My new 2008 F650GS (twin) is here!

JRWooden · Aug 20, 2008

Lucky:) said:

Are F800GS tires Tubed or Tubeless?
Click to expand...

The F800GS are tubed with spoked rim,
the F650GS is tubless cast alloy rim.

That's my story anyway....

JIm

blackie · Aug 20, 2008

Ok some pics of the helmet going into the boxes, this the right vario side case when unexpanded. You can see the lever to extend the box. You can also see how it takes up space...:huh but still a damn useful feature I think.

Side view when unexpanded.

Tha vario fully expanded has swallowed the helmet.

Trying to fit the same helmet into the top box. No go, it wouldnt close. The box is fully extended.

Lucky:) · Aug 20, 2008

how easy is it to reach/clean air filter for F650/800?

JRWooden · Aug 21, 2008

blackie said:

Ok some pics of the helmet going into the boxes, this the right vario side case when unexpanded. You can see the lever to extend the box. You can also see how it takes up space...:huh but still a damn useful feature I think....
Click to expand...

Thanks Blackie!

Yes, I agree a VERY fine feature, I wonder if BMW has a patent on it???
I would think the other mfg. would otherwise be offering variable sized luggage as well....

I'm gonna have to go see one, but may well end up with the Vario top case and a cable lock for my helmet

Jim

Lucky:) · Aug 21, 2008

blackie said:

Just came back from a weekend jaunt. 1000km over a weekend. Headed up to Jasper AB through Lake Louise and the Icefield Parkway. Back via the long way to Calgary through Rocky Mountain House. I averaged 22.5 kms/litre or about 52 us mpg.

Click to expand...

Did you try there back/off road?

blackie · Aug 22, 2008

Lucky:) said:

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Did you try there back/off road?
Click to expand...

Just a wee bit, went down some trails to get to the lake side. Bike handles easy on the dry dirt. Going downhill on gravel was a bit hairy though.

Lucky, you might also want to check out UKGser those guys have wayyyy more bikes and collective experience for the time being.

JRWooden · Aug 22, 2008

blackie said:

Just a wee bit, went down some trails to get to the lake side. Bike handles easy on the dry dirt. Going downhill on gravel was a bit hairy though.

Lucky, you might also want to check out UKGser those guys have wayyyy more bikes and collective experience for the time being.
Click to expand...

Blackie:

Yeah, just looking at the tread pattern I would think ... (not having a bike yet.... ) that gravel with the stock tires has got to be a bit hairy...

I have the IRC GP-110 on my current bike and for my mostly street & limited light trail use they work pretty well. They are quiet when bike is near upright, but with some "whine type" noise when canted into corner ... my current bike is 250cc so I'm not sure how they would perform with higher HP & speed, but are S-rated for speed (112 mph).
One thing that worries me a bit is that if you look at the pattern of the GP-110 I can imagine at a steep angle of lean there is a point at which the contact patch between the tire and road drops off abruptly as the tread block coming in from the far side falls away.... so ... heck I don't now... others have mentioned the <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CADMINI%7E1%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CADMINI%7E1%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx"><link rel="colorSchemeMapping" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CADMINI%7E1%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_colorschememapping.xml"><style>  </style>[FONT=&quot]Anakee and Tourance[/FONT] ...

http://www.irc-tire.com/mce/

Jim

Lucky:) · Aug 23, 2008

blackie said:

Just a wee bit, went down some trails to get to the lake side. Bike handles easy on the dry dirt. Going downhill on gravel was a bit hairy though.

Lucky, you might also want to check out UKGser those guys have wayyyy more bikes and collective experience for the time being.
Click to expand...

Thanks, Blackie. I'll have a look the link.

Did anybody here test drive F650/800GS on logging road and?

JRWooden · Aug 23, 2008

Lucky:) said:

Thanks, Blackie. I'll have a look the link.

Did anybody here test drive F650/800GS on logging road and?
Click to expand...

Well I FINALLY got a test ride on an F650GS, mine is currently "in production" so I guess that means maybe another month???

The one I test drove was with lowered suspension and low seat; I am 6' and ordered neither of those but ... that was the only bike set up at the dealer.

I could not ride on gravel/dirt as this was the dealers bike and I did not want to dust up the demo... I think this bike will do everything I want (which is fire roads, gravel, etc. no hard-core stuff) just fine....
Limited by two items which have been mentioned before, and that can be addressed....

1) stock tires are really road oriented... even more so than those on the G650XCountry... The XCountry has the Tourance while the F650GS has the battlewings. Comparing them side by side the Metezler Toruance is not what I would call an "agressive" tire, but is more so than Battlewing...

So I think my 2nd set of tires will be Tourance, Michelin Anakee, or maybe on up to the Continental TCK80 or ??? beats me ... anyway that can be fixed...

2) Gearing is too tall for the dirt....
We are stuck with the close ratio of the F800S / ST gearbox where a wide ratio would be better for this bike I think ... but on top of that the final drive gearing is taller on the 650 than on the 800 ...

Even taking off on pavment requires a bit of deftness with clutch and throttle, so in the loose wet stuff I think I would get frustrated quickly...
So, like Blackie and others have mentioned, as soon as possible, I will be dropping to 16T front sprocket like the F800 has .... go figure...

Jim

(another month ......... sheezzzzzzzzzzzzzz)

CochraneDakar · Aug 26, 2008

blackie said:

Ok some pics of the helmet going into the boxes, this the right vario side case when unexpanded. You can see the lever to extend the box. You can also see how it takes up space...:huh but still a damn useful feature I think.

Side view when unexpanded.

Tha vario fully expanded has swallowed the helmet.

Trying to fit the same helmet into the top box. No go, it wouldnt close. The box is fully extended.

Click to expand...

I can fit my SHOEI in the top case of my R1200GS, and in the top case of my wifes new F650gs twin with BMW factory cases - the trick is to lay the helmet over on its side.

Lucky:) · Aug 27, 2008

A bit F800GS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCeC2K_fBUg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIseD-4q4UQ

Can't find something similar about F650GS (on off road)

gordo5 · Sep 2, 2008

Hello All

I received the TT fork springs and installed them on Sat. but put up a separate thread showing them, which shifted onto page two quite quickly so I thought I'd put a pointer here in case anyone who monitors this thread missed it. It's at:

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=379467

I also noticed on a post somewhere that JRWooden has his bike! Congrates! I've been feeling sorry for our American friends, especially the ones that put a deposit down in the fall. Enjoy!

On a final note, it finally happened to me. Yesterday I was riding a Yamaha and during a lane change found my right thumb pointlessly probing for the directional signal. Zoinks!

blackie · Sep 2, 2008

gordo5 said:

On a final note, it finally happened to me. Yesterday I was riding a Yamaha and during a lane change found my right thumb pointlessly probing for the directional signal. Zoinks!
Click to expand...

Haha still not as funny as uselessly hoinking the horns for the first couple hundred miles thinking it was the turn signal

JRWooden · Sep 3, 2008

gordo5 said:

Hello All

I also noticed on a post somewhere that JRWooden has his bike! Congrates! I've been feeling sorry for our American friends, especially the ones that put a deposit down in the fall. Enjoy!
Click to expand...

Thanks Gordo5 ... yes I finally got my bike ... a long and sordid story but it's all over now I've got her in the garage!

Nice write-up on the springs!
I also am shocked at the length of the solid spacer ... WHAT's UP with that???
Did you have a paperclip in your left folk assby? :huh

http://f800riders.org/forum/showthread.php?p=183706

On the TT bar extenders ... any extra work there? It looks very straight-forward to install them ... that's what worries me

thanks,
Jim

Navaho · Sep 5, 2008

I'm looking for handguards for my new 650. I need to have them in a couple of weeks for a trip. Looks like the BMW's ones will be on backorder for a long time here in the U.S. The other options I've seen are Touratech and Barkbuster. I've heard complaints about the TT ones vibrating at cruise speed. The Barkbuster brand requires that you remove the bar end weights, and I'm not wanting to do that. Any other options out there?

BTW, the R1200GS handguards are not a good fit (made for fatbars) and are too flimsy.

gordo5 · Sep 5, 2008

JRWooden said:

Thanks Gordo5 ... yes I finally got my bike ... a long and sordid story but it's all over now I've got her in the garage!

Nice write-up on the springs!
I also am shocked at the length of the solid spacer ... WHAT's UP with that???
Did you have a paperclip in your left folk assby? :huh

http://f800riders.org/forum/showthread.php?p=183706

On the TT bar extenders ... any extra work there? It looks very straight-forward to install them ... that's what worries me

thanks,
Jim
Click to expand...

Ya, I did have that 'paperclip' thing and I haven't the slightest clue why it's there. I didn't put it back, figuring it was just a PITA if I used the wrong weight oil and had to change it. To make that little thing even more of a mystery, it's only on the left side. :huh

The bar extenders were a bit more work than conventional risers. I ended up removing the side panels off the faux tank to give me a bit more room to work with since you have to bolt them on from the underside.

Sorry Navaho, no tips on the hand guards.

JRWooden · Sep 5, 2008

gordo5 said:

Ya, I did have that 'paperclip' thing and I haven't the slightest clue why it's there. I didn't put it back, figuring it was just a PITA if I used the wrong weight oil and had to change it. To make that little thing even more of a mystery, it's only on the left side. :huh

The bar extenders were a bit more work than conventional risers. I ended up removing the side panels off the faux tank to give me a bit more room to work with since you have to bolt them on from the underside.
Click to expand...

G:
It does appear that everybody has one "paper clip" on the left folk... maybe by the time I go back for my 600 mile service the mechanic will have figured it out... he said he was going to try!

On the bar extenders: So basically it's just:
1) remove top clamps holding in the bars and move them out of the way.
2) remove faux gas tank panels for access
3) hold nut under the base of the bar clamps and remove
4) insert spacer & re-assemble with longer cap screws provided in kit

How'd I do?

Thanks,
Jim

blackie · Sep 5, 2008

Navaho said:

I'm looking for handguards for my new 650. I need to have them in a couple of weeks for a trip. Looks like the BMW's ones will be on backorder for a long time here in the U.S. The other options I've seen are Touratech and Barkbuster. I've heard complaints about the TT ones vibrating at cruise speed. The Barkbuster brand requires that you remove the bar end weights, and I'm not wanting to do that. Any other options out there?

BTW, the R1200GS handguards are not a good fit (made for fatbars) and are too flimsy.
Click to expand...

Not many from what I've seen so far. The R1200GS or Touratech ones might be a good interim solution. See this thread at UKgser. Useful info (some) there.

Deuce · Sep 5, 2008

blackie said:

Ok some pics of the helmet going into the boxes, this the right vario side case when unexpanded. You can see the lever to extend the box. You can also see how it takes up space...:huh but still a damn useful feature I think.
Side view when unexpanded.

Tha vario fully expanded has swallowed the helmet.

Trying to fit the same helmet into the top box. No go, it wouldnt close. The box is fully extended.

Click to expand...

I hate to tell you this, but those Vario cases are useless. I had 'em on my '04 1200GS (LEMON yellow). Once you get dirt or dust in the expanding lever and mechanism they sieze up and bend. When you fall over (and you will) the mounting brackets on the bag break and you can't even jury rig a way to strap 'em on with bungees or rope. And watch your top case doesn't decide to break off its mount and pass you going down the road.

gordo5 · Sep 5, 2008

JRWooden said:

G:
It does appear that everybody has one "paper clip" on the left folk... maybe by the time I go back for my 600 mile service the mechanic will have figured it out... he said he was going to try!

On the bar extenders: So basically it's just:
1) remove top clamps holding in the bars and move them out of the way.
2) remove faux gas tank panels for access
3) hold nut under the base of the bar clamps and remove
4) insert spacer & re-assemble with longer cap screws provided in kit

How'd I do?

Thanks,
Jim
Click to expand...

That's pretty much it. You do need one of the larger size torx. If you're really dexterous you might not even need to remove the panels.

Gord

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