Taking the R on gravel roads (mostly a tire question I think

[tlwood28]

On a recent trip to Arkansas my group and I found ourselves detouring onto a gravel road. The gravel was sometimes close to the size of golf balls, and there was some muddy areas, hills and valleys, tire ruts, etc. The "R", equipped with Pilot Road 2's, didn't like the gravel one bit, making for a tense and squirrelly ride. The scenery and the fun I had going through it was worth it, and I find myself wanting the freedom to do that. Realistically, we were all lucky to get through it without anyone of us dropping his bike.

To do more of this, do I simply need to change tires, and maybe add a front fender extender to protect the engine from getting abraided by stones? If so, which ones? How much street riding (i.e., fun in the twisties) will I sacrifice by changing to more of a dual sport tire?

It seems around here, people buy a GS if they are (think they are, or want to think of themselves as) going off paved roads, while those who are more comfort oriented without any intentions of going off paved roads buy an RT. If the desire is 80% paved, and 20% gravel, fire roads, etc., aren't we just talking a tire change for the R? Taking these roads at "reasonable speeds" (i.e., slowing down a bit and driving cautiously) means no bottoming out the suspension, no need for bottom engine guards, etc.

Am I missing something, or is a tire change in my future? Will the front fender extender adequately protect the engine?

Thanks as always!

Tom W.

[jcridge]

Tom,

I come across the same situations where we ride. The low profile 170 is just not forgiving enough for gravel. The suspension is not soft or long enough to take the high frequency impacts, but outside of that and a little lower gearing the R and GS are basically the same machine.

You will kill the nimbleness of the R if you start adapting it to a dual sport.

I like "want to think of themselves as", but the GS does dual sport like few others can. The KTM Adventurer might be the ultimate dual sport machine, but not having been on one I can't comment first hand.

If you can find a 70 series tire with a more agressive block type pattern it may help, but then you need to upgrade the suspension. I came to the conclusion that a GS is the only way to really ride gravel and dirt roads effectly. 650GS sounds like fun, and I will keep my roadster for what its best at, the pavement. I fully expect to drop any bike taken off road...many times, who in their right mind wouldn't? If your going to enjoy the off road experience, don't worry about dropping the bike, its part of the experience.
Like you said, take things at a reasonable speed and you will come out the other end in much better shape.

John

[Matts]

Bike is fine on hard-pack dirt roads and you can adjust the shock for the bumpy ones. Agree that trying to make the R into a dual sport is a bad compromise. But I enjoy easy cruises on good dirt roads. You can get a nice skid plate that will protect the exposed oil filter and plug from gravel that is kicked up. It is the same one that goes on the GS and looks and fits fine. I got one myself and like it but I am not serious enough about it to consider a tire change (I use Metzler Z's).

[Biff's R]

A 160/60 rar tire will fit, and youcan find some ds tires in that size.

[tlwood28]

Ok, so the suspension is too firm, and the wheels are less than idea for fitting DS tires. I can do a skid plate, but other changes will compromise the true mission of the bike. But the R is a better bike on pavement than the GS, right?

I have an emotional bond with my R, not to mention the cost of the heavy farkling I have done to get the bike where I wanted it. I sure hate the idea of switching to the dark side, but I sure like those gravel and dirt roads.

[angellr]

Took my R12R off-road the other day. Went REALLY slow and kept the shiny side UP!! Would not recommend this as standard fair - if I were doing gravel/dirt roads more often, would get an F650GS. Found both the R12GS and R12R to be too heavy for *me* off-road. BTW, used to ride off-road all the time in my youth.

[sweatmark]

I hate gravel.

Even with gnarly rubber, bikes with 17" front wheel suck in gravel (or sand or mud or anything loose & slippery).

I like Pirelli Scorpion Syncs - even used 'em for a trackday in the rain, but while they were great on my Buell XB, and will get used on my Rockster next time I need tires, you're out of luck with the Roadster's 5" rear wheel and 170 tire width.

For loose surfaces, a bigger diameter front wheel is the ticket, plus knobbies.

[AirForceDirt]

If you're planning on doing any dirt riding of note, don't waste the time trying to make an 1150R something it is not. Buy a dual sport bike, or live on the pavement. The 1150GS rides very similar to the R on the pavement with the added benefit of being able to go off-road much more comfortably.

Again, don't try to make a road bike into something it's not designed for. You'll spend more money on parts to make your R into a GS than you would spend on a used GS.

My .02.

[MIXR]

Tom,

I did a few thousand kilometers on reasonable dirt roads using Avon Distanzia tyres. The only others that were available were the Pirelli Scorpions. I went through two front Distanzias, and three rears, so I covered some ground. The rear only comes in a 160. No big deal, it works fine. The bike was much more sure-footed than with road tyres. However, there are some down-sides.

The enduro-type tyres heat up and damn-near melt when fast touring with a load on. They grip very well, wet and dry, so you won't lose any speed. That's the problem. The big blocks get hot and wear very quickly. I went from getting around 13,000 kilometres out of Avon Azaros to 7,000 out of Avon Distanzias.

The R is very prone to stone damage. Lots of stones get flicked back and up. You need radiator guards. You also need to be prepared for lots of surface chips.

The alternator belt cover plate has some small vent holes around the edge. These happily absorb small stone pieces that proceed to chew up the alternator belt. I never broke one, but chewed two as far as needing replacement. They were picked up on routine servicings.

I liked the idea, and tried very hard to keep it up as there are lots of great dirt roads around here, but it wasn't worth it. Remember also that the R is very pone to damage in a dirt spill. Those oil coolers stick out a long way! Even my crash bars wouldn't have saved them.

I've grabbed a couple of my file shots to show the types of roads I was on. This was before I went to the Distanzias.




And a couple with the distanzias fitted on other rides.




I wasn't really photographing the tyres, but you get the idea. Big blocks. They hang on well, but have poor life. Good grip wet and dry, but the same price as other road tyres, for half the life - No thanks.

If you had a dedicated dirt trip to do, I'd run a set. If it's just in case you hit some dirt - Stay with roadies and go slow. The front on the R will tend to wash out on gravel. Too fast downhill and braking is a recipe for ending up in the ditch.

Same bike last week. Still on the dirt (but only for a leg stretch). The PR2 is a hopeless dirt tyre!

[riceburner]

I had a rear Scorpion Sync on for this day out over Salisbury plain and don't "remember" getting stuck anywhere - did a fair bit of mud too. (yes I fell of a few times )

Oh - apart from when we tried to use a path down the side of a field where the farmer had ploughed the path as well! ... that wasn't fun.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rockburner ... 319489863/