From the suspension gurus at www.fullforcer... We look at the seat, lowering, footpegs, bars, risers and windscreen options for the DR650 to sort out the ergonomics, or ergos, of getting comfortable on the bushpig. Ergonomics, or ergos for short, is simply setting the bike up so you feel comfortable on it. Now the good news is if you are a hump backed short arse, chances are the DR650 will be close to perfect. As long as you have a metallic arse to cope with that terrible piece of concrete they call a seat. The DR650 is already quite low, but you can lower it even further. The easy way to lower the DR650 is simply change one of the linkage bolts to another hole for the rear, then slide the forks up through the triple clamps as well. Now, the big problem with the DR650 egos is when you start to get taller. For most of us, the triangle formed by the bars, seat and footpegs is simply too small and feels too cramped, especially when standing on the pegs.
If you are really short, then you can also get aftermarket seats that go lower than the stock seat. One thing to keep in mind is if you ride the DR650 aggressively the bike can bottom out already when jumping the bike. If you lower it then of course it's going to ground out even more often. But hopefully you are sensible and don't jump your bushpig.
The handlebars. These DR650 ridiculous bar mounts angle back toward the rider for god knows what reason, Mr Suzuki. So if you try to fit bar mounts you just make things worse by pushing the bars even further back. Stupid. Many of us find the perfect solution is the Rox pivoting risers. I opted for the big two inch risers due to being six foot four. The best thing is you just pivot these to where they feel right, then you can adjust your bars to suit as well.
Let's start with the DR650 footpegs. These are ridiculously high, and not far back enough for most of us. The cheapest and most common solution here is footpeg lowering plates, like these ones from Vince Strang Motorcycles, a simple bolt on solution that pushes the stock footpegs down and back to get more room on the bike. Remember if you jump the DR650 these hang below the frame and will hit the ground, but they are tough and can take the impact.
A new product on the market for the DR650 is these brilliant low peg mounts from Wirtz Wird EDM. The first mount just lowers the pegs, the second type also moves the footpegs back for taller riders. Simply bolt the original pegs on and off you go. You can buy these directly from Wirtz Wire EDM, or buy them through Procycle.
wirtzwireedm.com US$129 $139
Remember if you do move your DR650 footpegs to the rear but have small feet you may have trouble reaching the gear shift and rear brake pedal. But generally taller riders have big feet so this shouldn't become a prob.
There are all sorts of different DR650 footpegs available, personally I've fallen in love with Fastway's adventure footpegs. Mates of mine have these on their KTM 950s and rave about them. They come with a range of different sized cleats to fit and provide an incredibly roomy secure feel for boots. The much larger surface also means you chew out your boot soles far less often, a win win situation all round in my book.
If you are an older rider and find your upper body is getting beaten up nowadays, flexible handlebars can be worth looking at too. The Flexx bars work well for adventure riding on the softest setting, there are also the Twisted Engineering bars which are more for dirt bikes, but they will soon be bringing out a more flexible 4X version that will suit adventure bikes too.
The seat. What was Suzuki thinking? It's not a bloody motocross bike! I've been extremely happy with the Procycle seat foam and cover seat for only US$119.
This is much softer than the stock lump of concrete, wider, a bit lower, more grip, and a higher bit for your pillion passenger to get a better view over your shoulder. Perfect! There are other seats out there, have a look at Seat Concepts, Corbin, Sargent, the Moose Adventure Saddle. If you are on a very tight budget, look at the Sit & Fly Net Seat Cover for only US$29. Or if you are very tall, you can always just cut some upholstery foam and staple some black vinyl over the existing seat. I did this on my last DR650, it was butt ugly but oh so comfortable.
Fairings or windscreens? These start around $100 like this one I got from Adventure Bike Australia. If you like the do-it-yourself approach, just google the 'DR650 $6 windscreen mod'. You'll find the template for just cutting up a plastic trash can, bend it a bit then voila, you have a home made windscreen.
5 сен 2024
