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lonewolf121
02-03-11, 07:25 PM
Have any Marines on here been through the KLR 650 course? I didn't; but I do own the civilian model. Any other owners out there? Anyone have the Marine version?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtcd1kSdlQY

lonewolf121
02-03-11, 07:34 PM
Here's a couple of my favorite pictures of my bike, I call it Semper. :flag:

http://i668.photobucket.com/albums/vv44/lonewolf121_photos/USMCSticker.jpg


http://i668.photobucket.com/albums/vv44/lonewolf121_photos/17330509610_ORIG.jpg

hbharrison
02-03-11, 07:58 PM
Do tell they needed to do this a long time ago, nice!!!!!!!!!!!

lonewolf121
02-04-11, 08:55 AM
Bump for one full day of viewers.

Semper Fi! :usmc:

0331 2 0369
02-04-11, 09:00 AM
Good looking bike. I have considered getting one of those myself and getting ride of my bike I have now.

AKA HITMAN
02-04-11, 09:35 AM
As a former m/c mech, The KLR's we serviced for the Sheriffs Dept. in 29 Palms were overweight, ill handling slugs. Mind you, I've raced dirt bikes in the Dez since I was 12 and after we serviced the KLR's we'd run them for a high speed jaunt and found out they will kill you just because they can. The shop ordered shocks and front fork springs from Progressive and the difference as a whole was very noticable. Great bike for fire roading IMO and I am looking for 1 to do light dual sporting on as well as a work scooter. I currently have a street legal TM 530 that I cant stand to ride on the street, Its 99% dirt and 1% street. Real uncomfortable.....KLR's are great at speed on the highway and can hold their own around town. Good bike....

0331 2 0369
02-04-11, 09:48 AM
Good info to know. thanks.

AKA HITMAN
02-04-11, 10:04 AM
Also, try Thumpertalk.com...vast website that has pretty much any topic pertaining to bikes imaginable. Pretty addicting stuff, spend most of my time there on the Vintage posts.

lonewolf121
02-04-11, 12:14 PM
As a former m/c mech, The KLR's we serviced for the Sheriffs Dept. in 29 Palms were overweight, ill handling slugs. Mind you, I've raced dirt bikes in the Dez since I was 12 and after we serviced the KLR's we'd run them for a high speed jaunt and found out they will kill you just because they can. The shop ordered shocks and front fork springs from Progressive and the difference as a whole was very noticable. Great bike for fire roading IMO and I am looking for 1 to do light dual sporting on as well as a work scooter. I currently have a street legal TM 530 that I cant stand to ride on the street, Its 99% dirt and 1% street. Real uncomfortable.....KLR's are great at speed on the highway and can hold their own around town. Good bike....

Awesome! So you had eyes on them, worked on them and you rode them; that's what I was looking for.

Now about its dual sportiness; the thing is a pig. It holds almost six gallons of fuel and can take me roughly 300 miles; however the center of gravity is a bit high. It's terrible on single track; but loves forest service roads. I used to work 82 miles from my house. I would ride rain or shine every day I worked, 164 mile roundtrip four times a week. If I didn't have that bike I'd be working for 2 hours every day just to buy the gas for that day. One thing that I absolutely love is that I can ride street out to the trails/dirt, ride the dirt all day and come home on the same bike.

Now for great sites about adventure riding:

Adventure Rider (http://www.advrider.com/) probably my favorite bike site ever.

KLR.NET (http://www.klr650.net/) for anything and everything KLR related.

Thumpertalk (http://www.thumpertalk.com/)

AKA HITMAN
02-04-11, 12:31 PM
Pig is an understatement. A DR 650 is not much better although it presents itself as more dirt worthy. In reality a XL650 is a greater handling bike on and off road, but you can't knock the KLR's all around comfort, especially with the small fairing to deflect some of the wind buffeting. In the case of the 29 Palms Sheriff, both of them were at 1 time stationed in 29 and knew the way around all the illegal activities known out there and 1 was an Expert ranked Desert Racer, so they basically wore the KLR's out..I don't think the XR's faired much better come to think of it. Off topic..the Sheriff I was friends with would come by the house on the KLR when I was monking on my race bikes and could do a very impressive nose wheely for days while in Sheriffs uniform, soon as the back end came down, crap would fall off the bike and the Richter scale would alarm...

1stRad2671
02-04-11, 02:34 PM
Since I had done pretty much everything else MVOS offered, I asked my 1st Sgt to do this. Denied. :cry:


I helped my step-bro-in-law pick up a newer model KLR last summer. It's his first real bike.

I have a '04 DR650 myself. Sometimes it has a motard setup, but for the winter it has knobbies.

USMCFOX
12-10-12, 03:26 AM
I was a M1030B combat motorcyclist, I rode ahead of convoys and eliminated any threat ahead to keep convoys rolling smoothly, I got out in 2006 and purchased the civil model klr650 of the same year bike I used in Marines.