Your bike (pro's/con's)

[Maxo]

in the same vain as other threads that have just appeared.

quoting hornet

Categories could be much like the bike mags do; performance, handling (broken into braking, steering, rough and smooth road handling... ???), ergonomics, quality of finish, availabilty of aftermarket parts????

Basically, review your own bike.
Rules apply
-include a picture if you want (limit size to 400x400 max please)
-Please ONLY review your current bike.
-Be as long AS YOU NEED TO.
-don't comment on other peoples review with posts like "nah bs mine is better lol butseks"

FORMAT (add a section in if you think it is necessary)
Bike: make / year / model:

How often is it ridden:

Performance :
Power/Torque(quoted figures vs your experience):
Handling;
Brakes:
Steering:
Rough/smooth road handling:

Ergonomics:

Quality of finish:

Availability of aftermarket parts:

[thro]

ok.....

Bike: Honda 600RR 2007
How often is it ridden: Daily - 10,000km in last 4 months
Performance :
Power/Torque(quoted figures vs your experience): 88kw, 60 something nm
1/4 mile: magazines: 10.4-10.8 @130-134mph. me: 11.4 @ 124mph (88kg rider, 2.0 sec 60 footer - should be launched harder and throttle turned more)

Handling: stepping up from a 250, its insane. You even start to think in the general direction of a corner and you find yourself there. It's a real confidence boosting bike. The stock tyres are BT015 battleax, and I had reached the edge of these before replacing them. I had no moments with the standard tyres at all - i suspect the 015s are significantly different to the 014s so many people hate. On my new Power 2CTs, i had reached the top of the michelin man's head within 50km or so and didn't feel like i was pushing too hard at all. Whilst I'd like to claim to be an awesome rider, I'm pretty sure a lot of it is to do with the bike

Brakes: 1-2 finger stoppies. Haven't had it on track to see how they fade yet, but for general street use I have no complaints. Again, stepping up from a 250, they're insane.

Steering: can be a little heavy on turn in (HESD doing its stuff at speed, perhaps), but once you get it turned in, it's super stable. I read a comment by one of the rapid Journos that was something like this - "The 600rr gives you the impression that you should have carried an extra 20km/h of corner speed, got back on the throttle much harder, and a couple of weeks earlier". I'm no GP star, but this is the impression I seem to get as well. I push as hard as I feel comfortable experimenting with (quicker bit by bit) and the bike shows me just how much of a pussy I really am at corner exit

Rough/smooth road handling: The suspension is sport oriented. Rough roads will be uncomfortable (though I do hear that in comparison to the rest of the supersport 600s, it's the more comfortable option). However, this is not what the bike is about. I have hit rather large bumps in the dark mid-corner, and whilst I've shit myself, the bike has shrugged it off and continued to track straight (well, with respect to the line I was on) and true. Up hill under heavy throttle and bumps, the front can be skipping away and you might get a teeny bit of restlessness through the bars, but no slap at all. The bike does get blown about by wind a little bit, but no where near as bad as a 250...

Ergonomics: 1st to second most comfy ride position for me between the ZX6R, GSXR and CBR. I found the ZX6 to be horrible to sit on (for me - much more focus on the crouch - some love it), the gixxer and CBR were pretty close. The gixxer seat is lower and it seems you sit "in" the gixxer more than the honda, which feels more like you are sitting "on" it.

All the switches are where you expect, the dash is easy to read, and it has a fuel guage. Pillion accomodation is appalling, the undertail exhaust will roast your balls off - but the bars are in a comfortable position and the seat is good enough.

Quality of finish: Good. However I've broken one of my fairing clips getting the mid-fairings off. It is, however an "optional" clip and you'd never know to look at it - according to 600rr.net it's a common thing to break.... to no real detriment.

Availability of aftermarket parts:
Depends on the parts. Getting better. Most of the stuff is out there, it's just you may be limited for choice to a couple of brands. Exhaust for example are tricky to find it would seem - heaps available for the 06, the 07+ has less choice. R&G do a full set of crash protection, fender eliminator, etc. Aftermarket slipper clutch is available. Akrapovic seems to be THE choice for sensible looking cans on 600rr, etc.

[Maxo]

(forgets to post in own thread )



Bike: 2003 Kawasaki ZX-12R
How often is it ridden: At least 5 days a week - 25,000km a year.
Performance :Power/Torque(quoted figures vs your experience): 128.2 kw @ 10500 , 134.1nm. top speed = enough. involuntary wheelies (no really officer) = enough.

Handling: Focused for a 1200, tending towards heavy, but can be thrown about quite easily. Stock tyres are 200 section extremely hard rubber..terrible..Can be converted to 190 pilot power or 200 pilot hpx (latter being perfectly fine). Can be a bit heavy for people who are used to focused 600 or litre bikes(45kg up on a gsxr1000), and hence you will hear them whining about "how heavy it is ... etc".

Brakes: 6 pot tokicos, Excellent. Will stop from an indicated %#$kmh quickly and with no hesitation or skipping. 04 zx12rs came out with 4 pot radials as an upgrade, but i couldn't tell the difference when test riding.

Steering: compared alongside a zx9r,zx6 and a z1000. excellent. Turns in without a fight, and flicks about quite easily for a heavy bike.

Rough/smooth road handling: Bit of feedback of rough roads, front will get light over bumps due to the power... but no need for a damper.

Ergonomics: Definately not a blackbird,vfr or zzr1100, and still a bit more aggressive than a hayabusa, but still wont annihilate your wrists and back on a moderate journey. Zx-14 is alot nicer on the whiney gits who prefer comfort over fear

Quality of finish: Kawasaki standard = okay. Didnt buy it because it was the best looking bike on the market. it isn't.

Availability of aftermarket parts:
Notoriously powerful = people jumping on the aftermarket bandwagon.
lights/plastic/rearsets/powercommanders/turbo conversion kits all available.
No shortage of aftermarket fun on the internet.. Did have an issue trying to find a CF hexagonal Akrapovic pipe to fit (as zx12s were made obsolete by the 14) so bought the original Titanium full system instead.

[R160]

The Nelli, one decent ride says it all really :-P

[taint]

Bike: 2005 DRZ400-sm

How often is it ridden: 4-5 times a week

Performance :40hp/40Nm Torque
Needs more power with aftermarket bits Max's out at around 150km/h but hey it's a dirtbike you don't really want to go much faster on it

Handling: Wicked light compared to most bikes. Around 130kg. Point and shoot really.

Brakes: 2 pot brakes with a 310mm radial front disk, 250mm rear. Front feels spongey(like most zooks) but stainless lines should sort this. Still pulls the bike up quite nicely with minimal fade after sustained heavy use. Rear brake tend to lock up quite easily due to no weight over the arse end

Steering: Awesome, Steering is very direct and the bike is so light you can throw it into everything. Wide bars and high seat make it easy to ride dirtbike style (leg out)

Rough/smooth road handling: 11 inches of travel means that the suspension can be dialled in perfectly to soak up anything or be harder for the track

Ergonomics: 980mm seat height, not for short people. Nice wide bars, upright seat position. Seat cuts you in two Great for the twisties and still works on the freeway, although I wouldn't recommend fwy commuting daily without modifying it (smaller rear sprocket) as it gets a bit buzzy

Quality of finish: Could be better but it is a dirtbike after all. Bolt holes are aligned so can't complain. New plastics are cheap

Availability of aftermarket parts:
Lots available. You can get the bike to 60hp at the rear wheel without too much trouble, just a matter of $$$

[Spock]

Bike: Buell XB12R Firebolt



How often is it ridden: only once or twice a month, almost always on country runs and (almost) never in the rain.

Performance :
Power: about 96-99hp @ 6600rpm at the rear wheel.

Torque: 1200cc of thunderous, stump pulling, earth shaking grunt! Effortless 2nd gear roll-on wheelies.

Handling: The XB12R won UK 'BIKE' magazine's "best cornering bike in the world" award a few years ago.

Brakes: single 375mm rotor with 6 piston Nissin brake caliper. Not as strong as the brakes on my wife's 954 Fireblade but quite adaquate and with good feedback at the lever. Note that the single disc setup makes the front wheel assembly 7lbs lighter than that of an R1.

Steering: surprisingly slow for a bike with a 1320mm wheelbase and 21 degree rake

Rough/smooth road handling: A little twitchy in rough corners but otherwise very stable

Ergonomics: Wide bars, and more upright seating position makes it more comfortable than all other supersport bikes but not as comfortable as sport tourers or many naked bikes.

Quality of finish: Excellent overall but the swichgear (being Italian) is a bit cheesy. Otherwise Frame by Verlicci, Swingarm and wheels by Enkei (supplier to F1 McLaren), suspension by Showa.

Availability of aftermarket parts: The sky is the limit! How much do you want to spend? (I've spent $4000).

Oh, did I mention it's for sale?

[/quote]

[speed3]

Bike 1:
Yamaha TZR 250 SPR (93 i think)

Usage: Rarely ridden on the road, when it is it's ridden hard.

Power: maybe 50Kw/torque negligable

Handling: 250 proddy racer, nuff said. But in detail it goes like this: because of the lightness (126kg) of the bike, rider movement and weight have a greater effect than on any other bike. Due to this you have to be very precise with body poisiton mainly but also throttle and braking as well. Capable of insane corner speeds, I have never been through a corner and not known that the bike was capale of carrying way more speed than it was. Turn in is incredibly sharp and changes of direction happen in the blink of an eye. Have to make sure that you don't turn in too early on this bike because the lean angles it can carry mean that you could run off the inside of the road.

Brakes: Amazing, 4 pistons on the front combine with bugger all weight to stop it on a dime. Stoppies are way easier than on anything else I've ever ridden. Brakes shave a nice feel to them, with progessively stronger braking through the lever movement. Rear brake is very weak.

Rough/smooth road handling: Suspension is actually quite supple and you feel bumps but they don't through it off line. Good fairings also mean that for it's weight it doesn't get blown around by the wind much.

Ergonomics: The body position is quite racey, with the legs tucked in and weight over the bars. The seat is about 5mm of the hardest foam ever, but it's alright for an hour or 2. Seat position is more in than on the bike but still has lots of ground clearance on corners (leg and peg wise that is).

Quality of finish: Excellent, especially when you consider it's age. It's very spartan as you'd expect but what is there is well made and does it's job perfectly.

Availablilty of aftermarket parts: The reason why I went for the TZR over an RGV or an RS. The TZ (gp bike) parts are almost completely interchangeable with the TZR and are cheaper and easier to come by than other parts. This is only for performance parts however, the only bling I've ever come across is rearsets.




Bike 2:

Yamaha 08 R6

Usage: I don't commute on a bike so it only gets ridden on weekends, night rides and whenever I have a day off. Still at least 3-4 times a week though.

Power: Measured stock at the wheel is about 82-83kw

Handling: In many ways it is so similar to my TZR. It is also very light and the only time I ever feel the extra weight is at low speeds in carparks (also because of the higher seating position). The R6 is way more stable than the TZR making it very easy to ride fast in corners as well as in a straight line. The turn in is quick but very progressive, it'll only turn as much as you want and not a fraction more. The high seat position allows you to balance your body very nicely through bends as well as providing excellent ground clearance through the twisties. Flicking the bike from side to side is a dream and while not as fast as a 250 2 stroke, it's not far off.

Brakes: Very good. Have excellent power to stop from any speed. Also have nice progression to the lever so they're good for city driving as well as the track. Can stoppie easily.


Rough/smooth road handling: Also very good. Tracks nicely through bumpy corners and you feel the bumps but they don't faze the bike at all. Could do with a damper on the rough country twisties when pushing hard though.

Ergonomics: The least comfortable of the supersport category hands down. Race position means great handling but not as comfy on longer hauls, having said that I'm 180cm with fucked wrists and have done 3-4 hour stints no worries. Switches are the same as any other bike. Dash very fuss free and easy to read at speed. High seat means anyone shorter than my height could have problems at lights etc

Quality of finish: Very good, I've pulled the fairings off a couple of times and everything is in a logical/senible place and fits back together perfectly again. Paint finish etc amazingly good.


Availability of aftermarket parts: The R6 must have more go and show bits for it than any other bike ever made except for harleys.

[shmoo]

BIKE: 2007 Suzuki DL650 (Vstrom). Also known as a "wee Strom" as in the smaller version of the 1L Vstrom.

I've used Spock's headings.

How often ridden?: 4 to 5 times per week. Admittedly, less in the peak of summer as i dont have shower facilities at work and have to wear a suit and tie.

Performance: Who cares? This isnt the sort of bike you buy for performance. Its in the "adventure touring" category - i'd call it a Prado of the bike world cause it will get 99.99% of people anywhere they want to go. Its no trials or motocross bike and neither is it a supersports.

More than enough guts to get away before traffic with more wheels.

Handling: I Love it. Obviously completely different to most of the bikes on here. Theres a bit of dive at the front under brakes due to the longer travel suspension. The suspension is clearly set up more with comfort in mind rather than tight/sporty riding. It doesnt pretend to be something its not, so all in all i'd say it suits the style of the bike.

Brakes: They do the job, without being inspirational. In a bike that is designed to be taken off bitumen, you wouldnt want super sensitive, 1 finger stoppie type of brakes. Having said that, they stop you without any complaints and you are rarely if ever found lacking.

Steering: Kind of slowish at first but then once tipped over its all good. Again, this actually suites the bikes design brief cause in slow work, especially off road, the slightly slow steering is great because it absorbs some of that front end wobble caused by rocks and ruts. Due to its height, once you lean over it tips fairly quickly and it feels as though you are leaning an extraordinary amount.

Rough/Smooth roads: Excellent. This bike was made for C/D class roads right down to barely made tracks. Bumps and potholes mid-corner rarely upset your chosen line or speed.

Ergonomics: Very good. Because of its adventure touring mould, its blessed with comfortable seating position, pretty good pillion space, relaxed upright position with comfortable reach to bars which are tapered back. An adjustable screen is a huge help and means most people could find a comfortable position. All leading to many happy hours in the saddle. Pegs are low compared to a sports bike but are perfect for a tourer and are well located to allow for stand-up riding when offroad.

Quality of finish: Excellent. But, my last bike was a Hyo, so make of that what you will

Aftermarket Parts: Fantastic range of every possible aftermarket part and accessory is available. These bikes are hugely popular in Europe (and also the US) so everything is available through the interweb. OEM parts through Suzuki would be as per any of their bikes i guess.


*Note on tyres: On these sorts of bikes there is an even bigger compromise to be made. You have to decide how much off road work you will do. It is possible to fit some pretty extreme dirt based rubber or go with full road based stuff. I've got the stock tyres on and they are pretty good although much more road based than dirt based.

[kwakas]

Bike : 2006 Kawasaki ZX6R

Usage: Once to Twice a week, for fun only.. minimal commuting.

Power: 95.5kw @ 14000rpm and 100kw with RAM air
70.5 Nm Torque @ 11500rpm

Handling: Bloody brilliant! Firm suspension yet soaks up bumps very well. Easy to chuck from side to side. Can be a bit flighty through the front end, but nothing to concern you and nothing a steering damper wouldn't fix.

Brakes: Will splatter your eyeballs to your visor in an instant. Semi floating 300mm petal discs with radial mount opposed 4 piston 4 pad calipers. They look shit hot, and stop you very quickly. I wouldn't mind braded lines though..

Rough/smooth road handling: In it's element on smooth roads. Rough roads aren't too bad.. it will soak up the bumps and track where you point it.. but lets face it, at the end of the day it is a race bike.

Ergonomics: The reason I bought this over other 600's (and the power/torque over others). One of the bigger 600's. Gives me more room to move around the bike, nicely padded seat so hours in the saddle are not a problem. Plenty of leg room, and not a back breaking reach to the bars. ONly complaint is the standard screen, which O'briens quickly changed it to a double bubble which made the world of difference.

Quality of finish: Not the best, but certainly not the worst. Nothings broken on it, just a couple of bits in the dash assembly don't fit perfectly. But they're hardly a deal breaker. Smooth gear box, smooth engine that has a nice snap at around 12000rpm.

Availablilty of aftermarket parts: What ever you can think of, you can get....

[Pkunk]

05 GSX-R 600


Usage: Daily, country runs, track days, FNR's

Power: maybe 105hp at the wheels Way way way smoother than those godawful 05 636's

Handling: My first big bike. Has thicker forks and a steering dampner so requires a bit more push to move at lower speeds. Other than that, its great on the track

Brakes: Probably the same as all the other supersports since it has almost identical components... (in the 04/05 range that is).

Rough/smooth road handling: Its a supersport... don't expect comfort

Ergonomics: Heres the big selling point. Perfect for "taller" people... plenty of room for the portly gentleman as well. Short people need not apply...

Quality of finish: Above average

Availablilty of aftermarket parts: Every major aftermarket parts company makes stuff for it. Caveat : probably one of the less popular 600's in the 04/05 range.

Other points of note : more low down "grunt" than the other 04/05 year 600cc models. "Average" amount of room under rear seat...

[taint]

Bike : 2006 Kawasaki ZX6R


Availablilty of aftermarket parts: The reason why I went for the TZR over an RGV or an RS. The TZ (gp bike) parts are almost completely interchangeable with the TZR and are cheaper and easier to come by than other parts. This is only for performance parts however, the only bling I've ever come across is rearsets.

confuzed much

[speed3]

you have a TZR?

[kwakas]

No I don't. I cut and paste for the format, and the bloody log out thing kept logging me out, so I saved, then edited, then saved, and edited. so on and so forth till I finished....

[speed3]

I noes just givin ya a hard time.

[jules_1972]

2002 Ducati 998

Usage: When I can (Volunteers bugger off!!)

Power: More than enough to stain ya undies and more power to come!!

Handling: Razor Sharp re-valved/sprung Showa's front. Re-valved/sprung Ohlins rear, Maybe Ohlins front coming up.

Brakes: Very Powerful (19x20 Brembo Radial Master, Spiegler Lines, 4 Pad Calipers, HH pads), EBC Pro-Lite disc's off soon, Braketech AXIS Cast Rotors to replace, more braking power and feel again!!!!
Rear brake is to pass ADR compliance only.

Rough/smooth road handling: Excellent handling compared to what the bike was like in standard trim.

Ergonomics: Race body positioning, Corbin seat did make it a little easier on my bum cheeks!!

Quality of finish: Good enough for me.

Availablilty of aftermarket parts: Shit loads (just not in WA or Australia), the 999 and 1098 have greatly reduced the price of RS/Corse parts.

[RICO]

Bike: 2008 Yamaha YZF-R1X

How often is it ridden: Erm........ so far Daily

Performance :

Power/Torque
I dunno, I can't remember the figures in the mags, but around the same as the other litre bikes. As for the Arse DYNO, there is a good range of power, which is good if your a lazy bastard like me, and can't be that fussed with swapping cogs to much . Although does still lack some midrange grunt when compared to CBR/Gixxy etc, but hey, shit goes blurry around 10,000rpm, and if i wanted grunt I would buy a John Deere tractor

Handling
To be honest, it probably doesn't handle at all like a blade/gixxy etc, as from what I can make out and in my opinion, those bikes are very forgiving when it comes down to rider input, and feedback, If you fuck up a bit on a gixxer it will forgive you and still hold the same line and allow fatser progress for your mistake, But I like the R1, cause if I fuck up, telling it something wrong it will let me know. But this bike rocks when you get it right, and rewards with nice smooth lines and a grin factor that sometimes won't let me get the Arai off
Does come standard with a damper, but the suspension is a bit on the firm side, I personaly like it like this, especially the front, to me it offers greater confidence and feedback from what the front tyre is actually doing, but has had a couple of little head shakes when hard on the gas, no biggie, just change the oil in the damper or go aftermarket, aswell as a proper setup for your style/weight, and I should imagine it would completley transform this bike, I'll let ya know when i get round to it!

Brakes
Awesome, Six pots up front with brembo master, nissin rear again brembo master, all you need to scrub speed is 1 finger, stopping is 2 fingers and anymore, and your into 12 o clock stoppie country!, they have great feel and initial bite is good once your used to them, but can be a bit harsh if you ain't

Steering
Pretty good actually, does need to be quite precise, as I have found myself correcting my line quite a bit on sweepers, as I have found myself turning in too much, but that is down to me, not the bike . Bike can feel top heavy when slow manouvering, but otherwise it turns pretty well, and has no problem being pushed further over should the need arise, but being positive with your intentions is a must to the get the grin factor i told ya about!

Rough/smooth road handling
Like I said, it is setup pretty firm for stock, but it is a sportsbike, it isn't built for absorbing big lumps and bumps, but still manages to do so with a little finesse and grace lol, your not riding a cushion of air, if you want that buy a big tourer/cruiser

Ergonomics
I actually bought an R1, due to being a short arse member of the Borrower family, and although I wanted an R6 I got altitude sickness when sat on one, so went for the shorter bigger brother instead
The fairings do protect from wind blast quite well, but anyone taller than me could probably do with a double bubble screen, just to ease wind over your head a bit more, although the bike does suffer from being blown around a little when in strong wind, otherwise very planted.
BUT!!!!!........ The exhausts, oh my fucking god , they roast your legs like your the dinner at a pigmy's bbq, the heat can get quite intense around the bollock area aswell especially in leathers, but get some after market slip ons and a y pipe, and I have been reliably informed it cuts this down considerably, to a bearable level
Riding position is fairly front heavy, with alot of your weight on your wrists, but again doesn't really cause an issue, and I have been out for a few hours at a time . The dash is pretty easy to read, even at warp speed, the shift light is uber handy, but it needs a gear indicator, as I quite regularly forget, and go for "7th"

Quality of finish:
Can't fault it, the finish is great, and looks as though it should last, will let you know how it goes over time!

Availability of aftermarket parts
C'mon, it's an R1, the world and his brother make bits for it, your only limiting factor is how much DeNiro you have

[Rich...]

Bike...KTM 525EXC Motarded...

Ridden...As often as possible lately..FNR, General road riding...

Power...Who knows, but enough to annoy 1000 sports bikes in tight surburban riding...

Handling...Very impressive, turns hard and is quick in the change of direction, lack of weight and wide bars help...

Brakes...Still is only fitted with spongy dirt brakes, Stops faster than an R1...




Bike...Suzuki GSXR1000 K6...

Nothing more needs to be said...these things are the shit...



Bike...Ducati Monster S4R...

Ridden...On and off, used to be my full time bike but is now in semi retirement...Has been known to come out and play on a FNR...

Power...Well its got enough torque to plough a paddock...

Handling...It was awesome, but its got 35k hard kilometres on it, needs suspension doing...has the easiest ride height adjustment known to man...

Brakes...Brembos..that says it all..The Non Radial brakes on this bike are far better then the full Radial setup on the GSXR...


I'll go thru and add more stuff later...

[vbroom]

Bike : 2006 Kawasaki ZX6R

Usage: Once to Twice a week, for fun only.. minimal commuting.

Power: 95.5kw @ 14000rpm and 100kw with RAM air
70.5 Nm Torque @ 11500rpm

Handling: Bloody brilliant! Firm suspension yet soaks up bumps very well. Easy to chuck from side to side. Can be a bit flighty through the front end, but nothing to concern you and nothing a steering damper wouldn't fix.

Brakes: Will splatter your eyeballs to your visor in an instant. Semi floating 300mm petal discs with radial mount opposed 4 piston 4 pad calipers. They look shit hot, and stop you very quickly. I wouldn't mind braded lines though..

Rough/smooth road handling: In it's element on smooth roads. Rough roads aren't too bad.. it will soak up the bumps and track where you point it.. but lets face it, at the end of the day it is a race bike.

Ergonomics: The reason I bought this over other 600's (and the power/torque over others). One of the bigger 600's. Gives me more room to move around the bike, nicely padded seat so hours in the saddle are not a problem. Plenty of leg room, and not a back breaking reach to the bars. ONly complaint is the standard screen, which O'briens quickly changed it to a double bubble which made the world of difference.

Quality of finish: Not the best, but certainly not the worst. Nothings broken on it, just a couple of bits in the dash assembly don't fit perfectly. But they're hardly a deal breaker. Smooth gear box, smooth engine that has a nice snap at around 12000rpm.

Availablilty of aftermarket parts: What ever you can think of, you can get....

just to add
CONS: not sure if all bigger bikes are like this....but they are fkn HOT. literally.....the frame around your thighs gets very VERY hot and also around the clutch cover which blows onto your foot/ shin as you get moving.....or maybe its just my ninja? anybody else?

[RICO]

Bike...KTM 525EXC Motarded...
Stops faster than an R1...

Haha yes, yes it did! that one time!

Bloody right about those moto's though mate

[out_in_front]

Bike: Suzuki RMX250
How often is it ridden: Once a week - when It was going -should start again this weekend
Performance :
Power/Torque(quoted figures vs your experience): 40-50hp (40hp std RMX or 51 std RM - my engine is somewhere between the two) Should be up there again - new piston and bottom end went in this week.
1/4 mile: wouldn't have a clue, trip up to the dirt drags might be in order...

Handling: Suspension is a bit soft, but then again I am a bit heavier than it was designed for (85kg).

Brakes: Front Disc is almost due for replacing, but will still lock up easily in the dirt, even hard pack dirt, havent really tried on the road.

Steering: About as good as a motocross bike gets I suppose

Ergonomics: Seat has been cut a bit - not as much as most bikes so It should still be reasonable for trail riding, the bars are currently a bit wide for my liking - maybe a 1" cut each side might help, its definitely bearable, so it wont require too much.

Quality of finish: Depends how much I am concentrating when I screw the thing back together

Availability of aftermarket parts:
All the std replaceable / upgradeable parts are easily obtained, both here and the US - the OEM electrics are hard to find, which I am trying to source at the moment. Either that Or I will adapt some off another bike.