crf250 Rally

[garyboy]

pleanty of lads are using the o/e clutch gary ..daves is fine i wouldnt worry but the 1313 kits are a straight replacement bit more direct without the judder assembly but id just ride it as is for now its done nowt really ....tbo unless uour planning somthing really horrible and steep id stay with the 14/40 better on the road and ist gear steady will pretty much climb anything ordinary trails will ask of it i think .the gap to 2nd can be annoying but i find its best to live with it rather than try and close it ......sort yer tyres out get a shakedown day sorted and see how you feel id say ... id say the single biggest fault with the bike is the rear shock .it just has zero rebound control ..other than that they ride well i think

ahh .. great!!
thanks for your reply, MInky ... I was hoping you would say that.
With my 2015 crf250L, every change i made seemed to make the bike worse in some way or another. The secret to the CRF's is in their designed balance.... they can do gentle trails, and are really good for long distant, if slower, road work.

The Rally, from what you say, has the same slipper clutch as the `L`, and in no time at all, I was starting to wear it out, but i was slipping the clutch like mad to avoid tipping the bike over on really muddy lines. .. and i had no tools, to speak of, on me .. lol .. doh .. as i had rushed out to try the new bike out, locally, and didnt know exactly what was in, or not, the provided tool kit. Hopwfully I can alter my style with a bit more speed and confidence when it dries out a bit, and not need to slip/feather the clutch? .. Though I can see me doing the 1313 mod quite soon lol.

[garyboy]

on my local lane yesterday. the 250 Rally sailed nicely through the water on that boat
It was incredibly stable through deep water, and nice on rocky trails (but make sure the tyre pressures are lower than standard) .. I like the suspension, .. much better than the L (due to its softer, longer suspension) .. and the power delivery is gentle and very nice .. easy and effective, with no bother at all. You can't feel the weight at all.. 157kg ? .. and is also easy to push even through naughty bog. .. the Rally is better balanced than the 2015 `L` and i don't really want to do anything to alter that.

(Just remember though, that this is no enduro bike)

I began wearing the clutch out very rapidly, yesterday. But that was my fault in trying to keep my pretty new bike upright and intact lol. by going as slow as i could with the rear end swerving at the slightest touch of the throttle, on that very slippy Welsh boggy mud (with a worn oem IRC tyre). I will have to replace those IRC tyres with something a lot better .. but... (the holy grail) .. still ride good on tarmac. (suggestions welcome . o o look out lol).

Is the MT21 `rally cross` the same as the old MT21? as the treads seem to be more spaced?? or is it my imagination?

[garyboy]

Negative points ..

It is not a lightweight powerefu enduro bike.
It is a general purpose pretend adventure bike.
When you go off trail and hit some grassy tumps, you glide over the small gentle ones, but you can feel that it would soon get out of shape, at speed, over the bigger tumps.
This is when you become aware of the weight, top weight ,and vulnerability of the lovely but large front fairing structure.
It feels like even a small tumble is going to be a big big deal.... I hope I am wrong. But probably points to the soft rear shock?
The static sag is quite a lot, and many do not like the very soft nature of the rear spring, and, basically, the non adjustable suspension settings ... but it works for me, at my low level of 'expertise ', as my toes can firmly reach the ground, ie without all that height adjustment I went through on my old 'L'.
When moithering around like a snail's dick, like me , if you feather the clutch, it will soon wear out, and have to do Minky's 1313 clutch plates and stronger springs mod, which I did on my old L, but is a pain to have to do on a nearly new bike.
The handguards and engine bash plates are poor, but I won't be replacing just yet, as no doubt costly atm.
The oem irc tyres are fine on road but replace ASAP for trails .. On my old 250L, I learned how important the rear tyre is for traction and stability especially in muddies.

But it is what it is, and it is a great engineering compromise by Honda, .. and importantly at a very reasonable price !!!

[GazC]

Keep this stuff coming Gary, it’s really good getting first impressions and then seeing what improvements are really necessary rather than immediately throwing on all the nice to haves, not that I’ve ever done that myself in the past of course……course not !

[Cornishman]

It is a general purpose pretend adventure bike.

Why are you calling it a pretend adventure bike? Don’t believe that the only way to have a real adventure bike is to throw a lot of money at a highly specced, powerful, expensive machine to pose on. The adventure is the doing and there are plenty of people who take their small Honda CRFs where people who have big, heavy, expensive bikes wouldn’t dare to go and would more than likely have huge problems if they did. Enjoy your bike, you have made a good choice, now go and have the adventures.

[garyboy]

It is a general purpose pretend adventure bike.

Why are you calling it a pretend adventure bike? Don’t believe that the only way to have a real adventure bike is to throw a lot of money at a highly specced, powerful, expensive machine to pose on. The adventure is the doing and there are plenty of people who take their small Honda CRFs where people who have big, heavy, expensive bikes wouldn’t dare to go and would more than likely have huge problems if they did. Enjoy your bike, you have made a good choice, now go and have the adventures.

good point .... you are right of course.
I need to adjust my mindset .. in so many places/ways.
Thanks for putting me right



I tink it comes from my old250L .. which i considered to be a pretend trail bike .. because of it weight and low power.
but the Rally is a definite upgrade, and could probably be classed as a true adventure bike ... YAY !!!

[garyboy]

yes ... my mind is starting to expand to the idea of far flung places .. ok lol , so I can't flung very far atm

I have thought for a while now that this `pandemic` is coming to an end, in terms of travel and lockdowns .. and beginning to think that the Rally may indeed be a good choice of steed .. if lightweight gear on (to get) rack and possibly panniers.

My NC750 was always in mind, but for some reason, i am getting the more excited feeling from the Rally .. perhaps thinkng of muddy roads, Alpine rough tracks (not too demanding) ... who knows ... .............see?? ... my mindset is changing already


Anyone know how much MPG for the rally in standard trim?

[garyboy]

.. just watched the video ... fantastic ... fab!!!! ..

.. will have to watch t he others by her

[catcitrus]

Picking up on Minky's comment about clutches , and about how some people make them last, I would add my 5 p'neth. Being old and brought up on fragile and heavy old Brit single clutches you use the clutch just to get going and to change gear. IMO on gentle trail riding there is virtually no need to slip the clutch with a modern 250 provided that the gearing is sensible. Its really surprising how bikes will keep their momentum and chug up difficult inclines with low revs. Pulling the clutch simply results in you coming to a standstill or trying to carry on with loads more revs and continuous slipping--a burn out will come soon. Next time you are tempted to slip don't. Just keep a bit of throttle on and let it chug up.

[Cornishman]

Her current series on the CRF300 Rally and her previous one on the CRF250L will probably be the ones that will be of most immediate interest to you but it’s actually worth going back to her original trip when she rode an Himalayan from India back to the Netherlands as a complete novice. By looking at all of her travels you will see why she is qualified to say that the CRF300 Rally was the best choice for her current trip. It’s all very well to listen to people with big wallets on forums like this but so much better to see people who are living your dream. Different bikes suit different people. I chose my bike because it suits the way I ride. I live in the middle of the countryside and rarely go on any ride without doing an off road section or two, I also like to head off to the hills camping and need to be able to cover up to 500 miles in a day to get there. I bought a bike that suits my needs. I’m sure a lot of your proper adventure bike owners will be saying things like, it’s crap, it’s gutless, it’s heavy but, hey, it’s me having the adventures while they are either dusting their expensive toys in the garage or riding down to a nearby bikers’ cafe to talk the talk. Enjoy watching the videos but get out on your bike and enjoy that too.