CRF 250 Rally experiences?

[revgreen]

Coming from bigger bikes, will I regret going down to a 250? Would be my first adv / dual sport bike. Exclusively ridden street bikes till now. Would I be better off sticking with something sporty and getting a dedicated dirtbike to scratch the off-road itch?

[revgreen]

Also, what other dual sport options do we have here?

[richard_smith237]

 

 

It really depends how much off-roading... If its just 'gravel roading' with a lighter bike then there are lots of capable bikes... 

 

Royal Enfield Himalayan

BMW G310GS
Honda CRF450

Kawasaki KLX250

Ducati Scrambler (dessert sled)

 

It all really depends how hard your off-roading will be and how far you ride the tarmac to get there - ADV bikes scratch a 'gravel road' itch with a very comfortable on road machine. 

 

If you are driving 5km and going to be hitting off-road trails quite hard, then the CRF250 or 400 is your ideal bike. 

[papa al]

papa frequently sees CRF's out on gnarly trails.

Local guided-enduro operator uses them;

prolly modified some.

[Kwasaki]

2 hours ago, revgreen said:

Coming from bigger bikes, will I regret going down to a 250?

I really like my CRF250L which is good bike but yeah for me if I'm honest I miss power on certain roads on bike a trip.

If I could swap it more or less for a K7 GSX-R1000R I would.

[revgreen]

I'll be mainly commuting around town during the week, and trails (dirt) on weekends. If I end up with the 250 I wouldn't even attempt to tour on it, would probably find a Versys for that.

Edited May 29, 2019 by revgreen

[thaiguzzi]

Before wasting money by buying one and then hating the thing (Allan B), why not rent one for a couple of days at 500 Baht per day.

Thank me later.

Plenty of CRF 250L renters in BKK & CM.

 

Me personally, i would find the CRF250L wanting (and hence annoying) on long rides out on tarmac, and prolly quite good off road due to it's (relatively) light weight, once sorted with modified gearing.

I have (half) decent off road skills and regularly ride my 85 kg Yamaha 250 trials bikes off road.

Being a Luddite and hence liking plodding slow revving singles, the Enfield Himalayan appeals a lot to me and is an impressive bit of kit for the money, especially if you are not interested in performance.

I would rather sit all day long on tarmac on the Himalayan @ 90 kph than a CRF250L buzzing its tits off @ 100 kph.

 

re, your OP, everyone is different and only you can decide.

[ktm jeff]

Rent first is a good idea. The Kawasaki KLX 250 is a much more capable off-road machine than the Honda CRF , and fully road legal. 158 - 162 K new , about 100 K used. Then pick another bike for commuting/travel if budget allows.

[taninthai]

There is some great crf 250l deals 2 nd hand only thing is most Thais have fitted supermotard wheels and tyres on theirs.

sounds ideal for what you wanna do ,but as others have said rent one first,some people just can’t t get there head round these single cylinder bikes.

[papa al]

Lifan makes an inexpensive 200cc dual sport.

X-Cross.

papa likes his.

Do they still sell those?

dunno.

haven't seen one on the streets in a year r2.

Under B50K new?

 

[Damrongsak]

I saw a video, perhaps from Malaysia, where guys were riding through the hills and forest paths. One bike appeared to be a KLX250 and another a KLX150.  The little 150 seemed much more maneuverable and nimble.  I'm a bit prejudiced toward small bikes, having had a Honda SL125 in college and a Suzuki TS125 in Thailand. At 52 kg, it didn't take much to drag my little butt around. 

[guzzi850m2]

I am also considering getting one (used) for trips to Cambodia/Laos.

 

I am just worried about it will be a shitty road bike and perhaps there are better options for those countries but keeping it at max 100k baht for the bike.

[JonnyF]

I have a KLX140G (which is essentially the same as a KLX150) and it's fantastic off road. Loads of fun, the light weight more than makes up for the lack of power. I've never ridden it on the road as it's not road legal but I'd imagine it's not great as it's geared pretty short but if you're doing proper off road and not just gravel roads then I'd recommend it the 150 as a fun bike. They're bullet proof, cheap too. 

 

The CRF250L is quite heavy and feels underpowered IMO. I've not ridden the rally but I'd imagine it's the same.

 

If you want a "proper" off road bike, Kawasaki dealerships now sell the 2019 KX250F for 299,000 Baht. I bought one last month and it's an awesome machine. I was never a fan of 4 stroke MX bikes but they've come a long way in the last 10 years and feel light, peppy and free revving. Almost like a 2 stroke.

 

 

 

[HaleySabai]

Since you have a big-bike background I'd recommend the CB500x,it's the meat'n potato bike of the North. Gives you a good balance between on and off road capability. It's big enough to throw bags on for a comfortable ride of a 1,000km or more,and light and powerful enough to handle any off road condition. That's if you are thinking to buy one bike.

If you live in the hills and want to just rip-up some dirt trails from time to time ,then the recommendation of JonnyF is spot on.

Edited May 30, 2019 by HaleySabai

[pbas400]

I did 38.000 kilometers during 16 months in Thailand on Honda Rally.

 

Everything is perfect, 0 problem

 

Excellent on roads and trails 

 

But too the weight is too heavy for enduro , and difficults trails in the jungle.

 

Depends what you need to do....for traveling Honda Rally is a great great bike

 

for only off road ...maybe kawasaki 150 ... light bike is better

 

 

[thaiguzzi]

1 hour ago, HaleySabai said:

and light and powerful enough to handle any off road condition

A CB500X ?

Is that with a 17 or 19" front wheel?

Jeez.

I admire your skills.

You are a better rider than me.

And prolly Graham Jarvis too.

[ktm jeff]

19 hours ago, taninthai said:

There is some great crf 250l deals 2 nd hand only thing is most Thais have fitted supermotard wheels and tyres on theirs.

sounds ideal for what you wanna do ,but as others have said rent one first,some people just can’t t get there head round these single cylinder bikes.

This confirms this little Honda is more suited to town/road use. The Kawasaki KLX dual-sport and the Kawasaki D-Tracker super-motard will be slower than a big road bike , but off road its a great bike. Touring is fine , just cruise below 80 KPH.

[CGW]

42 minutes ago, thaiguzzi said:

Is that with a 17 or 19" front wheel?

Does it make any difference? in my experience the front wheel doesn't touch the ground often enough to be bothered about size! ????

[ktm jeff]

3 minutes ago, CGW said:

Does it make any difference? in my experience the front wheel doesn't touch the ground often enough to be bothered about size! ????

Believe me , it makes a big difference. Proper dirt bike front wheels arent 21" for nothing. I have a supermotard , with 17" wheels front and rear , fitted with IRC motocross  tires . But i do have the skill of Graham Jarvis . Sadly , when he was 10 years old.  ????????????????

[HaleySabai]

8 hours ago, thaiguzzi said:

A CB500X ?

Is that with a 17 or 19" front wheel?

Jeez.

I admire your skills.

You are a better rider than me.

And prolly Graham Jarvis too.

Gee-wiz Guzzi, don't get your panties tied in a knot!

Didn't allude a damn word to my "skills" or anything that would prompt a reference to Jarvis  - just talking about my own experience with the bike.

 

What's "cheesy" about a CB500x? - you don't need Javis-skill to handle this bike in ruff off-road conditions....notice I did say "off-road" NOT 'dirt-trails' - which would require a much lighter bike.

The CB500x is a reasonable duel purpose bike -  not big not small. I don't own it but I do run the shit out of them often.

 

Obviously the choice of bike depends on the path you want to pursue....

 

I've done a few demanding rides with my nephew and his buddies on a mod 125cc scooter done up trail-blaz'n Thai-style - balls of fun hauling ass up a fire trail to the top of Doi Suthep. Even on a 250cc. you won't get far on this type of trail.

 

Gotta tell ya Guzzi, the best chuckle this last riding season up at Doi Pha Tang while sitting and having a beer was the unmistakable sound of 8 thumpers desperately gunning their way to the top of the parking lot. It was a tour group of Europeans on an exclusive Royal Enfield bike tour from CR into Laos. Watching these tall and gangly Germans et.. get off the bikes rubbing their butts and shaking of the bone vibration was amusing. They all came over to chat,mostly complain, about the lack of low-end torque and the excruciating ergonomics associated with long distance. They were none to happy and had a long road ahead of them,made worst with comparison to our bikes, the 650 V-Strom.

 

I rode from Goa to Manali on an Enfield 25+ yrs ago - a fruking nightmare!..."if it worked it wouldn't be India" was a common saying then.

Planning a Leh,Ladakh to Manali ride for 2020. The tour company offers the Himalayan sport bike,hoping it has a good low end torque since the road conditions appear to call for 'low & slow' cruising.

I get a shiver thinking about those Europeans on the Enfields....hoping for this next ride, it will be the right bike for the path.

 

[HaleySabai]

On 5/31/2019 at 1:21 AM, HaleySabai said:

Gee-wiz Guzzi, don't get your panties tied in a knot!

Didn't allude a damn word to my "skills" or anything that would prompt a reference to Jarvis  - just talking about my own experience with the bike.

 

What's "cheesy" about a CB500x? - you don't need Javis-skill to handle this bike in ruff off-road conditions....notice I did say "off-road" NOT 'dirt-trails' - which would require a much lighter bike.

The CB500x is a reasonable duel purpose bike -  not big not small. I don't own it but I do run the shit out of them often.

 

Obviously the choice of bike depends on the path you want to pursue....

 

I've done a few demanding rides with my nephew and his buddies on a mod 125cc scooter done up trail-blaz'n Thai-style - balls of fun hauling ass up a fire trail to the top of Doi Suthep. Even on a 250cc. you won't get far on this type of trail.

 

Gotta tell ya Guzzi, the best chuckle this last riding season up at Doi Pha Tang while sitting and having a beer, was the unmistakable sound of 8 thumpers desperately gunning their way to the top of the parking lot. It was a tour group of Europeans on an exclusive Royal Enfield bike tour from CR into Laos. Watching these tall,gangly Germans et.. get off the bikes rubbing their butts and shaking off the bone vibration was amusing. They all came over to chat,mostly complain, about the lack of low-end torque and the excruciating ergonomics associated with long distance. They were none to happy and had a long road ahead of them,made worst with comparison to our bikes, the 650 V-Strom.

 

I rode from Goa to Manali on an Enfield 25+ yrs ago - a fruking nightmare!..."if it worked it wouldn't be India" was a common saying then.

Planning a Leh,Ladakh to Manali ride for 2020. The tour company offers the Himalayan sport bike,hoping it has a good low end torque since the road conditions appear to call for 'low & slow' cruising.

I get a shiver thinking about those Europeans on the Enfields....hoping for this next ride, it will be the right bike for the path.