| Author | Message | ||
     Ratbuell |
Believe me, as soon as the roads are clear of ice and salt... | ||
| Ratbuell |
Yamaha Star Eluder, with Star Venture Transcontinental behind it:  And, a new 'wing Tour DCT airbag:  Test-sitting? The Venture is a barge. Very well balanced barge, but...you can tell it's damn near a half-ton of machine. The 'wing? Hell, it's almost an ST1300. Amazingly light and balanced. Narrow. Both have very nice control layouts; both have nice low seats (the Venture is a little narrower up front than the 'wing). Both have rider tech and rider aids for days. For bikes that are very similar in what they try and offer as rider features, these really are apples-and-oranges. Can't wait to ride 'em both. | ||
| Jaimec |
I'm hoping to get a ride on the new Wing next month in Daytona. But from right now, the new luggage is a deal breaker. | ||
| Ratbuell |
it's not that small. Honda built it to take 7 days' worth of stuff. And it does. Their factory demo day included a full-size suitcase - not a midsize, not a carry-on, but a full-grown, too heavy to carry around suitcase. Saddlebag liners and topcase liner? Filled the suitcase. Tell her she only gets to take three pair of shoes, instead of a pair for each day. | ||
| Mnscrounger |
Jaimec: You're the first person on Badweb to mention Daytona. I'm firming up a spring break trip with the Mrs to visit the in-laws on the gulf side, and I am hoping to get a side trip in to "Bike Week" for a day or two. Anybody else on here planning a trip to "Bike Week"? | ||
| Crusty |
I'll be there to watch the TT on the 15th. I think I'll take a day or two and do a few Demo rides. | ||
| Mnscrounger |
I'm working on getting an enclosed trailer to bring the bike/s down in. The specific days are tentative for as of right now but I'll keep you in the loop and maybe well be able to meet up. I presume you bought advance tickets? | ||
| Crusty |
Yes; I'm sitting in section 349. | ||
| Jaimec |
Ratbuell, I saw that thing at the NYC IMS Show. The trunk can only hold two helmets that match a list Honda provides (not ANY two helmets, like every other luxury tourer on the planet). The two saddle bags are odd-shaped and not very deep. One magazine claimed it had more total capacity than the K1200GTL, but I find that difficult to believe based on just looking at the two of them side by side with their cases open. | ||
| Jaimec |
As for Daytona, I'll be riding down on Saturday, the 10th of March and should be in the vicinity on Sunday. I'll actually be staying in Kissimmee so I can visit friends on the Gulf Coast, visit the theme parks AND do some demo rides at Daytona Beach. I'll be heading back north on Saturday the 17th. | ||
| Bartimus |
Those look like 1125's modified by Hardley | ||
| Ratbuell |
Actually in person they look like a touring CBR1000RR. And are about the size - overall - of a Concours. Definitely bringing the "sport" back to "sport-tour" for the Goldwing. I'm looking forward to riding our demos. They'll alienate some "traditional" 'wing buyers, I'm sure...but they should convert more than they alienate. We're already seeing that in the showroom - people who'd never considered a 'wing are all aver this thing. We've sold two, and haven't even had a chance to demo any of them yet. And neither buyer has ever had - or considered - a 'wing before. | ||
| Pwnzor |
I've got a 2000 CBR1100XX sitting in my garage... might throw some bags on it and take it to April Buells....  | ||
| 86129squids |
... Wonder what Yellow Wolf would think?? | ||
| 86129squids |
When/where in heyull didja get a Blackbird?? An old, dearly departed buddy once said that was his favorite bike... and he'd ridden more bikes and miles than most of us! One of the founders of the Knoxville BMW club. Before he got too sick, he sold a 100% farkled out Viffer with gobs of miles, that I would've bought if I could. | ||
| Pwnzor |
The Super Blackbird belongs to my friend at work, who has no safe place to park it. I did a bunch of work on it for him, and as such I have some privileges with it. I've got fresh tires on the shelf for it, along with new sprockets and a chain. The tires on it are old, so probably not very sticky any more... so I'm not sure I'd want to ride it the way I'd ride my own. I've been wanting to take it out... but likely will just ride my own. | ||
| Jaimec |
So here are my choices for a luxury touring bike in 2018. In order to be considered, it MUST have a frame-mounted fairing which automatically eliminates anything from Indian. Harley Davidson Road Glide Ultra: Nope, it's a Harley. Not happening. Honda GoldWing: Need to test ride it, but the bags look too small for serious touring. This is also the first year for an all-new motorcycle. On the plus side, Honda only narrowly misses out to Yamaha in Consumer Reports reliability rankings. Yamaha Venture: More than adequate luggage capacity, comfortable and easy to manage despite the weight. Only negatives -- I'm not a fan of air-cooled twins with belt drive. Would prefer water cooling with a drive shaft for longevity, lower maintenance and reliability for tens of thousands of miles. This, like the Honda, is also the first year for an all-new motorcycle. On the other hand, per Consumer Reports, Yamaha is the most reliable brand of motorcycle. BMW K1600GTL: Sweet handling bike, lots of power, adequate luggage capacity. Downsides are LOUSY passenger accommodations and BMW's LOUSY reliability ranking of late. BMW K1600 Grand America: Bags look smaller than the ones on the GTL. Only minor improvements to passenger accommodations. Same reliability concerns. So realistically, it is down to the Honda or the Yamaha. Or (the more likely scenario) I just keep on racking up the miles on my K1200LT. What's a few thousand more miles when it already has over 210,000 on the odometer? | ||
| Midknyte |
Does anyone have an eye on the R NineT? These things sit real nice. Air/Oil cooled. 110hp. The Pure starts at a not bad $12 large. http://www.bmwmotorcycles.com/us/en/bike/heritage/ 2016/rninet/rninet_overview.html They've got a hit feeding new life for their air cooled engine, just like Ducati's Scramblers... http://www.thedrive.com/sheetmetal/17779/bmw-motor rad-hit-an-all-time-sales-record-in-2017  | ||
| Steveford |
From that angle it kind of looks like they have a tool bag tied up above the headlight. A strange mix as the tail section is really sleek like an old Ducati and then it gets into the massive German styling with the tank. Probably a great bike, though. | ||
| Jaimec |
My favorite variation of the RNineT is the "Urban GS." Looks like the original R80/GS introduced right around the time I started riding. If they made lockable hard bags for that model, I might already have one. | ||
| 86129squids |
There's a guy who shows up at TWoS every now and then with an R nine T, shwweet ride! I still feel kewler with my '77 R75/7, especially since I traded EVEN for it with my old '79 Goldwing...  BTW, IIRC the new motors are air/oil cooled, the old Airhead motors went away around 1995ish. Just sayin'. | ||
| Hootowl |
Slightly off topic, as I don't have a motoporn photo (use your imagination) but I saw a Grom in the garage at work this morning. Damn that thing is tiny. Good looking bike. Looks fun. | ||
| Glitch |
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| Jaimec |
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| Tootal |
Wow, they did a nice job on that, it really looks like the GS of old! | ||
| Hootowl |
Glitch, I’m telling your wife you’re posting pornography on the Internet.  | ||
| Glitch |
 | ||
| Jaimec |
Yeah, I LOVE the way that Urban GS looks, and I did get a chance to ride one (it did not disappoint). Only drawback is that so far there is only soft luggage available for it. Since I've already had all of my belongings cut off a motorcycle with soft bags, I'm NOT willing to ever go down that route again. | ||
| Ratbuell |
I'm sure Touratech will step up soon enough... | ||
| Jaimec |
I forgot about them. I just sent an inquiry to Al Jesse (Jesse Luggage). |
