I took my bike and added lots of protection. I put on doors, windows, a trunk, an engine compartment, two more tires, and crash zones. I named it a Dodge Ram 1500.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

👍😂

@ljprep6250

7 ай бұрын

As a matter of fact, that bike can now be used to transport at least two bikes to wherever you want to ride them now. Decent suck o' the sav there, mate.

Skid plate and decent hand guards are a good minimum for dirt/dualsport. Zip ties are a great to carry. Very light weight and versatile

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

The good old zip tie! It's current holding my exhaust on the DR650 when a bolt fell out on the last ride lol.

@kevinarmstrong478

7 ай бұрын

Yep before a long trip I would tie a bunch of zip ties along a section of frame.

@sjbechet1111

7 ай бұрын

I helped out a German cyclist whose mudguards had lost some fasteners by replacing them with zip ties. For context we were both in our late 50's - she said "That's a great solution" I replied "I feel nervous about a German woman talking about 'solutions' " She Laughed her head off - fucking brilliant.

@ljprep6250

7 ай бұрын

Also take a BIC lighter. When you snip the extra length off the tie, it leaves a nasty sharp edge which will bleed you out if you're not careful. One second of flame from the BIC and it's smooth as a baby's butt.

@kevinarmstrong478

7 ай бұрын

Yep, I will tie a few zip ties along a reasonably straight part of the frame and keep them on the bike permanently- just in case

Handguards essential to protect levers. Bash plate too. Radiator protection if they're vulnerable. Heavyweight adv bikes self destruct on crashing, crash bars help but also get destroyed. I've had lightweight aluminium crash bars on lighter bikes. Useless. Actually caused more damage to bike than if not fitted. Steel crash bars can be bent back into shape but add weight. Speed is a key factor. Crashes at speed are difficult to protect.

@ljprep6250

7 ай бұрын

You got the best trio there. And eschew humongous adv bikes.

Love that toolkit of champions! Protective gear? I think a billet gas cap is number one. Titanium valve stem caps protect that precious air. A pair of pink Dyneema yank ropes come in handy when you ride into that 4' deep crevasse, too. Front and rear 2,500# winches will hoist you out of the foot deep creek in no time. $1,000 Fox racing boots (in genuine Chiwanese Plastic!) are a must. A nice chartreuse nomex battle riding jacket is in order, too. That's all I can think of.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Do the winches weigh much? If I get something bigger than the DR650 eventually I might consider this given quite a bit of our riding is on the side of mountains. Getting the bike back up a 45 degree slope would be tough!

I dont even run handguards anymore, if i do they are the flag style for wind and prickly brush. NEVER EVER broke a lever, heres why. I move the lever in so it doesnt protrude past bar ends, and loosed the bolts so its snug but hard hit will move it instead of break. That also gives your cables the length u need to put risers in.

I have a few thoughts on this; The best crash protection is to focus on ways to get there - the actual ways you can survive your next decision - thinking as far as I can tell weighs nothing, but the effort some put into avoiding it tells me it must be fucking expensive.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Prevention is better than cure 🤔😁

Hand guards and a bash plate are a minimum requirement, IMO! For my T7 I have added a water pump cover and lower crash bars from AltRider, and I felt that a Rad cover and plastic headlight cover were important for the long gravel highways with the big trucks throwing rocks at me....glad I did! Cheers!

My risk assessment is anything that is fragile, precariously position or mindlessly expensive, protect it as best as possible. Not always with solid steel, sometimes it’s more suitable to fit sacrificial plastics and composites because impact absorption is better deflection. Almost forgot to mention, the best way to lose weight is to not have that custard slice at the bakery.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

The mighty custard slice lol. Two of our guys are addicted to them.

I agree with your recommendations.I see it as, how bad do you want to risk your day to going? my 3 plus tool recommendations: 1. For adventure bikes and heavier dual sports, you are looking at weight and suspension compromises usually. that makes a bash plate very high value insurance/peace of mind. I know I've put mine to the test a few times (even to the point of looking back to see if I've damaged something) 2. They also tend to stick out to the sides more and again are heavier, rocks and your levers could let all your oil out and make a really bad day. So case savers are cheap relatively light insurance to mostly ignore that possibility. 3. Bark busters. They save your hands, they save your levers (one of the most common broken parts on the trail), the help keep your bars intact, and they prevent brush from locking your front wheel when you didn't pull the lever. just as you said, engine guards are going to vary as to whether the bike really needs it or doesn't care. All the bikes I've owned are fine without them, but my DR came with a radiator guard, which I can see was put to use by the prior owner. All in all, a few hundred dollars is less than needing a new engine, or cab fare home + having to come back to rescue the bike. My tool list varies as appropriate, but *1 tool has saved so many major hassles that it's always brought, even for my daily driver riding: a needle-nose vicegrip.* That can sub in for a clutch or brake lever, a shift lever, or as I experienced in my last offroad race, save you from handlebar mounts that weren't tightened enough. After one of my crashes, the bars loosened up so much I immediately crashed again, when they folded over instead of turning. With a good 25min of pushing my riding skill riding ahead, I was very glad I had the vicegrips to make the bike controllable again. 5min well spent. (and I'm very willing to spend the few dollars to replace vicegripped bolts for the safety and reduced risk of breaking me or something else expensive during that race). The crescent wrench is a good follow for the vicegrip. Then I add a mini-ratchet with a hex/allen bit set and jic bits. Then 1 slotted screwdriver. All those tools fit loosely in a quart ziplock bag that fits in any of my motojackets' main pockets. Even for a race, I consider that well worth the 2 lbs or so. If it's a long trip or away from base camp a lot, then I'll bring a spare tube and make sure our group has at least 1 _working_ 12v tire pump. (my experience has been that the compact ones tend to die frequently, so I don't trust someone's "I think it works...") Other honorable mentions would be electrical tape and zip ties. For a long offroad trip, I'd make sure at least someone has a decent prybar.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

All good tips, especially the vicegrip. 👍

2:17 🤣😂😅 I always eagerly wait for these _commercials_ ! Thanks for the laughs!!!

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

😎👍

On dual sport bikes, hand guards and a skid plate at a minimum. 2 strokes get a carbon pipe guard but that's about it. Bigger "adventure" bikes need more. My AT has about the full protection kit since the plastics are expensive and the bike is a beast!. I've tipped my AT over enough to know the stuff works and also I don't really enjoy riding a hippopotamus off road as much as I thought I would. My AT has been relegated to nothing more challenging than mild 2 track and leave the more challenging stuff to whatever DS bike I'm riding (currently a KTM 500EXC). Great stuff as always Barry!

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Enjoying the AT? I'm with you, I wouldn't want to be lugging a big bike in tough terrain! The DR650 is the biggest bike I'd want to go seriously off-road with. And even then cautiously and not for too long.

As my wife breaks more items on her bike. When I replace the broken part I buy the protector for that area for the next time. As we ride about 95% off road, things we considered essential items to start with were hand guards, skid plate, case guards, rad guards. Considered optional but now added are front and rear rotor guards. All items mentioned have saved me in major repairs. Some plastics get broken and replaced, too.

@R0ger007

7 ай бұрын

Sounds like you need to add a soldering iron to your essentials. Perfect for plastic welding 👍

As you noted, it depends on the bike. I have an XR650L which has a lower weight/profile than others in the class, so this is what I want/have/recommend: Legitimate hand guards: Nothing sucks more than wiping out and finding that your brake or clutch lever are out. Skid Plate: Even with the clearance on my bike, extra protection between the engine and the ground can never be appreciated enough. Crash guards: I have some from Dirtracks that guard the rear of the bike… and they are nice for luggage support as well. Soft luggage: Unless you like advertising your wipeouts, soft luggage is a wonderful option. Also, it doesn’t mark up the crash guard. Unprotected components: I have a master cylinder guard just because of where it is located on the bike … and that there is some sort of correlation to master cylinder operability and braking. Protecting components like this is a must.

@apodski

7 ай бұрын

You can wrap your handlebars in Teflon tape where the clutch perch and master cylinder go. It allows them to turn freely on the bars in a crash, but never move under use. Also allows you to put the levers at precisely the angle you want with just a firm tug. I had handguards, but think I like this better. Your mileage will vary though as the bars ends can still get roughed up on rocks. Might want bar ends for this.

@ljmiller3987

7 ай бұрын

I think that I used the wrong term in my last reply … what I was wanting to say was rear brake cylinder, not master cylinder. On the XR650L, it is about 1/3 the way up on the right side of the bike. I was always worried that, if I drop it off-road, some rock was going to take it out.

What a few other folks have said, dirt and dual sport, good handguards and a skid and linkage guard and radiator guards are my personal must haves/dont need more than level. For an adv bike where its already pretty heavy, I'd just add a decent set of crash bars. For the most part theres nothing those bits dont cover that will cut your ride short if some damage happens. If i smash a headlight, or crunch a muffler a bit, I can still get home, if I knock a hole in a sump, trash my linkage, break a clutch lever, ect, getting home just got harder.

duck tape is a must my license plate came off and the rear wheel sent it into the airbox. I taped it up and went on my way.

Hi, very informative. On my bikes, its mandatory to have. hand guards, crash bars and bash plate. It adds weight for sure, but the bike basically dont get damaged at all. I used to drop a lot in mud rides.

Always nice to see a new CTA video. Agreed on hand/lever guards and a light or even plastic skid plate. ... although it's hard to stop tankifying your bike once you finish with the basics.

I own a CB500X. Skidplate and rad screen are 100% needed of you go off pavement at all. I put handguards on, and have been contemplating engine guards for the radiator. Had a couple close calls this year alone with tipping over and getting close to damaging the radiator. Bike is too heavy to catch from big tipping vs my old CRF250L.

I used to add every type of protection to my bikes but the more experience I gain, the more I value a lighter bike, so put much less stuff on these days. Plastic bash plate is only essential item IMO. Cheers

youve got to asses each bike's vulnerable parts in a crash that could occur with your riding style. my current 890 has very different protection to my previous 690 mainly due to the 890's fuel tank acting as protection.

@mikeisland7382

7 ай бұрын

KTM really needs to be applauded for this tank design. Capacity, LCG and tip over protection all in one.

@k_plax

7 ай бұрын

@@mikeisland7382 and foot protection. I was t-boned by a ute with a bullbar. Tank took the hit and protected my lower leg and foot

My Tiger 900 has the same sort of protection as the Tiger 900s have at the Triumph Adventure Centre. Those lads drop their big ADV bikes multiple times a day. So bash plate and high engine bars. They don't use hand guards so they can see students hands. I have Barkbusters.

it's a excercise of price vs price of damage for me. Crack a GS valve cover open, you're done.... Crash bars are cheap protection. Break an indicator? maybe skidplate is enough. Some bikes offer much better natural protection than others, like the KTM 890 crashes incredibly well with just a beefy skidplate, bonus points for wrapping around the tank and some hand guards and handlebar braces, bikes like the DesertX, Africa twin, and T7 get absolutely mangled without proper crash bars, tank dented, head fairing broken, Radiator position is also a key and often overlooked part of protection, so easy to crack those bastards on some bikes

On my Himalayan I just have a skid plate..... I carry spare levers, JB and vise grips with basic tools,.. I laid the bike on it's side and upper tank guards keep the engine case clear from the ground. Of course it's not $15,000+ bike but that's also why I bought it.,. 70 yo motocamper loves the channel and humor....

T700 - acerbis plastic bashplate, light, good coverage, quiet on gravel roads, heed crashbars, have nice bags with them to put drinks, tubes etc. soft things, hanguards, will add pump guard at some point and maybe radiator guard.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Enjoying the 700 so far?

@burkaanc

7 ай бұрын

@@crosstrainingadventure Generally yes, but its heavy and high for a beginner offroad and a bike you have to grow in to, still having thoughts if ktm 390 or hondas cb500x or 300 rally would have been better, but those wouldnt be as enjoyable for traveling on paved/unpaved roads. Hard to cover everything with one bike, it would be much easier to get road/heavy adventure + dualsport or tenere + surron type of electric alm ost motorcycle for offroad and learning.

My friend ripped a hole in his CCM400 (DRZ400) crankcase, using a knife file and gasket seal, the repair is still there as of seven years ago. On my old WR250F a piece of flint cut a hole in my water pump housing and putty was used to get me home but you could see how the scrap mark had clipped the small rail guard the 04-06 model years had and redirected straight into the pump housing... a lot of the time it is just being unlucky...never felt the need to purchase a slidguard which extended up the front of the frame.... alwsys take the emergency ties, putty, resin you could have all the protection but in my opinion it only takes the bike hitting a rock or root at an awkward angle.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Funny how those temporary repairs can turn out to be permanent. That JB Weld fix on my cracked crankcase in the vid? The guy who bought my Beta Xtrainer said it's still holding after several years and he has no intention of buying a new one.

I ride a xr400sm dual sport and GS F800 Adventure, I drop the GS all the time, hand guards, engine guards and pannier racks have saved it every time so far. Light is great but always be prepared to hit the gravel at some point.

Here’s a negative for hand guards. Great for protecting levers but when I came off after a wallaby took out my front wheel at approx 40 kph, I ended up with 6 broken bones in my left hand. I’m positive that the back of my hand hit the bark buster as I came off as there was no dirt on my gloves.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Over on the enduro channel we looked into whether full hand guards can cause hand or wrist fractures. There didn't seem to be any clear cut answer. There are definitely cases where it happens. But the majority of dirt riders who have gone over the bars repeatedly in accidents said they always seem to let go and don't have issue.

I crash a lot. A. Lot. I have a 690 with the small crash bar to protect radiators, aluminumnum case gaurd and the standard plastic hand guards that it came with in 08. Been good for me. The radiators being protected is a non negotiable for my crash test dummies riding style

My new to me 2003 BMW Dakar, is heavy already 430lbs? But I then purchased crash guards,(Heed) and a heavy duty bash plate and pannier racks (Happy Trails) and even my used Mosko luggage is heavy... yes I dropped her a bunch at Tkacs Training, however she would be really hard to get parts for if I didn't use protection ( that sounded funny ).... so my lil tank, I love...and will be going solo soon, and wouldn't have it any other way (besides a lt. 300cc) so MotoCoco might be more muscles when I get back lol

I seemed to have achieved a zen like state as i dont crash hard any more compared to a few years back. Its compulsory to have my home made 10mm thick hand guards, a radiator guard and a sump plate on my CRF301ls and thats enough to stave off most gravity activities.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Damned gravity lol. Actually I've been very fortunate with the adventure riding with all my crashes over the years probably counted on one hand (whereas I drop the bike at least onece or twice every dirt ride).

Crash bars, sump guard, barkbusters. That's my 3. Oops and RadGuard

On the DR650 I just have hand guards, Warp9 case savers, and a bash plate. I want to build a cage around the side plastics because they are the most expensive part on the DR lol. On the 800DE I felt the need for all the crash bars.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

It's weird that the DR is so popular but there aren't cheap aftermarket plastics for it!

@RGB872

7 ай бұрын

DSA aftermarket plastics for the DR used to be somewhat reasonable here in the US but they’ve gone up in the last few years.

@jonwoodworker

7 ай бұрын

@@crosstrainingadventure Input a Plisport front fender on mine for $27 us. Not a little motard one, but a proper dirt bike fender...very well made and bolted right on. Once you put the DR200 tail light and a tail tidy on, the stock rear fender doesn't look so bad.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Yep, plenty of cheap front fender options. I've got a YZ450F fender on mine.

I try not to fall down...year one on DR...so far so good...too old to crash lol

i built a custom bash plate for the alp used a 5 mm gasworks sign weighs farkall and its had more hits than tyson cost nothing,your right on the supplies to fix stuff thats an essential list mate hope ya well baz cheers

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Gotta love the homemade options, Tazy! I've knocked up a few bashplates over the years...

@tazyt3388

7 ай бұрын

@@crosstrainingadventure bet you have too mate I’m not buying stuff I can build for cheap

I was considering purchasing a head light guard, but found that as long as I am not riding behind a KTM then there's little risk. Not sure why those people need so much throttle just for me to catch up to them at the next turn.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

😂 I've seen that so many times with enduro or adventure riding! They crank the throttle but then hit the brakes early and don't carry the corner speed. And I just stay two gears higher and cruise along averaging the same speed...

I have a Himalayan and there is a truck load of bolt on protective gear out there for this bike but I only have Barkbuster metal only guards and a big solid skidplate. Can't see the point of crash bars on a single and the bash plate did a grand job of protecting the bike in a slide off on a tarmac road. An oil cooler guard for an oil cooler that already has a stone guard? Why? So much superfluous stuff that just adds weight - I've fallen off enough to be happy that the Barkbuster bars and skid plate do all that's required.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

I remember when it first came out I thought does it really need all that protection? But no doubt it would make it attractive to some riders... more bling!

If your skill level is low, you will need the protection If your skill are great, you won't mind the weight

Recently got a CB500x - so far I fitted a SRC radiator guard, bashplate and rear brake reservoir cover. I’m considering Oggy Knobs (body protection sliders) and swingarm spindles/sliders - I just don’t want the weight of crash bars and ride conservatively anyway. I’ve ordered shorty levers, and will keep the originals as spares plus I set the levers in on the bars a little and not too tight. Will possibly do hand guards at some point.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Enjoying the CB500X so far? I bought one a few years back but I was way too tall for it. 😒

@KeepItSimpleSailor

6 ай бұрын

@@crosstrainingadventureI’m loving the bike - but, I bought it as an ‘all roads explorer’, and I understand limitations (the bike’s and mine). I do some single track too, but not at dirt bike speeds.

Barkbusters, crankcase guards and bashplate here. Sadly it was my 17L Safari tank that took a big hit yesterday, I dropped the drz after a log hop with it landing on a tree stump, stoving in the tank and damaging the plastic above the exhaust header ☹️

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Bummer. And I figure there's no plastic repair? Or none good enough to be safe in the future?

@James.._

7 ай бұрын

@@crosstrainingadventure Dunno. I've done some plastic welding previously so I'll email Safari Tanks with pictures and see what they say. Theres a few tiny cracks (where it creased) that I'm hopng I can seal up if it's got enough wall thickness. We'll see. Damn tank is only 14 months old... doh!

Yeah and what condition do you want to sell your bike in. I can’t help but notice how the Himalayan the Kove 800 and the CF moto MT450 all have factory crash protection it’s a little rough paying a premium for a off road bike that needs modification for off road use!

I can honestly say i dont think an extra 30lbs has ever caused a crash for me that i would have saved if only the bike was a little bit lighter. Extra weight on the bike increases my fatigue, sure, and if i exceed my endurance that could cause a crash for sure, but thats because im outriding my limits rather than due to the weight So for me, its about cost really, cost of protection vs coat of replacement parts. With a modern midsized+ adventure bike, part replacement is $$$. Crash protection*can* be expensive but there's always cheaper options that work just fine. Kitting my Tenere up with front and rear crash bars, for example, cost me about $400cdn. I dropped it hard dozens of times, never so much as scratched a fairing.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Good price on the crash bars, what brand was that?

@Wintersdark

7 ай бұрын

@@crosstrainingadventure OEM front and Heed rear. I don't recommend the OEM front however (they bend inwards very easily) and would personally buy Heed for both if I where in the market again. The Heed rear also conveniently provided a mount point for an aftermarket high exhaust which is necessary as every crash on the right side smashes the stock exhaust into the swingarm leading to all sorts of damage. Huzar high mount exhaust was $200cdn shipped from Poland though.

It is easy to go overboard with bike protection because it adds weight. This is very dangerous because the bike sinks so much faster! This is why it is very important to NOT sit on the bike in the boat when crossing crocodile or piranha infested rivers.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

And paint the bike with blood so the critters go for the bike first? 🤔😁

Just by a DR650 - they're made out of recycled crash bars!

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

😂

The skid plate is not negotiable, without it you won't be offroading for long

No protection, enjoy the bike at its best. That day that sorrow...

my 500 exc has wraparound handguards and factory bashplate............over and out

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

😎👍

Not hard to tell where this subject came from

Canadian here: how do I apply to be a cousin?

@crosstrainingadventure

6 ай бұрын

Basically handing over massive wads of cash. And possibly sexual favours too. 😗

handleguards, flimsy or not are also indispensable. The stronger the better, but handguards and sump guards i'd say are the most important. hope you're doing well m8.

My big bike would be trashed without protection. Well worth it for my riding style. But even if you are a pavement princess I would still get protection.

How much does your bike cost? Two grands? You don't need protections. If the answer is 15 thousand, or more, then I would think to buy something good to protect my adv bike. Of course, if you have money and in case of damage that is hard to fix, you can buy another bike, why you should use protections. I wouldn't care in that case. Not my case though, so I've always bought everything I could to protect my bike, and I've never regret it. I have had a few accidents in which without protections I could say... bye bye beloved bike! But of course you're right, I added so much weight that sometimes I was thinking... why did I do that? No, I didn't fall because of the weight of my bike. Anyway, handguards and skid plate were always my priority. It's just my opinion, of course.

If you cant handle the cost of your bike beeing broken, you have way too expensive bike for your need, or you ride too agressive :)

@crosstrainingadventure

6 ай бұрын

👍

Highly recommend spending hard earned cash on improving rider skills, its a cheaper and far better investment.

It does make me laugh they make a bike out of metal then coat it with plastic to make it look cool then add another layer of metal to protect the plastic.

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Good point 😂

Once I was trapped under my dr650 Crashbars could have save my foot by having enough space to remove it. Add more weight isn’t an issue safety is paramount

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Good point. I'd hate to have my foot twisted under the bike in a slide along the dirt or bitumen. Years ago I was trapped under my DR at the bottom of a hill climb and had to wait for friends to lift it lol. Just a very awkward position!

Love the thumbnail. hope you're doing well.

333rd like. I win a KTM. Plz send 1 to souf africa

@crosstrainingadventure

7 ай бұрын

Ja, bru. Naturlijk! 😁👍

@cowboyanimal6700

7 ай бұрын

@@crosstrainingadventure ja nee.