...Hawk 250, Tao DBR7 or RPS Magician
 

Welp.. I iced the pitbike plans and am now looking
at a dual sport or enduro ..something to make a 25 mile
backroad commute to work on and maybe have some fun
on the trails on weekends.
Happy these boards exist!

Well as far as I know the magician has the best units of fun pr dollar ratio and they have a lower seat height for us short doods, I'm 5'4" and I can only tiptoe my brothers hawk. Also a magician is what I own so I'm a little biased. It has tires that are not really meant for true off roading. They are down right suicidal in mud and snow but do great as long as you keep them out of anything that goes squish or splash. If you are going to be true off-roading I'd say the hawk. I daily commute most of the year on a magician and love it. Also same engine as the hawk so tons of info and support here. I mean come on, just look at that....
https://i.ibb.co/6BCbB4p/IMG-20191224-141555998.jpg

Thanks for the input. Looks like a great bike!
I'm a bigger guy at 5'10" and 235#
I have heard the RPS Magician has pretty soft suspension
and a more compact cockpit. I wish I could test before
I make a decision.

I don't really ride mine hard off road but I could see the suspension being not enough. I know there are people who have upgraded they're suspension on the hawk. So it is doable and documented. I think the hawk might "fit" you better maby. The shock on the magician is adjustable but I think you need some kind of coilover tool to adjust them. Wish I knew more about the dbr7 so I could compare. I have been drooling over the zong rx3 myself.

Thanks. Yeah, the Zongshen looks like a great bike. A bit out of my reach from a financial standpoint. I'm fairly handy with a wrench and like doing upgrades. I find these China rides intriguing.

The Brozz is worth the money over these imo. Runs pretty good out of the box, Suspension is enough for me 5'11" 210lbs. It comes with a pre-load adjustable shock I only had to turn it a couple times to be good, I'm sure you'll be fine. Front feels pretty good as well. The overall build quality and the swing arm are better as well. People have broken the swing arm on the TBR7

I looked at that one also. Bashan seems to have a fairly solid reputation as well. I doubt I will be riding the bike "hard". Mild trails and back roads mainly. I want to use it primarily for 25 or so (one way) commutes to and from work. thanks for the heads up!