(From the KLR650 list)

@Copyright Steven van Twuyver. 2001.

Things that worked:

  1. Givi tailbox. Waterproof, great seal and lock the 45 Liter holds a ton of stuff. Having said that, from my experience, I would have preferred two locking side-mounted aluminum or Givi bags and a duffel tail bag on the back. The Givi REAR box tends to put too much weight up high although it is not bothersome when riding. It makes throwing your leg over the bike difficult. Also, one tends to put too much in it overloading the rated capacity of the rack.
  2. Tim Bernard’s luggage racks. I’m sure others work too, these are the ones I have and they are excellent. Powder coated, braces the rear sub-frame, holds a ton of weight.
  3. Avon AV24 Gripsters. Zero flats, minimal attention, no leak-down, reasonable road and dirt road compromise. When new, this tire is sometimes difficult to bead evenly especially without a high-pressure compressor.
  4. CycoActive map case. It overcomes the useless map window in the Kawasaki tankbag. Great place for a map when using the stock tank bag. $20.00.
  5. Heated grips. Absolute lifesaver when it gets really cold. Draws about 45 watts. These are thin foils that have adhesive on one side and you stick them to the bars. I would recommend against wiring both heat ranges. When your hands are cold, you want max power. When they are hot, turn the switch off. The low heat setting uses a resistor to reduce the current so it consumes the same power regardless of whether you are on high or low. In my opinion, the low heat setting is a potential failure point and wastes precious watts.
  6. Aerostich heated vest. Another addictive lifesaver. My only complaint is that it provides limited heat in the stomach area. They also make a complete jacket liner with heated sleeves but that may draw too much current for a KLR.
  7. Aerostich Panniers. These balance the total load a little to the front. Makes readily needed items available without having to fiddle with keys etc. Provides some rain protection of the knees. Not 100% waterproof and like all Aerostich stuff, a little pricey. The large size worked well for me and I’m 6’3".
  8. Acerbis plastic handgrip deflectors. Saved my levers a few times and work adequate at deflecting wind and rain.
  9. Moose shifter – as everyone else has mentioned the stock one is junk
  10. Moose bash plate. No panacea, but much better than stock, looks cool too. Must be trimmed if using a centerstand. Provides nice holes to clip the Aerostich Panniers.
  11. Centerstand from Dual Star. Excellent quality, others probably work too. You wait a long time to get for this privilege and you pay a lot. Still worth it since you need something if you get a flat tire. A little inconvenient to use everyday since it is more difficult to use than the side stand plus there is a weight penalty. It requires a little involvement.
  12. Electric compressor with 12v cigarette lighter adapter. The compressor is not much bigger than 3 CO2 cartridges. If you pinch your fixed tube, you’ll blow 3 cartridges into the ozone and you’ll be desperate. Available from Wal-mart, Kmart etc. Any cheap 12v high-pressure electric pump will probably be OK. Remove the plastic case and all you are left with is a tiny electric motor and a piston driven pump. Be careful these things get hot and they could hurt you – attach to the valve stem before plugging in. Keep out of dirt while operating it. About $15.00.
  13. Front fender tube bag from Cyco-Active. About $15.00. Troublefree place to store an extra tube. Although it does not interfere with headlight output, it does cause some weird shadows when night-riding.
  14. KOA membership. $20 membership gets you 10% discount for two years. Campgrounds as predictable and as special as McDonalds. All have clean flush restrooms, showers, laundry, a minimal food store, cabins and phones. A little pricey at $15-18 per site but to me, even solo cost is justifiable after a road weary day to do laundry, shower, take care of phone calls etc.
  15. Motorcycle jumper cables. If you are smart, you’ll fabricate a jumper point outside the seat area. Removing your gear to get a jump start is a pain. A cigarette lighter connection will only be good for trickle charging.
  16. Seat cover by NBI. The Eldon Carl aircraft carrier mod. For $100 he widens it, increases the foam depth and covers it with a black basket weave plastic. Not for short legged or people with lowering links, raises seat height considerable.
  17. A few spare master links for your specific chain. I lost my retainer clip and had to cannibalize one. It was installed correctly. I figure two will repair a completely failed chain assuming the failure didn’t wad the bike up.
  18. Kawasaki Tailbag. Beautifully designed for everyday commuting, shopping, and weekend trips. A little small for the longer trips and not lockable. I used the Givi 45L on the rear for my trip. This bag would cost three times as much if it were for a BMW.
  19. Clutch and sidestand lockout switch defeat. My sidestand was defeated, my clutch lever was not. The clutch interlock failed on my third day of the trip. Had no notes on how to override it and ended up always having to be in neutral to start. Can be dangerous if you stall in traffic and you have to fiddle finding neutral. Many articles on the web on how to do this. Clearly I’m not suggesting you do this, but if you do, you do so at your own risk and if you don’t, you will eventually get stranded.
  20. Hidden cash and ATM/credit card. Keep as much as you feel you might need to hold you over for a day or two after loss. Be comfortable with getting it ripped off, keep it as an insurance policy. I have never kept cash in my wallet. Once on motorcycle trip, 1100 miles out I took a shower at a campground and stored my cash in my wallet. I lost my wallet with all my cash. Western Union will not give cash without ID. I was thirsty, hungry, out of gas, out of cash and helpless in a very hostile town – not fun.
  21. Along the same line, a hidden spare key.
  22. First Aid kit. Have the basics. Remember what you are doing is inherently dangerous. Prepare accordingly, you can easily go overboard, you are space limited but if you need it, space would have been zero consideration. Keep supplies in a waterproof container.
  23. Fireplace lighter. Works great for starting campfires and stoves. Less risk of getting burned.
  24. Cheap Chinese stainless steel pocket knife. Used it for everything. Paid $5.00 at a swap meet. No problem using it as a chisel, pry bar or mini ax. I hate to abuse a quality knife - they just don’t get used.
  25. WD-40. More than a million uses. Dry coil wires, fixed my stuck iginition key cover, lubed the chain in a pinch.
  26. Chainwax. Use it daily. Leaves no mess picks up little dirt. Works adequate.
  27. Contact and emergency info in duplicate. I immediately misplaced mine. Subsequently found it and got it water damaged, fortunately, I hand copied it prior to the damage.
  28. Small notebook with tear out paper. Keep a log, hand out addresses etc.
  29. Pen/highlighter combo. Great for writing and marking maps.
  30. People with too much time and computers worry about oil. Any oil works. I had high consumption with Mobil 1 at high speed freeway driving. It is difficult to get 20w50 in Canada and Alaska. Canada has Castrol Motorcycle specific oils in most automotive shops at reasonable prices. Most automotive places will let you do your own oil change for free. The temps in Canada and Alaska were so cold I actually felt 10w40 was appropriate.
  31. Bibler Tent, Marmot bag, full-length self-inflating mattress. Giant dollars for these items, hard to put a dollar amount on comfort. Because it rained frequently for days at a time, I often packed wet and this causes the tent to get wet on the inside too. You’ll spend for a motel the next night if you get some Alaska cold.
  32. Waterproof gloves with long gauntlets. Many gloves are waterproof. If the gauntlets are not long enough, rain will eventually drip around and wick up through your sleeves. It is almost impossible to stay warm once you are wet.
  33. Lexan headlight rock protector. Your trip will be severely limited without a headlight.

Things that worked more or less:

  1. Sumposonite Luggage. These are made by Tim Bernard from Artic Coolers available at Kmart. For short trips they are terrific and they work well and double to hold foods cold on ice. For long trips, they don’t hold enough stuff and they are not secure. Also, both the Cordura waterproof covers blew away at a cost of $20 each. If I were to do it again, I would get Tim’s aluminum boxes or Givi bags which he sells for a lot more but I think it would have been worth it for this long of a trip. The extra width that others complain about would not matter significantly on a long tour and the extra convenience does.
  2. IMC(?) collapsible mirror gizmos. The idea is good, but they are poorly implemented and $30 is too much to spend on poor quality. Also, the allen screw is US thread and there is no metric key that will allow you to tighten it. Main complaint: too easy to strip the aluminum threads. Great for splitting lanes as you can fold the mirror in and avoid clipping cars.
  3. BladedFuses. Certainly a big improvement over stock glass Buss fuses. I replaced mine one for one and had no fuse failures, although I had a couple of blown fuses due to a shorted fan. I have seen one KLR with resetable fuses mounted near the starter solenoid and accessible without having to take the seat and tank off. I think if you are going to change them out, make them accessible and resetable.
  4. Gel Seat. I bought one at a swap meet for $10.00. It relieved soreness early on in the trip, but I really didn’t need it after the 3rd day. It slipped off my seat going down the freeway and I never missed it. Not worth the normal $60-70 price.
  5. Pentax 28-90 camera. Great camera, awesome pictures. Just not ruggedized and not weatherproof. This caused me to not take a lot of rainy shots. Next time it will be a weatherized camera.

Things were not needed or worked marginally.

  1. Stove and cook gear. I believe I used my stove three or four times. On an extended trip you get continuously beat up riding, you need to evaluate honestly if you are going to spend time cooking and if you really need to. I found eating at restaurants a nice change of pace to break up the time. Certainly it costs a little more and it would be nice to have a cup of coffee when you wake up. I would still advocate taking foods along that don’t need to be cooked for breakfasts or emergency dinners. Cooking gear is bulky and heavy. Going for a week or less, cooking adds to the adventure more than that and it becomes a burden.
  2. I envisioned breaking camp every morning spending lots of time in the morning relaxing with a cup of coffee. This just didn’t happen because packing and breaking camp was generally very time-consuming and I wanted to get an early start. So the stainless steel coffee mug became a boat-anchor, took up lots of space and never got used.
  3. A camp chair was the biggest waste of space and weight on this trip. For trips less than a week, they are invaluble. I brought it primarily to use on the four-day ferry ride. Even campsites in the most remote areas in Canada are very nicely provisioned with free wood and picnic tables. I rarely unpacked my chair. I should have thrown it out. It is nice to sit down when putting on shoes but the bike that is usuable.
  4. I brought too many tools. Sounds impossible, but after I changed back to the stock stator, I noticed I had three 13mm wrenches. Tools are very heavy. A ¼" ratchet and an 8mm socket are extremely useful to remove the side case for getting to the stator. Some Beemer types do the toolkit right: only work on the bike with the toolkit that you carry. You have the correct toolset when you can do all your repairs with this kit. This takes time and in the meantime you have to overkill the problem. I think it is weight well spent.
  5. Two flashlights should be adequate. I had three. One high-tech white LED version is good for saving batteries and reading in a tent or late night cooking.
  6. Danner swat team boots. I bought these because I felt they were a better compromise to motorcycling boots. They are comfortable to hike in and adequate for the long haul riding. Totally waterproof, expensive and tend to run narrow which gives you less tolerance to cold. I still carried running shoes for camp. I think regular waterproof motorcycle boots and running shoes would have been a better combo and provided better protection. The Danners are completely string laced and cumbersome to lace when wet and or frozen.
  7. Leatherman multi-purpose tool. Some people swear by them, I find them inadequate for everything.
  8. I carried laundry detergent in a Tupperware cup. It takes up considerable space and it is a mess if it spills. Almost every Laundromat has small quantities for sale. A little more expensive but worth the convenience. Bring it if you use polypropylene clothing and so you can do laundry in a bucket and air dry overnight.
  9. Gortex overpants. I bought leather pants and Gortex overpants for waterproofing. The combo worked OK, it required stopping every time it rained and that was often. With overpants, rest stops are a PIA – a lot of unzipping and re-zipping. Dirty boots mess up the inside of the pants. I would bite the bullet and go for Darien pants.
  10. Leather pants. In general these fit more comfortable than Cordura pants. But too hot when hot, and too cold when extremely cold and not waterproof.
  11. Belstaff Typhoon Jacket. As costly as a Darien. Generally no wait and that is why I bought it. Good breathable waterproof jacket and far more stylish than the Darien. However, ventilation compromises its protection as it vents through the zippered sleeves. Also, the padding never seems to sleeve properly where the impact point is.
  12. Parts Microfiche floppy. Whenever I broke down, there was no PC nearby and if I needed that kind of detail, I surely would be in over my head.
  13. Guide books, tour books, overlapping maps. I had too many books and too many generic maps. AAA maps are terrific for Canada and Alaska coverage. The Milepost is in my opinion too big for its weight and size – rip out the pages of interest. Be careful with AAA maps as distances are in miles in the US and KM in Canada – I seriously underestimate my time from Dawson City to Tok because I assumed everything was kilometers. Only the first 45 were kilometers then everything was miles on the SAME map – the units on the map changed at the border.
  14. KLR shop manual and supplement. I never needed it and it did get water damaged. I would still take it on an extended trip. It may be the only friend you have when you get into serious problems.
  15. Small cans of mace. For bear protection. Provides false sense of security and not technically permitted into Canada or on ferries. You can bring the fire-extinguisher size mace available at REI. I am not sure if this can be brought into Canada but they do offer it in Canada. Leave your guns at home too.
  16. Bunkhouses. These "motels" are used loggers and road construction crews but generally available for general use. They are made from double wide mobile homes with rows of tiny rooms not much bigger than the bed. Common bathrooms and showers for the entire unit usually $15-20 per night. Gets you out of the rain for cheap.
  17. Extra gallon of fuel. I suppose you carry this like insurance and hope you never need it. Canada has gas stations roughly every 45 miles – far more than in unpopulated areas of the US. Additionally, the gas gets better mileage partly because the speed limits are lower. I was able to go the 235+ miles on the Dempster without going on reserve. That was the longest stretch without fuel.

Things I wish I had brought.

  1. Diagonal wire cutters. It is just hard to cut anything without them. Always needed for wire or zip ties. A knife is simply not adequate for this.
  2. Small hammer or axe/hammer combo. For cutting fire wood, tent stakes and general repair or tire work. A rock doesn’t cut it.
  3. Hydrate or Die waterbag. Some kind of bag with water to drink while riding across the desert. Otherwise it is more or less mandatory to stop every hour to drink.
  4. Small block of wood. To raise the centerstand during tire repair.
  5. More garments made of polypropylene. Can be hand washed, dries overnight, keeps warm when wet. Use polypro T-shirt, long-sleeve t-shirt and socks. Cotton Kills. You can reduce the amount of redundant clothing carried because you can easily wash these without going to a laundry on a daily basis.
  6. Small chart with common metric conversion numbers taped to the dash. Conversion for $ to $CN, liters vs gallons, miles vs kilometers. Just so I wouldn’t have to constantly do the mental math.
  7. Small AM/FM radio or short-wave tuner. After about the 3rd or 4th week you lose touch with the world. I can live without knowing what is going on for a while, but then I want to stay in touch.

Things that did not work:
  1. Electrex Stator/Rectifier – this combo failed to charge my new Yuasa battery after 650 miles without using any accessories. The standard KLR unit never let me down after reinstalling it. It is my opinion if you limit accessories to a vest and heated grips and using only one at a time the stock KLR unit is adequate and reliable. To Electrex’ credit, they gave me a full refund long after I purchased their unit. They now claim a new and improved unit is available. Thanks, I’ll pass.
  2. EBC Pads. Nothing inherently wrong with these but I believe the soft compound is not suitable for long distance touring. My pads were worn to the metal after just 4500 freeway miles and then they scored my rotor because I just thought the brakes were dirty.
  3. Garmin GPS ll Plus. This unit was mounted directly to my handlebar and permanently failed due to vibration after only 120 miles. Read Cyco-Active’s web page for a description as to how vibration causes them to fail. In general a nice toy, and possibly helpful, but just not worth risking your trip on. Plus I believe they are susceptible to theft.
  4. Whistler voltmeter. This unit was telling me the aftermarket stator was not producing, but I refusted to believe it. It is reasonably accurate and can be bought for under $10 if you can find them. The beauty of this unit is it measures the voltage without the need of any internal batteries. Unfortunately, it is not waterproof and it got waterlogged and failed.
  5. Sierra Designs Gortex windproof/waterproof overmittens. Relatively expensive compared to Aerostich’s equivalent. These frayed in less than ten uses in the worst possible rain. Overmittens also constrict your regular gloves cutting off circulation and causing your hands to get cold even if they keep you dry.
  6. Stock chain tensioner. The two nuts can easily come loose. Then the cast backing plate will fall off, which costs $12 and is generally a special order item. Use at least one Nylock nut and it isn’t a problem. Use a large washer as a backing plate in a pinch and fill with the swingarm with silicone to prevent moisture from getting to the bearings if you lose one.
  1. Stock fan. If you clean the mud out of your fan with water or a pressure washer, the fan can internally short and cause blown fuses. Maybe the solution is a breathable nylon mesh that can stretch over the radiator that you can periodically wash clean. A low fender will probably do the same except it will clog with mud. Dunno the real solution, all I know is the high fender compromises the radiator in muddy situations.
  2. Cellular phone. So much of Alaska, British Columbia, Yukon, and Northwest Territories have zero coverage that it becomes a paperweight. You may have a great plan that lets you on every network, but for long stretches, you don’t have coverage. Better in my opinion is to have a good phone card.
  3. Compass. I love a simple compass for long distance reassurance a map. There is just no place on a KLR to mount one that I have found where it is visible and not influenced by the magnet from the tach.
  4. Don’t take an older helmet unless you take prepare it. I did not take my newest helmet because I was worried about infamous truck debris on the Dempster Highway. If you take an older helmet, make sure it has been thoroughly washed and bleached. Continuous rain will make for the stinkiest experience of your life. I had to borrow a cup of bleach at a motel to soak the helmet one evening. It worked for about a day.
  5. Motels in Alaska and Northwest Territory – even more so than BC and Yukon are generally very expensive and not to mainland standards. A motel on the Dempster Highway at Eagle Creek was $109 and is probably worth it compared to the others I stayed. Anything under $75 per night is a bargain and likely sold out. If you get continuous rain, camping is not always a pleasant option. If you breakdown on the Dempster Highway a tow will cost at least $500. Then you will need to arrange transportation to get to a real city on an empty truck. Often truckers don’t want passengers so add "cabfare" plus a few days motel waiting for the truck. I saw this scenario happen to some tourists in an Isuzu Trooper. Clutch went out, $1100 towing – at $6.00/mile, 5 nights motel, parts air-expressed in, repair charges. Moral: be prepared with a vehicle in good working order. Their vehicle would have been much closer to tow to Eagle Creek but that facility was in a different territory and for some reason you can’t tow over territories.

Tools and Spares

Most of the tools I bought at Home Depot and fit in a their tool roll/organizer.

  1. Stock Kawasaki tool kit spark plug wrench.
  2. Husky 8,9,10,11,12,13,14,17,19 combo wrenches
  3. Husky 10, 11,12,13,14,17,19 3/8" sockets
  4. Husky 3/8" long handled flex head ratchet
  5. Husky 3/8" short handled flex head ratchet
  6. Husky 3/8" allen keys
  7. Husky 3/8" extensions 2" and 4"
  8. ½" 27mm socket for counter shaft removal
  9. ½" -> 3/8" adapter for above
  10. Crescent adjustable wrench for axle nuts
  11. ¼" driver and 8mm socket
  12. 2 * 14" steel tire irons – Northern Hydraulics
  13. 6" tire iron
  14. Kmart 12v air compressor
  15. Vice-grips
  16. Channel Lock Pliers
  17. Channel Lock needle nose
  18. Husky small Phillips screwdriver
  19. Husky large Phillips screwdriver
  20. Husky small slotted screwdriver
  21. Husky large slotted screwdriver
  22. Tiny slotted screwdriver for mixture screw
  23. Metal file
  24. Digital voltmeter – must have auto power off
  25. Clutch cable
  26. Throttle cable
  27. 21" heavy duty spare tube
  28. 17" heavy duty spare tube
  29. Patch kit
  30. 2 tubes of vulcanizing tire glue
  31. JB Weld
  32. Dish detergent – tire lube
  33. 3 small shop rags
  34. Electrical tape
  35. Duct tape rolled flat
  36. Light gauge steel wire
  37. One trimmed coat hanger wire
  38. 8 hose clamps – various sizes
  39. Assortment of metric nuts, bolts and washers
  40. 20 zip ties
  41. Spare H4 bulb
  42. Spare tail light
  43. Several 6’ lengths of 14G copper wire
  44. Wire nuts
  45. Valve stem remover
  46. 3 Kawasaki oil filters. Didn’t want to spend time trying to find one on the road.
  47. 9 spare fuses (3 of each amperage) Maybe 5*20A would be safer.
  48. 2 Master links. Possibly mend a broken chain.
  49. Small can of Chainwax Lube
  50. Small can of WD40
  51. 2 ft of vacuum hose
  52. 1 ft fuel line
  53. Spark plug

 

<a href="http://www.advrider.com/Wisdom/Wisdom.html>Return to ADVrider.com