hobbit@bnl.UUCP (05/22/84)
I own one [a '78] and love it. It seems a reasonable compromise across both riding worlds; it is a tad heavy at 320 pounds dry for wild dirt riding, but it's got *tons* of low-end torque [that good ol' 4-valve one-lung!] and enough oomph to move you along highways at 65 and still have something left over to pass that truck. The stock sprockets give you a sommewhat low final ratio which is great in the woods but brings the top end down a bit. It is quite gutsy off the line; the second powerband comes somewhere around 4K-6K and redlines at ~7500 [at which point you're doing 80 mph, stock sprockets]. It comes with the usual rubber-stalk directionals, top-mounted choke, those new funny tread enduro tires, DID rims, pass. pegs, etc. You may have to replace the handgrips fairly soon; the factory ones tend to rot away and start making your hands black. Make sure all the mud is out of that deep spark plug well before you open 'er up, too... I haven't looked into the new hardware/mods they have put on the beast since '78, but I believe the bike hasn't changed a lot. If you buy it you'll like it. I got mine for ~1100 back then - what do they want for them now? _H*
sean@oddjob.UChicago.UUCP (Sean Casey) (05/23/84)
Does anyone have consumer information on Honda's XL350. Since I would like a bike that combines both on and off road riding it seems like the perfect solution. Cycle (May or June '84) gave it great reviews but I still have reservations. Unfortunately there does not appear to be a comparable bike in the works. Please reply via mail and I will post the results. Sean Casey || University of Chicago ...!ihnp4!oddjob!sean || Dept of Astronomy and Astrophysics