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ValleysDRZ
22-07-2005, 12:27 AM
Ok i was bored and feeling left out so here goes :ljl:

DRZ400SK3 '03
Got the bike at 950 miles in Oct 2004, and its now on 2600 - 80% offroad 20% road

Additions i've made to the bike :
14/47 gearing for offroad from standard 15/44 at 75mph it really is high revving although it may just be me cos its my first proper bike.
I took it to 89mph last sunday no problem on half throttle loads left but didnt take it any further as i dont like to push a bike too hard plus it was getting a bit windy and wobbly on the a465 at resolven on knobblies.
Polisport handguards without the alu inserts as i've heard a few horror stories and i'd rather buy new levers than break my wrists.
I did fit an aftermarket headlight as the standard is like a lighthouse but that got smashed when one of the guys threw a stone up in front of me, so the lighthouse is back on.
Acerbis rear end as the standard is like a parachute.
Renthal enduro pro-bend handlebars as the standard ones make you feel like your riding a sportsbike and make standing a lot easier on the trails.
FMF powercore 4 tail pipe (increased midrange) with plans to get the header pipe soon.
Engine case guards from USA to protect the magnesium alloy cases.

Broken stuff so far :
The common fault Steel spacer behind front sprocket corroded approximately 800 miles ago causing a leak of oil when the bike was warm and moving so that was replaced with a stainless version off fleabay which was made of chocolate so a new oem steel one went on and is now lubed after every wash so far so good.
Believe it or not thats it (touches wood) no problems with anything else considering the high amount of offroad use it gets.
Back brake pedal bent three times but bent back into shape and still good.

Other than that the bike has met and indeed exceeded all of my expectations for its intended use albeit with a few quid sunk into it and rides with the best of them.

A few offs and NO damage whatsoever, except to myself.
The plastics started to look a bit dull and a few small scratches appeared so i fitted a sticker kit to make it look nice again.
Washed after every ride with Pro-Clean and it comes up like new everytime, in fact its not far off the same condition i bought it in which says a lot for a suckzuki.
Oil gets changed every second or third outing so 2-300 mile intervals (dependant on road useage) with filter changed every other oil change.

Valve clearances will need to be checked shortly although the manual says something like 15,000 i'll do it when she hits 3000.

Its heavy as fook but i look upon it as my exercise machine cos i certainly get plenty of exercise lifting it but it does everything I need and when i get my hands on some cheap supermoto wheels it'll do even more.

XTreme
22-07-2005, 12:44 AM
Nice report Jason....I sat on one yesterday for the first time. Bloody tall aren't they? My feet were on the floor but it was a fair old stretch.

Pete Rock
22-07-2005, 01:02 AM
they seem to be very cool bikes :lg:

reading the report of a guy in Advrider who did 1400 miles, (i think) to ride it home after buying, changed my opinion about them

ValleysDRZ
22-07-2005, 11:51 PM
They are quite tall pete but to make matters worse if you want it to ride offroad better then you have to stiffen the spring tension which makes it less likely to slouch when you sit on it so it stays tall, i've had a few offs where i couldnt reach the floor on a camber and just fell over sideways :ljl:
I set the suspension i.e. static sag, race sag etc and it does behave itself better on fast rocky trails.
Pete R i can well believe the guy did that sort of mileage on it its really good on long rides.

I called into a bike shop today where they had a brand new unregistered '04 Yam WRF450 for £3795 and was very tempted as it would suit my current riding level but then wondered about reliability as you see a lot of yam wr's advertised with "recent engine rebuild":unsure: but hardly see any DRZ's with that in the description :)

ValleysDRZ
02-08-2005, 11:22 PM
And finally got round to takin some updated pics tonight after washing it from Sunday, excuse the "work in progress" Patio :smile: :

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/Valleystrailriders/Pdrm0002.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/Valleystrailriders/Pdrm0001.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/Valleystrailriders/cutout.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/Valleystrailriders/Pdrm0005.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/Valleystrailriders/Pdrm0006.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/Valleystrailriders/Pdrm0004.jpg

mrjemm
17-04-2006, 12:57 AM
Mr Valley sir, am interested in this as it's one of the bikes I'm pondering along with an XR650. A tad confused, you say you changed to a more offroad gearing, but still managed 89 on half throttle? How would standard gearing do on road?

Are you a small guy? (Excuse my personal manner!) I'm not, I'm a chunker and am worried it may be too small/underpowered for me- remembering that I am not a dirt monkey, but a roader who likes dirt bikes. Yes, one day I'll retreat from tarmac, but as yet...

The one I like has FMF pipe and Yoshi can, but otherwise standard I am told. Looks and sounds nice. Wanna try it this week, but not sure.

Jem.

Mango
17-04-2006, 10:28 AM
Valley, when you say heavy as fook...how heavy?

After yesterdays sand rides on the KLR, I have tiny thoughts of
getting something smaller for just that purpose, as I don't want to
mess up the KLR, and it's just too heavy to pick up in sand.