I didn't do the "Cogent suspension", but I used a local shop that custom builds the same thing. They have a heck of a set-up. I'm about your weight, so I used the Race Tech 8.6 KG rear spring, and yes it is awesome. It makes the stock suspension feel like a pogo stick. When I picked it up, they had me sit on my bike and hold weights that replicated my average load while they set the sag/pre-load. I decided to let the same shop do my forks (my DR is there right now) since they did such a good job on the rear. Even though the change out is pretty simple, they do custom stuff that I just couldn't do in my garage. I'm anxious to get it back and test it out. I also replaced those factory boots with Pro Cycle boots. Mine got that "twisted" look that couldn't be straightened out no matter which way I turned them. Go figure.🤷♂️ 18:06 - You still have a "dual sport" bike, one that has always been street capable, and is now very dirt capable. 9:10 - Put some steel braided lines on your brakes. It'll remove that "spongy" feel and they'll just seem to "grab" better. 32:27 - You mentioned the Tusk tire. Before you decide, check out the "Motoz Tractionator Desert H/T". Don't be swayed by the word "desert" in the name, it has serious knobbies with great dirt/mud reviews. ~GOOD VIDEO~
Great vid. Subscribed! What magical land is that where the elves come at night to install drainage stones and build bridges with concrete so motorcycles can ride in the forests? Wowie!!
Good video I love me cogent dynamics rear shock. It made a world of difference… Hey did You ever mention what luggage box your running on your rear fender? Looks perfect size.. I have a huge ( fits 2 full face helmets ) made by Givi.. but it’s so big not that I even notice it while riding but I don’t care for how silly it looks lol
I thought you sold the old DR 650, Ive been seeing you on a WR250 In Brandtagones videos lately. Ive done some upgrades on my ride too. Upgraded to a 2020 KTM 790 Adventure R. Absolutely Amazing upgrade from my bone stock 1999 DR 650. HAPPY TRAILS!!
@@Gamet36 it’s an amazing bike! Taking time to get use to traction control on a motorcycle, but I’m getting the hang of quickly. Remember to turn it off an on in the right situations, I’m catching on. 95 hp with quick shifter on fire roads is a hell of a lot of fun! You would not regret getting one.
I upgraded to a KTM 790 as well. I have the cogent suspension front and rear on my DR. That KTM is still better in every single way. Not even close. But the cogent upgrade is amazing.
Great vid and review of the cogent suspension. Curious if you went down a tooth on your drive gear for off-road riding or if you left it stock? Thanks again!
Take that fork oil level down, maybe to 160mm. I like a DR with a good bit of sag so I do like a bit softer spring rate with your details I heard. Thank you for your business.
Not necessarily. It depends on you and your skill level. Take some time with the bike. Once you find yourself riding at the bikes upper limit then do the suspension. That said, if you are experienced, then yes that should be the first.
I took a while to outride the stock DR suspension, but it was my first dirtybike and I was under 200lb. I added a skid, rolled the bars forward a tad, and switched to DOT knobs first. I also ordered an extendable idle-mix screw and an adjustable needle so that I could remove the snorkel without running the engine lean. A 5gal plastic tank made the bike better for commuting and trips. I find them used for $100-$150. The OEM steel tank dents and scratches too easily, IMO. I get used to the stock seat. I'm also 5'8", and don't seem to need a windscreen.
Awesome video! Thank you for sharing your input. I've got a 2020(my 1st DR), and the stock suspension gives me quite a workout. You mentioned how the upgrade is great for off-roading; but my question is this: I'm probably only about a 20-30% off roader, and pretty light off road at that. Dry, hard-packed South Texas gravel for the most part. Do you feel that the Cogent upgrade would be equally beneficial for mostly on-road riding as well? Thanks!
I did get them. I must admit that I'm not a fan. My friend has the bike now and they have aprox 5k miles and are ready to be changed. Not sure what he's gonna get next.
@@Gamet36 mine felt like riding on marbles really bad. I forget what I had on it (probably 80/20 street/dirt) but they felt way more planted. I can kinda see the tread pattern in pics from when I first got it, but, yeah, not impressed with dsports. That said, today I rebuilt the rear shock and popped on a 8.0 top gun spring, did drill thru kit, did the klx needle kit (just on the stand, I could tell a major improvement on response and starting). Can't wait for my cogent front springs and ddc to get here to finish things up.
Hard to find fresh video on the DR. Nice work.
I didn't do the "Cogent suspension", but I used a local shop that custom builds the same thing. They have a heck of a set-up. I'm about your weight, so I used the Race Tech 8.6 KG rear spring, and yes it is awesome. It makes the stock suspension feel like a pogo stick. When I picked it up, they had me sit on my bike and hold weights that replicated my average load while they set the sag/pre-load. I decided to let the same shop do my forks (my DR is there right now) since they did such a good job on the rear. Even though the change out is pretty simple, they do custom stuff that I just couldn't do in my garage. I'm anxious to get it back and test it out. I also replaced those factory boots with Pro Cycle boots. Mine got that "twisted" look that couldn't be straightened out no matter which way I turned them. Go figure.🤷♂️
18:06 - You still have a "dual sport" bike, one that has always been street capable, and is now very dirt capable.
9:10 - Put some steel braided lines on your brakes. It'll remove that "spongy" feel and they'll just seem to "grab" better.
32:27 - You mentioned the Tusk tire. Before you decide, check out the "Motoz Tractionator Desert H/T". Don't be swayed by the word "desert" in the name, it has serious knobbies with great dirt/mud reviews. ~GOOD VIDEO~
Great vid. Subscribed! What magical land is that where the elves come at night to install drainage stones and build bridges with concrete so motorcycles can ride in the forests? Wowie!!
Did the same cogent upgrade on my DR over the summer. Makes it a much better bike. 👍
yah Joshy!!
Thanks for the intel and great color commentary dude!
That looks like a fair test there! Thanks
Nice video. I like the sound of your pipe but I can't quite identify it. What pipe is that?
Good video I love me cogent dynamics rear shock. It made a world of difference… Hey did You ever mention what luggage box your running on your rear fender? Looks perfect size.. I have a huge ( fits 2 full face helmets ) made by Givi.. but it’s so big not that I even notice it while riding but I don’t care for how silly it looks lol
Great review, now I want the Cogent.
I thought you sold the old DR 650, Ive been seeing you on a WR250 In Brandtagones videos lately. Ive done some upgrades on my ride too. Upgraded to a 2020 KTM 790 Adventure R. Absolutely Amazing upgrade from my bone stock 1999 DR 650. HAPPY TRAILS!!
So you went with the KTM and got rid of your DR? I thought you'd keep that forever.
@@Gamet36 I'll be buried with my DR650, I'm taken that thing to the other side with me. Old reliable she is! Ha!
John, How are you liking the 790? I'm considering consolidating my garage by way of DR650 and Super Tenere for one 790 ADV R. Thoughts?
@@Gamet36 it’s an amazing bike! Taking time to get use to traction control on a motorcycle, but I’m getting the hang of quickly. Remember to turn it off an on in the right situations, I’m catching on. 95 hp with quick shifter on fire roads is a hell of a lot of fun! You would not regret getting one.
I upgraded to a KTM 790 as well. I have the cogent suspension front and rear on my DR. That KTM is still better in every single way. Not even close. But the cogent upgrade is amazing.
Great video, really helped me decide on ordering!
Did the front on my 2006 and man what a difference that made by itself..You have convinced me to get the Mojave for the back. Nice vid, sir.
What did you use in the front ?
That looks slick!
Great vid and review of the cogent suspension. Curious if you went down a tooth on your drive gear for off-road riding or if you left it stock?
Thanks again!
Weird you took off the rear tire etc... I took off the seat, gas tank and airbox but its possible your way was less ? I dont know.
I went off someone's video. Didn't look too hard after that.
Do you wish you would have gone with the next step down for softer spring rate if you were to do it all over again knowing what you know now ?
Yep. I would've stepped it down.
Take that fork oil level down, maybe to 160mm. I like a DR with a good bit of sag so I do like a bit softer spring rate with your details I heard. Thank you for your business.
what assum cind of Trail is that? Drain Stones in the middle of a single Trail? please explain. regards Thommes from Germany
What cogent parts were used? Front and back? Thinking of the Mojave cogent myself.
That was the fron t fork solution kit and the rear Mojave.
So, would you say the first thing you need to do to this bike is upgrade the suspension?
Not necessarily. It depends on you and your skill level. Take some time with the bike. Once you find yourself riding at the bikes upper limit then do the suspension. That said, if you are experienced, then yes that should be the first.
I took a while to outride the stock DR suspension, but it was my first dirtybike and I was under 200lb. I added a skid, rolled the bars forward a tad, and switched to DOT knobs first.
I also ordered an extendable idle-mix screw and an adjustable needle so that I could remove the snorkel without running the engine lean.
A 5gal plastic tank made the bike better for commuting and trips. I find them used for $100-$150. The OEM steel tank dents and scratches too easily, IMO.
I get used to the stock seat. I'm also 5'8", and don't seem to need a windscreen.
on day one even if you barely go offroad
Awesome video! Thank you for sharing your input. I've got a 2020(my 1st DR), and the stock suspension gives me quite a workout. You mentioned how the upgrade is great for off-roading; but my question is this: I'm probably only about a 20-30% off roader, and pretty light off road at that. Dry, hard-packed South Texas gravel for the most part. Do you feel that the Cogent upgrade would be equally beneficial for mostly on-road riding as well? Thanks!
Wow...Sorry it took so long to reply. Yes it is beneficial on road as well as off.
@@Gamet36 no worries! Got it done, works great! Thanks again for the video
Did you get the Dsports? I have them on my KLR, hate them.
I did get them. I must admit that I'm not a fan. My friend has the bike now and they have aprox 5k miles and are ready to be changed. Not sure what he's gonna get next.
@@Gamet36 mine felt like riding on marbles really bad. I forget what I had on it (probably 80/20 street/dirt) but they felt way more planted. I can kinda see the tread pattern in pics from when I first got it, but, yeah, not impressed with dsports.
That said, today I rebuilt the rear shock and popped on a 8.0 top gun spring, did drill thru kit, did the klx needle kit (just on the stand, I could tell a major improvement on response and starting). Can't wait for my cogent front springs and ddc to get here to finish things up.
@@Gamet36 the tkc80 seems to be the popular go-to. My son's putting them on his klr this year. He doesn't like the Dsports that much either
I did the Cogent fork springs on my dr650. Still to soft for me when it gets pushed hard.
add the DDC drop ins without a cartridge emulator a spring upgrade is useless
Fan the clutch!
It is difficult to see on video but how does it climb say compared to DRZ 400 ?
Just as well if not a bit better. The torque is better but it also weighs more. Very controled.
@@Gamet36 Thanks man....
What area of the country do you typically ride in Gamet36?
Washington state. The Pacific North West!
Trak masters are built for that bike
What front fender is that?
Front Fender, DSA Concepts from procycle.
What year is dr 650?
This is a 2015. Honestly though they're all pretty much the same. Minor differences through the years.
Does it matter? They’re unchanged since 1996 I believe.
@@wipperwils2111 There have been many small improvements over the years. Even to the latest 2023!
What front fender is that?