Which Dual Sport to purchase

[crixster]

Hello, everyone. Long time lurker and previous Zongshen GY200 owner. Torn between the available options for purchase. Hawk DOT, Hawk EFI and the Templar 250, or 250M or 250X. Plenty options and plenty searching on the forum has me leaning toward the Hawk EFI. Any input from the members would be appreciated.

Thanks

[Aussie_in_MO]

I'd hesitate to recommend an EFI bike just from a support standpoint. Personally I'd go Templar base for shorter riders, Templar M or X for taller riders depending on whether the kick start or 6th gear and adjustable suspension are more important to you

[Megadan]

It really comes down to your budget and what you primarily want to use the bike for. Road duty and the Hawks are fine. Big fuel tank, big seat. The Templars are going to be better off road.

If you want the nice in-between of the two, the Lifan KPX is probably the bike for you.

[crixster]

Very insightful comments from both of you with what I realized was limited info in my original post. I am a shorter rider, owned a KLR650 a few years ago, and was a challenge with the seat height. This will be 90% road use. Not looking to break the bank here at all, just need a bike to run around with. So, with the resource this channel is, looks like I can narrow down to the Hawk 250 DOT for the upgraded balance shaft or the Base Templar.

[XLsior]

Other than the seat height and firmness, the Templar X with balanced 6 speed engine is hard to beat for a predominant road going dualsport.

[Megadan]

Other than the seat height and firmness, the Templar X with balanced 6 speed engine is hard to beat for a predominant road going dualsport.

Hawk X he wants to get has a balanced engine too. Just missing the 6th gear.

[XLsior]

whats the price difference between the 2? because the PR250 engine would probably fit without issue on a counterbalanced hawk X frame...If seat height is a major problem. Or you just want a backup engine on the shelf as a spare...

[Megadan]

whats the price difference between the 2? because the PR250 engine would probably fit without issue on a counterbalanced hawk X frame...If seat height is a major problem. Or you just want a backup engine on the shelf as a spare...

Hawk X is 1500 plus shipping, maybe 1800ish delivered.

[red2003]

Very insightful comments from both of you with what I realized was limited info in my original post. I am a shorter rider, owned a KLR650 a few years ago, and was a challenge with the seat height. This will be 90% road use. Not looking to break the bank here at all, just need a bike to run around with. So, with the resource this channel is, looks like I can narrow down to the Hawk 250 DOT for the upgraded balance shaft or the Base Templar.

What is the remaining 10%? Back roads? If yes, why are you going the dual sport route at all? A small street bike, even like a Rebel 250, would be leaps and bounds better to run around town on.

Of course, if the remaining 10% is deep mud, then you gotta stay with the dual sport option.

[panzer77]

I would avoid the EFI simply for the reason you can fix carb issues or replace with a new carb. At your 90% road use, it sounds like you are really looking for a supermoto. The Templars are great bikes but they are more of a dirt or enduro bike. It would take a bit of work and more $$ to make them more street-friendly. You would want to replace the tires right away and make sure to have the front rim trued up and balanced. You will also have to deal with sprockets as they are geared low and not set up for cruising over 60-65. They are also tall and light, meaning they have stability issues with strong cross-winds when traveling at speed. The fuel tank will limit your range, 80-100 miles at best. You might be better off with a street bike of some type or something already setup like a Supermoto.

Tao Motor TBR7. https://taomotor.com/products/motorcycles/tbr7/

[Thumper]

So dangerous getting into the recommendations :wtf:

I wonder what happened to Jeff (Peace Sports) and the awesome Recon with full sized wheels? I really liked my Bashan Storm with inverted forks. It was a nice dual sport. The Bashan Brozz and Recon were excellent bikes. There are some lucky owners out there.

We had very very bad luck with a TBR7. It was a Chinese COVID batch. Whoa.

The Bashans were before all that. You can still get the Storm. If you want a dual sport, I still think it is a good one.

[Do©Hawk]

I have a DLX EFI. It isn't the constant problem that everyone makes it out to be, but if you do have problems, solutions aren't as easy. I've popped a couple codes and it has its quirks, but for the most part, It's been great. it has similar shortcomings to all the others....loose things, marginal battery power, out of true wheels.... I ride it mostly on the road and can keep up with traffic on everything but the highway. I don't deal with much in the way of elevation changes, but in western PA, it does get cold and my EFI always starts without issue.

Take what I say with a grain of salt. My Hawk DLX is my 1st motorcycle and the only one I have any experience with. I can't recommend which China bike you should buy. I can only tell you about my limited experience with mine. Also, I bought it used. I have more than doubled the miles on the odometer since last September, currently at 2230 miles.

[XLsior]

Other than the 6 speed counterbalanced engine on the templar X. choosing a dirt/dualsport for 90% road use might be the wrong choice from the start. If you're lane splitting and urban filtering the grom clones and perhaps the newer CT125 clones would be a better match.



If you need to punch down a highway/freeway often then something with 40hp+ might be better.



Can the 250cc dualsports do that stuff...sure. But they're much more at home in a rural back road atmosphere where potholes abound.

[crixster]

What is the remaining 10%? Back roads? If yes, why are you going the dual sport route at all? A small street bike, even like a Rebel 250, would be leaps and bounds better to run around town on.

Of course, if the remaining 10% is deep mud, then you gotta stay with the dual sport option.

The end location for the bike will be in the Bahamas. So the 10% will be sandy areas or limestone roads. Street bikes wont do, some of the paved streets sometimes suffer from potholes where in my experience dual sports are that much better.

I appreciate all the input guys. Still leaning toward either the Hawk X due the large support base of resources or base templar. Still undecided guys!

[Sport Rider]

don't over think it. you won't go wrong either way.

[Thumper]

The end location for the bike will be in the Bahamas. So the 10% will be sandy areas or limestone roads. Street bikes wont do, some of the paved streets sometimes suffer from potholes where in my experience dual sports are that much better.

I appreciate all the input guys. Still leaning toward either the Hawk X due the large support base of resources or base templar. Still undecided guys!

The sandy roads take priority because sand is the worst conditions and you don't want to be washing out (front tire going sideways) or spinning out on corners with the wrong tire just because it wasn't the best road tire!!

The best for sand are desert oriented knobbies or aggrssive dual sport tires. If you get ANY knobby tire on the bike originally, at least you won't have to switch tire to survive on sand.

A dual purpose (lower seat height) with knobbies is probably a couple of criteria to start with. Hawk is one of them.

If you don't mind working on lowering the bike, the Templar M and X are great bikes. No one has found the right lowering link for the Templar, so the only way to lower it until we have a link is to drill a new hole in the lower shock mount position of the rear shock mount.

https://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=31860

Here is the info on the link. Anyone??? I am thinking this has same dimensions as ~2000-2008 CRF250. I haven't had time to look into it.

https://www.chinariders.net/showpost.php?p=407609&postcount=57
https://www.chinariders.net/showpost.php?p=407610&postcount=58

I lowered mine using the new lower mount position (5/8" gave me 2", and no need to cut the kickstand), so finding a compatible lowering link is on the back burner for me.

[crixster]

don't over think it. you won't go wrong either way.

Thanks for your advice and all the others who took their time to post their comments. I do think I was overthinking it from a support perspective. I'm going with the counter balanced Hawk X. Appreciate all the input here guys. Going to order the bike tomorrow :yay: and should be chiming in soon! Wish me luck!

:thanks:

[Megadan]

Thanks for your advice and all the others who took their time to post their comments. I do think I was overthinking it from a support perspective. I'm going with the counter balanced Hawk X. Appreciate all the input here guys. Going to order the bike tomorrow :yay: and should be chiming in soon! Wish me luck!

:thanks:

I am sure the Hawk X will work out great for you. From what I have seen, they have made several small changes/upgrades to them, including the sprockets they come with. Unless the information I got was wrong, it looks like they come with a 17 front and 45 or 46 rear sprocket. I still wouldn't trust the chain it comes with, and I have no doubt the carb is still jetted pretty lean, but I suspect it has slightly better jetting than the standard Hawk since it also comes with all of the other emissions equipment.

Just make sure to stay on top of the maintenance, and I would still go over the bike during assembly and follow as much of the first post in my resource guide as possible. "Better" is still a subjective measure lol.

[crixster]

I am sure the Hawk X will work out great for you. From what I have seen, they have made several small changes/upgrades to them, including the sprockets they come with. Unless the information I got was wrong, it looks like they come with a 17 front and 45 or 46 rear sprocket. I still wouldn't trust the chain it comes with, and I have no doubt the carb is still jetted pretty lean, but I suspect it has slightly better jetting than the standard Hawk since it also comes with all of the other emissions equipment.

Just make sure to stay on top of the maintenance, and I would still go over the bike during assembly and follow as much of the first post in my resource guide as possible. "Better" is still a subjective measure lol.

Thanks Dan! I sure will review the post in the forum, was a big part of my decision to purchase the Hawk X. Ordered from TxPowersports today.... fingers crossed!

[Megadan]

Thanks Dan! I sure will review the post in the forum, was a big part of my decision to purchase the Hawk X. Ordered from TxPowersports today.... fingers crossed!

Now for the best part of ordering a Hawk. Waiting for it to arrive.

[DasEnduro]

For me I just don’t like the cheaper look of the hawk 250. I’d choose the Templar X as I already have it and it’s awesome. That being said valve clearance checks suck on the Templar and look extremely easy on the hawks.

[Bill Hilly]

For me I just don’t like the cheaper look of the hawk 250. I’d choose the Templar X as I already have it and it’s awesome. That being said valve clearance checks suck on the Templar and look extremely easy on the hawks.
I know that the Hawk, and most of it's close cousins share the spilt level seat, which no one really seems to like, but there is a version of the Hawk out that is a nearly identical bike, and from what I had seen in the Facebook groups, it's less expensive. It's the XPro RXE , but in my opinion it looks better because of the simple fact that it's lower forks, and passenger grab handles are black. I think they have some with the counter balanced motor, and are basically a HawkX, except with different decals. From what I seen about a month or so ago in Facebook they were around $200 ,or $250 cheaper than the equivalent Hawk. If there is no difference in the chances of getting one titled, then I would choose one over a new Hawk.

[maxbottomtime]

Howdy! Question on the Templar X - is it street legal? I have seen some posts suggesting you can get a motorcycle title sent (rather than off road motorcycle). Not CA/NJ (OH is state I'd be looking at).