I’ve got a wild hair about adding an 890 to my stable. Currently have a Beta 300 and a Husky 701. My Beta is a dedicated single track/2-bike. It’s armored up and I treat it rough and it just keeps going.
I got my 701 a few years ago to help keep hours off my 300, which it has but I’m finding that my 701 is what everyone else says about the platform - not great at anything but fun on pretty much everything. It’s a hoot and I’ve put my farkles on it but I’m am quickly realizing it’s not the highway bike I thought it would be.
This has led me to look at 890’s for the more highway friendly but extremely dirt comfortable bike. I’m not looking to subtract from the fleet.
I’m coming up in bike displacement vs down like I hear a lot of YouTube videos. The “890 is like a big dirt bike” doesn’t seem like it fits coming from nasty single track (THAT’S a dirt bike). My 701 is a big dirt bike.
I know a few of you are 690/700/701 owners as well as 790/890 owners. I’m curious on your thoughts.
While I can’t compare the 701 to an 890 I do have one for sale. 2025 Adventure R. 2200 miles. I love the bike for off and on road. I’m just upgrading to the Rally version. Let me know if you’d like to take a look and a ride. I’m just south of Boulder.
I do think the big dirtbike analogy fits, but for me, the context is around how you sit on the bike, how precision the off-road handling is compared to other adventure bikes, and things like suspension and ergonomics are the things being measured.
If you look at the direct competitors of this bike, which would be bikes like the BMW 900 GS, Ducati Desert X, Triumph Tiger rally pro, this bike is much more dirt biased in its design and intent than the others. Even compared to the Norden 901 it is more dirt biased because the seat is narrower and flatter, and that lets you get further forward on the bike like a dirt bike. That also means that it is less comfortable on long road stretches vs. other ADVs, but it still gets it done, and far better than the 701.
I have owned the 901, and the F 900 GS, and soon the V2 Ducati Desert X, fwiw. I just sold my 701 a few days ago. I found that between my ADV and my 500, the 701 just sits in an odd spot. If it were my only bike, it would excel at that.
It really depends on the style of riding you do. I had a 790 and loved it. A great deal popped up on a 701 so I bought it. It’s a great bike, but has limitations. I use it for Moab (white rim, koko) and have done CO,WY,& NM BDRs on it. I own a beta 300, and XR400R, CRF250X and a few other bikes. The 701 is great for 1-3 day long rides. I love it when things get tough on the last day or two of a BDR when you’re tired. 3 hours on the highway? Sucks. The 7/890 you can set it and forget it. The 890 clearly has some major advantages but also has shit resale right now. Rent one is my advice. Then you’ll know if it’s what you want.
Another factor with the 890 and 901 is that they are extremely hot motorcycles. This does not seem to bother some people, but other people wind up selling the bike because they run so hot on your feet and legs. The heat issue is the only reason I sold my 901, but I am also heat intolerant due to health stuff. You can find endless discussion about the heat topic in various forums though.
I’ve recently ridden my 890 back to back with my buddies new 701 a couple of times. Most recently yesterday.
We rode mellow singletrack, some gnarly rock gardens, a bunch of dirt mining roads with water bar jumps and a bit of highway. I think my bike was “better” for 90% of that but my friend mentioned that he was glad he was on the 701 as opposed to his T7.
The 701 feels a lot more “like a dirt bike.” This is both good and bad. It’s easier to ride off road, not so terrifying when going into a corner hot, narrower and feels a lot lighter. It also feels more raw, isn’t as comfortable, vibrates more, etc.
I think the 890 earns the “like a dirt bike” label when compared to other full sized ADV bikes. It certainly feels more like a dirt bike than my 1090; it’s lighter, narrower between the legs, allows me to sit more forward, has a shorter wheelbase and carries its weight lower making the weight difference feel more pronounced. Compared to a GS or other full sized ADV behemoth, it does feel like a dirt bike.
My friend said the 890 is a street bike pretending to be a dirt bike and the 701 is a dirt bike pretending to be a street bike. It’s an oversimplification but not far off.
Only you can know which one is right for you and the riding you do. Personally I like the 890 a lot better for the dirt focused ADV and dual sport riding I do. It’s much nicer on the road and I enjoy the challenge of a big bike off road. Like you, I have a proper dirt bike for dirt bike things.
If you are in a position to absorb a good degree of bike overlap, or split performance hairs finely, the 701 has it’s place depending on how and what you ride. It sounds like you’ve already defined a sweet spot for it - shorter multi-day rides, in places where fun factor trumps technical superiority.
With that said, the 890R/901 Exepedition platforms are outrageously capable, with much better weight distribution than the 701. In the opinion of people like Adam Riemann, they are far better bikes than the 701 in technical conditions from a pure performance perspective, even discounting for the 100+ pounds of additional weight. And they can get you down the road in comfort unmatched by much other than a GS.
I think for many in this group, to @Rich_Strauss point, the somewhat more limited window in which the 701 may serve is just too small to justify a thumper with performance limits that will cost you 15+K if you buy it and all the shit you need for it new.
The performance envelope offered by a 500 + a top tier 890/901 arguably covers all of the 701s turf.
500 + 890/901 exped seems to be the combo. +1 for the Husky - it just looks better, especially in blue. I was pretty shocked at how well it does off-road.
This is my stable and it’s nearly perfect. The 790/890 is just ludicrously capable, especially the suspension.
This weekend, with BDR loadout, I hammered Switzerland, then rode it like a sport bike up paved Magnolia, then 60mph+ on dirty Magnolia, bombed WestMag and Mammoth, then the same down Moon Gulch and 68J. Then cruise control up 119 to home. Didn’t even notice the extra weight, after dialing in the sag and clickers.
It is crazy capable. I HAVE gotten over how wide the seat is, per @mulebarn’s point, but not sure the desire for the narrower 890 seat outweighs how damn good-looking the Norden is, yet.
A good comparison for me. How many of you have taken 890’s up Hancock pass from St Elmo and what was your opinion there. Or Tin Cup up from St Elmo, in the wet or perhaps Tellurium road in the wet. These are where the 701 shines for me.
My 701 fits a sweet spot for right now where I CAN do a lot of the rougher stuff that my 300 does with ease but I can stack miles better with the 701. I’m kinda think the 890 fits the spot of doing things that are in the sweet spot for the 701 but then stack road (paved and unpaved) better. I’m good with overlap as I do that already.
Perhaps I should have gotten a 500 instead of a 701 but, at the time, I felt the 500 overlapped too much with the 300. I still feel that way a bit because I wanted the 701 to do more paved roads and be OK with it. Not that a 500 won’t but that extra weight is nice on the highway.
I haven’t been over Hancock in many years, but I get what you’re asking. The 890 will be harder work over a babyhead pass than a 701, period. It will still do it though and the ride there and home will be much nicer.
For that kind of riding you’ll want to note that the stock 890 rims are notoriously soft. An upgraded set would be smart. My 890 really deflected badly in rock gardens until I got the suspension redone.
I was pretty shocked at how well it does off-road.