**** first,i dont want to hear "buy a suzuki,honda,yamaha ect street bike*******
supermoto is what im going to buy.

with my backpay check im treating myself to a new toy. ive narrowed it down to a few brands and models. i know KTM's can be a pain with maint,the husky didnt get FI until 2008 and the aprilia is a pain to find parts for locally. let me know what you ride/rode and how it compared.

 

Ktm!

 

Dam, I thought I was the only one in the Subaru world that would consider a supermoto...

Unfortunately, I can't help you out, but I do applaud your choice in motorcycles.

 

Your correct is say f' it with a street bike, after going through a 02 and 05 honda 600, then buying a new 07 suzuki 750 which i had for 2 months because i regretted not buying a supermoto i sold that. when choosing a bike i considered just about everything. The Suzuki drz is a safe buy, and thats all it is "safe". I wanted something that was raw, fast, and raised hell. the aprilias are very high in maint and there were some plating issues from what i could remember. the ktms were also very nice but just didnt do it for me. Which brought me to picking up the husky sm610. Its not as finicky as its smaller betheron. Able to go long distances but was also a kick in the pants. The most fun ive ever had on a bike. cant go wrong with the 6speed trans, brembos, marzocchi forks and the big 600. Bike was an absolute blast and got stares where ever i went. when i parked the bike people constantly were looking at it and waiting to ask questions on it. Basically full throttle all the time riding in the canyons having a blast.

I stripped the carb stuff on it, jetted it, leo vince exhaust which is was f'ing loud, and put on some pilot power tires and went to larger tire in the rear. bike was a blast. Gettign parts isnt bad at all because bmw took over parts distribution from cagiva and basically over hauled the whole parts system. PLus you have motoxotica right there in vacaville, and they are great over there, very nice and helpful.

Ive been drooling over a ducati streetfighter for the pure rawness that bike has. test rode one several times now at the local dealer and the bike has ***** and honestly is quite scary to ride. But I really want one to start producing exhausts for. But that probabyl wont happen as im now getting fairly busy with producing subaru parts and its only getting busier for me. So for now, im being smart and not doing anything irrational

 

I voted Husqvarna.

There is a shop that sells them in downtown Vacaville.

http://www.motoxotica.com/

 

if i hadnt been hit for fees i would have handed you the cash you wanted for yours when you were selling it. ive been riding for ever and have owned many bike,starting with one everone knows.....
-yamaha fzr600r
-cbr600 f3 smokin joe
-gsxr750
-cbr600f4i
-r6(1999)
-r1(2003)
-rc51
-duc 748
-duc 998

and thats the reason i want a SM. the ducati796 would be a blast but more than i need. i want a around town cruiser and something to rip up the ****ty roads up by loon lake.

the drz400 is a great bike,ive shown a couple buddies who are first time riders,its a work horse.

 

they helped me with my KTMs. i love the shop and i should add a BETA to the list. it revs like the aprilia and the 511 has the power or the aprilia 550.

 

Invest your back pay in real estate Nation, the prices are rock bottom right now and a good down payment will get you a nice rate.

Bikes and modding cars is a bad investment

 

KTM is no more a pain then any of the other bikes listed, but your choices run the range from full "race" supermoto to supermoto "styled".
Many pros and cons to all that you listed, might want to be a little more specific on what kind of riding you really want to be doing.
<---has rode and worked on 4/5 on the list ( mc mechanic) P.M. me if you want more info

 

im not making a investment, im buying myself something nice because ive been through complete hell the last couple years. my backpay is a drop in a hat compared to the total sum im getting. i legally cant disclose the settlement amount BUT i can disclose that im getting a years worth of back pay,an "IM SORRY" sum and then the theres the lawsuit settlement.

a 65k$ car for the wife and 250k down on a house doesnt even scratch the total amount fyi keep your eyes on news channels,it should be fun

 

My uncle rides for KTM and I get a chance to test all the new bikes pretty often (so I may be a little biased?) I've loved every single one. The 525 has fantastic low end torque and a seemingly endless powerband. I've been riding for 18 years now and I've never had a better bike than my KTM 450. Just my 2cents.

Good luck picking a bike up I'm sure you won't be disappointed with any of those choices, so don't fret over it too much because in the end it's all about riding!

 

I owned the Aprilia SXV 550 for a little over a year and absolutely loved the bike. Riding it was insanely fun, and the thing is wicked fast. I weigh 225lbs and it would pop wheelies just on throttle in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gear.

I ended up selling because after 1600 miles I had spent almost as much money on repairs then what I had paid for the bike initially. The starters on them are super weak and will not only go out but will take the sprag clutch with it. Repair was almost $700 just for that. They are also know to blow out stators due to the stator bolts being loose from the factory. If you don't regularly crack the stator case open and check them you run the risk of tossing a bolt into the mix.

Aprilia service intervals on that thing are insane also. Oil changes every 300 miles, gear oil changes every other oil change. Full motor tear down and inspection at 1800 miles, per the service manual. It's basically a race bike with a plate on it.

If I did it again, which I am sure I will in the future, I would go for either a Husky or a Japanese supermoto. The Aprilia is still, and probably will be, my favorite bike I owned though.

Here she is in all of her glory right before I sold it:

 

thank you. thats what i needed to hear,the things sellers never mention. i would do all maint myself BUT im sure parts are not cheap.

 

No problem at all. The 550 is a great bike if you can afford to have more then one bike at the same time I think.

Still the most fun I've had on 2 wheels with no doubt. I am pretty comfortable doing my own work, but the 550 is SO temperamental that I decided to have a shop do the work for me.

As you said parts are hard to come by locally too. Scuderia had to order my starter from Italy and it took almost 3 weeks to get it. They do stock some things, but some of the bigger stuff was harder to get.

 

I hope you like working on rebuilding engines... because that's all you're going to be doing with those bikes. The only that that is somewhat street friendly is the Husky 510, and even then it still takes a lot of work. As for the ducati... that's not a motard. That's a street bike with longer springs in the front.

My vote. DRZ 400sm.