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[trikester]

Since my classic Royal Enfield bike refused to start for today's antique motorcycle ride I got back to my desert cabin early. So I aired down the tires on the new FX and tackled my trail. This is more of a route than a recognizable trail because if it hasn't been ridden in a month or so the route is more by memory than any visible sign. Also lots of "cholla balls" to dodge. I'm not going to explain what cholla balls are to the uninitiated.

The route is 0.8 miles long and winds around my desert property between closely spaced "jumping cactus" (several varieties of cholla), crosses small sandy washes and goes through rocky places. A mistake on this "trail" could be very painful. Cholla has barbed spines that make the cactus want to go with you if you just touch it. That's one of the ways it propagates itself.

Forget this trail on an ordinary mountain bike it will sink in the first sand wash crossing. I can "clean" this trail on my 4" tire Fatback mountain bike. When riding a motorcycle I usually make about three or four foot dabs, (remember I'm an old guy) usually in the same nasty spots. Today it was a "piece of cake" on the FX, no dabs! It was very much like I was on my 4" tire mountain bike. I could easily balance in tight almost zero speed corners and the instant throttle response helped a lot when balance was getting sketchy. The front end didn't react at all to dropping into the sand wash crossings. I was using the Kenda K270 tires and running 15 pounds front (3.25") and rear (5.1"). I never cleaned this route on either of my Zero DS bikes.

I'm stoked, this bike will ease up some of my more technically difficult desert rides. especially the sand. I get a kick out of the young guys who say that you just have to go fast in the sand. Yeah, what about when there are sharp turns and "walls" of cactus ahead?

BTW -  I kept it in ECO mode but that doesn't make much difference when only moving at a snail's pace.

The 2013 FX could be made into an excellent trials or freestyle bike! The handling and balance are fantastic.

No Dabs Trikester

[WindRider]

Nice, no dabs.

The big differences are probably related to those larger hoops.   A 21" front wheel helps a lot in the loose stuff and the loss of about 65 lbs of battery weight compared to the 12 DS help a lot as well.

Lighter bikes are like the "easy button" in off road situations with loose contact to the earth.

[trikester]

Definitely, the larger wheel diameters were the main reason I went with the FX.

My 12 DS ZF6 (according to factory) weighs 297 lbs and the '13 FX with both batteries weighs 275 lbs so it is not a big difference but every little bit helps. It puts my bike's weight back to where my '10 DS was (spec @ 277lbs).

I also like the narrower profile of the FX, bringing the knees in and helping the handling. I have to make new rear mounting brackets for my 2010 Corbin seat and then it will lower me and also help handling.

I wish  knew how much tire clearance there is front and rear with the suspension completely compressed, so I could lower the bike some. However, I'm running bigger tires so that clearance has decreased some.

Trikester

[WindRider]

Oh, sorry, I had assumed that your 12DS was ZF9.

Since you had a ZF6 and the new FX is 5.7, do you see much difference in range given the same kind of riding?

[trikester]

Yes, the 5.7 is definitely less mileage but I haven't done enough different rides yet to get a feel for how much less. It's to bad they couldn't pack 6 kWh into the FX batteries.

Today I did 11.6 miles of very soft canyon bottom trail with tight soft sandy turns. The FX behaved very well under those conditions. Sometimes I had my foot out ready to dab but didn't need to. Having the instant torque of the electric motor helps a lot to recover when the front wheel starts to grab sand. Overall, the front end handles very well in soft sand. Better than my 2012 DS which tracked pretty well.

The old dirt riders saying: "The throttle is your friend" is even more true with electrics because the torque is always there no matter what speed.

The ride took 1.38 kWh to recharge with 7 bars (scale of 10) showing at the end.

I've got to leave the desert tomorrow but I'll be back later this month with more time to ride. The weather is great right now with 80 degree temps, it's too bad I can't stay longer.

I've attached a photo at the top of View Wash, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. This is close to my desert cabin and is usually my first "real" desert dirt ride on a new bike. That way I get a good feel for comparison to older bikes.

Trikester

[WindRider]

80 degree temps... OK, I am envious of that right now.

I have a new 2012 DS ZF9 in my garage that I have not been able to ride since I am locked in by snow and ice here in the Idaho outback.    I snuck it out the other day when the temps exploded into the 50s and I was pleased with how it ice skated... smooth electric power delivery makes it really nice for crossing a little ice.   No clutch slipping required.

I went 55 miles of varied riding with about 10 miles of dirt/mud/ice/snow riding, and the rest was 2 lane twisty highway.   What a blast this motorcycle is to ride.   I just hit the 2 flashing bars at the end of the ride.   

Looking forward to some warmer weather soon and finding the limits of range on this new machine.

[Tudor]

I've been touching this topic before, but how (if) do you experience the difference in power when going with the one battery setup vs both?
I'm still a bit confused of the 27 vs 44 hp difference between the two setups. Probably since both my electrical and ICE know-how is very limited, hehe.

Thanks,

[skeezmour]

I've been touching this topic before, but how (if) do you experience the difference in power when going with the one battery setup vs both?
I'm still a bit confused of the 27 vs 44 hp difference between the two setups. Probably since both my electrical and ICE know-how is very limited, hehe.

Thanks,

Up to about 35mph you get the same power but with much less weight. (40#) Should be a whole lot of fun at the ORV parks. I only rode the bike with both packs in and it didn't stop pulling hard till it hit the rev limiter at 75mph (this one was set lower than they are delivered).

[trikester]

I've been touching this topic before, but how (if) do you experience the difference in power when going with the one battery setup vs both?
I'm still a bit confused of the 27 vs 44 hp difference between the two setups. Probably since both my electrical and ICE know-how is very limited, hehe.

The "smart" motor controller knows if you are riding with one or two batts and it limits the drive power to the lower level when riding with one.

PLEASE NOTE: I've edited & attached a photo to my earlier FX 11.6 miles ride report.

Trikester

[Tudor]

Thanks for providing valuable info!

Seems then,  like the obvious choice here is to go for the two battery setup for the power and have the option run on one battery while recharging the other if ever needed, even though one battery would handle my daily commute.

- better produce another gold bar then for the miss...

[trikester]

I agree it seems like the way to go. You will get the lower power limit, however, when you choose to run one battery instead of the two.

I'm going to try a one batt ride next time I'm in the desert. It will be interesting to see if I even notice the lower power limit, since many of these trails are pretty slow (at least for this old guy).

Trikester

[skeezmour]

I agree it seems like the way to go. You will get the lower power limit, however, when you choose to run one battery instead of the two.

I'm going to try a one batt ride next time I'm in the desert. It will be interesting to see if I even notice the lower power limit, since many of these trails are pretty slow (at least for this old guy).

Trikester

Your not going to notice a loss of power with one battery on it till you go ~35mph+. All the low end is EXACTLY the same. But your bike will be about 40# lighter.

[protomech]

The X-series bikes have similar 0-60 times with either one or two batteries installed. The difference is the shape of the acceleration curve; the ZF2.8 configuration will accelerate harder initially due to the lower weight, but the ZF5.7 bikes (except XU) will accelerate harder at 60 mph and beyond due to the higher battery power.