Almost sold the CB

[ClassicVW_imp]

Even though I posted that I was considering luggage for my CB, I agree with what you said that it's not a touring bike. Its not. Since I'm in the process of downsizing my M/C fleet, I am just looking for a way to not have a long distance bike parked in my garage just for maybe an occasional weekend trip.
Yes, you can tour on most anything. You can also drag race on a 250, but it doesn't mean you'd be all that successful.

Heck, years ago a family of 4 would go on a cross country vacation in a VW Beetle. That don't mean it's a good idea in 2015 when highway traffic is moving at 80MPH. Or 2015 when my wife would need more than the Beetle's trunk space just for hair care products.....

 

[Novice_imp]

When one talks of touring it's like talking about camping. Seems to be two camps (no pun intended), the "drop me in the wilderness naked crowd" and the "where to I park this tour bus crowd".

My ideal touring items list: Leathers, helmet, socks, T-shirt, underwear, deodorant, toothbrush, cell phone, charger, AAA card, credit card, map, license, insurance card, a whole bunch of cash, and a small back pack to put it all in.

Just point me to the hotels and restaurants because if I'm in the good old USA, I'm not sleeping on the ground unless I'm on the lam.

CB should work fine for me.

If the family is going, a motorcycle is out regardless of how much storage it has.

 

[Cormanus]

Stick to your guns uscgmac. I really don't know whether the CB's a good touring bike. I've toured on it (with plenty piled aboard but no sail) and I like it, but I've never owned a touring bike and tried it. Maybe if I had, I'd be hollering in support.

Trouble is, I'm a one-bike kinda guy for various reasons and, as you say about the CB, it is an all round great bike, so I'll be touring on it for the foreseeable future. And I'll almost certainly continue to be very happy.

 

[uscgmac_imp]

Well I'm going to let the guys who want to call it a Tourer do so even though I don't really agree. I have a 2014 HD Ultra, now that's what you call a touring bike. Loading up our bike like a mule walking down the grand canyon is not always safe nor practical but doesn't mean that someone can't just pack light and just go. We all have our different views, I did not think that we would all agree on this to begin with. I respect the other opinions.

 

[Cormanus]

Yes. I suppose I took a long way to say that we respect your opinion too.

 

[Lord Popgun]

I agree with USMC. I love my CB, but for distance riding, I want my ST. And although Ferret would ride to the Moon and back on a Honda 125 if there was a road, he has an ST too.

 

[the Ferret]

I submit it's only the way we view touring bikes that have changed and not whether a bike is suitable for touring or not. lets go back to 1975. Certainly people toured on motorcycles in 1975 ( I did). The 2 top rated touring bikes were the BMW R75 a naked 750 twin cyl, 50 hp with a 5 speed transmission, that weighed 465 pounds.... and the naked Honda GL1000 a 4 cyl bike that boasted a whopping 78 hp, with a 5 speed trans that weighed 601 pounds. Both bikes rode on tubed bias ply tires. Neither bike came from the factory equipped with fairing or bags, but those accessories were added aftermarket, mostly by companies like Vetter, Krauser, Bates, Wixom etc. Yep even back then guys were hanging windsails on naked bikes, ruining the lines and I suppose the handling, certainly the looks. Yes people transversed the country from Maine to California in relative comfort two up. Compare that situation to the CB1100 a naked 4 cyl with 88 hp and a 6 speed trans (14 models) that weighs around 550 pounds.

Now the highways are still asphalt and go to the same places. The interstate system has been roughly the same since the 1950s, and when I ride to the rally in a couple weeks I will be riding I-75, 411 and 441, the exact same roads I road when I went their the first time with my wife ( then fiancé) in 1973.

Roads the same, bikes the same (actually the Cb 1100 is superior in every way compared to the BMW and Wing) .... What's the diff? Are you saying there were no touring bikes prior to the 1984 Honda Goldwing Interstate?

Our perception is the only thing that has changed. We now believe that a bike has to weigh 700 pounds, have 150 hp, and come equipped with a factory fairing, bags and a small luggage rack to be considered a touring bike...

And if you add those things aftermarket (as we used to do when touring before 1984) it can't be considered suitable for touring? Really?

 

[emptysea]

I'm going with "Retro- Tourer" LOL

And to toss in my two cents, no one is calling this bike a Tourer. Rather that say that it works well as a tourer, which it does. It's not perfect at the job to be sure, but it does work well. When compared to the ST or other purpose-built sport-tourers, it will fall short. That doesn't mean it's a poor platform for touring, just not as good as purpose-built bikes. I can load it with everything I need for a week-long ride, without hard cases or a windscreen, and enjoy the trip as much as anyone on a Wing or an ST. The only difference is that I have to stop for gas more frequently, but heck, the guys I ride with have to stop to pee every 150, so it's a wash.

 

[redbirds_imp]

In 1973 I had a BMW R/75. It was my only transportation, my commuter on work days and, with some old US Army backpacks and stuffbags, my touring bike on vacations. The only mods were a Vetter fairing and Fiaam air horns. Without a headwind it would do an indicated 105 mph and regularly delivered 50+ mpg. Of all the bikes I've owned since that time the CB1100 most gives the same sense of purpose as the R/75. Capable of just about any reasonable chore that one might expect a street bike to do.

 

[Redbird_imp]

I had a 1997 Valkyrie for 12 years. It was a standard, but I added the windshield, Champion hard bags, a Givi trunk, Baker Air Wings (which were amazing in the way they kept the warm air from the radiator on you when cold and by opening them, off you when hot out) and a Russell Day Long seat. I went on multiday tours with a group of GoldWing riders and I never wished once that I had one. I really liked that bike but the weight of it when moving out of the garage or around the parking lot finally convinced me that I would be more comfortable with a lighter weight bike. I was 71 then. So I sold it and got a NT700V. I had that for 2 years then got a used FJR. When I got the CB1100, and impulse purchase for me, I thought I would keep the FJR but I find I don't take multiday tours as much as I used to so yesterday I put the FJR up for sale. I'll use the CB1100 for touring as well as for local riding and I think it will work just fine for the occasional multiday trip. It will have a sail up front and bags and perhaps something like Baker Air Wings for touring. Not as tour specific as the FJR but at 75 now I could not justify having the FJR hanging out in the garage while I mostly ride the CB and do not do much multiday touring anymore. So, while the CB is not a purpose built touring bike, it should work OK for the occasional multiday trip.

Ken

 

[Griso Guy_imp]

After much thought I recently purchased a 2007 Ducati ST3. A dedicated purpose built sport tourer. My CB is a wonderful weekender, a "just go for a ride" bike. But at this stage of my life I find my self wanting to go somewhere. That usually means a blast down one of the super slabs to get "somewhere". I have no doubt some can tour on the CB, load it up with duffels, soft bags and a windshield and never miss a beat. I know this because I did the very same thing back in the 1970's in Ohio when I was in my early 30's. I'm 66 now and I require a certain level of comfort and competency. I ride in the Western USA and by and large the roads are wider, traffic travels faster, and bikes and riders take a beating just getting to those secondary roads where you can throttle back and enjoy the scenery. Just my $.02.
My CB1100DLX is once again back on the market.

 

[the Ferret]

Congrats on the Duc. Hope it is everything you wish it to be.

 

[Novice_imp]

I submit it's only the way we view touring bikes that have changed and not whether a bike is suitable for touring or not. lets go back to 1975. Certainly people toured on motorcycles in 1975 ( I did). The 2 top rated touring bikes were the BMW R75 a naked 750 twin cyl, 50 hp with a 5 speed transmission, that weighed 465 pounds.... and the naked Honda GL1000 a 4 cyl bike that boasted a whopping 78 hp, with a 5 speed trans that weighed 601 pounds. Both bikes rode on tubed bias ply tires. Neither bike came from the factory equipped with fairing or bags, but those accessories were added aftermarket, mostly by companies like Vetter, Krauser, Bates, Wixom etc. Yep even back then guys were hanging windsails on naked bikes, ruining the lines and I suppose the handling, certainly the looks. Yes people transversed the country from Maine to California in relative comfort two up. Compare that situation to the CB1100 a naked 4 cyl with 88 hp and a 6 speed trans (14 models) that weighs around 550 pounds.

Now the highways are still asphalt and go to the same places. The interstate system has been roughly the same since the 1950s, and when I ride to the rally in a couple weeks I will be riding I-75, 411 and 441, the exact same roads I road when I went their the first time with my wife ( then fiancé) in 1973.

Roads the same, bikes the same (actually the Cb 1100 is superior in every way compared to the BMW and Wing) .... What's the diff? Are you saying there were no touring bikes prior to the 1984 Honda Goldwing Interstate?

Our perception is the only thing that has changed. We now believe that a bike has to weigh 700 pounds, have 150 hp, and come equipped with a factory fairing, bags and a small luggage rack to be considered a touring bike...

And if you add those things aftermarket (as we used to do when touring before 1984) it can't be considered suitable for touring? Really?

Very well stated. :worship:

 

[rboe]

Perception for sure. We used to have standard bikes and used them for everything. Then things started to specialize. Dirt bikes, enduro's, touring bikes and adventure bikes. Meh. You get the bike you can afford for the task(s) and hand and if some days it has to wear a touring cap; well by golly you have a touring bike.

I don't think I'll tour on mine for several reasons; but I have choices.

 

[Novice_imp]

Choices are great. No single bike will fill every roll, there will always be compromises. For those of us who can only afford one and want to do lots of things with it, it can be a tough decision in a world of specialization.

 

[ChipBeck_imp]

Gentlemen,

Touring on any motorcycle is a big challenge. No one would consider the Mazda Miata to be a "touring car" but even it beats the whiz out of a Goldwing in luggage carrying, wind protection, passenger comfort, and maybe even mileage. Touring on a bike is like hunting with a bow. It's fun because it's a challenge. Some men think that hunting with a modern compound bow is too easy so they use an old style recurve bow. And some take it farther and hunt with Middle Ages technology long bows. Personally when I see someone on the highway riding a full dress Goldwing pulling a small trailer I think it's ridiculous. At what point should you just drive a car? I own a Harley touring bike as well and have travelled a fair bit on it. But this summer my son and I are riding to Montana and back and I'll probably take the CB11.

Compared to a new Suburban the finest touring bikes suck wind. But we ride them because there is adventure in the challenge of motorcycle touring. Like John Kennedy said when he put our nation on a path to the first moon landing, "We do not do these things because they are easy, we do them because they are hard". When I was in college the CB11 would have been a world beating tour bike. With the right attitude it is today as well. Cheers.

Chip

 

[rboe]

Ask not what your bike can do for you,
but what you can do for your bike.

RLETS..... :angel:

 

[Griso Guy_imp]

Ask not what your bike can do for you,
but what you can do for your bike.

RLETS..... :angel:

Rboe, nice word play! :clap:

 

[the Ferret]

"Some men think that hunting with a modern compound bow is too easy so they use an old style recurve bow. And some take it farther and hunt with Middle Ages technology long bows. "

:hello: yes sir. Make my own bows with quarter splits of osage, using draw knives, rasps and cabinet scrapers. Make my arrows from river cane, hand strip my wild turkey wing feathers for fletching, and bind them with sinew I've pounded myself and make my own hunting heads from band saw blades which I sharpen with a file (my knives too). Wear plaid instead of camo.

Touring on an modern 1100 4 cyl motorcycle, even without a fairing and hard luggage? LOL piece of cake!