Howdy! I live in Colorado, in El Paso county (any fellow riders in the area?). I'm older than I care to admit, but still 17 in my head, though I admit I'm a good deal more cautious than I was as a carefree and nearly indestructable 20-something. I've been a rider for a long time but took quite a long break. I was looking for a bike that I could commute to work with as well as hit the trails through the mountains. My complaints with DS bikes have been the common ones; they're focused either too far one direction or another, or they don't make enough power to be useful if they're light enough to be playful.
I stumbled upon my 701, knowing nothing much about it, as I was looking for some flavor of adventure bike (the GS800/850F or Africa Twin was leading the way to that point). A DRz400 seemed a bit too small, the 600 version seemed too underpowered, and I've done the KLR thing. I had a Honda XR650R, un-corked, which was a blast but you really do have to cobble them together to make an adequate road legal commuter, and then you don't get a bike that's well suited to running much electrical gear. When I saw the 701 I was intrigued, and when I asked after it the price was right.
The 701 was a true find. It's a 2020 and loaded with aftermarket goodies, but it only has 289 original miles on it (after my test ride, and after riding it 20 miles home). Yeah, you read that right. Someone decked this bike out and then basically parked it for 3 years for some reason. It wasn't dirt cheap, but an effectively brand-new motorcycle for half the cost of anything close to it seems a pretty good deal to me.
The ride blew me away. Coming from the XR650R, I expected it'd have similar power, but holy cow... This thing is absolutely bonkers. And there's some technology present, which I'm still trying to get my head wrapped around.
It's got a pannier rack, aftermarket shift/brake foot controls, aftermarket pegs, aftermarket fuel cap, engine guards, skid plate, windshield, heated grips, bark busters (real ones), aftermarket LED signals, aftermarket kickstand (wide so it doesn't sink), and an aftermarket saddle. It also has an LED headlight bulb but I think I need another option there as it's only running in high-beam mode.
I understand there was a recall for the clutch slave cylinder due to o-ring leaks. I looked around a touch but didn't find an immediate answer. If anyone can spare a moment to enlighten me on how to identify the older units to see if I need to get it replaced I'd appreciate it (I admit I'm being lazy with this, and I will research it more eventually, so no worries if you don't feel like linking/explaining... I know it gets tiresome).
Nice to meet you all, and I'm hoping to learn all about the bike from this pool of knowledge.
Be well.
I stumbled upon my 701, knowing nothing much about it, as I was looking for some flavor of adventure bike (the GS800/850F or Africa Twin was leading the way to that point). A DRz400 seemed a bit too small, the 600 version seemed too underpowered, and I've done the KLR thing. I had a Honda XR650R, un-corked, which was a blast but you really do have to cobble them together to make an adequate road legal commuter, and then you don't get a bike that's well suited to running much electrical gear. When I saw the 701 I was intrigued, and when I asked after it the price was right.
The 701 was a true find. It's a 2020 and loaded with aftermarket goodies, but it only has 289 original miles on it (after my test ride, and after riding it 20 miles home). Yeah, you read that right. Someone decked this bike out and then basically parked it for 3 years for some reason. It wasn't dirt cheap, but an effectively brand-new motorcycle for half the cost of anything close to it seems a pretty good deal to me.
The ride blew me away. Coming from the XR650R, I expected it'd have similar power, but holy cow... This thing is absolutely bonkers. And there's some technology present, which I'm still trying to get my head wrapped around.
It's got a pannier rack, aftermarket shift/brake foot controls, aftermarket pegs, aftermarket fuel cap, engine guards, skid plate, windshield, heated grips, bark busters (real ones), aftermarket LED signals, aftermarket kickstand (wide so it doesn't sink), and an aftermarket saddle. It also has an LED headlight bulb but I think I need another option there as it's only running in high-beam mode.
I understand there was a recall for the clutch slave cylinder due to o-ring leaks. I looked around a touch but didn't find an immediate answer. If anyone can spare a moment to enlighten me on how to identify the older units to see if I need to get it replaced I'd appreciate it (I admit I'm being lazy with this, and I will research it more eventually, so no worries if you don't feel like linking/explaining... I know it gets tiresome).
Nice to meet you all, and I'm hoping to learn all about the bike from this pool of knowledge.
Be well.
