Kove 450 Rally vs Himalayan 452 vs CFMoto 450MT | Shed progress | CRF300L hand guards 

Interesting

Thanks mate, so do I 😅

Thanks mate, every now and then I manage to rub two brain cells together 😅

Three days over 40c right now🥲

@@chroniclesofsolid Solid check out the 2025 Honda XT500 Baja Dominator. Unicorn!!!

Looking forward to finding out the specs on the Himalayan 450 Raid

It was hard choice to take my new bike money and sink it into the shed but I am sure i'll find something lying around for a second bike😅

5k in dingo dollars isn't as much elsewhere.

For $5k aus I’d watch some RU-vid videos, buy the supplies, and do it myself. Most of this stuff isn’t hard. The hand full of tools you’ll end up buying aren’t nearly that expensive and then you have them after. I assume you’ll need to get it inspected and I imagine there’s a lot of resources you can find on that. Sites that for a small fee help get the paperwork ready. I do this kinda stuff all the time as a homeowner and often do things better then code. I build things nicer then you can pay someone to general too. I bet you can do most of that work and maybe the final part of connecting it will need to be done by a certified electrician. These tradesmen charge way too much for the quality of their work so I’m slowly becoming knowledgeable on everything in my house.

Doing your own electrical work is illegal in OZ. It's not just about inspections and final connection, it's literally anything beyond changing a lightbulb. If it's going to be connected to mains supply, you're not supposed to so much as crimp two wires together. Sounds a bit draconian maybe, but to be honest I've seen DIYers do some mind-boggling stuff with some tragic consequences. You might be better than code, but is your neighbour, and their neighbour, and their neighbour? You get enough tinkerers going, and the best you can hope for is that they only burn their own house down. @@TheGardenSnake

No access to that cheap American labor.

@@jaimemetcher388 waw that's crazy. In thought Aus was more chill than that

KOVE 450 much newer engine, AJP is an much older tech engine.

@@Macgregor_images I'm not put off by the engine being old technology on the pr7

I have both in my garage. Will take the kove everytime. Kove is smoother and rides more like a dirt bike off road.

@@BMacW650 thanks mate. That's valuable knowledge.

@@bushybill7189 that’s your choice - having owned a bike with the same engine - I won’t go there again, my opinion is based on personal experience.

That's true, but isn't the bike he's racing pumping out 70-80 bhp? That's nearly double the stock model, so far more engine stress and far less reliability. theres also 4 koves still in the race. There's so many cars, bikes and trucks that never finish each year, it just shows how crazy hard the Dakar is. That being said, it is known that Hondas are built from volcanic rock. Great bikes.

@@shevgreen1960His first failure was the hose from the oil pump, which literally blew up. They replaced it with steel reinforced airline hose. He is getting factory support and the bike he's riding is the the new-and-improved model. According to Enduro21 " Chinese manufacturer Kove stepped in with a deal and a bike to help him run his own KORR team (Klein Off Road Racing)." Kove is still in proof-of-concept mode. The Kove bikes still in the race are not competitive, so far. They're racing the same course as the Hondas, KTMs and Hero. It would be great Koves prove up someday, but that day is a long way off. Quality and reliability are real values. We haven't seen that in any vehicles built to Chinese specs. The Kove is a bike we all want to prove up as good as its looks and specs. Even if a factory bike becomes competitive, I think that's a galaxy away from being consumer reliability. YMMV.

@@GuteisFinger I'd be interested to see what caused the second failure. The zongshen engine has proven reliable in plenty of bikes, and it remains to be seen how many finish this year's race. It's a bit of david and Goliath comparing them to Honda, KTM etc, who have the world's best riders, and funding. If a couple of Koves finish top 50, it's pretty impressive. Is the hero bike even a hero, or a Honda in disguise? I think the days of 'chinese crap' have come to an end. Most parts come from China now, and their relaxed approach to patents and IP mean that technology is used by these new brands stepping out across the world...cfmoto, zonshen, kove. GWM has made crazy strides in the car world. Quality difference is now miniscule.

Last time around Honda, GasGas, Sherco, KTM and Rieju factory teams alI lost a bike (Sherco x2), while all four Kove's finished. Kove proved they could be reliable, now they're trying to prove they can wring out more performance (which they did), and like every racing manufacturer ever they're blowing up bikes in the process. None of this proves anything about whether a consumer should buy a Kove or not.

Mason is riding the EX, not even the same model as the 450 that is currently available to the public.

🤔

😂​@@chroniclesofsolid

Will be answering this in tomorrow's Q&A

Thanks mate. I had my eyes on a drz but I think you've talked me into a crf300. I'll stay posted for the q&a though, cheers I should note that it will also be used as a daily to commute 🙂

Mix in a little bit of sand, makes a huge difference.

Mason is riding the EX, not even the same model as the 450 that is currently available to the public. And Skyler Howes Honda died before he even made it to the rest day, So much for the Honda hype.

If not for the satellite teams Honda would already be history. Severe time penalties for engine change but you have to make it back. Old days it was a new engine almost everyday then no changes. Tough on privateers. Interesting as to who will win out. @@inrptn

It’s the Garmin 66i with an 🆘 function. It’s linked to my phone which is on my person 👍

*During the day

Thanks mate🤔

My wallet needs trauma therapy