1997 BMW F650ST review

Just a few thoughts on a nice little BMW F650 I picked up. Decided to turn this into a small adventure bike as opposed to splashing out on a CB500X. I did remove the airbox snorkel and it really woke the motor up, must have been running quite rich prior to that, I'll post another vid in a couple of months when I have finished it

[@dmastarew5217792]

I picked up my '97 F650ST right around the same time you did, I am blown away by the bike so far. Really quick, light, affordable, practical. Enjoy the ride!

[@guten67007]

Nice vid. Wow well maintained bike, over 20 years!It looks like new! I just bought a 99 Funduro. Superfun to drive. Pulls like a Scania...:)

[@kencward]

Big singles do vibrate. It's part of their charm. I like singles and twins, I've owned a couple of 4 cylinder bikes including a Fireblade, but they didn't gel with me. I had a bmw f650cs similar to yours and I wish I'd held onto it. Excellent engine, best single I've riden 90 mph cruising no problem with bursts up to an indicated 110, licence losing speed in UK!

[@ftby59mikeD]

Spot on bike @ a good price!...like your plan for 2nd set of wheels sort of like mounting snow tires on a for winter change over.

[@larrymckenna3503]

well covered thanks, the original seat is light as a feather !

[@BikeStandByMe]

Great bikes, the chassis is really good, handles excellent. Suspension is a bit soft but that can be fixed.👍

[@GoldbergPatriot]

Great video👍🏾 If my garage had that many bikes in it I might not ever go inside!

[@lr882027]

I don't. Wife has to bring my dinner out on a tray.

[@GoldbergPatriot]

lr882027 nice!

[@golf1diesel]

@@lr882027 I'm surprised you have a wife :))

[@paulyflyer8154]

Great bike...I bought one 2 years ago and its the only single I've got but it's fantastic. This is definitely a future classic so I've kept mine as stock, sourcing just a couple of small original parts. I know its capable of far more, but I love riding mine round the welsh country lanes in the summer and it always attracts comments and attention. Ive already been offered 3.5 k which is double what I paid. When I go out on my GS or Bonneville no one's interested!

[@lr882027]

I wanted to like it more than I did but if it hadn't been jumping out of second gear I probably would have kept it. Carburation was shitty though, I managed to get it better but below 3,500 revs it was very woolly. Could have figured it out no doubt but the carbs were a pig to take on and off.

[@oldtimerman59]

Brilliant bikes , the rotax motors get over 300,000 klms longevity !

[@ousmank.jammeh5594]

I have one st but didn't know where the fuel/gas gauge/light is located. Can you help me locate it ?

[@Lovemyamericamyhome]

I have 1997 bmw f650 Can you please tell me the location of the battery please thank you

[@pin4401]

Did you manage to pull the baffle out?

[@elias_nichols]

Don't know if you still have this bike, but yes that is an aftermarket seat. Clean ST you got there pal!

[@lr882027]

Yeah well, the fucker now jumps out of second so I'm pissed off with it, make me an offer......

[@elias_nichols]

@@lr882027 ha. I’ve got one in blue. I also had it jump out of second recently 🤔

[@lr882027]

@@elias_nichols You need this : Orange ones are faster.

[@BosqueBurning]

Great review Ian thank you …… very informative 💯 , I also have a f650ST do you have any suggestions on upgrading the forks perhaps something a little stiffer ? I live in central New Mexico / high desert and do a lot of trail riding 🏜 Thanks again .

[@lr882027]

Go to race tech and use their spring calculator to get a recommendation on spring rate based on your weight and riding style.

[@tonebonetones]

I'm more impressed with the fact that, despite being English, you seemingly managed to get a Green Card. The US stopped English Green Card entrants into the GC lottery for decades, claiming too many immigrants were from England. I'm thinking of buying one of these here in UK, a '99, but the single cylinder puts me off, as years ago when I was a young un, I had a few Japanese 4 cylinders, and don't think I could get away with a vibrant buzzy single. Still it's a good price, full MOT, so been watching a few vids on this model to try and decide.

[@lr882027]

I've been over here a long time......

[@tonebonetones]

@@lr882027 lol I bet, and I suspect there's more to that than meets the eye. Unless you were like 5.

[@lr882027]

@@tonebonetones I'm just highly skilled and sought after worldwide.

[@tonebonetones]

@@lr882027 Well, good on you, mate. I also, spent a lot of time in the US in my youth, and being an ex engineer now pro musician, I can work anywhere. Plan is to move to Portugal, next year. ....I'm getting too old for English winters in Newcastle. Anywho, after watching this, I went out and got me one of these last week! '99 ST for £900, 15k mileage. It's a tad more tatty than yours, especially the wheel rims, thanks to 20 years of the glorious English weather, but I'm going to gradually work on it over the winter. I hate the 18" front wheel on the ST model, though, a total pain to get sizes for. Also, I find it doesn't have the low end torque I'd have expected from a 650 thumper; got to keep it spinning 3k revs and above, and I think the carbs (why 2? lol) need removing and a good clean. But. I am well chuffed with it already. ......it's a great little bike.

[@lr882027]

@@tonebonetones You can put in a 19 inch front wheel from the F650 or the F650 GS, you will need to clear the fender with the tire but it may be OK. I've found the carburation to be shitty below 3500 rpm, I think it's too rich, I'm going to try dropping the needles. I did turn in the pilot air screws in 3/4 of a turn and that made a difference.

[@roamingeagle]

How is your bike jetted (main, pilot, needle, etc? Im in boulder and trying to get a bit more jazz out of the pre 3500rpm range and make the idle a bit more stable

[@lr882027]

So jetting is all stock but I turned in the pilot screws 1 full turn which was a little too much, i'll turn them out a 1/4 but it's so difficult to do with the carbs on ill have to take em off to do it.. I removed the snorkel and fitted a uni air filter, like you above 3500 it's good but below that it's woolly. I am going to drop the needles one notch next, I suspect it's over fueling at low revs when you open the throttle.

[@lr882027]

When i got it it never needed choke to start so I suspected it was too rich, turning in the screws made the idle a lot better.

[@roamingeagle]

@@lr882027 got it - ill give that a try. Thank you.

[@gimmieliberty6514]

Why replace the plugcaps?if bmw/Rotax think their the best why change for plastic,it gets brittle with age

[@dereksmith9473]

Notoriously problematic. Often the source of misfires

[@roamingeagle]

I just bought a 99 f650 with 20k mikes, its in decent shape. Have you had any major issues with the bike? Btw i live in Boulder CO

[@lr882027]

Yes, it's started jumping out of second gear

[@roamingeagle]

@@lr882027 any idea why?

[@lr882027]

@@roamingeagle Likely the shift fork is bent, know issue, $35 to fix, takes about 16 hours, engine out, top end off, cases split.

[@SirCharcoal]

"saw a drop of coolant out of it" Coolant coming out the weep hole means the o rings for the waterpump are going

[@lr882027]

It was actually coming out of the overflow from the expansion tank, not sure why. Has ran OK for the last 2,000 miles, due to drag it out in Spring and give it a health check

[@SirCharcoal]

@@lr882027 weird! Nice you're still hanging onto it. I'm picking one up today

[@lr882027]

@@SirCharcoal Good bikes, however mine has started to jump out of 2nd and the low end carburation needs some work but It will all get taken care of

[@SirCharcoal]

@@lr882027 Jumping out of second sounds bad.. into neutral? How would you fix that, replacing the gearbox?

[@lr882027]

@@SirCharcoal Bent shift fork, not an unusual issue with these bikes

[@neilwiddison6529]

Great video mate you seem to know your stuff . I like these bikes . What part of the uk are you from i am near Nottingham.

[@lr882027]

I went to University in Nottingham in 1991 - back when Ye Olde Salutation Inn was a bikers pub.

[@neilwiddison6529]

@@lr882027 hey thanks for the reply. The pub is still there . Dont think bikers use it much now. All the heavy rockers used to go upstairs.

[@lr882027]

@@neilwiddison6529 Yes, you could only get upstairs if you had a leather on, there used to be a big fat biker on a chair halfway up the stairs

[@missadventuresmotorcycledi2773]

I'm inspired.

[@narcisslk8284]

Nice slk

[@kevinspalding5470]

Nice little vid you've made there mate , decent adventure bike without spending a fortune, some interesting tips there. May I ask a question...your accent ...does not sound like you come from where you live which by the way looks an awesome part of the world!. Just read through the old messages ...I'm from Mansfield ,Nottinghamshire.... thought you sounded 'local. I've been looking around at these bikes to be honest , want something for adventure and winter riding . Look ideal to me.

[@lr882027]

Liked this bike until it started jumping out of 2nd gear, couldn't be arsed to fix it, sold it to someone else (with full disclosure). I'm from Northwich, went to University in Nottingham.

[@kevinspalding5470]

@@lr882027 thanks for the reply , that's put me off ,if there'common problems with 2nd gear I won't bother looking any further. I've not got time to start taking engines out !.Thanks anyway ,looks nice where you currently reside anyway mate .

[@johna6968]

Suspension looks low at the rear

[@roamingeagle]

Ok so which bars did you put on?

[@lr882027]

A set of stock BMW F650GS handlebars I had lying about the garage.

[@Lowtiercomputer]

@@lr882027 What are the engine crash bars you put on it?

[@iancarr722]

UK rider, I picked up funduro for £1495 loaded with extras, cheapest bike ever bought in 30yrs buck for buck it exceeds my expectations. Fancied SWM600 new but at 5 times the price it's only marginally better than funduro 24yrs older. If you fancy getting one be patient as good ones turn up.

[@srd8228]

Subscribing for the cursing!

[@lr882027]

Arse!

[@kenmclennan341]

Re the comment "I don't know why they would put two carburetor on a single cylinder engine". The carbs fitted are actually two different sizes - a small one to cope with idle and low revs/low fuel demands, and the second larger unit for higher revs/higher fuel demands. This solves the problems of the old big singles either not running happily at low revs, or, alternatively, if you were able to get them smooth at idle and low revs, they'd starve at high revs.

[@lr882027]

No they are not, the carbs on the bike are both the same size.

[@kenmclennan341]

@@lr882027 ah, slightly different arrangement, but the same principal applies. The first will handle idle and low rev operations, an the second will operate in tandem with the first in order to provide sufficient volume of fuel/air mixture to handle higher rev operations.

[@lr882027]

@@kenmclennan341 Not how it work on this one my friend, the 2 carbs are identical and each feeds an inlet tract to a single inlet valve. The carbs are nearly identical to the carbs that are used an the Suzuki GS500 twin. I understand what you are saying but this is not the case on the BMW F650ST. I think the Yamaha XT/TT 600s have the set up you are referring to.

[@kenmclennan341]

@@lr882027 Thanks for the feedback, and how very interesting. And unusual. I can see I'll need do a little research on this one just to get an idea of why twin carbs. Kinda defies logic, and it seems like complexity and expense for what advantage. Curious. Currently toying with the idea of acquiring an F650, so the information will be useful. Cheers.

[@gregorbabic7664]

The carbs are different only in the fact that the choke circuit is only activated on one of the carbs.

[@BosqueBurning]

What is it Ian 🤣😂

[@jairosauch]

I have one from 93 and I don't know about you but this bike is unusable under 3k rpm, abobe works beautifully but below feels like the engine is going to fall apart... it's just one thing I find people don't say too much, because is really awful, like you have to double clutch trough the city all the time, it only wants to go fast...

[@lr882027]

I think the issue with low speed performance was the carburation. By removing the air box side snorkel and running a K&N I was able to get the low end performance better but as you say, until it hit 3K rpm it was lumpy. Getting the carbs on and off was a real pain in the arse - I wanted to try smaller pilots and lower the needles to try and lean it out but after the whole second gear thing, I gave up. Would have been much easier if it just had a single carb that wasn't shoe-horned in there. I won't ever have another.

[@jairosauch]

Yeah exactly, but otherwise it's a great bike, just runs a little bit rough 😅

[@gregorbabic7664]

It chugs along just fine when you make sure the carb is tuned right and most importantly the spark plug caps have the proper resistance. And other than starting off all you need to do is ride it in the higher rev range.