CB1100 good for Touring?!

[SportsterDoc]

You will not regret it. The CB 1100 is a beautiful precision machine. It is a masterpiece of engineering, machining and ergonomics. They thought of everything with this one.

Almost!
Would like ambient temperature indication.

 

[misterprofessionality]

Welcome Big-X.

Tell us about your CB.

Not much to tell, don't have any accessories. 2014 model, not deluxe . . . Great machine though! Had an '06 Ducati GT 1000 and this bike reminds me a lot of the GT. Haven't tried to do any wheelies or anything on the Honda though Lol!

It might be that it's a bit too heavy for Sick Whoolies.

 

[VLJ_imp]

In the right hands, the CB1100 will wheelie like a fiend.

 

[Slow Poke_imp]

I would definitely tour on a CB1100. It's more than comfy enough. It's easy to focus on things like big fairings, hard bags and huge fuel tanks when thinking about touring by bike. What I have learned over the years is that the fatigue level one feels after riding a few hours is the most important. Some bikes are a lot of work to ride. Some bikes beat you up over time with either vibration, uncomfortable position for hands and feet, buffeting or just plain squirrelly road manners. My CB1100 has none of these bad habits. I put the Honda rear rack on for practicality and a road comet 2 fairing because it looks cool, and I'm good to go anywhere.

 

[4 Paws_imp]

Touring?
Depends on what you consider touring. If you want to spend 8-10 hours at a time blasting down the interstate seeing how many places you can pass by as fast as possible then there are plenty of heavy large displacement plastic and metal monsters to choose from. If you want to ride all day, or just part of one, on a well made dependable and good looking classic motorcycle then you should take a long look at the CB.
5 or 6 speeds is a valid decision. Price is also a consideration. But this isn't a motorcycle to be evaluated on a spreadsheet.
Most of us have owned, or do own, other bikes yet we still sing the praises of the CB for a reason. Its a good combination of power, weight, seat height, and looks. I enjoy this bike on multiway and multistage rides, many of my day trips stretch to lots of miles simply because this bike will cover ground without discomfort. I usually stop every couple of hours for a drink of water so fuel range is not an issue but an opportunity to hydrate and refocus.

 

[dbarkdoll_imp]

+1 on riding sans windscreen. The CB is a perfectly competant machine for short touring and has carried me on some incredible adventures, with many more to come!

 

[Cormanus]

Why only short touring, dbarkdoll?

 

[Frulk_imp]

Solid thread with a A LOT of good input by everyone!

IamLegend, you describe exactly the kind of "touring" that I do. 2-4 day 350 miles per day, camping off the bike romps.

Back in the day we didn't have all these niches that tried to convince us you needed a specific bike for a specific riding style. You rode what you had. Case in Point below. Best bike for touring. No. Can you tour on it. Yup. Are there better choices? Yup.

In sport, a utility player is one who can play several positions competently, a sort of jack of all trades. I consider the CB1100 one of the utility players of the bike world. It might not be the BEST choice for coast to coast riding but it CAN do it, and better than a lot of its peers. That's because at its core it's a UJM and that platform allows itself to be applied to a number of riding styles. It's heavy enough on the road to be stable in high crosswinds. In spite of its weight it's nimble enough to push trough twisty canyons competently. It's as reliable as an anvil. What's that worth 500 miles from home? If you have cast wheels you can plug flats and be back on the road in 10 minutes, again, what's that worth on the back roads of Maine with an approaching downpour and no town in sight for 20+ miles? It has more than enough power to pass at freeway speeds fully loaded without causing undue drama or having to plan to have two miles of open road to attempt it. It has enough space to kit out with baggage in a number of configurations. See below

Not trying to tell you this is the do all, end all bike for your purpose and style of touring. Note that I'm in Utah and our weather here is much drier. The few rainstorms I've ridden through, (while close to epic) I didn't miss the windshield or fairing something like an FJ provides because I ride with heavy chaps, fully armored with helmet, waterproof boots etc. and just don't miss or need the extra protection. However, back east that may be a consideration.

Lastly, I don't use windshields. I have the aluminum fly screen there just to keep my gauge cluster clean and also a Dart fly screen. I like a clean wind stream that keeps my helmet from being buffeted. Wind pressure on my chest is a non issue for me at speeds of 80 mph.

 

[jimgl3_imp]

you asked... the CB is not great at anything, well, except warming my heart... but it is good at anything you want to do on it. you may have to swap out tires for some things, but with the right tires mounted, and a few accessories, you will not be embarrassed anywhere, from the dirt roads to the race track.

 

[Big-X_imp]

Got a picture with the fairing and the rack Slow Poke!

 

[Wisedrum]

The CB is good at anything with the exception of bumby dirt roads. I never would do with it slighty sort of crossriding. The ground clearence is to small. In my opinion the Honda as a streetbike is more build for plain surfaces. Even rolling down from a higher sidewalk can damage the upper side of the engine and exhaust system as I unluckily found out. No big damage but enough to know the small limits of this bike construction for this kind of riding.

Wisedrum

 

[jimgl3_imp]

yeah, I was sort of thinking skid plate in those accessories I mentioned...

 

[Bheezy27403_imp]

The CB is good at anything with the exception of bumby dirt roads. I never would do with it slighty sort of crossriding. The ground clearence is to small. In my opinion the Honda as a streetbike is more build for plain surfaces. Even rolling down from a higher sidewalk can damage the upper side of the engine and exhaust system as I unluckily found out. No big damage but enough to know the small limits of this bike construction for this kind of riding.

Wisedrum

I have accidentally done several miles on single lane, dirt/jagged rock roads in the North Carolina mountains. Up and over 2 mountains to be specific. Would I do it again given a choice, no, but, she came out the other side with only a chain adjustment needed. I was very impressed.

Am I saying she's an ADV bike, of course not, but she sure surprised the heck outta me with her versatility and poise.

 

[Roper_imp]

You could change the sprocket to get lower gearing, change the suspension for more travel, get spoke wheels and tires with more aggressive tread, retrofit some kind of higher exhaust to run along the side, and put a bash plate on the bottom of the cradle. Then you'd have a really cool scrambler! It would still be heavy, though. And pretty expensive for all those mods. Might as well just by a scrambler.

 

[Bheezy27403_imp]

Looking at the front fender on that Scram I don't know what kind of off-roading you could do. That thing is virtually laying on the tire!

 

[Banned_imp]

You could change the sprocket to get lower gearing, change the suspension for more travel, get spoke wheels and tires with more aggressive tread, retrofit some kind of higher exhaust to run along the side, and put a bash plate on the bottom of the cradle. Then you'd have a really cool scrambler! It would still be heavy, though. And pretty expensive for all those mods. Might as well just by a scrambler.

I have never ridden a "scrambler" so forgive me if this is a stupid question but how do you not burn your leg on the exhaust:huh:

 

[LongRanger_imp]

Looking at the front fender on that Scram I don't know what kind of off-roading you could do. That thing is virtually laying on the tire!

Don't be fooled. It's a street bike with an aspirational name!

 

[Bheezy27403_imp]

Oh I know. I pretty much own the same bike in a different guise. You might as well call a ford explorer an "off road" vehicle.

I guess it is called a "street" scrambler, whatever the heck that means.

 

[alprider]

ask our member "itsme67".......with his wife sometimes across all of Europe...100000km in 2 1/2 years ..at time he has ca 150000km of his 2014 DLX /EX

Honda CB 1100 EX - Motorräder und Touren

 

[the Ferret]

150,000 kms....wow that's 93,000 miles. He's a rider for sure!

Looks like he had a broken spoke or two. I can't read German..any other issues?

Looks like he uses Metzler Z8's and EBC pads.

You could change the sprocket to get lower gearing, change the suspension for more travel, get spoke wheels and tires with more aggressive tread, retrofit some kind of higher exhaust to run along the side, and put a bash plate on the bottom of the cradle. Then you'd have a really cool scrambler! It would still be heavy, though. And pretty expensive for all those mods. Might as well just by a scrambler.

I have never ridden a "scrambler" so forgive me if this is a stupid question but how do you not burn your leg on the exhaust:huh:

Heat guards on the exhaust