The revolving door keeps on spinning

[misterprofessionality]

So, my Concours 14 was crashed. oops.

Not by me thankfully! My secondary bike is always kept available on a Riders Share service for people who want to pay me a bit of cash to have a bike for a weekend or whatever. Anywho, the Concours, as it turns out, is just far too heavy and unwieldly for the average person to handle. She was a big big girl. The most recent renter put it down on the highway somehwere north of Savannah GA. Anyway, it's not as if the bike was totalled, but the damage was severe enough that Riders Share basically offered to just buy it off me. Great! now what to do with the cash.....

OH i know!



2015 Kawasaki Versys 650 LT!! Believe it or not, this bike is actually New-Old-Stock. It was in a crate until a couple of months ago. I am its first private owner. I know what you're going to say....you lost a Concours and got back...half a Concours? It was a calculated choice. I could have cashed in for another big sport tourer...heck the same dealer had a pretty sweet FJR1300...but I got to thinking about it and i was sort of inspired by Ferrets swap from the big FJR to the NC750. my CB1100 is my fun bike. i've even muscled that Concours up and down the dragon with a passenger, and I can say i started to miss the feeling of a light weight bike.

so, enter the Versys. Supremely smooth, peppy, light, and cooperative. the little Twin comes alive at about 6krpms, and transforms from lazy commuter to torquey athlete. I look forward to learning all about this thing. I'm already approaching break-in mileage.

[tj_gee_imp]

Zach formerly from MC Commute and now from Revzilla's Daily Rider really liked this bike and I've thought about them as a longer distance tourer over my CB without going full Goldwing / Roadglide.

[misterprofessionality]

I've done some long distance on the Connie and i've now done over a 200 mile day on the Versys and I can say with some confidence that the ONLY advantage i felt on the Connie was wind protection. That huge body and windshield is really something...but the versys still does have quite a bit of protection. it's actually surprising. when I looked at it my first thought was that it was going to be garbage for wind protection, but there's just something magic about the shape of the front end. I may not even upgrade the windshield.

As far as taking trips....i could certainly get more luggage on the connie but that's not the point of sport touring. I'd rather get 55mpg on this than 35mpg on the concours. They're both going 80-85mph. It's not like we have an autobahn here in the states. I would be glad to go touring with this machine. The engine size turned out to be literally no factor, which was surprising and a learning experience when comparing them back to back.

It's funny you mentioned Zach, because his partner Ari Henning also uses this as his personal motorcycle and swears up and down by it. A lot of people still cant stand them and call them nerd bikes. It seems like the Nerds know something everybody else doesn't know.

[GoldOxide_imp]

I once seriously considered the 2018 Versys 650LT. Lots of great attributes. I flirted with it for quite awhile - a nice metallic olive green model. I think it is good value.

[misterprofessionality]

Quite a lot indeed. I've got USB charging, Switchable flood lights (and they're HUGE), ABS, Hand guards, the bars are pre-drilled for heated grips because there's an OEM kawasaki heated grip that was sold as an optional factory upgrade, Tons of onboard waterproof storage, Excellent brakes for the weight of the bike, Fully adjustable Showa forks, fully remote adjustable rear shock, and a 5.5 gallon gas tank.

All that is outrageous for a bike that I took home brand new for 6k.

[tod.branko_imp]

I had one some years ago, Gen1 non-abs, I was looking to see if I still have some pictures of it but unfortunately this is the only one I have left.
Versys 650 is a special bike. It's got weird proportions, it's of a questionable quality, it's got a decent pull to it, yet somehow always feels underpowered. Ran mine for just under 80000km, it didn't want to downshift quickly by the end, not with the foot anyways, I had to come to a full stop in 6th and then switch my right hand to the clutch , bend over and downshift it back to neutral by hand lol!
Once I I was standing on the pegs and hit a bump a little harder and both foot pegs just broke straight off, had to ride home with feet on the rear pegs and shift without leverage.
It would pull power wheelies in first and second gear and sometimes if I'm not careful enough and pressed the front brake with clutch in it would lock the front wheel in an instant.
But it was light and agile and fitted me just right.
I loved it and still miss it and keep looking for a newer one, gen 2 or 3, before the Ninja front end.

Sorry, flashback caught me by surprise, I had to share it

'14 CB1100 STD 5 speed

[misterprofessionality]

Ah, that's a bike well used it sounds like. I don't think I ever feel underpowered on it, unless i let the revs drop too much, and it's probably the 2nd weakest bike i've ridden in the past 5 years in terms of power/weight ratio. It always pulls exactly as much is i'm looking for it to pull, provided i've kept it on the boil. I'm still getting its rhythm down.

It sounds like you don't want a gen 3, because that does get the more ninja-like front end. Frankly, i'm kind of digging the front of this one more than previous generations. frankly, it's the "questionable quality" you mentioned that sells me on the gen 3 over the previous ones. this one feels really buttoned up. every part feels very lux and the whole bike just feels a lot more sorted. It feels like it actually has more fit and finish than my concours did, which is really surprising.

i'll have to remember that about the shifting when i get closer to the 50k mile mark.

[The A-man]

Beautiful bike, MrP. I think that's what MSCB1100 is riding now, and he loves it. Now, you have to bring it up to the mountains!

[the Ferret]

Congrats Mr P. My buddy Jnor has had 3 of them. One of his all time favorite bikes.

BTW I can't believe how light my NC 750 feels compared to the CB when backing it out of the garage. It feels feather light by comparison, no kidding. Power there is no comparison, but it's doing exactly what I want it to do for me, and it's got a lot less power than a 650 Versys I think.

[misterprofessionality]

I can imagine! you've got a DLX, so you're pushing 550lbs i think, whereas your new DCT bike is 485? Also there's a question of balance. The NC carries its weight so darn low and so well balanced. Look at the geometry of that engine, it's practically laid down flat.

My Versys is a bit more topheavy but it's also a bit lighter at about 475, so I know exactly what you're talking about. the CB felt like a feather compared to the Concours, but this thing brings back memories of my old CBR500. What sets the versys apart for me is the top end power delivery. This bike has a reputation for being boring but when you rev it properly it wakes up and gets downright rowdy.

Your NC doesn't have that but it does have more torque and it's ALL packed down there at the bottom end. 4750 is your peak torque. that's got to feel interesting. I imagine that's designed that way for fuel economy and so that the DCT can bang through the gears in a satisfying way.

But all the same, i mentioned you because the feeling i got from the bike reminded me so much of how your NC is just a hop and go kind of mentality. I still have to shift but that's just fun. otherwise the bike is so willing and ready to go at any second. There's a freedom to it that reminds me of being a new motorcyclist.