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BMW owners movement!

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jc100 said:
$30K....sweet jesus. I'm looking to trade up from my bike and started looking at the r1200, Super Tenere and the KTM adventure.....have to say the Super Tenere is looking attractive on price.
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The Super Tenere is nice, just seems to small for me. I love the larger tank on the GSA and got used to having all the electronic gizmos BMW has. I like the ESA and use it regularly, traction control is great, love the look and love that beak. That is the one thing that looks like the Tenere is missing, a big ugly nose.

BMW really gets you when you are used to all those things. I am curious to see how this clutches shifting goes. Not a feature I would have paid extra for, but the bike I bought was one they had on hand and it has everything. I do love the idea of being keyless. Just keep the fob in my jacket and forget about it.
 
Congrats Wonderings!

Just got back from our first trip on our new GSAW with my wife. We did a 4 day trip to the finger lakes - about 1100kms. More in love with this bike then ever... It's a beast. I'll post a couple pictures soon.
 
wonderings said:
That is surprising. I never did look at the specs but always assumed it was lighter and was faster... not sure why.
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More like 70lbs and the weight is a little higher up than the Beemer. It's definitely not as accomplished but I have to work out if the deficits in performance are worth the cash savings which look to be significant.
 
I've been reading reviews like crazy the past few days and there's certainly a fanboy element for every bike brand out there. Hard to get unbiased opinions at times. I see the KTM Super Adventure is getting some really good reviews though so I'm now considering that but the only issue is that the nearest dealer to me is GP Bikes (I'm in Kingston) and the bike is a new model so there may be some kinks but it seems to come with a nice equipment package as standard. The problem with the beemer for me is that adding the equipment I'd like is going to push the price way up from the low 20's. The Tenere does get reasonable reviews but it's a pig basically and I know that picking it up when it tips over is going to be an issue. The KTM is lighter than the BMW and I don't really think I care about shaft vs chain drive. Triumph Explorer XC looks OK too, but it lacks any electronic suspension aids.
 
FWIW I was in GP the other day and they had some low km tricked out KTM's in there for pretty decent prices I thought.
 
jc100 said:
I've been reading reviews like crazy the past few days and there's certainly a fanboy element for every bike brand out there. Hard to get unbiased opinions at times. I see the KTM Super Adventure is getting some really good reviews though so I'm now considering that but the only issue is that the nearest dealer to me is GP Bikes (I'm in Kingston) and the bike is a new model so there may be some kinks but it seems to come with a nice equipment package as standard. The problem with the beemer for me is that adding the equipment I'd like is going to push the price way up from the low 20's. The Tenere does get reasonable reviews but it's a pig basically and I know that picking it up when it tips over is going to be an issue. The KTM is lighter than the BMW and I don't really think I care about shaft vs chain drive. Triumph Explorer XC looks OK too, but it lacks any electronic suspension aids.
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A big thing for me is the shaft drive. I like the KTM's, love the look at least, never ridden one. It is the chain, I am not interested in chains anymore. I love the look of the Ducati Multirstradda as well, but again the chain. I think the only other adventure bikes that have shaft drives are the Super Tenere and the Tiger. Both just look small in person, I am a big guy and the size of the GSA just seems perfect for me.
 
Finally took my GSAW off-roading thanks to inreb a few days back. Had an absolutely amazing time. I dropped the beast twice and realized this bike is built to be used and abused. However, I'm now seriously thinking of replacing the OEM hand guards with Barkbusters as a precaution and was wondering if anyone else has replaced their hand guards with Barkbusters or any other brand and what your experience has been?


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Crackberry said:
Finally took my GSAW off-roading thanks to inreb a few days back. Had an absolutely amazing time. I dropped the beast twice and realized this bike is built to be used and abused. However, I'm now seriously thinking of replacing the OEM hand guards with Barkbusters as a precaution and was wondering if anyone else has replaced their hand guards with Barkbusters or any other brand and what your experience has been?


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No experience with it yet, picking up my new GSAW next week. I have read that the hand guards are smaller then the previous model. I like the size on my GSA now, offer good wind protection. If I find them to small I will probably swap them out for the Touratech ones, they have an add on to make it taller
http://www.touratech-usa.com/Store/PN-045-565X/Touratech-GD-Hand-Guards-BMW-R1200GS-Adventure
 
My concern is that the OEM ones are plastic and may break if hit had whereas barkbusters or others have the metal frame as a support so while the plastic cover may break, the metal bar behind it will still protect the brake and clutch leaver as well as my hands...


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Crackberry said:
My concern is that the OEM ones are plastic and may break if hit.....

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My first instinct was to grab at the hand guards when lifting the bike in the gully only to be met by plastic. I've never been near an expensive bike before so I didn't know. You need some good old fashioned non ferrous underpinnings right there for tussling purposes.
 
wonderings said:
You might want to check on ADV rider, there must be some who have added the barkbusters.
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wonderings said:
If I find them to small I will probably swap them out for the Touratech ones, they have an add on to make it taller
http://www.touratech-usa.com/Store/PN-045-565X/Touratech-GD-Hand-Guards-BMW-R1200GS-Adventure
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I checked on ADV rider. The Touratech hand guards are also made of plastic and I came across a number of posts from people who've broken them whereas the Barkbuster users are all happy with their choice. I am still looking for someone to tell me whether or not they experienced any significant vibration in the handlebar as a result of adding the Barkbusters and hope to get a response to that question soon.

Cheers and good luck with your new GSAW, you are going to have an absolute blast riding it.
 
inreb said:
My first instinct was to grab at the hand guards when lifting the bike in the gully only to be met by plastic.
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For all of us that spent the high price on a new GSAW, it is a little frustrating with how they cheaped out on certain parts. The handguards are exceptionally flimsy for offroading, and I would have them swapped out ASAP if I was doing any off road. And then there's the cheap mirrors with the distorted glass... I've never seen such cheap quality mirrors on a bike, never mind one that costs $30k+.

All that aside, it's still the best bike I've ever owned by far to date. :D
 
Krime said:
For all of us that spent the high price on a new GSAW, it is a little frustrating with how they cheaped out on certain parts. The handguards are exceptionally flimsy for offroading, and I would have them swapped out ASAP if I was doing any off road. And then there's the cheap mirrors with the distorted glass... I've never seen such cheap quality mirrors on a bike, never mind one that costs $30k+.

All that aside, it's still the best bike I've ever owned by far to date. :D
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would rather those be the bad things then a stupid fuel strip instead of a tried and true float system. Those are at least fixable. I will probably upgrade the hand guards, I hear they are smaller then previous gen and I like the wind protection I have no especially for early spring and late fall riding.

I will be adding a tinted windscreen as well, they look really sharp with that dark screen. First I had heard of the mirrors, will have to wait and see next week how I feel about them when I pick up my GSA.
 
wonderings said:
First I had heard of the mirrors, will have to wait and see next week how I feel about them when I pick up my GSA.
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It's not talked about much as it is a minor detail but when I brought it up on ADVrider, many agreed. You'll notice it on your first ride out, the distortion in the mirrors are very obvious. I think they recently changed their supplier, as the '13s (and 14s I think) didn't have this problem.
 
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