Bike Protection Mods Worth It???

I know the IMS tank now, with a full tank of fuel, makes it a bit heavier, but even with all the protection package and loaded with the bag system I have, I can still pick up the bike on my own without hassles, like I did my old motocross bikes. And I'm a girl. My 600 sportbike I could pick up too, but it was a modified lift that can be used on ANY bike that is heavy. Even A fully loaded Ultra Glide.

Bottom line: Is bike protection mods worth it?

On this bike? YES

Even with the weight of the bike, it sells. And Yamaha sells A LOT of them. It is what it is; a dual sport not a motocross, and even the competition can't claim the maintenance schedules this bike boasts. Maybe KTM uses magnesium components...but the price goes up, not to mention you still have to maintain it a lot more frequently and it's a bigger bike to boot. The bikes that are closest in competition with this bike aren't really even comparable in components, but I digress.

Protection on this kind of bike is a MUST if you ride off road, regardless if you use a piece of plexiglass or aluminum. The reasons are the same, protection. It's there to provide a job, protecting the bike. I'd rather spend $100 on a skidplate and not blow my case open when I hit a nasty sharp rock, than using absolutely nothing and having to shell out a whack on a new case, and lose ride time, all in the name of saving a little bit of weight.

Murphy's law follows motorcycles....

Protect as much as you can with consideration for weight, risk/recovery/replacement capability.

...and even then have a plan "B" (of several different options each with their own risk and benefit).

I'm pretty late to this party but I surely agree with your comments on insurance and only carry liability with high limits. I think I could get out of whatever jam I'm in without a brake disc or a bent radiator but I've found too many rocks lodged between the chain and the engine to ignore that little piece of hardware. One such little rock cut the wires going to the neutral/clutch starting interlock without me knowing it so we had a long delay trying to figure out how to start it again. Plus all the torque of the rear wheel and the engine are trying to drive that rock into the case, so I like keeping them out. As for the SP, I use it, intentionally, all the time to as a way to get over obstacles like rocks, logs and whatnot just like the rockers do with their Jeeps. The Jeep guys call them rock sliders and plan on using them, kinda like a pry bar, to get past obstacles. I don't like to use the engine cases for this cause I know the oil I need to get home is just inside the thin case material.... but I'll use that SP anytime and not worry. In fact I hope I wear it out, LOL. I did wear out the plastic one on the KLR in one ride. I'll lose 3 lbs if I need to save the weight.

BTW, I broke the gas tank loose on a TTR250 with one little, slow speed fall. Had to use bailing wire to hold it on for a few days. Poor design. I also jammed the radiator fan into the radiator so it couldn't turn and only noticed that when the temperature went into the red zone... but I still didn't buy the side armour.

I did get some hefty handguards though, that's not on your list. I've had too many skinned knuckles and broken clutch levers to do without those... I don't heal very quickly anymore either. And I do wear body protection plus a helmet which you didn't put on the list.


JMHOs.

I'm a firm believer that some protection is good and alway wonder why plastic isn't good enough for folks given the obvious weight (and corrosion) advantage. If you add carbon fiber to that plastic, then the bling factor is a big seller even though the added strength likely adds little additional protection for most applications (see lightspeeds exhaust heatshield for the worst application of CFP). Although I went with the Zeta handguards on the WRX for the convenience of integrated signals, I would have prefered something all plastic to avoid the possible wrist breaking situation on an unexpected dismount. The plastic case guards seem a reasonable added protection with the addition of a lexan skid plate between the frame rails to complete the coverage. Sliders are a cheap and reasonably light way to protect other bits in the inadvertent incident.

Plate bashed. Engine Safe. Rider happy.

I didn't particularly like any of the glide plates out there so I made my own:







It's a bit shiny as you can tell by the reflections.