Dual sport motorcycles and balance test

[Sharif]

Unable to afford car insurance, decided to look into motorcycles after I installed a 2 stroke kit on my bicycle, didn't know how much I loved something I completely shunned before.

I decided to look into motorcycles and it's same excitement I felt when I first started getting into desktop PCs (It feels good!!!)

 

My 2 stroke kit bicycle

Currently at 860KM, freehub won't lock even after a rebuild, currently hibernating outside in snow under a tarp~

 

My priority is winter compatibility (Planing on all season as this will be my daily).

I have been looking around for motorcycles themed around 5 things,

1. Winter capability (ice, snow, slush)
2. easy to work on
3. availability of winter studded tires on that particular rim
4. After market parts and the community around it
5. 2 up

I noticed one thing fits the bill, dual sport bikes (Didn't know about them till my buddy told me about it and just kept looking into motorcycles after that, once my exams are over I will spend more time researching) and adventure bikes if budget wasn't an issue. For obvious student on a budget with a part time job reasons, I'll be eyeing on used bikes.

 

I wanted to ask the motorcycle riders here, what would you recommend, or suggest?

One other question is that, here in Canada, NL there is another balance test (Different from road test) along with the written exam, what is that exactly and how does one prepare for it?

 

[amdorintel]

2 hours ago, Sharif said:

Unable to afford car insurance,

how much was your insurance going to cost you?

you could probably save a ton of money with just buying bare minimal insurance which does not cover theft, and the liability you can lower to $200k instead of the $3M.

 

motorcycles you definately need to take a long course in how to ride safely because motorcycles are a million times more dangerous then even a small micro car.

 

please rethink your winter riding on a motorcycle dreams, just dont do it! motorcycles and ice come on now!

2 hours ago, Sharif said:

• Winter capability (ice, snow, slush)
• easy to work on
• availability of winter studded tires on that particular rim

 

a motorcycle aint no $100 50cc china doll kit where the motor is placed in the triangle above the crank on a bicycle and a gear bolted to the spokes. though they are a blast, and they are loud as fuck compared to a silent electric 2000w rear hub motor that no one can hear, nor see if its hidden behind a rear rack pannier bag. yes the cost is $100 vs $1,250 inc battery and not inc bike. and a motorcycle would cost about $2000 for a good one, though you cant ride that in parks, take it on the commuter train or place it on a city bus bike rack. Parking costs, insurance costs, registration costs, repair costs, fuel costs, oil costs, equipment costs, tire costs etc. either way a motorcycle is dangerous as people driving vehicles dont really care and are not looking, they are expecting to see large vehicles not tiny motorcyclists.

 

2 hours ago, Sharif said:

I installed a 2 stroke kit on my bicycle

 

 

 

Quote

I wanted to ask the motorcycle riders here, what would you recommend, or suggest?

recommendations for a motorcycle would be an enduro motorcycle, i would personally go with a 1990's where parts are plentiful, and not too much electronic gadgetry is on the bike.

 

 

 

2 hours ago, Sharif said:

One other question is that, here in Canada, NL there is another balance test (Different from road test) along with the written exam, what is that exactly and how does one prepare for it?

not sure what that is, that is why its best to pay for a motorcycle course that is intensive, and month long where you go for a few weekends. they will teach you how to be safe on a motorcycle, and teach you whats involved in maintaining road safety on the motorbike.

 

i think maybe what you are thinking of for balance test, is a slow speed slalom skills test. which is valuable to have.

 

 

 

[BuckGup]

I would not ride a bike in the snow even with studded tires. I took my electric bike out with mountain bike tires and ate shit almost immediately and then got hit by a car. I also took my fixie out in the winter and people don't think about bikes in the dead of winter so I got hit again. Luckily each time I was able to hit the side and roll off. But that was 16-30mph. The issue is you will be riding and hit ice or snow and you slide and fall under a bus or truck. 4 wheels is a must for winter

[wANKER]

Nothing. 

 

Riding two wheels on snow or ice is just asking for trouble.

Not worth it. 

 

I consider myself an 'all season' rider (cold doesn't bother me), but will not ride on ice or snow. Anyone who does is just an idiot. 

You will bin it. 

Period. 

 

 

[Sharif]

2 hours ago, amdorintel said:

how much was your insurance going to cost you?

you could probably save a ton of money with just buying bare minimal insurance which does not cover theft, and the liability you can lower to $200k instead of the $3M.

 

 

 

 

 

recommendations for a motorcycle would be an enduro motorcycle, i would personally go with a 1990's where parts are plentiful, and not too much electronic gadgetry is on the bike.

 

 

 

not sure what that is, that is why its best to pay for a motorcycle course that is intensive, and month long where you go for a few weekends. they will teach you how to be safe on a motorcycle, and teach you whats involved in maintaining road safety on the motorbike.

 

i think maybe what you are thinking of for balance test, is a slow speed slalom skills test. which is valuable to have.

 

 

 

Quote

how much was your insurance going to cost you?

you could probably save a ton of money with just buying bare minimal insurance which does not cover theft, and the liability you can lower to $200k instead of the $3M.

So that is coming out to be roughly $450 per month, didn't really go further than that after I got one quote. Did the math, even if I was to get some really good deal around 250 (Highly doubt) I would need to put more hours into work just to have the luxury of owning a car. Also at the time I wasn't too familiar with liability coverage and don't know what that was at when I got the quote. I do have 3 years of driving experience, but I am still not sure if that will get transfer once I get around to do the road test and get the actual license. I was covered under my dad's insurance in middle east, so I didn't really have to think about that back then.

 

Quote

motorcycles you definately need to take a long course in how to ride safely because motorcycles are a million times more dangerous then even a small micro car.

 

please rethink your winter riding on a motorcycle dreams, just dont do it! motorcycles and ice come on now!

 

a motorcycle aint no $100 50cc china doll kit where the motor is placed in the triangle above the crank on a bicycle and a gear bolted to the spokes. though they are a blast, and they are loud as fuck compared to a silent electric 2000w rear hub motor that no one can hear, nor see if its hidden behind a rear rack pannier bag. yes the cost is $100 vs $1,250 inc battery and not inc bike. and a motorcycle would cost about $2000 for a good one, though you cant ride that in parks, take it on the commuter train or place it on a city bus bike rack. Parking costs, insurance costs, registration costs, repair costs, fuel costs, oil costs, equipment costs, tire costs etc. either way a motorcycle is dangerous as people driving vehicles dont really care and are not looking, they are expecting to see large vehicles not tiny motorcyclists.

I looked around for the last 2 months for random 4 wheel vehicles came across 2, one ended up falling under a car insurance and the other was an ATV that ain't road legal.

I was planing on taking a course sometime around April, the only thing putting me off is the thought of just sealing it away in some tarp for the whole of winter, rather than using it. 

 

I am trying to not use the bus mainly because it's always 2 times faster if I just cycle there and the bus schedule is either hourly or ever 30 minutes for the most part. I know there is some crazy people out there who do it even though it ain't practical. My goal is to cycle this whole winter and use my motorized bike on nicer days just to get a feel for what I am getting myself into.

 

[Sharif]

2 hours ago, wANKER said:

Nothing. 

 

Riding two wheels on snow or ice is just asking for trouble.

Not worth it. 

 

I consider myself an 'all season' rider (cold doesn't bother me), but will not ride on ice or snow. Anyone who does is just an idiot. 

You will bin it. 

Period. 

 

 

 

2 hours ago, BuckGup said:

I would not ride a bike in the snow even with studded tires. I took my electric bike out with mountain bike tires and ate shit almost immediately and then got hit by a car. I also took my fixie out in the winter and people don't think about bikes in the dead of winter so I got hit again. Luckily each time I was able to hit the side and roll off. But that was 16-30mph. The issue is you will be riding and hit ice or snow and you slide and fall under a bus or truck. 4 wheels is a must for winter

I'll try cycling this winter and see how it goes, so far powdery snow is workable, haven't tried ice under compacted snow yet, waiting to ride in that condition to make my mind if I want to actually do this.

[amdorintel]

2 hours ago, BuckGup said:

I would not ride a bike in the snow even with studded tires. I took my electric bike out with mountain bike tires and ate shit almost immediately and then got hit by a car. I also took my fixie out in the winter and people don't think about bikes in the dead of winter so I got hit again. Luckily each time I was able to hit the side and roll off. But that was 16-30mph. The issue is you will be riding and hit ice or snow and you slide and fall under a bus or truck. 4 wheels is a must for winter

@BuckGup the problem with you and bicycles vs vehicles comes down to, sorry to say you. i know a few people who ride year round 365 days a year, whether it be 1' of snow, or -30C(-100F ), rain and they've never been hit by a car, never have fallen (yes without studdend tires). Riding on residential roads, 5% riding downtown but on sidewalks and bike lanes, pathways. they were on electric bicycles, home made ebikes, not over priced ripoff store bought ebikes that cost $2000 over a diy setup. you are fully right in the sense that vehicle drivers have no respect for anyone on the road, not even large 18 wheeler semi trucks. i have had people throw full cans at me, throw slurpees for obeying the law riding on the street. even had a pig stop me once and harrassed me for obeying the law, i knew more about the law then the fucking pig did, but he was just puffing his chest out, probably a corrupt pos piggy that one was.

riding in the winter, anytime is being aware of the conditions, being aware of whats happening around you.

 

 

2 hours ago, wANKER said:

Nothing. 

 

Riding two wheels on snow or ice is just asking for trouble.

Not worth it. 

 

I consider myself an 'all season' rider (cold doesn't bother me), but will not ride on ice or snow. Anyone who does is just an idiot. 

You will bin it. 

Period. 

 

 

it is odd to see a motorcycle riding when there is snow on the ground, i have seen it on the rare occasion, but here we get chinooks where it can turn from -30C to +15C in the matter of 5 hrs, so that can melt away the black ice, normal ice, down to bare road but still have snow on the ground. typically happens at the start and end of winter.

[Atmos]

I understand the love for bikes. I'm right there with you. But if theres two things you don't want to do with bikes its skimp out on insurance, and ride in non-dry conditions. 

 

Even with "winter" tires, you are going to fall in snow. Thats guaranteed 

[minibois]

This is from a (non-electric) bicycle rider's perspective. More specifically, someone who is from a country where we maybe have a week of snow per year.

 

Generally it's just best not to drive your bicycle in snow. Of course I have done it (school or work obligations), but I am just much slower, as you need to be careful on every corner.

Not just corners though, because snow hides a lot of stuff too. Potholes, road borders, etc. too

Visibility is a big deal too. Not nescecarily for you, since bikes generally are slower than cars.. But rather for the other drivers on the road. They will have a harder time seeing you. 

 

A colleague of mine has like a 'sports bike' he drives to work and he actually has spikes for ice/snow scenarios, but he says he prefers not driving in the snow too.

 

Also, I think in a snow situation more than anything.. Dress for the slide, not the ride! And leave a bit earlier to give yourself some more time to calmly drive to wherever you need to go.

I have fallen a couple of times in snow-ey conditions and you just seem to remember those occasions a lot better  Even though you try to be careful, there is just no preventing a fall once you start skidding.

[wANKER]

13 minutes ago, Sharif said:

 

I'll try cycling this winter and see how it goes, so far powdery snow is workable, haven't tried ice under compacted snow yet, waiting to ride in that condition to make my mind if I want to actually do this.

I mean, decent riders can sometimes get away with it. 

But it's far from fun and is often faster walking. 

 

Timestamped for what I mean

 

[amdorintel]

11 minutes ago, Sharif said:

So that is coming out to be roughly $450 per month, didn't really go further than that after I got one quote. Did the math, even if I was to get some really good deal around 250 (Highly doubt) I would need to put more hours into work just to have the luxury of owning a car. Also at the time I wasn't too familiar with liability coverage and don't know what that was at when I got the quote. I do have 3 years of driving experience, but I am still not sure if that will get transfer once I get around to do the road test and get the actual license. I was covered under my dad's insurance in middle east, so I didn't really have to think about that back then.

$450/m is steep, anyone under 26yrs old has a premium added to their coverage, new drivers as well, and how long you've been driving for. you gotta get quotes from all the majors and typically an insurance broker is unbiased and can find you a great deal. buying a smaller car reduces the rate, then a large heavy truck. size of motor is a factor, 400HP vs 80HP. Region is a factor, metropolitan area vs country. You gotta get multiple quotes for insurance from all the majors like I said.

 

 

9 minutes ago, Sharif said:

I'll try cycling this winter and see how it goes, so far powdery snow is workable, haven't tried ice under compacted snow yet, waiting to ride in that condition to make my mind if I want to actually do this.

for winter riding, a fat bike is good. you can buy a decent fat bike from Costco, though the front fork has a 135mm width then a normal fatty with 150mm width. Giant makes the frame, they are $400 ish. Studded tires are a bonus, but expensive. If you live ina big city you are allowed bicycles on trains and buses, but fat bikes wont fit on the front bike rack of a bus, you have to check it out.

 

going electric is going to cost you. about $1500 with no bike, but includes battery. i know one fella who never pedaled for an entire year, as he had no chain installed. but like i said the chinsese bicycle engines are dirt cheap, $150-$250 depending on where you buy from. but they are loud and noisy.  electric bicycles are the wave of the future!

[amdorintel]

1 minute ago, minibois said:

Generally it's just best not to drive your bicycle in snow.

fat bikes have a purpose, and snow is the main one.

but then a cyclist has to buy another bicycle, hence a fat bike.

 

fat bikes used in snow, sand, mud is what it was made for, not riding around on pavement, though the cushioning of the 4" x 26" tire has its benefit, dont see many full suspension fat bikes around.

[minibois]

Just now, amdorintel said:

fat bikes have a purpose, and snow is the main one.

but then a cyclist has to buy another bicycle, hence a fat bike.

 

fat bikes used in snow, sand, mud is what it was made for, not riding around on pavement, though the cushioning of the 4" x 26" tire has its benefit, dont see many full suspension fat bikes around.

Another colleague of mine has a fatbike (although he mentioned he mainly got it because he was tired of flat tires).

To be honest, I have not spoken with him about driving in the snow..

 

But where I live it's absolutely not needed to get a fat bike under normal circumstances; as we only have like a week of snow a year. A normal bicycle drives a lot faster under all other circumstances

[amdorintel]

2 minutes ago, minibois said:

Another colleague of mine has a fatbike (although he mentioned he mainly got it because he was tired of flat tires).

To be honest, I have not spoken with him about driving in the snow..

 

But where I live it's absolutely not needed to get a fat bike under normal circumstances; as we only have like a week of snow a year. A normal bicycle drives a lot faster under all other circumstances

yeah to each there own right, you can totally ride a regular mountain bike in the snow, i have done it with electric hub motor, 3000 watt QS motor. i loved riding in the pow, but riding on the street with compact snow from vehicle tires is challenging thats why i rode on the sidewalks, but some losers dont shovel their sidewalks within 24 hours.

[Sharif]

7 minutes ago, minibois said:

This is from a (non-electric) bicycle rider's perspective. More specifically, someone who is from a country where we maybe have a week of snow per year.

 

Generally it's just best not to drive your bicycle in snow. Of course I have done it (school or work obligations), but I am just much slower, as you need to be careful on every corner.

Not just corners though, because snow hides a lot of stuff too. Potholes, road borders, etc. too

Visibility is a big deal too. Not nescecarily for you, since bikes generally are slower than cars.. But rather for the other drivers on the road. They will have a harder time seeing you. 

 

A colleague of mine has like a 'sports bike' he drives to work and he actually has spikes for ice/snow scenarios, but he says he prefers not driving in the snow too.

 

Also, I think in a snow situation more than anything.. Dress for the slide, not the ride! And leave a bit earlier to give yourself some more time to calmly drive to wherever you need to go.

I have fallen a couple of times in snow-ey conditions and you just seem to remember those occasions a lot better  Even though you try to be careful, there is just no preventing a fall once you start skidding.

Something tells me I am gonna have a fun time this winter lol

I do wear a full face helmet on my current motorized bike so there is that, it weighs a lot more too and I installed a car fog light on the front as my headlight as well (Aimed it properly and everything)

Know from past experience driving how POS drivers behind me who don't have their headlight adjusted at night feels like

[Sharif]

10 minutes ago, wANKER said:

I mean, decent riders can sometimes get away with it. 

But it's far from fun and is often faster walking. 

 

Timestamped for what I mean

 

At this point I accepted the winter misery haha

 

My only concern is keep my hands warm and face covered from the winds

[amdorintel]

2 minutes ago, Sharif said:

Know from past experience driving how POS drivers behind me who don't have their headlight adjusted at night feels like

not just them, but pos bicycle riders with their $200 and 15,000 lumen lights, its annoying as fuck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Sharif]

11 minutes ago, amdorintel said:

$450/m is steep, anyone under 26yrs old has a premium added to their coverage, new drivers as well, and how long you've been driving for. you gotta get quotes from all the majors and typically an insurance broker is unbiased and can find you a great deal. buying a smaller car reduces the rate, then a large heavy truck. size of motor is a factor, 400HP vs 80HP. Region is a factor, metropolitan area vs country. You gotta get multiple quotes for insurance from all the majors like I said.

I will get to it this week, mainly just lost hope that moment itself after I looked into it earlier this year. It was a random old civic I mentioned as an example back then.

Quote

or winter riding, a fat bike is good. you can buy a decent fat bike from Costco, though the front fork has a 135mm width then a normal fatty with 150mm width. Giant makes the frame, they are $400 ish. Studded tires are a bonus, but expensive. If you live ina big city you are allowed bicycles on trains and buses, but fat bikes wont fit on the front bike rack of a bus, you have to check it out.

 

going electric is going to cost you. about $1500 with no bike, but includes battery. i know one fella who never pedaled for an entire year, as he had no chain installed. but like i said the chinsese bicycle engines are dirt cheap, $150-$250 depending on where you buy from. but they are loud and noisy.  electric bicycles are the wave of the future

I live in a smaller city and the buses removes their front rack during winter, so that's not happening. I mentioned in my post I currently have a motorized bike I build earlier this year and been using it as a daily since then. It's the picture in the main post.

 

That actually start around 200$ and once you spend the money on upgrading, re-jetting, and tools for maintenance, you are looking around $700 with the bike frame and everything, not to mention all the time I put into that bike.

[Sharif]

7 minutes ago, amdorintel said:

not just them, but pos bicycle riders with their $200 and 15,000 lumen lights, its annoying as fuck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You can't really get bicycle lights that bright, even the premium ones are a joke compared to anything for a car

[amdorintel]

9 minutes ago, Sharif said:

That actually start around 200$ and once you spend the money on upgrading, re-jetting, and tools for maintenance, you are looking around $700 with the bike frame and everything, not to mention all the time I put into that bike.

ya ok, well yours is heavily modified then, a basic setup is around $200, all in stockwise nothing else is needed cuz dont they come with everything needed, then its just a matter of upgrading carb, exhaust, whatever else. i looked into it years ago, but i went into electric for the silence. i would say i have ridden in excess of 20k kilometers over the years on my electric 3kw motor, one hp is 750W, your basic bicycle 66cc/80cc is like 1 or 2hp, so 3kw is 4hp of instant torque, no torque curve at all, though the winding of the motor influences your take off, along with your controller choice.

 

like any hobby you can go basic stock, or start adding this that and the other for, oooohhhhhhhhhhhh yeaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh more speeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed

 

 

[Sharif]

1 minute ago, amdorintel said:

ya ok, well yours is heavily modified then, a basic setup is around $200, all in stockwise nothing else is needed cuz dont they come with everything needed, then its just a matter of upgrading carb, exhaust, whatever else. i looked into it years ago, but i went into electric for the silence. i would say i have ridden in excess of 20k kilometers over the years on my electric 3kw motor, one hp is 750W, your basic bicycle 66cc/80cc is like 1 or 2hp, so 3kw is 4hp of instant torque, no torque curve at all, though the winding of the motor influences your take off, along with your controller choice.

 

like any hobby you can go basic stock, or start adding this that and the other for, oooohhhhhhhhhhhh yeaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh more speeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed

 

 

Haha pretty much, at the time I really didn't know what I was getting myself into.

On hindsight if I had the choice I would have been better of going electric

[amdorintel]

2 minutes ago, Sharif said:

Haha pretty much, at the time I really didn't know what I was getting myself into.

On hindsight if I had the choice I would have been better of going electric

yeah electric is waaaaaaaaaaaaaay more fun.

 

have you ever been harrassed by the poo poo with your gasser bicycle?

 

tbh with you, i only find the gassers riding in poorer neighborhoods, but electrics are far more common, however tbh i live in an affluent neighborhood on the complete opposite side of the city then where the poorer neighborhoods are so that is why i see lots of electrics. i suppose if i were in poorer neighborhoods i would see more gasser bicycles around, but if i did not have $3000 to spend on a really powerful motor, a good controller and a big battery which is where all the money is, i would have went with a $300 gasser bicycle, just like i said i hardly see any.

 

 

[BuckGup]

57 minutes ago, amdorintel said:

@BuckGup the problem with you and bicycles vs vehicles comes down to, sorry to say you.

 

Yeah except when no one checks their blind spots and turns right and hits you. Or they turn from the left lane in front of you and the snow prevents you from stopping. It's not lack of self awareness it's physics and multi thousand pound SUVs with drivers texting

[BuckGup]

1 hour ago, Sharif said:

 

I'll try cycling this winter and see how it goes, so far powdery snow is workable, haven't tried ice under compacted snow yet, waiting to ride in that condition to make my mind if I want to actually do this.

Powder works well as your wheels will just cut through to the pavement or concrete. It's when it is hard packed you ride on top and simply turning causes you to fall

[amdorintel]

Just now, BuckGup said:

Yeah except when no one checks their blind spots and turns right and hits you. Or they turn from the left lane in front of you and the snow prevents you from stopping. It's not lack of self awareness it's physics and multi thousand pound SUVs with drivers texting

yeah, but you gotta be able to read their minds!

seriously you have to expect the unexpected, but i realize the frustration, drivers have no respect!