TALK ME OUT OF IT!

[JustPassinThru_imp]

Just don't know...

Like I said. A new poster popped up; he's a day's ride from me; and wanted to buy. Save me the hassle of prepping for winter storage, anyway. I could re-evaluate things come spring - I might be slimmer and stronger or in a wheelchair who knows?

I can see now, how some older riders get scared into trikes. I won't go that way, though...and I don't think I need to, not yet.

 

[Cormanus]

I sympathise JPT. The CB1100 is a wonderful bike and a delight to ride, but it's not much fun in tight spaces and it can be a real pain when there are slippery surfaces and slight inclines involved when you have to park or manoeuvre it. It's about the only think I don't like about the bike—that and the fact that it doesn't yet have a flux capacitor. As I mostly use mine away from built up areas, I can suck it up, but I wouldn't really want it as a commuter.

Tough choice.

 

[JustPassinThru_imp]

I sympathise JPT. The CB1100 is a wonderful bike and a delight to ride, but it's not much fun in tight spaces and it can be a real pain when there are slippery surfaces and slight inclines involved when you have to park or manoeuvre it. It's about the only think I don't like about the bike—that and the fact that it doesn't yet have a flux capacitor. As I mostly use mine away from built up areas, I can suck it up, but I wouldn't really want it as a commuter.

Tough choice.

That's just it. I HAVE a smaller bike, a TW200. Fine for around-town business. I'm in a small town so going one end to the other is less than five miles. No real need for freeway travel.

The TW is much, much lighter and a JOY to whip through curves and in traffic. It's grossly underpowered, but...you can't have everything.

What I'd like to find, at this point, would be a middleweight which could handle higher speeds...and maybe even some touring. But if I do that, the CB has to go. Space is limited.

 

[LongRanger_imp]

I sympathise JPT. The CB1100 is a wonderful bike and a delight to ride, but it's not much fun in tight spaces and it can be a real pain when there are slippery surfaces and slight inclines involved when you have to park or manoeuvre it. It's about the only think I don't like about the bike—that and the fact that it doesn't yet have a flux capacitor. As I mostly use mine away from built up areas, I can suck it up, but I wouldn't really want it as a commuter.

Tough choice.

That's just it. I HAVE a smaller bike, a TW200. Fine for around-town business. I'm in a small town so going one end to the other is less than five miles. No real need for freeway travel.

The TW is much, much lighter and a JOY to whip through curves and in traffic. It's grossly underpowered, but...you can't have everything.

What I'd like to find, at this point, would be a middleweight which could handle higher speeds...and maybe even some touring. But if I do that, the CB has to go. Space is limited.

Look into an F800GT. 90 hp, 460 lbs, integrated luggage, belt drive, heated grips, ABS, moderate wind protection.

 

[ClassicVW_imp]

Or the bike I sold to buy my CB- Honda NT700V. Middle weight, great wind protection, enough power, and integrated hard luggage.

 

[rboe]

I think you should look real hard at the Moto Guzzi V7. Deals to be had on new old stock with the V7-II out now.

 

[JustPassinThru_imp]

We'll see.

I have all winter to think about it.

 

[Cormanus]

I sympathise JPT. The CB1100 is a wonderful bike and a delight to ride, but it's not much fun in tight spaces and it can be a real pain when there are slippery surfaces and slight inclines involved when you have to park or manoeuvre it. It's about the only think I don't like about the bike—that and the fact that it doesn't yet have a flux capacitor. As I mostly use mine away from built up areas, I can suck it up, but I wouldn't really want it as a commuter.

Tough choice.

That's just it. I HAVE a smaller bike, a TW200. Fine for around-town business. I'm in a small town so going one end to the other is less than five miles. No real need for freeway travel.

The TW is much, much lighter and a JOY to whip through curves and in traffic. It's grossly underpowered, but...you can't have everything.

What I'd like to find, at this point, would be a middleweight which could handle higher speeds...and maybe even some touring. But if I do that, the CB has to go. Space is limited.

Is getting a light-middle weight, losing the TW200 and keeping the CB an option? Or is it that the CB is just such an awkward lump in confined spaces at low speed that makes you think a middleweight may be a better choice?

I've ridden an NC750 with integrated luggage a couple of times and have thought it would be a perfectly acceptable bike. I'd be happy enough to do some touring on it. Don't know if they sell it in the US.

 

[JustPassinThru_imp]

I sympathise JPT. The CB1100 is a wonderful bike and a delight to ride, but it's not much fun in tight spaces and it can be a real pain when there are slippery surfaces and slight inclines involved when you have to park or manoeuvre it. It's about the only think I don't like about the bike—that and the fact that it doesn't yet have a flux capacitor. As I mostly use mine away from built up areas, I can suck it up, but I wouldn't really want it as a commuter.

Tough choice.

That's just it. I HAVE a smaller bike, a TW200. Fine for around-town business. I'm in a small town so going one end to the other is less than five miles. No real need for freeway travel.

The TW is much, much lighter and a JOY to whip through curves and in traffic. It's grossly underpowered, but...you can't have everything.

What I'd like to find, at this point, would be a middleweight which could handle higher speeds...and maybe even some touring. But if I do that, the CB has to go. Space is limited.

Is getting a light-middle weight, losing the TW200 and keeping the CB an option? Or is it that the CB is just such an awkward lump in confined spaces at low speed that makes you think a middleweight may be a better choice?

I've ridden an NC750 with integrated luggage a couple of times and have thought it would be a perfectly acceptable bike. I'd be happy enough to do some touring on it. Don't know if they sell it in the US.

Is getting a light-middle weight, losing the TW200 and keeping the CB an option? Or is it that the CB is just such an awkward lump in confined spaces at low speed that makes you think a middleweight may be a better choice?

I've ridden an NC750 with integrated luggage a couple of times and have thought it would be a perfectly acceptable bike. I'd be happy enough to do some touring on it. Don't know if they sell it in the US.
The TW suits me so very well...the high mileage; its seating position. It's perfect for short around-town hops. Now, we all snicker about The Zombie Apocalypse...but if something bad does happen, it's the perfect sort of bad-times transportation.

I don't know if a middleweight will be a better choice. It may be more a matter of me than of the machine - I know, from experience, the CB is easier to live with than many bigger bikes. There's no real pressure to sell it...just a sad acknowledging a reality.

Not unlike when I sold my R1200GS. I loved it but it was getting to where I dreaded getting on and off it. And when I had an issue with my leg on a trip...would have been bad on any bike; but on that tall, heavy thing, it was really fearful.

That was just outside of Joblin, Missouri...days after that tornado. I missed the storm, but coming through there with a medical issue and that big heavy bike as my only transportation...almost as bad.

I took that as a wake-up call. This may be the SNOOZE alarm going off. I don't know...

...no hurry. Winter is coming. Today I filled the tank, including Sta-Bil; and pulled the battery. Season's over.

 

[Cormanus]

Winter is indeed coming*, JPT, but that is another story altogether.

Seriously, I'm finding the articulation of your thinking about whether this is the right bike for you really interesting. The tension between sticking with an object one loves (if that's not too strong a word) and the recognition that it may not be the most practical choice is an interesting one I think.


*May be a poor literary reference here

 

[JustPassinThru_imp]

Well...the first signs of spring.

I did pull the trigger. I sold the CB and have a new Wee-Strom.

Spring has come early to the Five Valleys region of the Bitterroots...and I got some riding in, Wednesday and today, on my new Wee. About 350 miles on it.

For what it's worth. Now, I realize where I'm at - this is a CB board and I'm praising an entirely different machine.

But...really...it is what it is.

I do miss the classic styling. And I don't get the double-takes, either. Actually I am getting some, only because it's so early in the season. Even so, I'm not the only rider out and about.

But anyway. Ride experience...I'm finding...for me...the ergonomics are so much better. The mini-windshield and faired front end do cut the wind noise and pressure. Quiet and comfortable. And, the Wee being so commonplace...I got an excellent, inexpensive set of heated grips. Good to have in this fifty-degree weather.

Vibration. Of course with a V-Twin there's vibration. But...and this is a revelation to me...it's not a high-pitched buzzing. More of a much-lower oscillation shake that is not-at-all unpleasant. I'm completely fine with it.

Power. Still breaking in the Wee; but first impressions match the spec sheet. Much less - and that is to be expected. But my hotshoe days are over; and if I can judge, even the Wee will be able to crack triple-digits once broken in.

Final thoughts: First, all this crying in our beers for the old days, when bikes were REAL and men were men...is so much rotgut. These really are the Good Old Days - of fuel injection and balanced chassis and digital instrument clusters and heated grips and alternators. I compare this to my SR 500...no, I don't want to go back. I'll take the quiet, no-buffeting ride on the Wee any day.

That's true, for me, of the CB as well. Of course, FI made it a sweet runner. It had more power than a sane man could use. But that buzzing vibration...it needs balancing shafts. And the buffeting of a naked bike...I guess as I'm getting older, I'm getting less tolerant.

The CB is, in some places, classified as a "Cafe Racer." I think that's correct. It's a beautiful machine; it's a genuflection towards Honda's history and past; and it's fun to ride across town. As a touring rig...it's just not there.

As a utility ride...the very design of the chassis, with dual rear shock/springs...it's not there either.

As a long-distance ride...better pack the handlebars with lead shot. Otherwise the neuralgia in your hands will make you pack it in early.

Here's my take: The CB is middling as one's ONLY machine. Those of us, many, who can afford more than one...there should be room in the garage for a CB. It's significant. It's fun, for what it's for. It's beautiful.

But there are other machines, more nondescript, less spectacular, which do the day-touring, the light-trail-riding, the longer-trips and the severe riding, better.

Peace.

 

[the Ferret]

Hey JPT, we are all motorcyclists here first and CB enthusiasts second so I think I can speak for most when I say we are glad you sound something that you feel will make you happy.

The SV is a terrific motorcycle with a huge following, and a terrific aftmarket and probably a very active forum.

best of luck with the SV.

Didnt you pick up an electric zero? Did that not work out?

 

[JustPassinThru_imp]

Hey JPT, we are all motorcyclists here first and CB enthusiasts second so I think I can speak for most when I say we are glad you sound something that you feel will make you happy.

The SV is a terrific motorcycle with a huge following, and a terrific aftmarket and probably a very active forum.

best of luck with the SV.

Didnt you pick up an electric zero? Did that not work out?

I have that. It's a 2012...an early model. A running 2012 change moved from an open motor-case to a sealed case. I have an early open-motor model.

That's important. The open motor has issues with wet roads. It's not the best plan to be riding on streets with puddles that have various melting agents in with the water.

BUT...I've had it about, too. Had it up to 65 on the speedo...haven't got the GPS hooked up, so I don't know how fast it really was. But it keeps up with traffic.

The Zero...is my experiment. It will be my short-hop bike; my hot-hot-weather bike; my bike for when the price of gas hits $10/gallon, if it does. It's the bike I can run around the corner with, and not worry about what the short on/off cycle does to the engine; sludge buildup, whatever.

We'll see. It's probably not practical; but there's no accounting the lusts of a rider.

But, right now, I want to break in the Wee so when the weather really breaks, I can hit the roads and do legal speeds and not worry about break-in procedures...

 

[rboe]

You get it regarding the vibration. The Guzzi's are similar; an organic vibe vs. a buzz. Back in the good ol' days folks complained about vibration and what they really complained about was the high frequency. Low frequency vibes are OK though (as long as they are too high in amplitude).

I think a pulse like what Guzzi's and your Wee Strom have is even better than a bike with no vibration at all.

Please do more reports in Other Bikes if not here. So far, the CB does fit me well and the vibes are not objectionable at all. So far.

 

[chikers_imp]

Yea, JPT, I just traded my CB standard for a new FJ 09 last weekend. While I loved my CB, I realize now it did its job, which was to get me to love street motorcycles (I am a life-long motocross rider. The CB was my first real streetbike). I'm sure I'll miss the CB...beauty, style, and that classic soul you just don't always see in these new bikes...but, like I said, the CB opened my eyes to what's out there, and today, for me, it's the FJ 09. PS...still lurk on the forum because you are a great group of guys who love motorcycles. Other forums are loaded with negatively. I'd rather be around the positivity that lives here! so I check in often to see what I can learn.

 

[jedd_imp]

Hey JPT, we are all motorcyclists here first and CB enthusiasts second so I think I can speak for most when I say we are glad you sound something that you feel will make you happy.

The SV is a terrific motorcycle with a huge following, and a terrific aftmarket and probably a very active forum.

best of luck with the SV.

Didnt you pick up an electric zero? Did that not work out?

me thinks JPT went w/ a Vstrom, not an SV

 

[the Ferret]

650 Suzuki's are all the same arent they? just one is naked and one is dressed as an adv bike

cHikers, please post up something on your new acquisition in other bikes, and thanks for the kind words on the forum. Great group of people here.

 

[JustPassinThru_imp]

650 Suzuki's are all the same arent they? just one is naked and one is dressed as an adv bike

cHikers, please post up something on your new acquisition in other bikes, and thanks for the kind words on the forum. Great group of people here.

Pretty much.

I did almost buy a used SV. But with almost-zero-interest loans, I bought new...maybe foolish; but I got the MSRP cut a thousand dollars and then less than one-percent.

Can't match that with taking out of my savings to buy an SV. But...still...as far as I can see...the same basic chassis.

Too bad Suzuki is having such a hard time today. They have some EXCELLENT products.

 

[redbirds_imp]

Congrats on the new V-strom. I take Pamela's V-strom sometimes when running an errand in town and it's a sweet running bike. Strong points are smooth reliable motor, good ergos, fine stock seat and incredibly good fuel mileage.

Weaknesses are highly optimistic speedometer, easily corrected by changing to a 16 tooth counter shaft sprocket and weak brakes. The fellow that bought Pamela's '07 V-strom changed the front brakes to a salvage set from a GSX1000 along with braided steel lines. The stock Bridgestone tires are quite good but wear quickly.

I nearly bought a V-strom instead of the CB but I'm happy with my choice, besides Pamela lets me ride her bike whenever I want.

 

[Cormanus]

Hey JPT, we are all motorcyclists here first and CB enthusiasts second so I think I can speak for most when I say we are glad you sound something that you feel will make you happy.

The SV is a terrific motorcycle with a huge following, and a terrific aftmarket and probably a very active forum.

best of luck with the SV.

Didnt you pick up an electric zero? Did that not work out?

Hear, hear! You too Chikers.

Hope to hear more from both of you about your new bikes and any adventures.

JPT, I know you were a keen follower of the whole philosophy of RLETs business. You might like to do me a favour and install some on the VStrom and report on it?