Round the World Trip (No not me)

[Steve H]

Had an interesting talk with a guy at work today, he is thinking of selling up and doing some serious travelling. Hes talking about covering Europe, Africa, India etc, over the course of several years, so is fairly ambitious. Ive pointed him in the direction of the Horizons Unlimited site. I've no idea whether it will happen or not but it did start a interesting conversation about the best bike to do it on.
He is keen on a BMW 1200 GS, my guess is that this is based upon the exploits of a certain Mr McGregor and Bowman, and to be fair the bikes did seem to take some punishment. My point of view was that the bike was too complex, and something like an air-cooled R80/100 would be a better option. I compared it to a choice between travelling overland to South Africa in 2008 Range Rover TD Sport or a 1994 Diesel Land Rover, and which did he think would make it in one piece.
We also discussed the new XTZ660, Triumph Tigers, Africa Twins etc.
I'm sure everyone has an opinion on whether hes likely to go or not, and I dont particularly want to open up the Mr McGregor and Bowman debate again.
My question is what bike would you take and why ?

[Steffan]

RE bullet 500 or ETZ250/301 with some sensible mods. Slow, fixable, rebuildable and tough as they come. Parts are cheap and in the case of the MZ still common, in the case of the Bullet still current. Fettle them up and travel light - ie no metal boxes and always with one eye on the max weight figure. Single cylinder and a minimum of blackbox/turnkey technology. Both have been used through Africa and the Sahara and if they can do that they will handle anything else - as a rule of thumb. Both are the product of a utilitarian transport not a rich boys toys mindset and both are so cheap that the carnet would be very cheap - freeing up money for the trip. MZ are known throughout former comicon trading partner countries and the british thing of the Bullet wins friends everywhere. If you dropped either you wouldn't need a "special friend" and the cameraman to help you pick it up.

Steffan

PS Unless someone has a Douglas twin they are prepared to donate. 

[Richard]

I'll second what Steffan writes.  With the addition of an airhead GS, though it would be arguably a bit heavy.  Shame we never got the German market R65 GS really.

Tough, simple, expectation of spares and ability to repair by yourself.

Any advance on Enfield, MZ two stroke and GS airhead then ?

Richard

[squirrelciv]

Read a lot of round the world travel stories (sigh!) and reckon anything half desent nowadays would make it. This might come as a shock to those that know me, but I'd take an air cooled big single dual sport. Rugged enough to take a few knocks, big enough to carry your kit, light enough to haul out a ditch (if you unpack it) simple enough to fix with a basic tool kit. Would like to have shast drive to avoid all that chain maintenance, but you can't have it all

[guest18]

Yeah I'd pretty much agree with the above, another possibility is the good old XT600(E), been used round the world so often everyone knows them. Tough basic and easy to maintain, amost all "universal" off road bits/spares will fit them and they're cheap(!)
The old style BMW's are mostly too old (unless you can find a really fresh example) and the new ones are too complex, and if you are going to travel on unmade roads they are just far far too big and heavy.

Edited to add, a diesel enfield would give you potentially 60mph and 160mpg and run on rubbish fuel if need be... a good speed to admire the view and the right sort of technology/reliability for the poorer parts of the planet?

[Steffan]

Edited to add, a diesel enfield would give you potentially 60mph

I think you might find 60mph on a diesel pushing it. 50-55 seems to be the consensus.


Steffan

[guest18]

I'm sure you'll prove to be right, I was basing that on this chaps article
http://www.altmann.haan.de/riding_on_salad_oil/default.htm
He reckons he's getting 100kph out of it? 

[Andy M]

I'd add the Bonneville range to all the above if you want something quicker. Similar technology to the airhead GS but newer. Ted Simon managed very well in the 70's on the single carb Triumph.

I'd go with the R80GS or XT600 out of choice solo and assuming I could find a bike that wasn't 20 years old and trashed.

The R1200GS has one huge killer IMHO, CAN electrics. As the Long Way Up/Down/Sideways muppets proved, once you kill one bit of the electrics the whole lot is dead until you get a PC on there (then it should be easy although the BMW techs there couldn't do it!).

Andy

[guest7]

Yep, Beemers are too big (imho). You only have to see (or read) Mondo Enduro to realise the advantages of a lightweight touring bike. Their DR350s managed the trip well enough.

Me? I'd take an XBR 

GC

[Andy M]

Yep, Beemers are too big (imho). You only have to see (or read) Mondo Enduro to realise the advantages of a lightweight touring bike. Their DR350s managed the trip well enough.

Me? I'd take an XBR 

GC

Only the one 

Andy

[Richard]

We would have to set up Grahams trip by carefully stashing XBRs at intervals around the world for him to cannabilise.  Say every 500 miles.

RIchard

[guest40]

I thoroughly agree with Steffan..
The Bullet would be my chioce, as in SE Asia any workshop can tinker or work on it. parts are readily avail through out india and neighboring countries and, and it would not stand out enough to tempt locals to steal it. Grow a mo and you would be looked on as a local too 

[Andy M]

Thinking about the downsides on MZ's (Fuel use, availability of stroke oil) and Bullets (Unknown in S America?, "plaything" parts availability in N America etc.), if cash was unlimited, wouldn't you switch bikes for each continent or terrain to match nearer what the locals know? Something like;

W Europe: Triumph Tiger, BM, Diversion, F650 etc.
E Europe/Turkey: MZ
N Africa: big XT
C Africa: small XT
S Africa: Airhead GS or F650
S America: XT or airhead BM
N America: BM, Triumph, even a Harley or Goldwing.
Russia: Ural
China/Thailand: Minsk
India: Enfield
Australia: XT

I guess it's either lots of hassle to deal with a UK resident riding a local registered bike (even if you sell at one border buy at the next) or lots and lots of shipping costs, but in an ideal world I think I'd rather face a Siberean spring thaw on a Ural 3x2 and the Paris rush hour on an F650 rather than the other way round.

Have you really ridden RTW if you ship your Airhead BM from Alaska to home and carry on across India on a Bullet you bought when you landed (it's actually impossible to go RTW due to border closures anyway, so everyone seems to skip bits)? Two bikes giving the advantage of fewer piles of unused spares?

Andy

[Steffan]

MZs are actually quite economical on fuel if you can keep from revving the ring out of them. I have never managed it, I know Mr M has never managed it, nor Jethro, nor yourself...so perhaps in reality you're right - they are not economical because they are too much fun!

Steffan

[bullet350]

got to be an xt600, dr600 or enfield 500. or if the roads aren't too crappy and africa twin.

i wouldn't take a modern BMW if you paid me, everyone (and i mean 6 out of 6) i know with an oil cooled twin has had trouble- thats serious expensive trouble not a flat tyre.

it needs to be able to hold 55mph so as not to be a danger on the quicker roads, also either 100% reliable (XT/DR/africa twin) or so simple it can be fixed anywhere (MZ/Enfield/CG).

one of the most important bits of travelling advice i got was from a mate who did the middle east in the late 70's amongst other trips:
 don't take anything you can't afford to leave behind.

turn up on £15'000 of pimped up BMW and some less honest folk might see this as a fine reason to rob you, not so on a simple old XT. also what happens if you crash it?
are you going to leave the bmw gs behind or spend £5'000 getting it home?

(an encounter on thursday moring with an Italian Armco reminded me of this point)

if i was going somewhere with virtually no tarmac roads i'd take an enfield or CG125/XR125. i know someone who spent a good few hours picking up his bmw gs after dropping it in morocco. with a buggered shoulder he had to keep unbolting and removing bits until he could stand it up.

a big tank is an advantage but if your bike does 75mpg or more you don't need such a tank, and don't forget petrol is heavy.

and finally can you bump start it? if the battery goes south then most bike cans still run, but only if you can start it. a kicker is great or at least a bike you can 'bump'. my airhead bmw wouldn't start with three people shoving it.

bullet350