Im currently looking at buying a trail bike for general farm work (I work on a dairy farm and would mainly use it for getting around, maybe a little of following cows but if this was impractical I do have access to other bikes on the farm for this) Also i would like to use the bike for trail rides and maybe even get it registered for on road use at a later date. Have been considering maybe a suzuki dr400 or a honda xr400. If anyone could point me in the right direction and let me know why that would be great, thanks in advance.
kazbanz,
Jan 4, 5:21am
I'd personally have a look at a crf230 honda --its a great starter trailee-has electric boot and has a decent foot on the stand for paddock work
countrypete,
Jan 4, 5:26am
Suzuki do a street legal version of the DR-Z400.Bulletproof!
scradzz69,
Jan 4, 5:37am
I'm aiming for something a little bit bigger than a 230 maybe around the 350 - 400 mark, kazbanz. I'll still have a good read about the crf230 but are there any other bikes you could think of with a bit more power.
scradzz69,
Jan 4, 5:38am
Cheers countrypete, I'll check it out
m16d,
Jan 4, 5:38am
When buying a trail bike, always think of how heavy it will be when it's lying on top of you in the mud.
thejazzpianoma,
Jan 4, 6:19am
Also not very helpful to the OP but for farm work I still prefer the Honda CT110. Bullet proof, step through and no clutch is brilliant when you are riding with stakes etc in one hand.
Likewise step through while a bit "girls blouse"is brilliant for real practical farm work.
And. as you say having had one wind up on top of me a good number of times. nice and light!
There you go Kaz. I recommended a Honda!
Not so great for poster 1 though as they lack the "fun" they will be after. better a compromise on the last word on practicality for them. Whats been suggested already sounds good to me.
scradzz69,
Jan 4, 6:33am
Ok, just to clarify, the main reason of this bike is for FUN, and for SOME farm use, there are allready two 2 wheelers, two quads and two suziki carry trucks on the farm I can use for general stuff.
wellabolla,
Jan 4, 6:59am
If your going to be trail riding and stuff you want to look at water cooled bikes.air cooled tend to pop head gaskets when ya hit a puddle or river fast.hot to cold thing.depending how much you want to spend also check my listing.best of both worlds :) Gav
wilgil,
Jan 4, 7:53am
The DRZ is a fantastic bike - you will not be sorry if you get one. Especially with the electric start. The XR400 was a good bike, but the DRZ does everything better. After owning over 70 bikes, of all breeds (inc. DRZ's and XR's), i am of the firm belief that the two best off road bikes in the 'grins for your bucks' category are the DRZ and KDX. Probably give the KDX the nod, but i'm a fat bugger and need the extra power.
dirtrider200,
Jan 4, 8:03am
Yeah i agree with a DRZ400 but my first choice would be KDX200 but they cant be road legal but still a very good bike.
bigmacca,
Jan 4, 8:54am
i use my ktm 360 2stroke for both trail and cruising around the farm.got to give it a thrash now and then so plug dont oil up.has great mid and top end.wouldnt recommend getting one tho as hard to get parts for now.drz400 are a good bike on the farm tho and lots of parts to keep them going.
kazbanz,
Jan 4, 2:42pm
If you want more power then yep the DRX400 would be my next pick. I would NOT reccomend a kdx200 but only because the sound on startup will scare the cattle and IF its fitted with one the stand is a pain to use repeatedly -NORMALLYI do suggest the KDX
r15,
Jan 4, 7:06pm
Drz400s weigh about 6 tons according to most guys who have ridden them for a day.
pretty much any of the 400+ bikes would be pretty much useless for following any cows, they just dont go slow enough!
i dont think there is a bike that is great fun and a dairy bike at the same time.
Solution: buy yourself a nice used mx / trail bike for having fun with AND use one of the other bikes you mention for work, or buy an ag100 or a postie bike or whatever for work.
can i suggest a 2 stroke 250mx bike as your play bike- cheap to run, low maintenance (compared to the 4 stroke options) and more than excellent on any trail.not to mention the awesome braaap if you get a few meters of open space
muzz67,
Jan 4, 7:32pm
I got a DRZ400 and , yes, they are a bike which are good at everything, but not great at anything either. Seat may be a bit high for farmwork, and meybe a bit heavy for farmwork, but still a very competant trailbike, often able to outclimb 450's due to better traction and smoother power. Full Yoshi pipe makes a HUGE difference. If you aint a big fella a wrf250 or excf250 will provide almost as much power without the weight. Whatever you choose, make sure it's electric start! Steer clear of MX bikes, brutalpower and rocksolid suspenders makes for a horrible trailbike.
about the same weight, but the DRZ is the better bike
the guys who complain about the weight must be kids who have just progressed from riding BMX's
27rose27,
Jan 5, 4:57am
klx300! much lighter and easier to handle than DRZ400, also with minor mods can go lot quicker
27rose27,
Jan 5, 4:58am
than factory!
plasticboys,
Jan 5, 5:06am
zx10r with knobblys on
scradzz69,
Jan 5, 8:34pm
Sweet thanks for all the advice guys. will be doing some research on the DRZ's and CRF's, maybe the KLX300 too. How often would these bikes need to go in for a service! I also keep hearing about rebuilds, would these bikes need rebuilt often! theres a reasonably priced CRF250X that i know of but its had a rebuld 10 hours ago, does this mean its been thrashed and used as a competitive bike or what! Thanks again to everyone whos posted
wilgil,
Jan 5, 9:12pm
It seems to me that with the current batch of uber-powerful small 4 strokes, that the Japanese have simply made everything in the engines light in order to increase the redline, etc so as to increase the power output. Once upon a time it was the two strokes that needed constant rebuilds; now it's the 4 strokes. Harping on about the DRZ again - yes, it's a bit porky compared to the latest; yes, the power is more linear, and lacking the peak power of the current 450s, BUT the electric leg more than makes up for the weight, and the engine is rock solid reliable with no weak points. The best thing is that they have barely changed since coming out in 2000; so as long as you get a tidy one, it doesn't matter how 'new' it is. Re. the KDX and noise - it would be hard to find a quieter stock bike - but then again, unless you make a KDX non-stock, you aren't going to go that fast either.
wilgil,
Jan 5, 9:14pm
While the CRF IS a great bike - the ones I know of always seem to be being rebuilt. these are competition ones though.
chris241,
Jan 5, 9:19pm
yep the mighty drz is a great bike . I wish i still had mine bought new in 2005 and no problems. use to do a lot of the trail rides and it would go everywhere all the above bikes would go and more depending on your skill. they are cheap reliable and with the after market pipe they get a wake up call.
kazbanz,
Jan 5, 9:33pm
wilgil- The CRF230 is really a bored out xl185. Not exactly but you get the point.No ashtray thick twin ring piston -good old solid engineering. Re KDX200's -I must say I've never encountered one with a factory (weigh a tonne) exhaust but they all have a two stroke ring a ding on startup and whengiving em a bit of stick.
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