An XR650L Built to Go Anywhere and Do Anything
Words by Ben Giese | Photography by Ladd Forde
Freedom is one of the most valuable things you can pursue in life, and those who are fortunate enough to obtain and experience it are among the luckiest people alive. The feeling of freedom is also one the most alluring things about riding a motorcycle, and the ultimate tool to manifest that feeling is a machine that can do anything and take you anywhere. That’s what led me to choose the iconic Honda XR650L dual sport for my latest project during these cold winter months.
The XR650L is still in production for 2021 and has remained essentially unchanged since 1993, which is a testament to its timeless design and bulletproof reliability. I grew up in the ’90s, and I will always be nostalgic for that decade, so I feel a real connection to this motorcycle through its origin. The XR was the king of the desert at that time, and while I was more interested in riders like Jeremy McGrath, images of Johnny Campbell racing through Baja at over 100 mph on his XR represent a type of freedom and purity that I find extremely attractive.
I found this particular 2007 model on a ranch in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and started by stripping it down to the frame, throwing out the dozens of unnecessary pieces and sending some parts off for powder coat. I had the frame, swingarm and triple clamps coated matte black, and the fork lowers were hard-anodized to match. I’ve seen some XR650L builds that look much more wild and exotic, but that’s not what I was going for on this one. I wanted my bike to be a bit more subtle, with a focus on functionality. The goal was to stay true to its original dirt bike form and create a tough and rugged motorcycle that could tackle any terrain and wasn’t afraid to get dirty.
The stock suspension was extremely soft, so I had Race Tech do a full rebuild for me. A longtime family friend, Tyler Southerlin, recently opened a Race Tech service center right here in Colorado, and he updated my forks by removing the restrictive stock valves and replacing them with the Race Tech gold valves. He paired that with a custom valve stack, set up specifically for my riding style, along with springs for my weight. On the shock, he removed the stock piston and replaced it with a Race Tech type 3 gold valve and added a new spring and custom settings specific to my needs and weight. Fresh oil and wear parts were replaced, as well, on both the forks and shock.
For the wheels, I worked with another legendary Colorado institution, Woody’s Wheel Works. Woody’s has been in the business of building superior wheels since 1973, and for my XR650L they laced up some black Excel rims with black spokes on black hubs. I chose the same Shinko 244 dual sport tires used on my previous Triumph build because they look great, and I liked the reliable performance ratio between the dirt and the street.
To increase performance and responsiveness, I needed to uncork the intake and exhaust system so it could breathe. I started by removing the smog assembly, then I removed the air box snorkel and the old stock paper air filter and replaced it with a foam filter. I then performed the “Dave’s Mod” by drilling out the carburetor slide, shimming the needle and increased the jetting sizes. The exhaust I chose was a Yoshimura silencer combined with an XR’s Only header, because unfortunately, Yoshimura doesn't make a header for this bike anymore.
I added a Seat Concepts saddle for more comfort on long adventures, and I replaced the tiny 2.3-gallon stock metal gas tank with a more durable, oversized 5.8-gallon plastic tank from Acerbis to substantially increase the range. Some Pro Taper CR High bend handlebars helped to provide a more upright riding position, and the large IMS rally pegs are a major improvement over the tiny stock pegs
To save some weight and enhance the bike’s center of gravity, I removed the ugly stock battery box from the rear subframe and relocated the components to be hidden under the seat with a new lightweight lithium-ion battery from Shorai. To slim the bulbous tail section down a bit, I replaced the left side panel with one from an XR600. And to further update the look of the bike, I modified a 2007 CRF450 front and rear fender to fit. Perhaps the most defining feature on the bike was the addition of the large 7-inch rally light made by Cyclops Adventure Sports.
I finished the build with a black anodized skid plate and dozens of other little parts, like magnetic drain plugs, new sprockets, and a gold chain. I still plan to make some further improvements to increase the bike’s performance, as well as build out a sleek luggage rack for long-distance travel. But for now, I’m just happy that this freedom machine is ready to ride. Whether I’m grabbing some coffee in the city or navigating remote singletrack, I’ve got a feeling this XR will conquer it all with ease and style.
