Building Custom Adventure bikes.

My opinion is that these large capacity(anything from 400cc to 1000cc) bikes from the 80's are perfect for a custom adventurer. No you cant take them down steep trails or through a jungle but they will do dirt roads all day and then cruise home easily on the highway. They are cheap and people like The Wrenchmonkees and Classified Moto have made a living off of building these reliable old bikes into stylish and functional explorers.

Take an older standard streetbike, shave 50lbs and turn it into an adventurer. New tires, wires battery, carb rebuild and some mods to the frame and controls and your good to go. The cost here is probably $500 or a little more after purchase or rescue (in many cases you can get them for free or next to nothing). Here are two examples that started with this same bike.

these bikes are easy to build and unique when finished. If you build a detachable rack it would be great for camping and messing around on the backroads, as well as commuting through town.

1980s BMW R80GS Before

1980s BMW R80GS After...Wrenchmonkees have a great style

The Enduros

stock Suzuki DR 650 from factory, not too pretty

DR 650 After some choice mods you have a light fast adventurer that you can cruise downtown on or bounce down trails on.

XT600 as a Cafe Racer. Which isn't as good for off road but gives a good Idea of what is possible with these bikes

Here are some more bikes that people made their own for the purpose of being free to ride anywhere they want!

Built by Radical Ducati

Honda Dominator 650 Built by Wrenchmonkees

Honda Dominator 650 from factory