Off road/rough road mods for the DL650

Judd · Nov 15, 2009

First off,, I'm not trying to turn a sow's ear into a silk purse. In other words, I'm not trying to mod the DL into a KTM. What I am trying to investigate is what mods would really help either of these dikes get along better in the rough stuff. Specifically looking at shock and fork internals upgrades. Maybe a quitesh pipe if it really lowers weight enough to notice.

I have a DL650 right now and I'm waffling on keeping it or trading it off for another Adventure Touring bike. I really like the power of the DL1000 and honestly I really like the KTM 950-990s. If I can mod either of the DLs into better off road mounts {no, not the equal to the KTM} I might consider keeping the DL650 or saving some money and getting a DL1000 over the KTM. Anyone have opinions and experience with modding the DLs for off road. Rough prices for mods and specific brand names appreciated.

I know for a fact the DL650 doesn't have enough ground clearance {been stuck/high sided on the engine guard a couple times already} and I have an extra set of DR650 forks I'm been thinking about swapping the fork tubes into the DL650's forks to gain a couple inches of height. If anyone has done that, please chime in with what rate springs you ended up with and if you liked it. If I jack up the front, I will need to jack up the rear,, what shock company will allow me to option a longer shock?

herdygerdy · May 4, 2013

Sounds like you are well prepared Seattlestrom.

Suggest you add a spare of both the external circlip and thrust washer that holds the gear lever on to the linkage shaft into your spares.

Had one disappear while the bike was being transported on a trailer and buggered if I can work out how that happened.

Cheers..Tony

SeattleStrom · May 4, 2013

Thanks, Tony. Wouldn't have thought of that one. :thumbup:

arty-up · May 7, 2013

I put 2" RoxRisers on a Versys to stop mirror vibration to no avail but on washboard and rough dirt it made life much better by reducing shock to my hands and arms. Sold the Versys but put the rox on my A2.

Judd · May 22, 2013

Dang, been near two years since I did the mods and man, I'll honestly state that I'm still very happy with the mods I've done. Would do it again in a minute.

Only problem has been two fork seals that leaked{same tube}. At first I thought the decreased tube overlap was causing the issue but the last time the seal leaking I had the bushings replaced as mine did look a bit worn. I also put a set of fork boots on and honestly I think that was the issue, I just ride alot of nasty stuff and dirt was damaging the seals and it was just coincidence it was the same tube both times. Been a good 10K or so with no leaks,,,,,, happy camper I am.:thumbup:

I did notice that both times the seal busted, the oil seems very dirty. Basically black in what seemed like very low miles {1st one went after about 3K miles, the 2nd went maybe 5K}. I asked around if anyone though the Ricor Intimidators were hard on oil and no one seems to notice that. Consensus is that I just ride the thing pretty hard.

:mrgreen:

To be honest, I hated the DL when I first bought it and really was ready to sell it when I hit that deer. Hitting that deer ensured that it was now a keeper{I hate losing money} and getting the suspension right made all the difference in the world. Another biggie in making the DL "fun" was dropping the gearing alot,,,,, like 14/50 low. There are a hundred ways to make the gearing taller but man it is hard to go appreciably lower {other than that 14T front}. That 50T rear was a PITA to find but I'm very happy with it even though it do raise the cruise rpm up a bit. It's fine for regular commuting {25 mile one way with little hwy, alot of secondary roads, city and a bit of twisties thrown in} and for playing up in the mountains {twisties and dirt road play}. I will admit that if I were going to do a huge trip I would pop a 15T or maybe a 16T up front.

SeattleStrom · May 22, 2013

Judd said:
...decreased tube overlap was causing the issue but the last time the seal leaking I had the bushings replaced as mine did look a bit worn. I also put a set of fork boots on and honestly I think that was the issue, .

Did you do the fork extension thing (increasing the length of the damping rod?)? And what kind of fork boots do you use. That seems like a good idea.

And what weight fork oil seems to work well for you? I put in sonic springs for my weight and found that 5wt oil worked best on the street and seems OK on the rough stuff, but maybe a bit more compression damping might be better - any thoughts on that?

I find I'm liking the rough stuff more and more, and want to do what I can to protect the parts that could wear more, or be damaged by off road riding.

I've just installed 1" raising links for a touch more ground clearance.

Judd said:
Another biggie in making the DL "fun" was dropping the gearing alot,,,,, like 14/50 low. .

I went with a 14t, and makes a huge difference, but find for some of the steep, rough stuff (last weekend it was like a 1 mile, steep unending rock garden), I rev the motor and feather the clutch a lot. I'm guessing that won't damage the clutch, but maybe cause some premature wear. Have you had any experience with that prior to going with 14/50?

mercieca1 · May 25, 2013

You could always go a F650gs or G650gs. I had one and put 120k on the clock. Very nimble and easy to spec up for off road.

SeattleStrom · May 25, 2013

SeattleStrom said:
Judd said:

SeattleStrom said:

Just in case you don't subscribe to the "650 off road mods thread", I had a couple of questions.

Did you extend the forks with the damping rod extension thing?

And what weight fork oil seems to work well for you? I put in sonic springs for my weight and found that 5wt oil worked best on the street and seems OK on the rough stuff, but maybe a bit more compression damping might be better - any thoughts on that?

What type of fork boots do you use (seems like a really good idea given what I find myself riding now).

And I'm running a 14t front (but stock back). Works a heck of a lot better, but find I feather the clutch while revving the engine a lot getting up some of the rough stuff.

Did you find that caused a lot of clutch wear or any other problems?

Thanks, Kurt

Click to expand...

I used the DR650 forks and internals with the DL springs I already had, I think they were .90 if I remember right.

I used a set of custom Ricor Intimidators because the DR fork tubes ID is slightly smaller {tube's thicker}. It was sized for the ID of of the DR tube but valved different than the normal DR or the DL.

Ricor recommends 5w oil when using their valves but I have to admit I mixed up what should be 7-8 weight because the rebound was light. If I go back in, I'll weld up the damper hole and dril another about half the size and go back to 5w oil.

I don't remember what size boots I got. First set was too long and I was constanlt crushing them under compression when jumping or what-not. Just measure extended, then take the caps off and measure fully compressed and finally the od of the tube and the lower fork bottom id.

I ran into the same issue off road riding as you as alot of my dirt roads around here are pretty well un-maintained and are rutted and rocky. I was having to slip the clutch too much and that's why I first went to a 14t then wanted more and found the 50t rear. To be honest, I would still like it lower in 1st but I wouldn't go any lower even if I could because of the hwy cruise. It really needs a wider spread on the gear box.

Click to expand...

Thanks a lot. That really helps. Mind if I put your comments on the thread...might be of interest to others, too.

Go right ahead

Off road/rough road mods for the DL650

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