Touring on the SV650

Like my Tiger?

A 7 footer is gonna make that Tiger look like a RM125 lol

I have spent many hours sitting under that porch, beer in hand, waiting for heavy rains to cease.

New helmet?
Looks good.

Nah...that blue RF1000 (TroyLee Designs paintjob, Zemke pattern) is older, having been retired last year. I started 2012 with a new RF1000 that was red with blue highlights, (also a TroyLee Zemke2 pattern).

I just replaced that one recently with a new Shoei Qwest (the white one with the blue star and "FYYFF" on the back lol)

I took a quick ride out to Devore, CA yesterday for a video shoot.

I was excited to try out the new 18" windshied for my Parabellum Scout fairing. Kinda ugly? Oh yeah! Comfortable? Definitely!



I'm sure I'd like the whole setup more if I painted it blue to match the bike. That costs money, though. And I'd probably scratch it.

It occurred to me that my setup has evolved somewhat over the years. A flyscreen and a tailbag in 2009:



A Givi A760 and an Emgo topbox in 2011:



An old fiberglass Parabellum Scout and a cheapy Bestem 929 in 2012:



The next step is just buying a BMW already set up. I've thought about it.

Route 66 used to cut through here:



Old restaurants...



The road continues off into the distance...

Why downgrade?

Moar to make you hate Winter moar

I feel bad. Almost a year later, but here are some pictures! It is worth noting that there is buffeting above 95ish with the boxes on, especially when they're empty. I feel like a stiffer rack would help a lot. I've got the SW-Motech. They also wiggle around a bit digging into corners when they've got lots of stuff in and on them. And, good advice I got too late: indelibly label your luggage with your contact information so that when you lose it, people know whom to contact. I just had to replace a lid...






I swear, it is exactly what it looks like!




Also, thank you to all of you for being so excited about your SV650s! I've been thinking of straying (to a DL650), but now it's settled:

install Buell foot pegs,
chop my windscreen down, try it, discover it still sucks and buy a big expensive one,
re-cover the seats
larger sprocket in front

This thread was inspiring!

Good condition SV650S and SF models are unbelievably hard to find in good condition here in New Mexico. I was looking at one of those when I was shopping for my 2nd bike. Wound up getting the Ninja 650R instead, butI still think that the fully faired SV in that electric blue is an awesome looking machine.

Looks real good!!

Nice bikes too!!

What's the story with the piniata?

took a weekend trip on my 03 a month or two ago. about 600 miles round-trip.. destination: VIR for a 13 hour race.. was a nice ride...


veronicaexxon2012 by fragile_this_side_up_retro_club, on Flickr


veronicaexxon20122 by fragile_this_side_up_retro_club, on Flickr


vir20121 by fragile_this_side_up_retro_club, on Flickr


vir20123 by fragile_this_side_up_retro_club, on Flickr

no camping. just in a trailer at the track.. so i kind of cheated. :)

No cheating about it, you got out and rode somewhere. I like the stripe, too.

That's a really sleek looking bike. Looks like an absolute blast.

So I picked up an '03 sv650s a few days ago for a little over a thousand dollars. Other than a few scratches on the fairing it's a great runner. I put a couple hundred miles on it right away (in December! In OHIO!) and I can see why people like this motor so much.

Do those of you without the rear fender or factory license plate holder have any complaints about water/dirt/anything else when riding in the rain or in general? The previous owner pulled the factory stuff off.
I'd like to get the lower fairings and get everything painted at once when I fix the scratches. If anyone has any input on a good source or gotchas I'm all ears. Other than that I'm thinking hard bags, GPS mount, and run out the Odometer.

I can also see immediately why people swap out the stock seat and suspension.
Oh and I'm pretty impressed with the lights too. My last bike didn't give me as good of a field of view at night. Really useful for watching out for deer.

thanks guys. picked it up in June and have put 8500 miles on it. my first bike. so pleased! going for a sort of "retro" theme for it.

i need to work on my photography. the silver never comes out right. i'm using film, though, and i know what the issue is. i just have to correct.. carry on!

rear fender issues: i don't get sprayed or anything while riding, fyi.

What kind of miles does it have now if you've already put 8500 on it? From what I've seen in this thread, these bikes seem to run forever.