Naked Bike 50cc?

#1
Hi everyone,

I've been wanting to do a 50cc ever since I first heard of it last fall. I finally have enough time to do one mid March (11 days break).

I have two bikes, a 2003 Kawasaki ZZR-600 and a 2018 Yamaha MT-07, though I don't trust the Kawasaki to bring me home so I'm left with the naked. I've searched all over for anyone who has done a 50cc on a naked but have only seen a few complete the shorter challenges. I have done 14 hour highway days before, and a 5 day Raleigh to Montreal trip and I want to try something a bit further away and a greater personal challenge.

A few questions, both about the ride and general stuff:
Do you feel it would be feasible on a naked?
What are some must haves specifically for a 50cc?
Do you do an oil change at the other side of the coast or wait until you get back?
Would it be beneficial to ride to Jacksonville before I start, or save a full day and just ride out of Wilmington, NC?

Sorry if this is posted in the wrong place / annoying as a newcomer :)
 

Gerry Arel

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#2
I say go for it. All my rides are on a naked R1200R though I have a mid-chest windscreen. I'd suggest starting from JAX as its a classic route. I've not run a 50cc yet, was planning on it this year but instead got too interested in the How The West Was Won rally in CO and that will take my dedicated cross country week.

Must haves? Depends on your experience in multiple high mileage days. I'd suggest the obvious: layers (electric), hydration plan and a good plan of reliable gas stops based on your milage range on that bike.
 
#3
I say go for it. All my rides are on a naked R1200R though I have a mid-chest windscreen. I'd suggest starting from JAX as its a classic route. I've not run a 50cc yet, was planning on it this year but instead got too interested in the How The West Was Won rally in CO and that will take my dedicated cross country week.

Must haves? Depends on your experience in multiple high mileage days. I'd suggest the obvious: layers (electric), hydration plan and a good plan of reliable gas stops based on your milage range on that bike.
Thanks for the reply! I'm not super experienced, but not a complete novice either. I don't have any heated gear, but I've ridden in my summer jacket with an extra couple of layers down to about 24*f relatively comfortably. Gas is gonna be interesting as the MT only has ~3 gallons of usable fuel capacity.
 
#4
Go for it. I think the naked bike part is what you are used to and maybe age. A buddy, much younger than I, has ridden some long, hot, cold, windy, rainy, multiple days on his Yamaha V-Star 650. He kept up with us guys with less naked rides. I have done about 19 IBA rides on my VTX1300R with only a windshield. I am too old for a completely naked ride.

One thing for sure with your small tank, verify your fuel stops are open. Hopefully you are confident of your range at the speeds you plan to travel and factor in the wind, especially in west Texas. There are places where you may need fuel but there is none. I always plan the fuel stops and verify there is fuel at the times I expect to need it. You might consider carrying some extra fuel. I have carried those MSR 1 qt bottles before for emergency, beats walking. Gladly, I have never had to use one. I later added an auxiliary tank.

Good luck.
 

Scott Parish

Premier Member
#5
If you review the list of completed 50CC Quest rides; you will see it has been done on everything from ultra-luxury cruisers to scooters. You can also see the most popular times of year the ride is completed. You don't necessarily need to start in Jax. The suggestion to carry extra fuel is good if for nothing else than peace of mind. However, if you take any of the major interstates; you will find plenty of 24 hour fuel opportunities well within your bike's range. Feel free to post your route for review and feedback. The 50CC is a great ride and gateway to ever increasing distances which open up the entire country to you.
 

BMW RT Pilot

Premier Member
#6
Soooo what's up with your Kawi that makes it unreliable? I had a '91 ZX-6 that did double-duty on the street and track. When I sold it 4 years later to get a pair of '95 ZX-7Rs, the ZX-6 had over 25,000 miles on it; did several long trips with it and I think it was better than the '08 C14 I had years later.
 
#7
Go for it. I think the naked bike part is what you are used to and maybe age. A buddy, much younger than I, has ridden some long, hot, cold, windy, rainy, multiple days on his Yamaha V-Star 650. He kept up with us guys with less naked rides. I have done about 19 IBA rides on my VTX1300R with only a windshield. I am too old for a completely naked ride.
I guess in the touring world being 20 and full of energy has some benefits ;) I usually bring at least a little bit of gas with me on anything longer than a day trip, I do average around 60 mpg and I rarely run it below 1/3 tank when I'm covering distance.

Feel free to post your route for review and feedback. The 50CC is a great ride and gateway to ever increasing distances which open up the entire country to you.
I'll make sure to post my route once I get it completely sorted. That's one of the things that I found so amazing when I first started touring last year in Japan! It is such a cost effective travel method and lets you see so much more and meet more people than any other form of transportation. It's helped me travel longer distances by car as well, and opened up a ton of opportunities I would otherwise have passed up on.

Soooo what's up with your Kawi that makes it unreliable? I had a '91 ZX-6 that did double-duty on the street and track. When I sold it 4 years later to get a pair of '95 ZX-7Rs, the ZX-6 had over 25,000 miles on it; did several long trips with it and I think it was better than the '08 C14 I had years later.
Nothing in particular is wrong with it but it has unknown history. The bike had been sitting 8 years when I got it for free back in November. I've rebuilt the carbs and the engine's running great, with a new gas tank, chain/sprocket, tires, fork rebuild and basically every other service point waiting for me to finish up. My concern is I won't have enough time to take it for an extended ride to figure out ergos and the like before spring break. The Yamaha still has a 3 year factory warranty and better insurance.
 

BMW RT Pilot

Premier Member
#8
Nothing in particular is wrong with it but it has unknown history. The bike had been sitting 8 years when I got it for free back in November. I've rebuilt the carbs and the engine's running great, with a new gas tank, chain/sprocket, tires, fork rebuild and basically every other service point waiting for me to finish up. My concern is I won't have enough time to take it for an extended ride to figure out ergos and the like before spring break. The Yamaha still has a 3 year factory warranty and better insurance.
There's nothing like throwing caution to the wind and just going for it. Just bring a lot of tools. :)
 
#9
There's nothing like throwing caution to the wind and just going for it. Just bring a lot of tools. :)
I did that when I was planning a 2 up trip from Nagoya to Nagasaki... Did a shakedown day trip a week before, starter motor broke halfway there, got a nasty cold that night (had to stay a night since I spent hours trying to fix my starter as it wouldn't push start), and burst a coolant line on the way back. Needless to say we didn't go to Nagasaki :(
 
#10
I did that when I was planning a 2 up trip from Nagoya to Nagasaki... Did a shakedown day trip a week before, starter motor broke halfway there, got a nasty cold that night (had to stay a night since I spent hours trying to fix my starter as it wouldn't push start), and burst a coolant line on the way back. Needless to say we didn't go to Nagasaki :(
Just think of all of the cool stories you got from that ride! :)
 

kwthom

=o&o>
Premier Member
IBA Member
#12
The only question I have...Would you trust that bike - right now - to do a thousand mile day?

How about four of them? Y'know, there - and back home - even at a non-cert-ride pace.

If the answers are "yes!" to both of those, you're good.

Would it be beneficial to ride to Jacksonville before I start, or save a full day and just ride out of Wilmington, NC?
Looks like about 200 miles longer from Wilmington...so, figure 3-ish hours longer overall. Riding time JAX - SDO is 34 to 36 hours per Google. Calculate fuel stop times/quantities along with a few hours of rest... ;)


Want another fun ride - on the way back home?

http://www.ironbutt.com/themerides/whywhynotxc/

http://www.ironbutt.com/themerides/whywhynot/


More insight on a 50CC ride:

https://kwthom.blogspot.com/2016/10/bunburner-gold-and-50cc-part-1-of-2.html

 
#13
Sorry for late replies, school's been keeping me busy :(

@BMW RT Pilot All my best stories come from the times when nothing works out! I actually called the Japanese equivalent of AAA knowing I didn't have enough money to pay, and kept trying my cards and they all get declined :p

@SteveAikens Thanks for the link, it was an interesting read!

@kwthom I feel like I've been reading your forum posts since long before I actually joined this forum... With some fresh oil and new tires I'd trust it! Honestly my tires would probably make it, they're some kind of Bridgestone Battlax with 7k on them, still look almost new aside from getting a little flat but I'm planning on swapping to some PR5s. I'd rather not have the trip cut short due to corded tires, and the extra weight while touring might cause some more wear. I've still got some extra maintenance like plugs and filters on order just in case. WORST case scenario I have a 3 year factory warranty on everything mechanical and have followed all maintenance, and as far as I'm aware towing included in my insurance. The MT-07 has been super reliable since the day I got it, I don't think it has done anything weird that wasn't related to me messing something up. As for the why/whynot trip I don't plan on doing 2 IBA trips in a row o_O The twisted sisters and a food stop in New Orleans feels like it's more up my alley!
 

kwthom

=o&o>
Premier Member
IBA Member
#14
Sorry for late replies, school's been keeping me busy :(

@kwthom I feel like I've been reading your forum posts since long before I actually joined this forum...
I'm gonna take that as a compliment...I think. ;)

Seriously, I've had a *lot* of help over the years, the least I can do is to help others, even if it's just giving someone waaaaaay too much to read. :D

With some fresh oil and new tires I'd trust it! <...>The MT-07 has been super reliable since the day I got it, I don't think it has done anything weird that wasn't related to me messing something up. As for the why/whynot trip I don't plan on doing 2 IBA trips in a row o_O The twisted sisters and a food stop in New Orleans feels like it's more up my alley!
...and, there's not one thing wrong with making the trip home more of a tour, rather than a sprint.

I wish you well in your planning - please let us know when and if you'll be running tracking, so we can ride along with you (figuratively...) while you do this.
 

Gatey

Premier Member
IBA Member
#15
Plenty smaller capacity bikes with no clothes do 1000mile days. Run wot you ride.
Naked maybe makes your ride more value to you down the track and after all its about your outcomes for you in the and.
 
#17
Gatey, here's one about 200miles into a 1000mile day I rode last week: a Royal Enfield Bullet 500
Very cool! Was it mainly highway or smaller roads?

I wish you well in your planning - please let us know when and if you'll be running tracking, so we can ride along with you (figuratively...) while you do this.
I'm having a really difficult time planning because I've always been used to winging it and going with the flow. I only get about 120 miles between fill ups so I'm thinking I will carrying an extra 2 gallons on me, not really sure how to plan for fuel stops... All my other road trips have been basically just to stop at 1/3 tank at the next gas station, this time I'll likely do something similar after I've emptied the extra can, unless I need to have them planned for certification purposes... As someone with experience is this something to try to avoid? I ALWAYS end up losing a lot of time at fill ups unless I really concentrate, and I don't think even the extra gas would push me over the 350 mile limit.
I just got bubbler GPS set up, going to give it a test run when it clears up some day so I know spotwalla will cooperate!
 

OX-34

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#18
Very cool! Was it mainly highway or smaller roads?...........................................
A mixture of roads including some very narrow mountain parts, a little bit of dirt, decent country roads and with the night time sections on freeways.

In hindsight the Bullet headlight was fine, but I had never ridden the bike at night. It only has a 13.5L tank, but I was unsure of range as I'd only ever put fuel in it once before.



Some twisties thrown in:




Plus some time on back roads with various wildlife around

 

Gatey

Premier Member
IBA Member
#19
The key to this game is simple. Planning stops revolves around knowing and being confident in how to understand the fuel gauge and the odo or gps distance.
My first few rides on a new bike are about measuring just how far the bike can go off a full tank. I make a mental note of how far a half tank
will take me and most especially how far will the reserve zone take me. Pushing that zone is about learning the buffer zone. I take a fuelcan with me and ride the bike to a standstill. This current bike me 95km once the low fuel light starts. Hillclimbs heavy braking .
Once you have a handle on range then your better equipped to plot fuel stops. Its much better to be planning fuel stops at the outer end of your range than blowing time on what If? fuel stops.
After all in planning a route you remove that whatif issue and thus you can relaxe and enjoy the ride more.
When ever possible I use fuel stops for corner evidence but not always. There are other methods to gain a receipt at a corner ATM's for example.
Just going into a café for a feed even.
 

Ira

Staff member
Premier Member
IBA Member
IBR Finisher
IBR Staff
#20
Very cool! Was it mainly highway or smaller roads?


I'm having a really difficult time planning because I've always been used to winging it and going with the flow. I only get about 120 miles between fill ups so I'm thinking I will carrying an extra 2 gallons on me, not really sure how to plan for fuel stops... All my other road trips have been basically just to stop at 1/3 tank at the next gas station, this time I'll likely do something similar after I've emptied the extra can, unless I need to have them planned for certification purposes... As someone with experience is this something to try to avoid? I ALWAYS end up losing a lot of time at fill ups unless I really concentrate, and I don't think even the extra gas would push me over the 350 mile limit.
I just got bubbler GPS set up, going to give it a test run when it clears up some day so I know spotwalla will cooperate!
If you end up carrying additional fuel, be sure to fill the container back up at the next fuel stop to account for it.

Also, consider that if you carry the additional fuel in some sort of container (as opposed to a fuel cell that doesn't require a stop to use), you'll have to stop to add it to the tank, thus introducing an additional stop that might negate any advantage that carrying additional fuel might provide.

Ira Agins
Iron Butt Association
 
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