The bike I'm using is a Honda XR650L - It's simple, reliable, (hopefully) and spares are readily availability in The US.
It's basically an XR600 with an electric start NX650 Dominator engine. I've owned both and, especially the XR, were great bikes. Mine is a 2003 European import with 7,000 Km (4,300 miles) on the clock.
Other bikes I considered:-
XR600 - My first choice. It's light, reliable, simple design, air cooled, great off road and they're as hard as hell (Mine was called Vinnie) but the lack of road going niceties such as dipping lights, indicators, electric start, horn and an ignition lock put me off. For a slight weight penalty the 650 comes ready equiped.
BMW GS650 Dakar - Excellent ergonomics, reliable, electronic fuel injection, good mpg, strong sub frame and rack - build for carrying a bit of weight. I looked closely at this, had a ride and had liked it. What made me decide against it was a combination of cost (for the EFi version), the inability to (easily) increase it's fuel capacity, but mainly because it's not as good off road due to it's excessive weight - nearly 200kg for a 650!! I wouldn't fancy picking that up more than once on a mountain pass.
KTM 640 Adventurer - excellent suspension and engine and a huge tank giving more than enough range to do the job. I looked at these closely and spoke to the local KTM dealer. The two main problems with this bike for me were firstly, some niggly doubts over engine reliability and secondly, the lack of dealer back up in the USA.
Bike Preparation.
I needed to add a few extras to my bike to make it more suitable for long distance riding
Acerbis 5 gallon tank - giving an increased range to over 200 miles.
Corbin seat - The original seat is, literally, a pain in the arse after half an hour, the Corbin should hopefully let me get off at the end of the day without the need of a chiropracter to get me out off my boots.
Kph to Mph converter - small gizmo that fits into the back of the speedo and, using clever gearing, changes the reading to mph. More importantly, the odometer also reads miles. The roadbook distances are in miles and without the converter the maps would be useless.
GPS - A Touratech GPS holder to hold my Garmin GPSMap 60. This lets me see the map and reduces the vibration getting to the unit. Not cheap, but a lovely bit of kit.
I've now hard wired the GPS to the bike using Garmin's a connector. I've wired a cigarette lighter extension to the battery and put it in the air box. The GPS connector plugs into it and is therefore fused.
Exhaust Can - FMF Q-pipe. Bought more out of necessity than want. The standard can was holed and the spark arrester fittings were stripped. The Q-pipe is one of the quietest performance cans and gives a slight power boost and shouldn't get me into trouble with the locals.
Bash plate. - essential engine protection from p1autotech.
Tyres - New Continental TKC's. Good longlife dual purpose tyre that should see me half way before I'll need some 'more serious' offroad tyres.
Service - A serious going over from top to bottom. From the grease nipples to the valve clearances.
Luggage - I've bought Wolfman gear from Winding Roads . A tank bag and a tail bag. Hopefully more than enough room to get everything in that I'll need. My tent, ground mat and sleeping bag will be bungeed to the rear luggage rack
