My "new to me" Koast-to-Koast KLR

[stevewfl]

This one has a minor scratch from falling over and I got it for pennies. 

2009, 3400 miles.  Picked up last night, run it 3 hours straight today and didn;t have to push it home 

Let the farkles begin, need to prep it for a FL to CA trip in Oct. And  camping at Death Valley and torturing the bikes in the Southwest with some others.

Might try an iron butt on the single cylinder thumper on the way out there too.  I peeked at the Southwest COG calendar, and it appeared empty during the time I'll be out there. Can't expect all the regions to roll like we do in the South, but maybe I'll meet some of you on this cross country trek

[stevewfl]

1st mod in order, DEBADGING the crackerjack box decals.  Will remove them and replace with only a "Kawasaki" badge on the tank.

Not that I care what the bike looks like, but anyway wanted to do it before i bounce this thing off the rocks in the desert mountains out west 

[Rhino]

Congratulations! It will open up a whole other class of roads. Especially here in the west. First thing to do is pop out the plug to the idle mixture screw and enrichen that up a few turns (can't remember exactly how many turns but the KLR forums have it). Will start and idle much better especially in colder weather.

For other farkles such as highway pegs, racks, skid plates, panniers, www.happy-trail.com is your friend.

[Rhino]

BTW my son has the exact year and color.

[stevewfl]

Rhino thanks! And if you and/or your son care o join us I'll be meeting with a group of ADV folks for camping and riding October 16 through 20th  at the town of Gold Point (Death Valley)

[Rhino]

Rhino thanks! And if you and/or your son care o join us I'll be meeting with a group of ADV folks for camping and riding October 16 through 20th  at the town of Gold Point (Death Valley)

Tempting! An easy 2 day ride from my house at 934 miles. Would be a looonnnng 1 day on the DR650. Would also depend on weather. Lots of mountains and passes between me and Death Valley.

[stevewfl]

Tempting! An easy 2 day ride from my house at 934 miles. Would be a looonnnng 1 day on the DR650. Would also depend on weather. Lots of mountains and passes between me and Death Valley.

Shouldn't even be a question 

I'll PM you the details on the Death Valley Oct. camping

[KawiG]

I always turned the idle up enough to open up the fuel circuits a bit, closed the fuel screw and then slowly opened it a bit until the motor revved the highest and sounded good. After that I just re adjusted the idle. A jet kit does all single thumpers good..the needle is a HUGE factor!! Easy to do and worth the investment. Nice lookin bike!

[ZG]

Congrats on the new ride in the stable Steve!   




Curious though... why'd ya get ride of the Honda enduro? 

[stevewfl]

Thanks guys, first mod I've done, heat gun and I've removed "almost" all the cracker jack box "decals" Kawi put all over it.  Since each sticker is good for 3-4 HP, I'll have to add a couple of very small ADV decals =)

Thanks Teressa for the awesome lunch

[Pokey]

Do a doohicky check!!!!

[jayke]

Nice Bike...I have a Red '09

That is some weird looking mirrors...can you see anything in them?

I spent 4 hours Saturday on my KLR, my ass was killing me and I have a Meyer seat on mine.  Make sure you take your Airhawk with you when you head west.

What kind of tires are you running? You may need a set of tires on the way back from your trip.  I have Continental TKC-80's on mine.  I ride 80% street /20% dirt and got 4K miles out of my rear tire.  I don't go much over 60 MPH on it either.

[Son of Pappy]

.22 cent mod is a must.  Also an FMF Q4 can.  The differance in torque will simply amaze you.  Another absolute must do is the suspension, be it springs or full on, I would recomend contacting Race Tech.

What tires are you leaning towards?  (serious question BTW).

[stevewfl]

Nice Bike...I have a Red '09

That is some weird looking mirrors...can you see anything in them?

I spent 4 hours Saturday on my KLR, my ass was killing me and I have a Meyer seat on mine.  Make sure you take your Airhawk with you when you head west.

What kind of tires are you running? You may need a set of tires on the way back from your trip.  I have Continental TKC-80's on mine.  I ride 80% street /20% dirt and got 4K miles out of my rear tire.  I don't go much over 60 MPH on it either.

Thanks - Those are taller aftermarket mirrors the guy before put on, they see a lot

.22 cent mod is a must.  Also an FMF Q4 can.  The differance in torque will simply amaze you.  Another absolute must do is the suspension, be it springs or full on, I would recomend contacting Race Tech.

What tires are you leaning towards?  (serious question BTW).

Leaning towards the Michelin Trials or the Michelin T63's for the iron butt and trip out, then fun in the desert.  But I'd ride on a PR3 as long as its not an "off-brand"   

[GeeBeav]

That is some weird looking mirrors...

Almost looks as if they should be rotated down 90 degrees(?)

[stevewfl]

Almost looks as if they should be rotated down 90 degrees(?)

No sir they won't do that.  But I can sure see well behind me in the "up high" part 

[stevewfl]

Steve in Sunny FL did the BEST mod i'll mention later, however on the fly with little time i've got this done thus far for the trip:

wired for heated gear
wired for USB
wired for 12V receptacle
happy trails skid plate and the engine guard/hwy bars
KLIM Badlands jacket
Pelican topcase
madstadt windscreen
1 gal Rotopax
big aftermarket handguards (can't remember brand but one of 'em that set me back)
wolfman racks/softbags
tool roll/tire spoons
twisted throttle 2 bag drybag set up
phone/gps ram mount
tent/pad/sleeping bag

the pelican, dry bags, luggage and racks and such I found used on the cheap 

[Son of Pappy]

Footpegs?  This is an almost must do.  And an FMF Q4?  The weight savings alone makes this another almost must do.  Lastly, aux lights?  The Trailtech LEDs will triple the amount of usable light, I used the adhesive pads supplied and mounted them the the fairing.  And lastly, suspension?  If you don't do this you will regret it.  Load the bike with everything you will haul, find something resembling off road conditions, beyond gravel roads, something with good bumps.

[Gumby]

[ZG]

+1....