Upgrading the motorcycle is a well-known disease for me, there is not a day that I don't have some product in the shopping cart just waiting for me to finish paying for it. Sometimes it's products for me as a rider and sometimes it's products to upgrade the motorcycle. In both cases, if you ask my wife, it's an unnecessary expense :)
Outback Motortek engine guard
I've been wanting to upgrade the protection for a long time and replace the original Yamaha engine guard with something that will handle my often crashes. So I'm back from the US with a set of Outback Motortek which includes an upper and lower engine guard. The set costs $480 in the US. The set creates a cage that protects the motorcycle both at the bottom and at the top in cases of falls at strange angles, as happens to me often. If you are considering installing one, pay attention to the fit of the set to your bash plate (detailed on their website), I had to cut both sides so that it could fit together properly. The cage comes in three colors - black, blue and red. Suggest watching this video with their crash tests for the Tnere 700 to understand how well it protects.
Image from https://outbackmotortek.net/
Xitomer adjustable side stand for Tenere 700
I'm short, totalling at 1.70m (that's 5.5ft). It's a problem when you want to have stable feet on the ground with a tall motorcycle like the Tenere700. So I lowered it with links and reduced its ground clearance (if you don't ride enduro or jump rocks with it, it should be fine).
The problem was that the side stand remained at the same height and the motorcycle stood perpendicular to the ground at 90 degrees.
There are motorcycle side stands on the market from Camel ADV that have shorter lengths, depending on the lowering link you installed ($119 before taxes and shipping), or those of AltRider which can be adjusted to a variable height but are more expensive - $174 before shipping and taxes.
So after a very long search for a short or adjustable kickstand and after shortening my original kickstand and getting and ending up disliking the result, I found the one.
The height differences between the manufacturer's sidestand (left) and Xitomer's open (right) and closed (middle)
Then I found the Xitomer Tenere 700 side stand, a Chinese manufacturer whose products can be found on all kinds of sales websites. I paid $60 plus a little more for shipping and it took a few weeks to get from China.
It is well built, made for the Yamaha Tnere 700, so there's no need for adjustments and modifications. Feels sturdy and well-built and after two days with it in the field I can say that it is very comfortable to operate and holds very firmly. It has 3 different heights and can be extended half an inch longer than the original footrest (in case you raised the motorcycle) or shortened up to 2.5 inches down. It has 7 different holes for adjustment which is quite a lot. Since there are various types of lowering links in different lengths, this product is great as you can adjust accordingly and have it fit to the exact height you need.
Final price (as of this writing) before shipping is $45 if you enter coupon code GTALK05 the store gave me. I do not earn a dime from this coupon.
Xitomer side stand on my Yamaha Tenere 700
One Finger Clutch - Camel ADV
If you are looking to pamper yourself a little more and your hand gets tired quickly from using the clutch lever, this is the product for you.
The American manufacturer Camel ADV, which produces solutions for all kinds of problems that plague riders on many types of motorcycles, has created a clutch lever to reduce the weight that needs to be applied to the handle to disengage the clutch.
In this video you can see the differences in the required pull strength before and after Installing their clutch lever.
Already on the ride home after the installation (it is absolutely possible to install it yourself at home for those who can, there is an installation video) I felt the change. The clutch softened significantly. Offroad this was even more noticeable. The hand was less tired from operating the clutch in technical terrain that required a lot of clutch work.
The crane comes in three colors - black, red and blue. Please note that there are two versions of the crane - one for the Tenere 700 with original engine guards from Yamaha and a second version for all other types of engine guards. If you have the Yamaha version, you will have to order the appropriate version which is a little shorter because the guards take up some of the space needed for the installation of the normal crane.
PSA: The recommendations in this article are based on my experience with the products after I purchased them with my own money and I was not sent to try the product or paid for a recommendation. I do not earn a penny from purchases you make from the recommendation here or from clicking on the links in this article.