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Deleted member 1183
I have a CRF250L for the sort of going that You describe. Its a great little bike. Very user friendly and there is hardly anywhere it cannot go. Of course I am also fortunate enough to have a NC variant alongside it.
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Would it "hold up"? Sure....same as any other street bike.Hi all, I'm a long time cruiser rider (30yrs) now looking to go Adventure. I'm planning to retire in Central America and I'm trying to decide if an NC750x is going to hold up to the typical 3rd world roads found there.
Hey Wyo, welcome to the ride and a hearty welcome from north IDAHO! I have been to a few other countries and even briefly ridden there. Here in north Idaho I regularly ride logging/forest service roads like that and even way worse than what you pictured with just a set of Shinko 705's! As several of the others have all stated, "NO" the NC would not necessarily be your first choice....however, i don't believe you will be beating it to death (or whatever bike you decide on) on those roads, right!?
Though i do agree with many of the others' wise advice, I am in-camp-of the NC would be my first choice to ride there, but the manual version simply for simplicity(keep it simple). At 6'6" and 240lbs it is difficult to find a bike that'll take me the places i want to go on a budget. I like riding my NC in those conditions and rather enjoy doing that often. There are times i air my tires down for a little better handling for extended periods of time on roads like you described and there are times i do not. Riding at an appropriate speed, picking your track/path, i rarely ever hit anything with my bash/skid plate though i do stay away from deep mud! Though i'll rip through a small area of it if i need to, i'd def raise the front fender if it became frequently(seasonally) necessary. Here is a short video my son and i made of just one of the mountains i regularly ride. In 27 years i have never seen another "Street bike" up there, ever.
YouTube
May i suggest the Honda CB500x, which IMHO makes a really nice bike that i believe would serve you very well for what you have described. I've seen one up close and it is a very capable on/off road bike with a low seat height. It was outfitted with touring bags, wide off-road pegs, an adventure type windscreen, tank bag and lots of 12v/usb outlets The R.E. Himalayan 410cc would also make a great choice, "DrDubb" here just bought one and is enjoying it. Here is a little gal that has/is riding hers all over the world. She currently in South America and slowly riding her way up to Alaska! You'll enjoy her many videos Vlogging her travels around the world on her RE Himalayan 410cc bike!
Just to list a few others, the Yamaha WR250r has a great reputation for being a capable bike on and off road and it'll run at 10,000 rpm all day long(not that you'd need to). The Honda CRF250L is another capable bike that also gets incredible mpg like the NC! ...and many others that have already been mentioned all are fully capable of filling the bill for you.
It really boils down to what you would like/expect in a bike. I know that you are retiring(i'm still a couple of years away) and that tells me you will not be beating it to death. Drawing from that, i would think you'd be less interested in a dedicated Dual Sport bike but not a full on street bike either. Furthermore, i'd believe you would be leaning more towards a street worthy but still off road capable bike which "could" still be the NC with a few modifications(skid plate, bark-busters, 70/30 tires(many good ones around for cheap) aftermarket muffler (one that doesn't weigh 30lbs) and some good crash bars. The Honda CB500x(a miniature Africa Twin IMHO) or the Himma 410cc would be contenders on my list as well. All very capable on road and each would easily handle what you have described, and also returning you great mpg!
Just my $.02 worth.... I'm interested in seeing what you choose. Good luck and enjoy the ride! :{)
my rear tire
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my front tire
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The pictures don't do a good job showing just how rough the road/trail is, the dirt was such fine powder the tire would sink in almost to the rim and the rocks are slick so traction was my biggest problem.Thanks for the pictures. Beautiful country and exciting looking roads. How did she handle in loose rock and deep gravel?
Ground clearance is a firm limiting factor, suspension not so much. You can compensate by slowing down. On the other end it sounds like the OP might be doing 2-up? No fun at all on a dual sport or even a 500-ish cc bike if it involves any distance. Like, my older sister’s licensed Honda 350 w/nobbies would have been much better *at* The River than myolder brother's CB750, but no way would I have ridden pillion on that thing for 400 miles of tarmac & superslab with high speeds, dense traffic and gusting winds over 50 mph. Absolutely not on your life!Reliability and performance I'm confident the NC would be perfect for you (especially a manual transmission) the only thing I'm not sure about would be if the suspension is good enough, at least the stock suspension
Ground clearance is 6.5" stock, people have raised the NC but that's not something I would personally do, I still have the original suspension on my NC but many have upgraded the front internals and replaced the rear shock for comfort.Ground clearance is a firm limiting factor, suspension not so much. You can compensate by slowing down. On the other end it sounds like the OP might be doing 2-up? No fun at all on a dual sport or even a 500-ish cc bike if it involves any distance. Like, my older sister’s licensed Honda 350 w/nobbies would have been much better *at* The River than myolder brother's CB750, but no way would I have ridden pillion on that thing for 400 miles of tarmac & superslab with high speeds, dense traffic and gusting winds over 50 mph. Absolutely not on your life!
Finding the right balance is hard.