Stradafy Your Terra...

[cmcmullin]

I have kept up on this forum for years but never posted. I love the ideas all of you have included in the customization of your TR650s! Someone wrote a post entitled "Terrafy your Strada." I have been working on the opposite by "Strafying my Terra." The project is now pretty much complete, although that is never quite the truth. Attached are select photos of my Husqvarna TR650 Terra Supermotard. Again, you will see some ideas from this forum replicated and I hope nobody minds. Please let me know if you have questions. The abbreviated list of upgrades is as follows:

-Husqvarna "H" crown graphics
-Touratech handguards
-Altrider skidplate
-Nomadic Racks rear rack
-Double Take mirrors
-Canisterectomy (I live in CA)
-GPR red stabilizer
-RAM Mount for iPhone 6
-USB charger
-Powdercoated black wheel hubs (BMW from GS 650)
-Excel black rear wheel (4.25" x 17") with stainless spokes and nipples
-Excel black front wheel (3.5" x 10") with stainless spokes and nipples
-Michelin Pilot Road 4 tires front and back
-Tubeless sealed wheels

I could be missing something, but I still have the factory 18"/21" wheel package which will allow me to switch depending on the type of riding planned.

 

[nycrider]

Wow, she looks so sexy. I love the black rims, was thinking about spray panting my cast wheels gloss black. All you're missing are some black gpr exhausts.

 

[V8Astro]

LOVE THAT! I'm a big supermoto rider. My biggest complaint about my Strada is pushing the front tire in turns. It catches me off guard when I got from my SM bikes to the Strada.

 

[isldtime]

Really really nice!!
I had a factory KTM 640 SM that was the most fun ever!
Have you tried dropping the front end a bit to quicken the steering?
I had to drop mine 10mm to make it turn good.

 

[Cyntax]

Beautiful bike! I really like what you have done with the rims, do you have specific part numbers for those? I might get a set of super moto wheels for the street in the future and RK Excel seems to be the best option.

 

[Jesper]

Looks great. How wide is the tyres?

 

[DeLewis]

Super nice!

Isldtime I had a factory KTM 640 SM as well - what a hoot! I reckon the TR comes close for fun factor and with SM wheel set and tyres would be awesome!

 

[cmcmullin]

Beautiful bike! I really like what you have done with the rims, do you have specific part numbers for those? I might get a set of super moto wheels for the street in the future and RK Excel seems to be the best option.

Don't have a part number on the wheels. Woody's Wheel Works in Colorado did the custom anodizing, lacing, truing of the wheels. You may be able to contact them?

 

[cmcmullin]

Really really nice!!
I had a factory KTM 640 SM that was the most fun ever!
Have you tried dropping the front end a bit to quicken the steering?
I had to drop mine 10mm to make it turn good.

I did consider it. However, going from a 21" to a 17" in the front I figure I will try it out first for a while.

Looks great. How wide is the tyres?

4.25" Back, 3.5" Front

 

[Jesper]

I did consider it. However, going from a 21" to a 17" in the front I figure I will try it out first for a while.
4.25" Back, 3.5" Front

So thats 120 in front and 160 rear?

 

[dmw_az]

That's really cool, I like it.

Did you notice much of a difference from adding the GPR stabilizer?

 

[sussurf]

Sick!

 

[drzcharlie]

That is a really, NICE bike.

 

[cmcmullin]

So thats 120 in front and 160 rear?

120 front and 150 rear.

 

[cmcmullin]

That's really cool, I like it.

Did you notice much of a difference from adding the GPR stabilizer?

I do notice a difference with the GPR stabilizer. However, the high speed wobble still happens occasionally at 80+ MPH. Even on the highest setting. I called GPR and they recommended replacing the oil with a higher 10 weight for oil to hopefully fix the issue. Apparently the factory oil is a custom lighter weight (almost kerosene) oil. I will let you know how/if it works...

 

[cmcmullin]

I do notice a difference with the GPR stabilizer. However, the high speed wobble still happens occasionally at 80+ MPH. Even on the highest setting. I called GPR and they recommended replacing the oil with a higher 10 weight for oil to hopefully fix the issue. Apparently the factory oil is a custom lighter weight (almost kerosene) oil. I will let you know how/if it works...

I increased the weight of the GPR stabilizer oil to a 10 weight fork oil and it made a significant difference. NO more high speed wobble unless I encounter a serious headwind.

There are a few posts regarding possible causes of the wobble, including handguards. I haven't pinpointed any one thing that creates the issue, with/without handguards the result is similar. I have come to the conclusion that the Terra is just a light bike for 90+ MPH and can get pushed around. Definitely not the most aerodynamic vehicle. However, the issue has been almost entirely mitigated with the GPR stabilizer and riding at high speeds is much safer now.

 

[rride]

Your bike might tempt Ron Woods to come out of racing retirement. I'd love to watch him ride your bike, but he rides bikes hard so you may not like it so much.

 

[sussurf]

I have a sneaking suspicion that the wobble is tyre related.
When I bought my bike (brand new) it wobbled for the first thousand klm or so then pretty much disappeared.
I'm on my 2nd set of tyres now and immediately after the trye change, the wobble came back. Now that I have scrubbed the tyres in, no wobble!
I sometimes take the bike up to 160 km/h on trips away to keep up with the big boys.
New tyres are MT07f & K60r.
All good but I don't have a physics explanation for it...

 

[-q-]

Great looking set of wheels. I have been considering swapping my Terra wheels as I'm just ridding on the road 99% of the time and I find the Terra a slow to turn.

How are you finding the set up? is it a good match for the bike? I'd be tempted to use my current hubs to keep the cost down, so I just want to be sure it won't kill the handling running 17/17!

 

[cmcmullin]

Great looking set of wheels. I have been considering swapping my Terra wheels as I'm just ridding on the road 99% of the time and I find the Terra a slow to turn.

How are you finding the set up? is it a good match for the bike? I'd be tempted to use my current hubs to keep the cost down, so I just want to be sure it won't kill the handling running 17/17!

Thanks -q-, I used a set of hubs I purchased off of ebay for $150 total and sent them off to Woody's. Most any BMW GS 650 hubs work. I kept the hubs/wheels that came stock with the Terra and had them powdercoated black as well. They are now dawned with aggressive Pirelli MT21 Rallycross tires. I will upload pictures when available. Depending on the ride I now have the option to tailor my setup with a quick wheel change; canyon carver to legit enduro and back! Still not cheap though. I guess you pay for what you get! Handling is much improved and significantly quicker. Turn in is almost TOO aggressive which is why I installed the steering stabilizer. I even increased the oil weight in the stabilizer to 10 weight oil. Woody's originally recommended 17" rear and 19" front which would have been a good compromise and avoided the stabilizer. However, I wanted the stance, width, and overall look of 17"s! LOW and WIDE. Please let me know if you have more questions. Good luck with your mod.