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No action on thumpers???

kantuckid

New member
I've been wondering why this section is a dead area? In comparing the posts/threads to others here it becomes obvious that this is not a spot to find out much about your MC,etc.. It's easy to see that airheads will have more action , but there's almost none here? F650 Forum is some better but still not a heavily visited forum either. Couple threads on 650 singles on ADV rider are a bit more active.
Not really having a rant, my only point is that it would be nice to see more interaction here & it is a new MC for me to learn about. :eat
 
Sure agree and wish there was more action. My wife and I each have a 2012 G650GS and really like them. We have both had the hot start problem and the dealer replaced the decompression lever (I think that is what it was called) and mine has had some cold starting problems since then; it always starts but sometimes not the first time. We are hoping to ride ours to the BMW MOA rally which will be over 4,000 miles. Right now I have over 18,000 miles on mine and my wife has over 12,000 miles on hers. They will be a year old July 27.
 
I had so much trouble with my 2012 G650GS when I first got it that I'm afraid to take it too far from home. I've only put 6k miles on it in a year. Btw, a 4000 mile trip on a G650GS, I don't think I could do it, makes my butt hurt just thinking about it.:(
 
BMW Seat Form

I had so much trouble with my 2012 G650GS when I first got it that I'm afraid to take it too far from home. I've only put 6k miles on it in a year. Btw, a 4000 mile trip on a G650GS, I don't think I could do it, makes my butt hurt just thinking about it.:(

I'm not sure who BMW made the F/G650GS (single) seats for, but they weren't human. I first had a '99 F650 and now have an "03 F650GS. I couldn't go 50 miles on the stock seat without having to stand, a lot. A Corbin fixed the problem for me. Between the 2 650s I now have over 88,000 miles with my longest being 3 Alaskan rides, from South Dakota. Get an aftermarket seat and you will have a new riding experience.
 

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2013 G650 No Drama GS

Bought a new 650 this Spring. A white one because my buddy said yellow bikes were unlucky. Trying to put some miles on it. A little over 2K so far. Plowed up and down the road and have done some light trail riding with it (I take care of an ORV trail so it was really trail riding). If it had an aggressive tire on the front I think you could almost go anywhere. Everything seems to work pretty well. Centerstand could be an inch higher. Glad I got the factory expandable bags. Found a factory solo seat used. Just as unforgiving as the double seat but provides a little more storage. Mileage has varied from 59 mpg to 61 mpg with 56 mpg overall. Wish it had more fuel capacity. Everyone seems to get better mileage than I do. Put the mid sized Ztechnik windshield on it and should have went with the tall one (and I tend to be on the undertall side). Did 670 miles in one day on it in the UP of Michigan and it feels good enough to do some long days. Its a little early to say but this could be a very good all around ride.

Wayne Koppa
Grayling, MI
#71449 Life
 
I had so much trouble with my 2012 G650GS when I first got it that I'm afraid to take it too far from home. I've only put 6k miles on it in a year. Btw, a 4000 mile trip on a G650GS, I don't think I could do it, makes my butt hurt just thinking about it.:(

Sorry to hear about your problems; not a normal situation with the 650 in my experience. The F/G650GS has been the bike of choice for several around the world riders; checkout Helge Pederson's adventures and maintenance DVDs for example. My wife has an 07 F650GS and has ridden it between AK and the states a couple of times and from Homer to Deadhorse multiple times. It can be a competent LD bike and an excellent dirt road bike. If you are running the stock seat, then I understand your sore butt problems; my wife has a Corbin on her's and is very happy with it. Hope you have better luck in the future with yours.
 
Like the KY Turtleman says-"live Action Folks"!
There are thumper owners out there after all.:D
My 2012 G650GS MC came to me @ 1,300 miles with the hot start issue fixed (1st owner) after one lame try & a "service bulletin proper" one 2nd time around. I rode it the 700+ miles home from AL to KY & not much time to ride it since then, so not many cold start trys to go on but it has started easily each time I did such. My bike will go to Mexico & GT so best to think it will carry me home?
As to the seat thing, as a short legs guy I have always avoided going for an aftermkt solution as they typically raise the seat. I use a sheepskin & will be putting my old one on the G650GS soon. I velcor the under side of the seat with velcro via 4 contact spots and use it for all long trips. My tired(69 & had the TMI surgery ~20yrs ago & sciatica more recently) butt does well on the seats we all like to bash. This seat is shaped very much like the rounded shape of my former oilhead MC. Sure it tends to slide the family into the tank but the fake tanks shaped diff too. My ride home from AL was comfy & I really like the lighter weight & tossability of the bike.
Will soon roll it into my shop for:panniers,centerstand,1" link,top case,GPS mtg. & powerlet & maybe a engine crash bar & aux lts. too. Presently working on how to avoid dropping lots of cash for mtg pucks & top case plate for luggage. Mine will be "KY made/KY Proud" as they say. Buy my aluminum from the same place I recycle my cans!:laugh
 
F650GS Dakar

Just picked up a 2003 F650GS Dakar and I can't find anything I don't like about this bike. Great mileage, handles well, and looks great. Haven't loaded it yet. Gonna get some bags (Wolfman/Happy Trails?) and try some camping with it. Having trouble loading the picture, but I'll keep trying. I'd like to see some more posts here.
 
FYI-I have the Wolfman racks -not mtd yet. They are the least expensive out there(Revzilla has the best discounted price + free ship too!). Made from 5/8" rd steel tubing & no back cross brace if you must have that feature but are well made. I'm putting Pelican 1520's on mine with Happy Trail puck set(also cheapest out there) but look like they'll get the job done well. Cylinder locks are by me. My top case is be a B&W Type 55. I bought a set of larger SKB's for side cases but after seeing the Type 55 case I decided to use the smaller side panniers, so SKB's are FS in FM.
Best place for info is F650 & ADV model specific threads on the singles-long threads! Having "perused" the whole thing,whew! I can put you on a specific item from my notes such as W/S's, etc..
 
Distance on F650GS Single

Bought a new 650 this Spring. A white one because my buddy said yellow bikes were unlucky. Trying to put some miles on it. A little over 2K so far. Plowed up and down the road and have done some light trail riding with it (I take care of an ORV trail so it was really trail riding). If it had an aggressive tire on the front I think you could almost go anywhere. Everything seems to work pretty well. Centerstand could be an inch higher. Glad I got the factory expandable bags. Found a factory solo seat used. Just as unforgiving as the double seat but provides a little more storage. Mileage has varied from 59 mpg to 61 mpg with 56 mpg overall. Wish it had more fuel capacity. Everyone seems to get better mileage than I do. Put the mid sized Ztechnik windshield on it and should have went with the tall one (and I tend to be on the undertall side). Did 670 miles in one day on it in the UP of Michigan and it feels good enough to do some long days. Its a little early to say but this could be a very good all around ride.

Wayne Koppa
Grayling, MI
#71449 Life

Hi, Wayne,

I rode my 06 F650GS to the MOA Rally in Oregon this year and it worked great for the most part. I used a Sargent seat with a sheepskin which worked well for me on several 600+ mile days. I hope all is well.

John Peck
Maple City, Mi
 
Still No Action On Those Thumpers

Thanks for the ping John.

We just got things cleaned up (mainly) from the Canoe Marathon and Bicycle Tour so I was able to take a trip.

Friday night just got back from Hyder. Made it there and back in one piece in a little less than seven days.

Made some changes to the bike. I have sent the solo seat away to D & N Upholstery in Blissfield, MI (POC David Bailey). You can see a slight raised area where the jell pads are in the new seat and it does have a crease but it works (under 200.00). Added some lights and put a 3.5L auxiliary tank that fits into the storage area of the solo seat (without the lid in place). It automatically feeds into the main tank and gives me an easy 250 mile range. To make it work I have to fill the main tank on the side stand (close the cap) then put the bike on the center stand and fill the aux tank. I got the mid size Ztechnik screen but should have gotten the taller one. Went one tooth bigger on the counter shaft which seems to take some of the buzzyness out of it above 70 mph. Was getting a little over 60 mpg while moving along at a pretty good pace. I always seem to get worse mileage than others. I think I like it.

Wayne Koppa
Grayling, MI
71449 # Life
 
Good suggestion on the seat...

I'm not sure who BMW made the F/G650GS (single) seats for, but they weren't human. I first had a '99 F650 and now have an "03 F650GS. I couldn't go 50 miles on the stock seat without having to stand, a lot. A Corbin fixed the problem for me. Between the 2 650s I now have over 88,000 miles with my longest being 3 Alaskan rides, from South Dakota. Get an aftermarket seat and you will have a new riding experience.

First time posting so I hope I don't mess this up!

Good feedback on the seat... I ride a 2010 G650gs and agree with the seat comments. Mine is a low seat which probably exaggerate the issue.
Stock seat is just fine for commuting but I went on a few longer trips this summer and experienced "a lot of numbness down below". I've been looking at seat pads as a possible quick/cheap solution. Any thoughts?
Also, any suggestions on windshield? I have a laminar lip on my stock windscreen and it works quite well at reducing buffeting but I would like wind protection for the arms/shoulders...
 
How different is my F650 CS seat.

I'm not sure who BMW made the F/G650GS (single) seats for, but they weren't human. I first had a '99 F650 and now have an "03 F650GS. I couldn't go 50 miles on the stock seat without having to stand, a lot. A Corbin fixed the problem for me. Between the 2 650s I now have over 88,000 miles with my longest being 3 Alaskan rides, from South Dakota. Get an aftermarket seat and you will have a new riding experience.

I just picked up a sweet 03 F650 CS how different is my seat than the GS. I am 6', 225 and this stock seat is nice. Also looking for a good place to get a larger wind screen.
 
Read on ADVRider thumpers thread for G650GS's , also Sertao there & do a search on that topic as there are lots of posts from riders that have tried a bunch of the many choices. I'm short so only one e.g. but just rode yesterday a 100k+ miles & tried out the taller GS Sertao w/s I got with a Sargent seat deal. That low seat is a KEEPER! I don't think it's(taller w/s) a lot better than the stock tiny one for me. I may also try the stock w/s with the brkt & sell the tall if results are ???
I also have the Toura Tech adj brkt (same deal) which I'll try out next. I have two of the regular 2009-2013+ G650GS w/s's as got one of those in seat deal too. Madstadt brkt is another option as are winglets.Many swear by the wingies. Ztecnik is another route some say is there end solution as is Givi & Calsci-so many options it's best to find someone else that's sifted through the choices before you spend a dime all with a look toward the overall height more specifically the torso height of the person talking vs w/s height,angle,width & shape. F650 site has info too. I see people complaining about no ventilation into helmet in w/s threads & such , which indicates a helmet issue & unrelated to w/s choice! IIMO some have weak necks &/or don't ride enough, whatever I don't know but seem sensitive to riding in the wind which has it's effects on vehicles as hvy as a full size pickup! To put this MC wind thing in perspective some older types from windy places like my native KS will remember driving non-power steering cars & trucks in the wind & how they were a hand full at times-let alone riding a MC in the wind.
It is part of the environment that cannot be totally escaped.
 
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