I just can't do it..

PaiN · 11-26-2018, 08:20 AM

With TXPowersports Black Friday sale the cost of a Hawk250 was down to $1310 shipped to my door.... But I just can not push that "buy" button

I know the cost is immensely cheap compared to other 250 dual-sports but the more I read and look into things, the more shy I get about actually making the purchase. I don't mind doing some work on bikes but I don't have "a place" to work, I have to bring my tools out to the driveway for most things(and its winter here in NE) From what I picked up, seems like the Hawk needs some work to most every system before they work well enough. Then there is the general reliability, I will off-road this bike so its going to get abuse, I have local trails but I also will need to road ride 1,2 even 3 hours to get to some trail areas in other states. I'm not convinced the bike it up to the task. Last there is the registration issue...I still do know for sure if this motorcycle in register-able here in CT.....
thx for reading

ben2go · 11-26-2018, 08:35 AM

As much as I like these little China bikes, in your situation, I would go with a nice used Japanese bike. CT is the reason, not that the Hawk is somehow flawed. Doing the rework using the guides on this forum will make the bike reliable. CT is very fickle when it comes to tag/reg China bikes. You can call your local licensing agency (DMV for me) and ask if they will tag/reg the bike before purchasing. Also, TXpowersports is notorious for screwing people on their bikes. I would look at other drop shippers/resellers.

PaiN · 11-26-2018, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ben2go

As much as I like these little China bikes, in your situation, I would go with a nice used Japanese bike. CT is the reason, not that the Hawk is somehow flawed. Doing the rework using the guides on this forum will make the bike reliable. CT is very fickle when it comes to tag/reg China bikes. You can call your local licensing agency (DMV for me) and ask if they will tag/reg the bike before purchasing. Also, TXpowersports is notorious for screwing people on their bikes. I would look at other drop shippers/resellers.

I called the DMV and they gave me the run-a-round, not an answer

My insurance agent is even having trouble getting me quote.
I've read a thing or two not great about TXPowersports... Who would be a reputable shipper to use if I ever decide to go through with this purchase?

ben2go · 11-26-2018, 09:31 AM

I'm not sure who to use right now as they all seem to be getting a bad rep. Don, at APSCUSA, is who I have delt with in the past. I don't know if he is still there or not. I haven't talked to him in going on three years.

doog · 11-26-2018, 09:31 AM

OMG. I've been antagonizing all day yesterday about buying one, especially for the $1310. I also live in CT and worrying about reg and insurance. Also, with winter coming, it's going to be cold to work on it and ride it to make sure there's no bad parts since there's only 3 months parts warranty.
I already have a Suzuki DR650, which I love. It's a little big and heavy for tight off road riding though. I thought a Hawk would make a good second bike for the tight stuff.

Alpha Reign · 11-26-2018, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doog

OMG. I've been antagonizing all day yesterday about buying one, especially for the $1310. I also live in CT and worrying about reg and insurance. Also, with winter coming, it's going to be cold to work on it and ride it to make sure there's no bad parts since there's only 3 months parts warranty.
I already have a Suzuki DR650, which I love. It's a little big and heavy for tight off road riding though. I thought a Hawk would make a good second bike for the tight stuff.

I believe we had people in Connecticut register their Hawk before. We will have to get someone there to vouch for that though.

About the cold though. Suck it up Butter Cup!

You can dress worm, wear a pair of mechanics gloves and those rubber nitrite gloves from Harbor Freight. If not, there is always summer!

I used TXpowersports and as far as I know I didn't get screwed over. The bike ain't starting right now, but that's my bad for letting it sit in the cold for two weeks with a dead battery. I would buy with confidence if you do want a Hawk. It takes a lot of work but I love mine.

ChipToothy · 11-26-2018, 10:22 AM

Get the TT250. All you pretty much have to do is put gas in it.

https://www.cscmotorcycles.com/defau...c=dual%20sport

Alpha Reign · 11-26-2018, 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChipToothy

Get the TT250. All you pretty much have to do is put gas in it.

https://www.cscmotorcycles.com/defau...c=dual%20sport

Yes, the TT250 is eons better than the Hawk. But you also pay a little more for that luxury.
Still cheaper than any Japanese bike though!

PaiN · 11-26-2018, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChipToothy

Get the TT250. All you pretty much have to do is put gas in it.

https://www.cscmotorcycles.com/defau...c=dual%20sport

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alpha Reign

Yes, the TT250 is eons better than the Hawk. But you also pay a little more for that luxury.
Still cheaper than any Japanese bike though!

I thought these were essentially the same bike as the Hawk...What is the difference?

PaiN · 11-26-2018, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doog

OMG. I've been antagonizing all day yesterday about buying one, especially for the $1310. I also live in CT and worrying about reg and insurance. Also, with winter coming, it's going to be cold to work on it and ride it to make sure there's no bad parts since there's only 3 months parts warranty.
I already have a Suzuki DR650, which I love. It's a little big and heavy for tight off road riding though. I thought a Hawk would make a good second bike for the tight stuff.

Its tough...ain't it

We're basically in the same boat. I've been also looking at the used Jap market around here...its pretty slim pinkins' ;( There are a few DR/XR 650's on the market but I don't want a big tank for the trails and I think the prices are too high for them.
I'm going to look more in this CSC TT250 the guys mentions above.

Tashka · 11-26-2018, 02:18 PM

the tt250 plastics are higher quality. They will bend and snap back into place even with extensive damage. The hawk plastics are more brittle and will just crack. I have csc plastics on my hawk that have yet to break after street crashes and offroad tumbles.

heck, the front fender that I got from csc didnt shatter after a 50 mph crash rear ending a car. It left some Mark's and scratched the paint on the plastic. but nothing else.

Sport Rider · 11-26-2018, 02:38 PM

I'd say no to your idea. the hawk will not be good for 3 hours of street travel just to get to trails. it "can", but that's not where it shines. second, trail riding comes in various abuse levels. this bike will not take tremendous beatings without problems. Joints, welds, and bearings have to be considered. partiularly if dousing it with water and/or mud a lot. I use mine for back road, gravel. packed dirt and light trail riding which is not tight/technical/muddy. I find it works well for that.

I'm not intimately familiar with the TT250, but unless they've upgraded every nut/bolt/bearing/etc, the advantage is the motor being a bit smoother and perhaps better internal components.

DualSport · 11-26-2018, 04:55 PM

FYI they all come from the same warehouse out of Texas.. It's RPS sending out DOA and used bikes not the dealers themselves. Dealers just avoid or deny warranty claims that were included in the price, and move to new vendor names with anonymous DNS records when they burn a vendor name..

I'm one of the people who got shipped junk and then got ignored by both the vendor(Q9) and RPS. RPS will actually be hostile if you even hint at warranty over the phone..

Pathfinders · 11-26-2018, 08:04 PM

I just bought a used Hawk yesterday with 1600 miles on it. All bolts have locktite, mikuni carb, upgraded header and pipe, digital dash upgrade and a bunch of other stuff. Paid just over a grand and all the work has been done.
I looked a 3 other hawks first and went with this one because of all the documentation and records. Buy used and enjoy it. Buying a bike like this is a crap shoot anyway.

PaiN · 11-26-2018, 08:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pathfinders

I just bought a used Hawk yesterday with 1600 miles on it. All bolts have locktite, mikuni carb, upgraded header and pipe, digital dash upgrade and a bunch of other stuff. Paid just over a grand and all the work has been done.
I looked a 3 other hawks first and went with this one because of all the documentation and records. Buy used and enjoy it. Buying a bike like this is a crap shoot anyway.

I don't remember seeing any used Hawks locally...But then again I haven't really looked...For some reason, I feel like buying a used China bike puts me at much more risk of "buying someone else's problem"...
I am liking what I see with the CSC TT250 but at $2500 to my door its getting into what I could get into a decent used Jap dual-sport for...

11-26-2018, 08:20 AM	#1
PaiN Join Date: Nov 2018 Location: CT Posts: 130	I just can't do it.. With TXPowersports Black Friday sale the cost of a Hawk250 was down to $1310 shipped to my door.... But I just can not push that "buy" button I know the cost is immensely cheap compared to other 250 dual-sports but the more I read and look into things, the more shy I get about actually making the purchase. I don't mind doing some work on bikes but I don't have "a place" to work, I have to bring my tools out to the driveway for most things(and its winter here in NE) From what I picked up, seems like the Hawk needs some work to most every system before they work well enough. Then there is the general reliability, I will off-road this bike so its going to get abuse, I have local trails but I also will need to road ride 1,2 even 3 hours to get to some trail areas in other states. I'm not convinced the bike it up to the task. Last there is the registration issue...I still do know for sure if this motorcycle in register-able here in CT..... thx for reading __________________ "Talking about living life is nice and all....but a motorcycle is a tool to actually do it." -me You Tube: PaiN's Rides Currently riding the hell out of my 2013 Victory Cross Country.
	0

11-26-2018, 08:35 AM	#2
ben2go Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 1,335	As much as I like these little China bikes, in your situation, I would go with a nice used Japanese bike. CT is the reason, not that the Hawk is somehow flawed. Doing the rework using the guides on this forum will make the bike reliable. CT is very fickle when it comes to tag/reg China bikes. You can call your local licensing agency (DMV for me) and ask if they will tag/reg the bike before purchasing. Also, TXpowersports is notorious for screwing people on their bikes. I would look at other drop shippers/resellers.
	1

11-26-2018, 09:31 AM	#4
ben2go Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 1,335	I'm not sure who to use right now as they all seem to be getting a bad rep. Don, at APSCUSA, is who I have delt with in the past. I don't know if he is still there or not. I haven't talked to him in going on three years.
	0

11-26-2018, 09:31 AM	#5
doog Join Date: Nov 2018 Posts: 5	doog OMG. I've been antagonizing all day yesterday about buying one, especially for the $1310. I also live in CT and worrying about reg and insurance. Also, with winter coming, it's going to be cold to work on it and ride it to make sure there's no bad parts since there's only 3 months parts warranty. I already have a Suzuki DR650, which I love. It's a little big and heavy for tight off road riding though. I thought a Hawk would make a good second bike for the tight stuff.
	1

11-26-2018, 10:22 AM	#7
ChipToothy Join Date: Apr 2018 Posts: 819	Get the TT250. All you pretty much have to do is put gas in it. https://www.cscmotorcycles.com/defau...c=dual%20sport
	1

11-26-2018, 02:18 PM	#11
Tashka Join Date: Aug 2018 Posts: 158	the tt250 plastics are higher quality. They will bend and snap back into place even with extensive damage. The hawk plastics are more brittle and will just crack. I have csc plastics on my hawk that have yet to break after street crashes and offroad tumbles. heck, the front fender that I got from csc didnt shatter after a 50 mph crash rear ending a car. It left some Mark's and scratched the paint on the plastic. but nothing else.
	1

11-26-2018, 02:38 PM	#12
Sport Rider Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: Mooresville NC Posts: 2,050	I'd say no to your idea. the hawk will not be good for 3 hours of street travel just to get to trails. it "can", but that's not where it shines. second, trail riding comes in various abuse levels. this bike will not take tremendous beatings without problems. Joints, welds, and bearings have to be considered. partiularly if dousing it with water and/or mud a lot. I use mine for back road, gravel. packed dirt and light trail riding which is not tight/technical/muddy. I find it works well for that. I'm not intimately familiar with the TT250, but unless they've upgraded every nut/bolt/bearing/etc, the advantage is the motor being a bit smoother and perhaps better internal components.
	0

11-26-2018, 04:55 PM	#13
DualSport Join Date: Sep 2018 Posts: 173	FYI they all come from the same warehouse out of Texas.. It's RPS sending out DOA and used bikes not the dealers themselves. Dealers just avoid or deny warranty claims that were included in the price, and move to new vendor names with anonymous DNS records when they burn a vendor name.. I'm one of the people who got shipped junk and then got ignored by both the vendor(Q9) and RPS. RPS will actually be hostile if you even hint at warranty over the phone..
	0

11-26-2018, 08:04 PM	#14
Pathfinders Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: Upstate SC Posts: 129	I just bought a used Hawk yesterday with 1600 miles on it. All bolts have locktite, mikuni carb, upgraded header and pipe, digital dash upgrade and a bunch of other stuff. Paid just over a grand and all the work has been done. I looked a 3 other hawks first and went with this one because of all the documentation and records. Buy used and enjoy it. Buying a bike like this is a crap shoot anyway.
	1