CB1100 compared to recent Nighthawk 750

[rboe]

My initial reaction; you'll sell the Nighthawk once you get the CB1100. Mainly because the CB1100 motor is so torquie. Lack of hydraulic valve adjustment is a negative but it really looks like it is a paper dragon as the valves don't need actual adjustment all that often. If it had shaft drive it would be a real bonus!

Plus the brakes on this bike are very very nice. The frame is made from large diameter tubing so I strongly suspect the handling will be superior to the older 750.

Nothing against your 750, but time marches on and there are many improvements.

[HikerToo_imp]

Hi guys;

I am thinking of adding another Honda to my stable, and the CB1100 is on my short list! I want a larger displacement motorcycle for longer highway rides.

I like everything about the CB1100 except for the lack of hydraulic valves. I currently ride a mint 2001 Nighthawk, and I am wondering if I should keep it or sell it (what did you do?). Is the CB1100 a true improvement/replacement over the CB750, or do they compliment each other? My Nighthawk is bone stock, with the exception of a beautiful 4-1 Supertrapp exhaust system, Progressive springs up front, some key OEM add-ons, and a Corbin seat. Braking is decent now, especially after a full rebuild of the front master cylinder, but they lack compared to modern setups. It produces about 80 hp at the crank with the Supertrapp installed. Overall, I am happy with the performance, but I would like a bit more low-down torque, hence the reason for my interest in the CB1100. I could use the money to put towards the CB1100, but I worry about "giving it away".



Oh one other point... my Nighthawk is only 5-speed, and I find that the engine is revving fairly high at highway speeds... and this is another reason why I am craving a larger displacement motorcycle. What rpms are you turning at say 120 km/hr? Sorry I don't have the mph conversion. Thanks!

I noticed yesterday the CB1100 in 5th gear doing 70MPH was at 4K RPM's.
The 2014 model has a 6th gear which should bring that down quite a bit.

[noytacccp_imp]

interesting. At 70 mph, I am doing about 4400 rpm. Pretty close to the 2013 model.

[flynrider]

120 kph works out to 75 mph. My Nighthawk 750 is turning 5,000 rpm in 5th gear at that speed. My CB11 turns 4,200 rpm in 5th gear.

Personally, I think 5K rpm on the Nighthawk is the sweet spot in the power band. If you really want to lower the rpm a 16 tooth front sprocket will take it down to about 4,600 rpm at 75mph.

I kept my Nighthawk when I got the CB11. After 17 yrs., I couldn't bear to part with it. My riding is pretty evenly split between the Nighthawk and the CB11.

[clearviewx]

Beautiful Nighthawk

[OldF7Guy_imp]

I just got a 750 Nighthawk this winter and have finally been able to really put some miles on it. I put about 125 on it today and when I got home I thought to myself I like this thing more and more every time I ride it. What scares me is how I would like a CB11 if I ever rode one.

I did put a 16 tooth on mine and at 4500 which is where I tend to keep it on the parkways and interstates I am at about 71-72-73 mph give or take. It pulls it just fine. I can tell there is some slight loss of acceleration but its minimal and suits my riding style better.

For the money a NH is a bargain hard to beat. For all out best standard ever the 1100 cant be beat in my opinion. I am very very happy with my NH but in the very back of my mind is an 1100 lurking. The one thing about the 11 I so wish I had was fuel injection. My carbs work great. Starts good, runs good, idles good, but can be a bit tricky to start when its between hot and cold. That is life with carbs even when they are dialed in almost perfectly and mine are I think. A little more power would not hurt either even though the 750 hauls pretty darn good.

All of the things that the 11 is better at adds up but it adds up to a bigger price tag too. If I could afford one I would probably trade up but there is nothing wrong with a NH750. Its the next best thing imo to the 11.

[pw363_imp]

That is a beautiful nighthawk. If you decide to "give it away" I'll take it. However I would advise you to keep it.

[the Ferret]

Heres one thread abput nighthawk vs cb1100

http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread....+Nighthawk

If you type 750 Nighthawk in our search engine, you will find a few more.

[Romo1969_imp]

That's tough
Your bike is so nice. But I recently let a similar bike go. Felt it went to a good home. I refused to sell to to some squid.
It will likely be hard for you to let her go but you will love the new cb and quickly forget.
Just don't give it away for less than u should.



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[noytacccp_imp]

From my research here, the big differences seem to be modern intake, better braking, a bit more power, and slightly better handling with the CB1100. I can't imagine "fit and finish" being better on the CB1100. My Nighthawk looks like it rolled off a showroom floor... and our weather here is brutal. Honda did good work on the Nighthawk finishing, and I suspect the CB1100 would be the same.

As I noted earlier, I did address the front brakes by rebuilding the front master cylinder (easy) and added new fluid. It helped immensely, but yes, they aren't "stoppie" material. Funny, the rear drum works great, and in fact, works just as good as the rear discs on every modern motorcycle I've owned in the past. The plus to the brakes on the Nighthawk is simplicity: it's dead easy to adjust the rear drum, and super dead easy to bleed a single disc up front! My last ride was a 2001 BMW K1200RS... think "servo assist" brakes with countless bleed nipples! No thanks.

I have never been blown away by the handling on any modern standard (I chose comfort and upright riding position over a torture rack for a reason), but adding Progressive springs up front made a world of difference. In fact, I will add Progressive springs to every motorcycle I own on a go-forward basis.

With the Supertrapp full system exhaust, I noticed a marked improvement in top end hp. She's putting out a respectable 80 hp on top (a gain of 5 hp). The trick to tuning with the Supertrapp discs is to ensure no loss of bottom end torque. 7 or 8 discs seems to be the magic number (sounds good too). Overall, very happy with power. More torque, however, is always nice. Another point worth noting is that the factory boat anchors weigh exactly 28.9 pounds more than the Supertrapp system. A big weight savings!

Overall, I don't think my Nighthawk loses much against the new CB1100, but as others have said, "time marches on", and modern technology certainly makes life easier. While my carbs have never been an issue, using a choke lever during cold morning start-ups is an extra step I don't particularly love. I would also like a sixth gear to bring down rpms at highway speeds (partly to maintain fuel efficiency). I suppose a 16-tooth sprocket is a cheaper solution.

Having said all that, I think I will test ride a '13 CB1100 (as they're on sale now), and if I like it, I will buy it. I also decided to keep my '01 Nighthawk and use it for lighter runs and local city riding. If my Nighthawk was more worn or beaten, and didn't have all the OEM add-ons or the Supertrapp, I think I would have sold it. Perhaps I will sell it down the road... but it has remained in my garage long after other more expensive and sophisticated motorcycles have come and gone... we'll see.

Last question to you all... what kind of mileage are you getting?

I am averaging 42 to 45 mpg. I suspect with FI you are getting better numbers?