Versys owners checkin

[william t.]

Originally Posted by Windchill

William, I'll see you at "March Badness" WC

It will be fun. I was really in the market for a Uly but price made me drift towards something smaller and now I am so happy. I love 650cc bikes.

[william t.]

Originally Posted by Bmrdad

Just exactly where are you, William? (You might want to update your profile, as it says nothing about where you live.) Those roads in your video look familiar... you're not in my neck of the woods, are you?

I live in Suches Ga. and ride the tri-state area. To me this is the greatest place in the world to ride. I can be in Tenn. ,N.C. ,northern S.C. and Ala. in a short time.

[william t.]

Have you guys checked this sight out?

http://www.versys.co.uk/index.php?op..._smf&Itemid=45

[Beemer_Mike]

Hello,

I picked up a Versys in October after test riding an F800ST (loved it, perfect bike, pricey though). I stumbled into my local multi-brand Jap bike dealer and was suprised to see a Versys. I had read about it in the mags and it sounded like exactly what I needed to displace the SV650S which I found to be very uncomfortable to my wrists after 20 mins of riding. The Versys complements my '92 R100GS and I find the Versys to be more relaxing, fun, and possibly as comfortable as my R100GS on tour. It is almost as perfect as an F800, as far as perceived weight, power, comfort and size for a mid-sized all-rounder.

I'm 6'2" with a 34" inseam and I've ridden around 350 miles a day for a few days on it (2 lane backroads, so basically all day rides) and I think the seat is a little low for me and it's angled forward at the front. I'd like a little more legroom, but the stock windscreen is surprisingly effective and quiet with no buffeting. Clean air at my height. I'm having a little more fun now that it is broken in, those first 1000 miles were tough, having to keep the revs down, ~55mph.

I don't find that the bike is lacking anything except for a choice in colors. Red is not my bag. Headlight is strange looking, but I haven't seen any good looking bikes in this class, plus it looks pretty good from the rider's seat while underway. Who cares.

Best modification so far is removing the goofy "KAWASAKI" decal from the sides of the fairing. I left the 'Versys" one, it looks just right. Also picked up the SW-Motech gas-cap mounted tankbag mount and used a cheapie Nelson-Rigg tankbag on top of it. Looks great and follows the contour of the tank, sort of "floating" above it magically without straps.

Rear suspension is stiff, I think an aftermarket shock may be in its future. Picked up a calsci windshield but haven't tried it yet. I'll report on that later. Also looking into the hard luggage options and haven't decided whether to get the nice Givi V35 sexy contoured cases or go with the SW-Motech "universal" type mounts and some Pelican boxes bolted to those.

It was OK with a dry bag and no luggage for a 4 day tour to GA 60, etc. and Cherohala by way of Hiwassee, etc. in October. We'll see how the luggage plan develops.

Cheers,
Mike in AL

PS. HunterSon, I'd like to know what kind of tail bag you have there. Looks like a good size.

[hunting1]

Look what Santa brought me! I installed them today and will check them out later today. Windshield and hand guards. Merry Christmas!

[william t.]

Who makes the hand guards? The set-up looks nice.

[invader]

Those look like V Strom hand guards. They are a bit big, causing a lot of wind drag and deflection. A Wee Strom owner noticed excessive wind deflecting on his legs, as well as enough drag to slow him down. Drilling a bunch of big holes in them helped a bit...

[hunting1]

Thanks and they are V-Strom. I would go with the KTM or Acerbis ones. Less fitting involved.

"They are a bit big, causing a lot of wind drag and deflection. A Wee Strom owner noticed excessive wind deflecting on his legs, as well as enough drag to slow him down."

WHAT? You are kidding right? What he went from 120 mph to 118? I guess all the bikes out there with hand guards have been depriving themselves of mach speed.

They work great for helping keep the cold air from hitting your hands and on my bike work great so far. I would recomend them.

[william t.]

It would take more then those hand guards to slow a bike down to where you could tell the difference. I might have to drill some holes through me because if those hand guards will do that much harm I am really screwing this bike up.

[sands]

How much of a difference does the windscreen make over the stock one ? It looks a bit more substantial... Looks nice too!

[invader]

Originally Posted by william t.

It would take more then those hand guards to slow a bike down to where you could tell the difference. I might have to drill some holes through me because if those hand guards will do that much harm I am really screwing this bike up.

LOL! Yeah, good one... My friend was serious about it though. His complaint was mostly about more cold wind blasting down on his legs with his Wee Strom, and he did drill holes in the bottom part to alleviate it. He also swears it's dragging him down some and wants to drill holes in the upper part as well... They are pretty darn big and actually made for the V Strom 1000.

[hunting1]

I would recomend both for cold riding! The larger screen helps alot and is well worth the money in my opinion.

[invader]

So I just spoke to the Wee Strom owner. The problem is specifically a blast of air on his feet with the large flat surfaced wedge shaped V Strom hand guards, which is a problem in colder weather. He did notice a loss of 5 mph on top speed, and would like to remove them for riding when cold out. A fellow Versys owner tried it and also noticed the strong air blast on his feet... If you're happy with them on your Versys, good for you.

[william t.]

Okay hunting1 lets hear it. Is your bike slower and are your toes cold? Have our freinds from Canada hit on something or have they been drinking to much.

[hunting1]

Take off you hoser A!