RX3 for mostly gravel/dirt roads?
 

I could use some input on where the RX3 really shines to help me decide if this is the right bike for me.

My Background:
I have been riding motorcycles for a few years now – but only on pavement. In a couple of weeks I am moving to a part of the country that has many gravel and dirt roads.
I have a CTX700 which I am planning to keep for longer highway trips but am wanting to get a second bike to explore these backroads and I expect my riding on this second bike to be 10% pavement, 80% gravel/dirt roads, and 10% firetrails and NON-technical offroad riding. My first bike was a TU250X and while it only had 16 HP, the lack of power was no issue to me – I mostly like to cruise at the speed limit and enjoy the scenery. And if I need to run down the Interstate, I will still have my CTX.
I am 6’ tall with a 30” inseam and weigh 200 lbs. My riding style is very laid-back cruising.

My dilemma:
I’m having difficulty researching this. I am attracted to the RX3 because of its price-point. Its great list of standard equipment, ABS on the latest model, and the loyal following of owners (people who buy it really seem to like it). It looks like a great bike. However, I don’t know if, based on my intended use above, if I should be getting this bike or would be happier with a more dual-sport oriented bike like the CRF250L (or maybe even the TT250?).
I’m not planning on technical off-road riding and not wanting to jump anything or wheelie or anything like that – I just have no idea about gravel and dirt road riding and whether a dual sport is better if this is primarily what I am going to be doing. I have spent a lot of time attempting to answer this question with Google, but it seems that the question only gets answered for mostly pavement vs. more serious off-road, and I can’t exactly test these bikes out in the manner I intend to use them.

I'm sure the RX3 will work for this, but is it the best tool for the job? Would I be happy with the RX3 (with the 19" front wheel upgrade) for gravel road exploring for a few hours at a time? Would I be happier on a CRF250L? Would it be able to comfortably cruise 20MPH faster on the same road?

Thank you in advance for your input here.

-Duke

Though I don’t have an RX3, I do have a TT250. The RX3 is a great bike and can certainly do the type of off road riding you described but since you have a road bike I would recommend the TT250 for your dirt adventures. It’s much lighter than the RX3, has a 21” front wheel that glides over rocks and ruts, has longer travel suspension and can still be ridden comfortably on the road as long as you keep it under 60 mph. It’s simple to work on and it’s also $2000 cheaper.
FYI, I’m considering getting an RX3 to keep my TT company but the TT would still be my “go to” bike for off road.

Hi BDS. The RX3 will give you more highway capability than a TT250 or CRF250L. From your intended use I'd say look into the TT, CRF and the Hawk. You can always add some bags or luggage to them. The CRF will probably perform the best for you off road and at higher highway speeds. All things considered from your post I would recommend a TT250 if you can afford it.

I'll need to consider the TT250 a bit more. I originally found the RX3 because it would be significantly cheaper than the Japanese dual sports I was looking at, but I guess if the TT250 is even cheaper still, of the same quality, and comfortable enough for a few hours of riding at a time then that might be the answer...

BigDuke, the TT is surprisingly comfortable. I’m 5’10”ish with a 32” inseam and 180 lbs. I can sit flat footed. When I first got it, I put over 1000 miles on it in 6 weeks. Each ride I’d go 2-3 hours, putting on 100-150 miles and never got sore or tired and I’m an old fart with not much butt meat. Recently, I did add an Air Hawk seat pad just because I had one.
I own a 2016 BMW R1200R which I love. But since getting the TT, that’s all I ride because it’s so much fun. Last weekend I did a knarly, rocky, rutted, steep, hilly 70 mile off road adventure. The TT took everything in stride and I came home unscathed and happy. There were some very rocky downhill sections and the low gearing, light weight, nimble handling made them easy.
To date, nothing has broken or fallen off. It’s completely stock except for the Apollo Heat Grips and the luggage rack that CSC installed prior to shipping. I highly recommend both of those options.
Servicing is super easy. Oil change and simple valve adjustment is all that is needed. I did that at 500 and 1000 miles.
The bike arrived in perfect condition and all I had to do was screw on the mirrors, fire it up (it came with gas in it) and ride away. CSC is great to work with and make you feel like you’re their only customer.

The RX3 seems like a good bike... but the only issue I would have
with it for your intended use is it is a 400lb 250cc bike the same
weight as a 650cc Jap duel sport..
That weight can be a blessing and a draw back... it would be more
planted on gravel less prone to react to the road surface than a lighter
bike...but that also means it wil be harder to stop , harder to change direction
IF you were to run a bit hot into a corner you need to scub some speed fast
and change direction thats when the weight will make it's self felt..
and also harder to man handle if needed..

When I change from riding my XT660R "170kgs" to the TTR250 "115kgs" i really notice the weight diffrents..The XT is more stable will plow though the lose gravel the TTR is more twithy but alot more flickable when required...

A bike in the area of about 130kgs would give the best of both worlds.. light enough but with enough
weight to be stable and not react so much to the surface...

Another thing for riding gravel... don't use knobbly tires.. use a tire that puts more
rubber on the ground and not ride on the top of nobbs.... no tire will grip on gravel
The grip is on the hard base under the gravel... that is usaly to hard for a nobbly tire to penatrate... so you need rubber on the ground...

I also think the CSC TT250 would be the best tool for the job.

The RX3 would work don't get me wrong but if you don't intend to ride the bike on the highway anyway then the TT250 is a better bike for trails. The TT250 can handle highway with some modifications but it shines best under 50mph. The RX3 out shines the TT250 on the pavement at speed.

I like the look of the Bashan Storm...
look to have a counter balanced motor ?..
should be a bit smoother...

..

I have both a TT 250 and RX3 . I have a 42 mile one way commute of which about 12 miles is hard packed dirt, rocks, and gravel. No highway to speak of but do have 2 lane paved county roads for the balance of the commute. I alternate between the tt and rx.

I'm 5'10" 32" inseam. I have the tall seat option on the RX. No mods other than some LED lights and exhaust on the TT.

Both bikes are very capable on gravel and dirt roads and even some less well maintained forest service roads I've taken both bikes on. Both bikes have their pluses and minuses.

I like the RX carrying capacity with luggage. It's more comfortable to me, has some wind protection and is better on pavement. I do have Kenda 270's on the RX which are more aggressive than stock tires. The bike is heavier but the weight is well distributed and low so there are really no issues with weight unless you have to pick the bike up. I also find the RX to be less viby than the TT. My hands get tingly on the TT after 42 miles, the RX not so much. From a maintenance perspective, valve adjustments would be the only slight down side. Although after you do a couple they seem to go much easier.

The TT is, as noted, much lighter and does handle much better than the RX in the dirt, especially deeper loose gravel and sandy areas. I have a set of inexpensive nelson rigg saddlebags to handle storage needs and camping gear when the need arises. The TT does a have pretty comfy seat for a dirt oriented bike. If you intend to do more trail riding then the TT is the better option. It has much better ground clearance. The bike is hammer simple to work on. Rejetting the carb for altitude took a little trial and error.

Can't help you on your choice. They are both great bikes and a great value either way you go.

Rx3 for offroading....
 

I am using Rx3 for Trail explorations around city or in far reach Himalayan mountains from last two years...


I have made "Trail"/dirt riding specific changes to bike and over all bike is not far in performance then any 250cc standard daul sports (offcourse I would not take WR or rally dirt machines) but for now I ride extensively with DR250, XR250, Baj'a250, and load of other chinese 250s.... and I usually stay with the japanses endure/dual sports pack...


But before the changes the bike was a bull not willing to take any moderate offroad easily and my hands used to pain alot...


1 - 19 Front
2 - Slim Front Tire (daul purpose)
3 - Elevated Handle
4 - Rear Tire Enduro
5 - Saddle Trunks hard Boxes removed along their guards..
6 - Handle gaurds
7 - Removed the Highway Windshield (Ialways whack my self on it)



removed many metal parts and switched to aluminium alloy, even the tappet covers , chain gaurd are replaced with lighter competation oriented stuff...

Are the Pakistan model EFI or carburetor?

Offcourse after all these changes it is still no way near to actual daul sports dirt bikes but I have an edge of not being tired after 300~400km of highway run and they are just messaging there backs ....


we recently had a new Rx1 acquired by one of our friend I came to know it comes in 125, 150, 200 and 250cc variants... which is a very versatile and very good machine...

How many motor options do you have for the RX1?? Holy that is a lot! in China its 150cc water cooled carb and 200 air cololed EFI (I think I have carb n EFI versions stated correctly)

My advice would be not to go for an Rx3 if the sole purpose is only off roading....


If you are going to use it say 20% offroad 80% (gravel + highway) then yes its a Very Good bike and out shines big time in price quality and every thing...


the only reason why I went for it is the same as well...

Dude there are more then one variant of Rx3 in Pakistan


1 - US grey imported (CSC ones)
2 - Chinese imported
3 - And the version from Zongshen's own distribution (called locally roadprince)


For Rx1 there is only one Importer and he brings almost any chinese bike on request you may book.


1 - But by himself he has only brought the Carby 200cc Rx1 with tubless tires and large trunk (larger the rx3)




hope this helps...

Between your handle and avatar, I would have never guessed this........
All this time I pictured 6'5" and 300.

Used to be much "grande'er" than I am now. What hair I have is no longer rojo. Bald Grey Beard just doesn't have the same ring to it.:lmao::lmao:

Thanks everyone for your replies.

I’m still a little confused. I think it might be just general word choice that has a little off about this. I get that the TT250 or other dual sports will outshine the RX3 “off road” and the RX3 would be the better choice “on road.” My issue is – I didn’t think gravel or dirt roads would be considered the same as “off road.” And it certainly seems different to me than “on road” too. It looks like most of the gravel and dirt roads I will be riding on are in pretty good shape. This isn’t a bunch of rocky jeep trails like eveRide seems to enjoy tackling – I get that the TT250 would be much better for that stuff. But if most of my riding is going to be on well maintained dirt/gravel roads, does that still fall under the category that the TT250 is the better bike “off road?”

Thanks for your patience with me here. I’m really a novice when it comes to leaving the pavement. (but not for long)

Either a TT or RX3 would serve you well, but neither is perfect for what you describe. My experience with gravel is being able to flat foot at slow speeds is a knee saver. I also agree about the traction issue, on gravel or slick slime there is none. The best cure for gravel is more rubber on the road, which calls for a less aggressive tire, but for mud the best bet is course knobbies. Significantly bigger tires helps both counts. If you want to cruise unpaved roads traction is the way to go.

So, a Yamaha TW200 or 225. The 125 is quite short on power. DOT knobbies as big or bigger on the front than those on the back of most 650 dual sports. Rear tire will fit a compact car. Same power as the TT, give or take. Super easy to maintain. Less capable off road than the TT, less capable on the highway than the RX#, the TW is right between them at it's best. Sounds like exactly what you need. You'll want to raise the seat (padding), taller bars in aluminum to reduce vibration, gel grips, and an o-ring chain. the stock chain is junk and will wear out in a few thousand miles. RX3 chain is the same way.

Due to the monster rear tire the chain and sprockets must be offset so the countershaft sports an oiled bearing outside the sprocket--accessing the countershaft sprocket is an unusual amount of work. Therefore, a good ringed chain is a huge improvement in reduced maintenance time and expense.

I have good success with the Bridgestone knobby on the back that comes to most of the world stock. Big, closely spaced knobbs down the middle provide lots of miles and good load capacity. The next third of the tread on each side would look like a good mud tire if the center tread was not there. The outside sixth of the tread is closely spaced knobbs that provide a ton of dig when cornering on dirt like a knobby, but lots of rubber for hard pack, and the course tread towards the middle allows those cornering knobbies to get through the gravel. It's a great tire for most any use.

The stock front tire sucks. If you expect lots of mud the Kenda TrackMaster II in 120/100-18 is awesome on the front, but tends to need a firm grip at high speeds on pavement to prevent wandering. The Kenda K270 is another choice if you don't see much slime, and is excellent on gravel. My next TW front tire for the riding you propose will be the Big Block style, might fit perfect between the other two. Suzuki has a 200 similar to the TW but I don't know anything about it.

If you live in the USofA there are always TW200s coming off motorhomes for sale, next to no miles, and relatively cheap.

It sounds like we ride much of the same landscape. We do a lot of paved twisties and gravel roads, some maintained better than others. We have both bikes. I take the RX3 99% of the time.
If on the rare occasion we hit my buddy's property with a bunch of backwoods one track trails, we take the TT and Q.
I vote RX3. It's fine on gravel roads, even with the stock tires.

All bikes suck on gravel roads, some are just worse then others. Neither the TT250 or RX3 is particularly great or particularly bad on gravel, they both land in the middle somewhere. I've never rode a TW200 so I can't say it's 'good' on gravel or not but the small size with big tires seems like the ideal combination. A used TW200 will probably cost around the same as a new TT250 though.

Here in vt my RX3 sees mostly dirt roads and it shines i don't own the tt250 but have rode a few 2strokes i am a yeti and the RX3 is pretty comfortable yes the stock seat sucks and the back shock can loosen your fillings when you hit a pothole that said i can go all day and not stop on the RX3. When the roads freeze at night and thaw during the day they get that slick mud on them and it's then that a lighter bike might be better. I am at work trying to answer between customers getting very busy

To answer the first question directly, no, it's not the best tool for the job that you are proposing. The TT250 , with it's lighter weight, knobby tires and 21" front wheel, handles gravel better. I have both and much prefer the TT250 to the RX3 when it comes to riding gravel roads.

Regarding question number two, yes, you'll be happy. At twice the cost, though.

For question number three, concerning the CRF250L, no and yes. No, if you are not going to do any gnarly stuff, yes, if you are. You say that you aren't, so I put no first.

For question four, no, unless you are an experienced dirt/gravel rider. Which you say that you aren't. I go much faster on gravel with my TT250 than I do on the RX3. Mainly due to the extra weight and the tires.

HTH

Thanks. This is very helpful.

Also, thanks to everyone else too who has commented so far.