcycle? Just because. :-D
Ideally I would also want two wheel drive, but only if I could keep it light and robust.

Lots and lots of winter projects....

Matthew McLaughlin

Whatever happened to the Diesel KLE being developed for the millitary. If that was ever available to te public I think that would be the 'perfect travel bike'. LB.

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\"Bon Chance\"

Perhaps the perfect travel bike (for the third world anyway) would be a bike that looks like a local farmers low capacity trail bike but with the power of a 600 big single? And with suspension to match. I've bought the bike for my trip now but the more I think about it the more I want a bike that does not isolate me from the locals. My XT600e may be a reasonable compromise between power, carrying capacity and "Who me? Rich foreigner? Nah, look at me salt of the earth old traily" looks. However, the screen I've fitted and the big ally boxes look a bit flash. I may paint the boxes green and remove the screen when I get to the hot/dry countries if I feel a bit conspicous.
Matt

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http://adventure-writing.blogspot.com

http://scotlandnepal.blogspot.com/

*Disclaimer* - I am not saying my bike is better than your bike. I am not saying my way is better than your way. I am not mocking your religion/politics/other belief system. When reading my post imagine me sitting behind a frothing pint of ale, smiling and offering you a bag of peanuts. This is the sentiment in which my post is made. Please accept it as such!

Hi Matt,

Just don't wash the bike, it'll soon look the part.
My MZ baghira with dirt looks great even with the patched up screen from a recent off in the dirt from Potosi to Uyuni - Bike and driver survived, nearside tourtech box wasn't so well off!!!!!!

Best wishes

Alec.
Very dirty Baghira

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I wanna go back.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Livotlout:
[B]Hi Matt,

Just don't wash the bike, it'll soon look the part.

An option that appeals to me. Always take the path of least resistance (or work!) I say!
Matt

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http://adventure-writing.blogspot.com

http://scotlandnepal.blogspot.com/

*Disclaimer* - I am not saying my bike is better than your bike. I am not saying my way is better than your way. I am not mocking your religion/politics/other belief system. When reading my post imagine me sitting behind a frothing pint of ale, smiling and offering you a bag of peanuts. This is the sentiment in which my post is made. Please accept it as such!

Just bought a Honda XLV650 Transalp
It is awesome ..half the price of the R1200
and just as much fun.
Runs on unleaded petrol etc etc
Honda quality

More reliable too, I shouldn't wonder. LB.

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\"Bon Chance\"

Check this site http://www.ratbike.org/
Lots of possibilities

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Only when we pause to wonder
do we go beyond the limits of our little lives.
(Rod McKuen)

How about a KTM400/450/525? They are light, strong, have great components and build quality and are excellent off-road bikes. You can get large tanks (24litres that will get you over 500km). They are road-legal with good lights etc. If you pack light, then you can ride trails rather than road-bashing the whole way.
I've read articles that say it is no use riding a competition bike because once you load them up, you'll never get any benefit. I agree that bikes get worse as you load them up but if you start with excellent handling then it might only be degraded to average. If you start with an over-weight poor- handling bike then it will become abominable.
I've owned 3 KTMs over the years and despite riding them hard, they have proved reliable. The engines are works of art internally with things like split-shell needle rollers on the gearbox main shaft and twin oil pumps/filters. Counterbalancer means no vibes at any speed. Electric and kick-start (still works with a flat battery).
Don't be put off by the short service intervals (recommended 20 hours between oil-changes). these are for competition, not for trail-riding or transport.
The seats are too hard of course but over all they are made for tough going not pretend trail-riding like the dual-purpose bikes from Japan. I recently rode a tough wet event in NZ with a full 23 litre tank "just to see what it was like" and found it manageable.
I see that there is a company that runs tours in Morocco that uses the KTM450. Is this the beginning of a sea-change?

Does the perfect bike for overlanding exist? -- Not that I have seen so far.
What, are you German? ;-) (we need some smilies here)

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Patrick passed Dec 2018. RIP Patrick!

You're feeling pretty spry.... Good post.

What are you going to do with the bike? Where are you going to take the bike...and yourself? What are your comfort requirements...for your plan? What weight will you accept for your travel plans? What level of self-maintenance are you willing to accept? Is improvisation in your plans or will you depend upon dealer/shop support?

I will refrain from commenting about some of the new bikes being marketed for 'world travel'.

Your comment about having basic mechanical ability is right on. but, you know, anything can be fixed now-a-days with enough money...

A 49cc moped, fat-tired chopper, DL, DR, XL, R1, etc...'can' all do it.

What wins in the end, after all the crying and best laid plans are put to bed....enthusiasm and percerverance.

Ride on......