Late to the party, from Seattle

Well, it looks like they hey day for this forum has past, but it has come in handy during my first month of BRP ownership, so I thought I'd register and introduce myself.

First off, here is my new-to-me commuter toy:



My moto mentor and his wife gave up the track life and switched over to the dirt life a couple years ago.  He's been twisting my arm for a while now and I finally gave in and picked this up.  It came with the stock dirt setup, but I quickly picked up some Warp 9s for daily use.  Of course, this bike wasn't as easy as just that.  It had a old school Baja Designs dual sport kit that had been hacked and hacked and hacked some more, carb gremlins and an old worn out braking system.  I wasn't much of a moto mechanic before buying this bike, but I feel like I'm getting there now!  

It took about a month of re-wiring and throwing parts at it, but as of yesterday it's fully functional and ready to replace my Monster 1200s for daily use (which deserves a bit of a rest and a promotion to weekend fun rides only).   Next for my BRP is a suspension overhaul, as I'm over the OEM weight limit, probably a cooling system upgrade (start with hoses and will go from there) and maybe a Rekluse.  I'll have to wait to replenish my bank account after the suspension though, as I've definitely gone over budget with this purchase.  Well worth it though!

.... and you omitted to say you're not 21 anymore I bet?

Welcome, and "past it's hey day" is valid for the bike, not its die-hard owners.... who're mostly mature, know what they want & do already, and don't post here that they're at the local greengrocer and expect a 'like'.
In fact you'd be surprised what help will crop up when you seem to have a real problem, but mind, you need to own an R, we pester L-owners away here
Seems you do so you're one of us: have fun with htis crackerofabike, you'll probably never sell it

Welcome to the forums we don't always say much but we do try and help when we can as long as your not a s"L"ow rider we seem to be scattered over the world, but we all speak R language

welcome paradox! had my suspension shipped to precision concepts in CA, if you can save up the coin it's well worth. but if you plan to do it yourself, there are some instructions on that somewhere.

nice lookin' bike!

Haha...yeah, definitely not 21 (38) nor would I want to go back to the days of being poor!  With a moto addiction like mine, it would be quite frustrating trying to live the dream on minimum wage.  I've only been riding for 7 years now, but I'm already on bike #7.  Here's the rest of my current stable:







While web forums don't seem to be as popular as Facebook groups these days, I still find them to be of a higher quality in information and snark delivery.  This is why I avoid social media and frequent bike specific pages.  

And to hell with those Ls!  I knew I was too good for one the moment I started reading about these bikes.  I know I might only be a month in, but I completely agree with you BuRP....don't think I'll ever sell it!  

Funny you say that forums have more info-value Paradox,

and I agree with you wholeheartedly!

After having been introduced to this bike (got to ride one on a sandy winding track) I found one very quick (still can't believe my luck then, they're Hen's teeth here!) and it was a new one - minus ~200km (if that much), plus road tyres, a silencer and some nice bars.
I rode it home through the city. Started off very proud of course, but a kilometer in I noticed the bike had no oomph: it did all right, was running well but didn't have even close to the power of that bike I had had a ride on.... so, at home I started checking the bike, from A to Z - but found nothing wrong with it, it clearly was spanking new!
So I phoned a friend, the owner of said bike, and he asked "Is it uncorked?".
Say WHAT ? ? ? ?
He emailed me some info which was an eye-opener, 'uncorking' for dummies... so I did.
The result was I got the brute I thought I had bought, but also I got to "study" the interwebs, various forums - and the wealth of info I soaked up was gargantuum!
The info out there is so complete, and I think I've read most of it actually, that one can become an expert only from reading! Mind, I was a mechanic in my previous life and work on (my) bikes still, so 1 plus 1 becomes what, six?
Anyway, thick question here: ya know how to start your bike? If, after having 'cycled' the kicker a few times, yours does not fire up on the very first real kick every single time then trust me you're doing something wrong... so go find that info, thank me laters
Ditto for how to change the oil: easy to do wrong, and I'll admit here that Honda could have improved here somewhat.
But, you only have to hear it once, and all these 'niggles' simply give this bike more character than it already has.

Get it going like a new one, spoil it with oil and filters, individualize it to your taste, then go ride the tits off it and discover you're in love!  

Welcome and congrats, just up the road from you, maybe ride sometime.