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Ah, the striping on the tank is what threw me, I was under the assumption that most 81s had the black on the bottom with a white pinstripe. I really do like the twin shockers, with that enormous 23in front wheel. That's a great looking old bike, and beautiful country to ride it in.
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dude I had a Z1000 and now I have the CB....sure the Z was quicker like your bandit, but I really enjoy the CB. Here is my personal pro/con list:
Pros -
cheap & super easy to maintain - dude tires are only like $130-150 a set!!
plenty of real-world power for me. I've run 7.7 in the 1/8, and I'm FAR from proficient at drag racing (and at the time I was 260lbs)
looks - goes without saying
I added a slip on, pcv and k&n, I'm at 89whp. headers would put me in the mid-90's easily
bike handles great for me, but i'm not using it to carve corners. it will do every bit of what I ask from it.
Cons -
speed limiter - I don't make it a habit to ride fast, but I like to blast down a track from time to time
not much aftermarket support yet, but seems like that is changing
resale value, I would buy used if i had to do it all over again
the seat took some getting used to, it feels very narrow at the front, but now I'm pretty used to it
insurance - I fig'd having a relatively docile standard bike would be cheap to insure....but not for me it isn't! I was shocked!
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We can be a bit biased here which shouldn't come as a surprise. So you're asking a bit of a baited question in a sense.
Obviously, a test ride can't be beat for figuring out how you might get along with the bike. If that's not possible, I'd encourage you to have a look at the [url=http://rideapart.com/2013/07/rideapart-review-2013-honda-cb1100-abs/]CB1100 Review that they did on rideapart.com. I found it to be one of the more balanced, and extensive reviews that I've found on the CB and I agree with most of what was written.
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Find a new insurance company. After being with Progressive forever with no claims, the wanted an arm and a leg to add the CB1100. They rated it the same as the CBR1000. No amount of discussion with managers could sort the issue. So new insurance company with a rate ⅛ of Progressive.
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Thanks again for the replies and link, and I like hearing lower maintenance and tire cost. I know that it is easy to be biased towards something you've dropped a lot of money on, however I wanted to hear some experiences from people that actually own one, both good and bad. I'm hoping I can find one to demo/test ride somewhere in the east TN/Western NC/SE VA area, but until then, I'm going to be relying on other's opinions and experiences and trying to read every review I can find.
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(04-21-2014, 10:31 AM)enzo_imp Wrote: An 81, the last before they mounted the mono shock and made the XLR.
Nice bike and great shot, Enzo. Where's it taken?
Zeevo, I can't help on the comparison, but the CB is a lovely bike to ride and surprisingly light and agile the moment it starts moving. I bought mine after reading lots of reviews and a very brief test ride which just confirmed what I expected. I think the advice to test if you can is sound, because only you will know whether it fails to meet your expectations. Good luck. I hope you end up joining us, although I expect you'd be welcome to stick around anyway. People here are very tolerant.
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It's a bike that makes you want to take it out at 11pm at night just for the sake of riding it and for no other purpose...I've ridden a mate's naked Bandit and it would never pass that test! (Although they are a good solid bike) I reckon a 5 min test ride will have it sorted for you either way, yea or nay.
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Hi folks,
Hope things are good! Had 600 and 1200 Bandits also 650 and 1250 versions. All I can say is that my new CB 1100 does everything the Suzukis do, but has a much better power curve. And is better built! Both great bikes but the CB justs gets my vote.
Stay shiny side up!
Take care
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Cormanus, In Elliston SA.....
Great place for a trail bike ...along the dirt of the bight and the great Southern Ocean.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Ell...54628edcb0
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(04-21-2014, 10:47 PM)enzo_imp Wrote: Cormanus, In Elliston SA.....
Great place for a trail bike ...along the dirt of the bight and the great Southern Ocean.https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Ell...54628edcb0
Nice. I'll have to get down there on a bike some day.