| wartbike.com |
| August 2006 loaded down for a donut run up to the cabin to bait black bear A 230 mile one way trip |
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| You have linked to this page via www.buckmountainchateau.com Buck Mountain Chateau is a cabin in Northern Minnesota with a website. This page is part of that website. It will be devoted to the wartbike in its travels up to the cabin, the North Shore, and elsewhere. |
| I've had a few bikes. As a teenager I had a small 1968 Bridgestone 50cc which I paid cash for after living and working as an endentured servant more or less on my uncles farm in South Dakota. He's a good man and I owe him a lot for that unique experience. I graduated the 8th grade in a one room country school house out there. I never would have gotten that bike without my hired hand wages my uncle paid me. It was the start of my motorcycle interests. The Bridgestone had about 5 thousand miles on it when I sold it. Not a lot but I didn't have a drivers license to begin with and should not have been on the road period. Most of those miles were on what is commonly referred to as the "back roads." The next bike was a 1982 Yamaha 750 Virago V-twin with shaft drive. It was a good bike with little maintenance requirements and I put about 25,000 miles on it. I sold it shortly after I layed it down when some small children ran out in front of me. My foot was pinned underneath and when I did get free I could hardly pick the 500 pounder up. I remember thinking, "It's not really a bike if a man can't even pick it up off the ground." And now we come to the Kawasaki 650 KLR. A single cylinder with way too much power for the dirt but able to take you anywhere you want to go and still light enough to man handle if you get into something over your head. The dry weight is 337 pounds. That's what really sold me on the wartbike...well that and the cheap price of $4900.00 The military uses the KLR and even has a diesel version which gets over 100 miles a gallon. The wartbike is for guys that don't mind wrenching a little now and then. Nothing major just keep the chain oiled and keep an eye on nuts that vibrate loose. There's also a couple of safety wires you might want to snip and the balancer chain tensioner aka. "doohickey" but that's about it. The bike has a cult following and if you google "KLR 650" you'll get about 5000 hits. "Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia" has a good write up of the bike with all the specs at the following link: KLR 650 My wartbike has 13,000 miles as of July 2007 and is due for a new chain. Hopefully I'll make it until snowfall with it. The wartbike has several donut runs planned in August 2007 for bear hunting again and hopefully Mark will be joining me with his new Yamaha 400cc Majesty (see pic below). |
| Page under construction... |
| Squirrels like the wartbike too...they find it makes an excellent storage facility Thank goodness no wiring was damaged |
| When gasoline starting hitting $3.00 a gallon and with the KLR getting 50 mpg it became a serious work bike. I bolted a South African ammo can to the rear luggage rack using the existing bolt holes. It's very secure. I was concerned it might be a tad large but not the case. You never seem to have enough space, especially with rain gear, work clothes, etcetera. The lid is hinged and the ammo can is totally waterproof. It provides a super secondary shelf for other more bulky gear on top. The best part of the ammo can is the cost of it and the 4 longer metric bolts was under $5.00 |
| The ammo can is gaudy looking like the milk crate bikes of the 60's and 70's Like I give a crap |
| wartbike.com is strictly for giggles |
| The wartbike without tank bags Rarely seen like this |
| Mark with his new Yamaha 400cc Majesty A week after pic someone backed into it causing 2000 in damage |
| The manual hasn't changed in 20 years |
| Email: bigwart@wartbike.com |
Since I've owned the wartbike I laid it down on both sides and hit a deer. The 1st time I laid it down with 1000 miles
on it in the DNR dirt bike trails in "Snake Creek." It was early spring and wet. I got in over my head and had to finish
the trail out. A huge mud hole was no match for me. I tweaked the front forks just a tad but no other damage.
The second time I laid it down right in front of my house leaning it over to inspect the oil sight glass in the engine. It
was the first time I had sat on it all winter and it simply got away from me. Bikes will do that. Can't imagine how you
can stop some of the big ones once they are leaned over too far. I ask people with the heavy bikes if they think they
could pick them back up and some are honest and say, "No way." Someone told me there was a one handed method
to pick up a bike with. I'll have to research that one. I have my doubts few could do it one handed.
The deer I hit (a doe) came out of some elephant grass. I knew they had the tendency to run out in that area and
backed off the throttle just in case. She came out with her head down for some reason and hit my left leg below my
knee with her head and ripped off the left rear signal light. I hit her doing around 25mph I guess.
It felt like some one had whacked me with a 2x4 as I drove by them. I thought for sure the leg was broken. I kept the
bike upright and pulled over. I couldn't put the kickstand down though or put any weight on the leg for awhile. I just
kept it leaned to the right and eventually got the kickstand down and walked it off.
on it in the DNR dirt bike trails in "Snake Creek." It was early spring and wet. I got in over my head and had to finish
the trail out. A huge mud hole was no match for me. I tweaked the front forks just a tad but no other damage.
The second time I laid it down right in front of my house leaning it over to inspect the oil sight glass in the engine. It
was the first time I had sat on it all winter and it simply got away from me. Bikes will do that. Can't imagine how you
can stop some of the big ones once they are leaned over too far. I ask people with the heavy bikes if they think they
could pick them back up and some are honest and say, "No way." Someone told me there was a one handed method
to pick up a bike with. I'll have to research that one. I have my doubts few could do it one handed.
The deer I hit (a doe) came out of some elephant grass. I knew they had the tendency to run out in that area and
backed off the throttle just in case. She came out with her head down for some reason and hit my left leg below my
knee with her head and ripped off the left rear signal light. I hit her doing around 25mph I guess.
It felt like some one had whacked me with a 2x4 as I drove by them. I thought for sure the leg was broken. I kept the
bike upright and pulled over. I couldn't put the kickstand down though or put any weight on the leg for awhile. I just
kept it leaned to the right and eventually got the kickstand down and walked it off.
| May 2007 down by Wabasha Minnesota Turkey Hunting Long guns lash down fine on the wartbike |
| Why the wartbike? |
| April 2005 on a 140 mile Mississippi Valley run Minnesota left photo and Wisconsin right photo |
| 2002 Kawasaki KLR 650 "Wartbike" Definition of a wart - "Small, rough, commom, ugly, and can last for years. |
| The Power Plant - Single 651cc Too much power for me in the dirt but great for highway (Top speed for me is around 110 mph) |
| Spring 2008 - (15,000 miles). The Wartbike gets a new battery every year, they're cheap enough. I repainted the ammo box on back. The tank and handlebar bag were getting quite weathered looking too so I took what was left in the paint can and gave them a once over. |
| August on one of several donut run's to the cabin. Lake Superior in background just outside of Duluth Minnesota. 12 gauge shotgun strapped on for bear problems at the cabin. |
| The Wartbike never made it up to the cabin the 1st four years I owned it due to gas being cheap and the fact I have another toy I like to take up there...specifically an ATV. August of 2006 was its 1st run into the cabin. The engine is just too powerful for the slop I have to go through the last half mile but I made it in on its virgin trip upright. |
| I experimented with a Nato blue ammo can on the rear luggage rack for the 1st trip in.It worked fine providing quick access and was totally waterproof but as you can seeit just doesn't look cool. |
| Valve check and new tires around 7000 miles. Chain tightened around 12,000 miles. Couple of safety wires clipped...specifically clutch and kick stand due to known problems. I regret to inform other KLR riders I have NOT done the "doo hickey " yet. |