@EDDYYZ37 @Sub-lime
Since I know you guys have experience with MX/Enduro bikes, what is your opinion on the BMW G450X? Seems like a nice bike to put some sumo wheels on it if you wish to have fun on the road.
I recently got my motorbike learner's and went for a test drive on my friend's Big Boy TSR250 and got hooked instantly.
Will be using the bike to join my friends for gravel riding and hopefully if I can improve my riding skills with time something more technically demanding. Commuting will also be in the mix, nothing hardcore like commuting to CBD and back.
Of course, the bike is one thing, then I have to focus on the gear as well.
Hey man, hope you're well.
I don't have much experience with BMW bikes tbh, but I do know that model hasn't been in production in a while. Google confirms production ended in 2011. So, any bike you buy now will be at least 10 years old. Which isn't a huge deal, but does need to be taken into consideration that is quite a long time. Also, I'm not sure how easy it is for you to get parts for that model. If you were going to strictly use it for road use, then I wouldn't worry too much on parts, but if you're planning to do some offroad, things do tend to break.
Something I learnt many years ago, which is something I think you need to consider. I converted an 08' WR450F for road use, it was really awesome, but offroad bikes tend to have more frequent service intervals then road purpose bikes. I then moved over to a KTM 690 (enduro model) which performed almost the same as my WR, had more top-end power but I didn't really use it for speed. I think this is the better suited option to what I wanted to do, as it could do both on and off road, I also didn't need to worry about servicing it every week or two. If you're planning on racking up quite a few KM's a week, then I'd look at a more road suited bike (like the KTM 690), but if you're going to be doing sub-100KM every week, then a more offroad-y bike should be fine.
Obviously depends on your budget, and please don't think I am a KTM fan boy...
I was looking at getting a 690 again a few months ago, there's a group on Facebook (can't remember the name exactly) "We buy ktm, we sell KTM" something along those lines, IIRC its just a side hustle for Trax KTM in Pretoria. They had some really decently priced 690's at basically new mileage.
Another thing to mention is the YouTube community for bikes like KTM's/Husky's... You can pretty much find a how-to video on almost everything. I've learnt the hard way a few times, that most workshops/dealers don't take as much pride in their workmanship as I'd like them to. So the benefit of being able to learn and do your things yourself pays off, you save money and ensure its done correctly. I'm not sure if the BMW community has this type of presence on YT, but the fact that KTM/Husky does has definitely been a huge factor why I've stuck with them.
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