11-13-2018, 11:57 AM
mickey, even that old Nighthawk you mentioned severely missed the boat, according to your desired specs. First off, it was an I4, not a Twin. Had it been a Twin, it would not have come close to 80 rwhp. Secondly, the fuel tank wasn't nearly as large as you want. Also, that bike was still over 500 lbs on the road. Lastly, that bike did not have to comply with Euro 5 emissions standards, which will add weight and complexity while sapping hp and torque.
I can't think of any Honda that ever nailed your specs. The PCH weighed too much, and wasn't powerful enough. The Hawk GTs and Ascots and whatsuch weren't shaft drive, with hydraulic valves. The cruisers that did have shaft drive and hydraulic valves either weighed way too much, or made far too little power, or both.
I really want to come up with a bike that has ever met your criteria. I was thinking about it while driving around today, and my guess is it will have to be an old BMW of some sort, and even there I doubt we'll hit the 80 rwhp number. Otherwise, a modern, air-cooled R1200R comes fairly close. They certainly don't hit the sub-450-lb weight criteria, but they were close, at least dry. They also didn't have hydraulic valves, but you seem handy enough that you could knock out a valve adjustment on one of those things before you even made it through the live version of Dazed and Confused.
I can't think of any Honda that ever nailed your specs. The PCH weighed too much, and wasn't powerful enough. The Hawk GTs and Ascots and whatsuch weren't shaft drive, with hydraulic valves. The cruisers that did have shaft drive and hydraulic valves either weighed way too much, or made far too little power, or both.
I really want to come up with a bike that has ever met your criteria. I was thinking about it while driving around today, and my guess is it will have to be an old BMW of some sort, and even there I doubt we'll hit the 80 rwhp number. Otherwise, a modern, air-cooled R1200R comes fairly close. They certainly don't hit the sub-450-lb weight criteria, but they were close, at least dry. They also didn't have hydraulic valves, but you seem handy enough that you could knock out a valve adjustment on one of those things before you even made it through the live version of Dazed and Confused.