Road Legal Supermoto
Discussion
Having recently passed my theory test and booked the CBT and DAS it's now time to start thinking about bikes!
My initial intentions were to get a sports 600 but I keep thinking about a supermoto, how much fun it would be and how much more familliar it would feel being a keen motocrosser.
Of the 'out of the crate' road legal supermoto style bikes I only really like the Husky SM 510 and the Aprilia SXV which got me thinkng; how much hassle would it be to convert a regular motocross bike i.e. Jap 450 or KTM 525 into a road legal supermoto?
Obviously wheels, brakes, suspension, pipe etc would be striaght forward enough but how difficult would it be to fit and wire the lights, speedo etc and also what is the minimum requirement to get the bike MOTd (full not daytime only).
If anyone has any experience of carrying out such a conversion I'd be grateful to hear your views as well as the pros / cons of living with a supermoto on the road when compared to the likes of a GSXR600.
Many thanks in advance.
My initial intentions were to get a sports 600 but I keep thinking about a supermoto, how much fun it would be and how much more familliar it would feel being a keen motocrosser.
Of the 'out of the crate' road legal supermoto style bikes I only really like the Husky SM 510 and the Aprilia SXV which got me thinkng; how much hassle would it be to convert a regular motocross bike i.e. Jap 450 or KTM 525 into a road legal supermoto?
Obviously wheels, brakes, suspension, pipe etc would be striaght forward enough but how difficult would it be to fit and wire the lights, speedo etc and also what is the minimum requirement to get the bike MOTd (full not daytime only).
If anyone has any experience of carrying out such a conversion I'd be grateful to hear your views as well as the pros / cons of living with a supermoto on the road when compared to the likes of a GSXR600.
Many thanks in advance.
You should be able to get a lighting stator for the bike which will take care of the lights. Try http://www.electrexworld.co.uk (I'm off to see them this afternoon to get a replacement stator for my blade).
Alternatively my kx500 has a nicad pack strapped to the rear mudguard which you charge overnight and handles the lights, the brake light and the horn... there are no indicators and it's road legal. Having said that I bought it like this and have never had it on the road or put it through an mot. The lights are pretty s
t (obviously) and riding it at night would be near suicidal
Alternatively my kx500 has a nicad pack strapped to the rear mudguard which you charge overnight and handles the lights, the brake light and the horn... there are no indicators and it's road legal. Having said that I bought it like this and have never had it on the road or put it through an mot. The lights are pretty s
t (obviously) and riding it at night would be near suicidal
B15TT0 said:
Would a Moto X bike not need rebuilds all the time when used extensively on the road?
Thought they needed a rebuild after only a race or two?
A 125 two-stroke would need a top end at around 15-20 hours depending on how hard it's ridden, fuel mixture, jetting etc. A 250 two-stroke probably around 25-35 hours. Thought they needed a rebuild after only a race or two?
A big bore four-stroke, I would imagine, would be good for at least 75ish hours, based on my 250f having a piston at around 50 hours and that was only done out of preventative maintenance as opposed to actually 'needing' a piston. Not to mention the fact that on a track these bikes are basically hammered and that kind of abuse just wouldn't be possible on a public road.....well not all the time anyway!
To be honest the bike would only be used for a half mile hoon to the gym a few times a week and a weekly back road blast from Witham to Newmarket so it's not as though it'd be needing a top end every few weeks, plus I can't really see how an 'out of the crate' road legal supermoto i.e. Husky 510 would be that much different maintenance-wise!?
Beemer-5 said:
Supermotos are amazing fun. I have had a few, high-ptw Huskys mainly.
I'm definitely tempted by the Husky SM 510 and to be honest it's probably the only 'out of the crate' road legal supermoto that I'd buy.....However, there is a KTM dealer very close to me and it wouldn't take much to make the EX-C 530 road legal which, with some Red Bull graphics and an Akrapovic pipe would definitely be floating my boat!!lawrence567 said:
I think its the basicas,
horn, indicators, lights & obv number plate for the road!
From what I gather, if the bike wasn't manufactured with indicators then they're not required for the MOT.horn, indicators, lights & obv number plate for the road!
The KTM EX-C has light and a speedo being the enduro model, so for an MOT would just need a horn and reg plate!?
roboxm3 said:
Beemer-5 said:
Supermotos are amazing fun. I have had a few, high-ptw Huskys mainly.
I'm definitely tempted by the Husky SM 510 and to be honest it's probably the only 'out of the crate' road legal supermoto that I'd buy.....However, there is a KTM dealer very close to me and it wouldn't take much to make the EX-C 530 road legal which, with some Red Bull graphics and an Akrapovic pipe would definitely be floating my boat!!67 bhp and 115 kgs.
It regularly ate R1s and the like down the lanes.
I bought a new honda XR650R "in the crate" back in 2001. Converted it to SM spec using Talon wheels, MEZ 1 tyres, shortened aftermarket front guard, digital cycle speedo, adjusted gearing, alloy bars etc, etc...
Would wheelie everywhere, very noisy, kickstart only, no ignition switch, 80 miles to a tankfull (just), 600 mile oil changes, turned heads at any meet, fantastic fun. Even managed to scrape the right side footpeg a couple of times - in those days H rated Mez 1's were about as good as you could get for a bike that light and with a top speed of around 104mph.
Factory SM's may be easier to live with than a home built bike - I would suggest that you consider carefully what you want to achieve. That XR was good fun...
Would wheelie everywhere, very noisy, kickstart only, no ignition switch, 80 miles to a tankfull (just), 600 mile oil changes, turned heads at any meet, fantastic fun. Even managed to scrape the right side footpeg a couple of times - in those days H rated Mez 1's were about as good as you could get for a bike that light and with a top speed of around 104mph.
Factory SM's may be easier to live with than a home built bike - I would suggest that you consider carefully what you want to achieve. That XR was good fun...
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