11-02-2018, 11:48 PM
I actually had a guy who was quite negative about the CB11 say the most silly thing i've ever heard anybody say about a motorcycle.
"that bikes gearing is stupid. you can hit the speed cap in 3rd gear. 4th, 5th, and 6th gear are just useless! it's so badly designed!"
i didn't even take the time to explain to him why running your bike around at the redline isn't exactly the correct way to ride a CB. I used this story to illustrate what I think is the problem: A lot of people look at the CB11 and think "well it doesn't look like a harley, so it must be a sportbike." and then proceed to judge it based on how they think a sportbike should run. that's the source of every comment about it being too heavy, underpowered, geared too tall, wheels too narrow, ect ect ect. because they're trying to compare it to a CBR1000RR, like that's even close to the same thing.
but here are the facts: the CB1100 hits 0-60 in 3.3 to 3.5 seconds depending on who you listen to. it runs a quarter mile in just over 11 seconds (with the speed cap still turned on). you can buy one brand new for about 7k, and it has bulletproof lifelong reliability. show me ANY OTHER BIKE with that kind of power and reliability at that price, and i'll admit that the CB11 is not so great. the CBR600RR, for example is definitely faster, but costs a lot more as a brand new bike, is way less modifiable, and would be way less comfortable as a commuter or long-haul touring bike. The XSR900 is still faster than the CB11, more comfortable than the CBR600RR, but still costs way more than buying a new 2014 CB1100. It just comes down to the numbers. not every bike purchase has to be the best at one thing. sometimes you buy a bike that does everything you could ever want without necessarily holding any world records.
TLDR; the CB11's strength is it's lack of weaknesses, not its high spots.
"that bikes gearing is stupid. you can hit the speed cap in 3rd gear. 4th, 5th, and 6th gear are just useless! it's so badly designed!"
i didn't even take the time to explain to him why running your bike around at the redline isn't exactly the correct way to ride a CB. I used this story to illustrate what I think is the problem: A lot of people look at the CB11 and think "well it doesn't look like a harley, so it must be a sportbike." and then proceed to judge it based on how they think a sportbike should run. that's the source of every comment about it being too heavy, underpowered, geared too tall, wheels too narrow, ect ect ect. because they're trying to compare it to a CBR1000RR, like that's even close to the same thing.
but here are the facts: the CB1100 hits 0-60 in 3.3 to 3.5 seconds depending on who you listen to. it runs a quarter mile in just over 11 seconds (with the speed cap still turned on). you can buy one brand new for about 7k, and it has bulletproof lifelong reliability. show me ANY OTHER BIKE with that kind of power and reliability at that price, and i'll admit that the CB11 is not so great. the CBR600RR, for example is definitely faster, but costs a lot more as a brand new bike, is way less modifiable, and would be way less comfortable as a commuter or long-haul touring bike. The XSR900 is still faster than the CB11, more comfortable than the CBR600RR, but still costs way more than buying a new 2014 CB1100. It just comes down to the numbers. not every bike purchase has to be the best at one thing. sometimes you buy a bike that does everything you could ever want without necessarily holding any world records.
TLDR; the CB11's strength is it's lack of weaknesses, not its high spots.