Which begs the question, which bike for a lap around oz?
- Thread starter martymoose
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motoddrob
Hero member
- Location
- S/W Australia
My 2 cents worth and from my experience. I'd take my GS1000 BM. Last of the basic GS series, air head with carbies. The models to follow lost the plot for serious off road traveling. They got bigger, heavier lost the 21" front wheel and got way more complicated. If doing a lap there are big distances between towns and 110km/h big singles are no where near as comfortable to ride. My only issue with my GS is soft sand. On bad gravel roads which is the majority of off road riding they're the most comfortable bike to ride. 500 kays of bitumen no problem, then the rough stuff starts and it cruses along nicely at any pace. Can carry lots of stuff, have 500 kays in the tank and shaft drive so no chain issues. They run tubeless tyres so punctures are not so much of a problem.
Have looked at the KTM adventures but that gets back to injection and computers. You need to be able to fix it with a pair of pliers and fencing wire!!
My best mate has clocked over 400,000 kays on his GS1000PD. Been to every off centre rally for the last 25 years. Probably not many places in Oz he hasn't been to several times. Done all the major and minor central tracks/roads,mostly travels on his own and has never failed to arrive back home. He was the reason I brought mine as I was missing out on some great riding with him.
As for the GSX1400 suzukis, they are the weapon of choice for my sidecar riding mates. These guys look for the worst possible way to get from A to B. Even my mate Clarkie retired his 3c sidecar for one which I might add has been just about every where in Oz and only failed once due to the black box giving in after a couple of hundred thousand kays of being thrashed through some of the worst terrain you could imagine. Last ride we did it developed a noise in the gearbox, this was revving the guts out of it for 50kays of really soft sand. Only time I didn't like my BM having fallen off it several times hence my hatred for soft sand!
As for Laverdas I'd have a SF2 fitted with appropriate tyres for a lap of Oz. Must have done thousands of kays on dirt back in the days on mine. Even my Motodd has seen it's fair share of gravel roads and handles it really well but after the last rebuild apart from gravel roads to my mates places it stays on the bitumen these days.
Have looked at the KTM adventures but that gets back to injection and computers. You need to be able to fix it with a pair of pliers and fencing wire!!
My best mate has clocked over 400,000 kays on his GS1000PD. Been to every off centre rally for the last 25 years. Probably not many places in Oz he hasn't been to several times. Done all the major and minor central tracks/roads,mostly travels on his own and has never failed to arrive back home. He was the reason I brought mine as I was missing out on some great riding with him.
As for the GSX1400 suzukis, they are the weapon of choice for my sidecar riding mates. These guys look for the worst possible way to get from A to B. Even my mate Clarkie retired his 3c sidecar for one which I might add has been just about every where in Oz and only failed once due to the black box giving in after a couple of hundred thousand kays of being thrashed through some of the worst terrain you could imagine. Last ride we did it developed a noise in the gearbox, this was revving the guts out of it for 50kays of really soft sand. Only time I didn't like my BM having fallen off it several times hence my hatred for soft sand!
As for Laverdas I'd have a SF2 fitted with appropriate tyres for a lap of Oz. Must have done thousands of kays on dirt back in the days on mine. Even my Motodd has seen it's fair share of gravel roads and handles it really well but after the last rebuild apart from gravel roads to my mates places it stays on the bitumen these days.
Legs
Hero member
- Location
- Adelaide Hills
The silly places we took our bikes back in the day.
Had my first encounter with bulldust on the RGS at 120 kph, on the way to the fire half of the Fire and Ice Rally north of Broken Hill on the Silver City Highway in 84, knew enough to not throttle off!
Vague memory of two blokes turning up on a Laverda, possibly a 3C, with jammed front suspension. Anybody on the forum?
Had my first encounter with bulldust on the RGS at 120 kph, on the way to the fire half of the Fire and Ice Rally north of Broken Hill on the Silver City Highway in 84, knew enough to not throttle off!
Vague memory of two blokes turning up on a Laverda, possibly a 3C, with jammed front suspension. Anybody on the forum?
Andy J
Hero member
- Location
- Isle of Man
I?m falling in the Atlas camp if it?s got to be a Laverda, but perhaps with appropriate modifications. As for finding one in Oz, I note Cosi says he has one.... 
Legs
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- Location
- Adelaide Hills
yep, a big chook chaser Andy
78jotadave
Hero member
Ditto to everything MotoddRob said about the choice of bike.
Back in the '70s, I rode a Z1A across the Nullabor Highway there and back to Sydney, Melbourne 600km of really bad dirt each way out in the middle bit back then (the frame broke shortly after getting back to Perth).
Then in 79, I decided to ride South America, Adventure bikes had not been invented yet so I built my own. Took my daily rider a 74 3C, slightly longer rear shocks, extra-base gaskets (to lower compression) so it would run on shit gas, it did, a pair of 70's style Superbike handlebars and some small crash bars, home-made panniers, and rack for 10 liter Jerry can. there it was my adventure bike, I loctited everything I thought might need it and then some extra, a few spares including the Bosch black box (never needed it). Venezuela to Southern Chile push-started the beast in every country even on dirt roads, alone, couldn't do it now. Thousands of Km's of dirt and bad roads. A few years later myself on the same bike with Motodd Rob on his SF we did Mexico very little dirt to speak of but some horrendous miles of cobblestone highways. Take a bike you know that you can fix on the side of the road, and you can pick it up by yourself.
By the way if you think my choice of taking a 3c was odd I met 2 French Canadians in Cuzco who had lived in Melbourne and were riding Victorian (Australia) registerd bikes, Suzuki triples watercooled 750's with LaParisienne full fairings. No kidding ! Proving you can ride pretty much anything anywhere.
Back in the '70s, I rode a Z1A across the Nullabor Highway there and back to Sydney, Melbourne 600km of really bad dirt each way out in the middle bit back then (the frame broke shortly after getting back to Perth).
Then in 79, I decided to ride South America, Adventure bikes had not been invented yet so I built my own. Took my daily rider a 74 3C, slightly longer rear shocks, extra-base gaskets (to lower compression) so it would run on shit gas, it did, a pair of 70's style Superbike handlebars and some small crash bars, home-made panniers, and rack for 10 liter Jerry can. there it was my adventure bike, I loctited everything I thought might need it and then some extra, a few spares including the Bosch black box (never needed it). Venezuela to Southern Chile push-started the beast in every country even on dirt roads, alone, couldn't do it now. Thousands of Km's of dirt and bad roads. A few years later myself on the same bike with Motodd Rob on his SF we did Mexico very little dirt to speak of but some horrendous miles of cobblestone highways. Take a bike you know that you can fix on the side of the road, and you can pick it up by yourself.
By the way if you think my choice of taking a 3c was odd I met 2 French Canadians in Cuzco who had lived in Melbourne and were riding Victorian (Australia) registerd bikes, Suzuki triples watercooled 750's with LaParisienne full fairings. No kidding ! Proving you can ride pretty much anything anywhere.
motoddrob
Hero member
- Location
- S/W Australia
Those were the dazes weren't they Dave 8)
Bottler
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- Bungendore, Australia
I would take my Jota as it is very reliable and has been on many shit roads in South Africa and neighbouring countries as well as Australia. The only problem is the Jota bars which cause my shoulder blades to ache after a few hours so I wouldn't take it for the Oz lap.
Instead my 2013 Guzzi Stelvio would be my choice. I bought it in South Africa and so it has seen the same shit roads as my Jota in southern Africa. After I came back to Aus the Stelvio covered plenty of backroads here without incident. It was then shipped to the Philippines for three years where I went to all corners of Luzon on all manner of roads. Once again no problems.
If I drop it I have a small gantry type thing that is used to raise it to a point where I can get it upright again. This is insurance as the only place I have dropped it this far was in my garage in Pretoria. In 1989 I rode a BMW R65 to Perth and back to Melbourne without incident, except for a dodgy battery which required the occasional push start, so I am not fussed about shaft drives.
This is actually a timely thread as I plan to take the Stelvio the length of the Darling River in a month or two to check out the health of the river. There might be a lap of Oz sometime thereafter.
Instead my 2013 Guzzi Stelvio would be my choice. I bought it in South Africa and so it has seen the same shit roads as my Jota in southern Africa. After I came back to Aus the Stelvio covered plenty of backroads here without incident. It was then shipped to the Philippines for three years where I went to all corners of Luzon on all manner of roads. Once again no problems.
If I drop it I have a small gantry type thing that is used to raise it to a point where I can get it upright again. This is insurance as the only place I have dropped it this far was in my garage in Pretoria. In 1989 I rode a BMW R65 to Perth and back to Melbourne without incident, except for a dodgy battery which required the occasional push start, so I am not fussed about shaft drives.
This is actually a timely thread as I plan to take the Stelvio the length of the Darling River in a month or two to check out the health of the river. There might be a lap of Oz sometime thereafter.
martymoose
Hero member
- Location
- Sydney, Australia
Agree with you Dave, setting up the hard luggage brackets is going to be the biggest challenge, I was thinking 5 litre jerrycan, crash bars are a good idea. Are they available for the sf2?
Richard, those Jota bars are adjustable you know!
Richard, those Jota bars are adjustable you know!
Bottler
Full member
- Location
- Bungendore, Australia
yes Marty I've tried a few adjustments to the bars without luck. It is probably just my age that is the problem!
Andy J
Hero member
- Location
- Isle of Man
Sure they can sometimes be reluctant to start from cold, but once running I never have a starting problem.Paul Marx said:
However, one of the mods I would consider would be to change the carb and ignition.
Whatever, they are pretty comfortable for long distance riding, economic on fuel and probably have the longest range of any large Laverda, can handle off road riding, which I wouldn?t particularly want to do on a triple or a SF, (although I am sure loads of people will now recount tales of off road exploits on 750 twins).
N.B. I am basing my choice on the assumption the explorer may wish to visit places that are not all connected by smooth asphalt on this journey.
piranha-bro2
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- Location
- Melbourne
78jotadave said:
Very cool story, your trip through S Am, Dave. The bit about the ferry sinking with the Beemer aboard was one to remember! As for being able to take virtually anything anywhere, the story about the guy taking the 916 Duke into wild places proved that as well.
gtlsteve
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- Blue Mountains Australia
AJ
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- 38°33'00.0"S 177°55'00"E
Check Shaun's setup in the 1110 Drummer Blue thread. I find this arrangement comfortable although it gives the rivet counters conniptions!Bottler said:
Richard 180.S2.81
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- North by North West
Legs
Hero member
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- Adelaide Hills
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