Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire I've got motorcycle fever

Well, before the 'Strom, there was this three year love affair with the Triumph Scrambler 900... Loved that bike!



Guy

I gave it to the little guy standing behind it, and promised to keep it running. I don't think he'll part with it.


DMc

Due to a severe cold I've come down with I've only rode about 50 miles on this little bike. On my previous two bikes, a Victory Vegas and a H-D Fatboy, I probably had about 30,000 to 40,000 miles in the saddle. Maybe it's because I took a four year break from riding, but I feel like I'm having more fun riding this little bike. I think it has more to do with me not caring anymore about "image" and just wanting to enjoy the experience.

The friend who has the KLR650 took it off the market. He's selling his cruiser instead. He's 68 and rode his whole life. He's always rode cruisers, but he says the KLR650 is his favorite bike he's ever owned.

Went to Uncles deer camp a day early last year and cousin was out in the barn working on an old Suzuki RM 400, we aired up the tires, put some fresh oil/gas and a new plug in it and pull started it with the tractor.

I got on it for a ride, that chainsaw smoking knee bustin' yellow bastid was ready for MUCH more fun that I was willing to roll on the throttle and give it.

If I buy a bike (and the GF is extremely against it, but she's in Sweden for two months) this would probably be what I'd get. But I'm a big guy (umm, oops) and wonder whether a 650 could survive hauling my 340ish pound butt around...

KDK,
Not a good idea. You'll need a 1300 minimum.


DMc

Caution, motorcycling transcends generations!



Momma, don't let your babies grow up to be "motorcycle" cowboys and cowgirls!




DMc

Awesome.

As much as I loved the big, loud bikes when I rode them, I've already fallen in love with this little Honda. Threw on a backpack and went grocery shopping last night. Rode to get a sandwich from Subway this morning. Hell, my truck is going to get a nice break. Plus, the gas guage has hardly moved. That little high revving 471cc engine just sips gas.

daayyummm

me likey

I've got a baby 750 cruiser and I still find myself wanting something "nimble" to zip around. I have a wandering eye for a mid 2000's Suzuki GS500F or Ninja 500R. Something in the 400 pound range that doesn't break the bank.

The cruiser is kinda like my F150. Its not a daily commuter - I know it can be but both of them just aren't up to the task for driving to an office building in commuter traffic.

I've got a 250cc Honda scooter that is 30 years old, starts on the first try and will move my fatass around at 60mph (on 10" tires so it doesn't see 60mph very often) but for daily commuting its just so effortless to use, I prefer it.

Of course the "real" motorcycles guy don't give me the cool bro wave as we pass. That's reserved for when I'm on my cruise with loud pipes.

I think at some point I'm just going to buy whatever "nimble" bike I find and the cruiser will be reserved for Saturday afternoons.

Now I'm trying to figure out a way to carry. I didn't have a carry liscense when I used to ride. I like to carry iwb, but my shirt tail sometimes blows up a bit while riding. I've been pocket carrying my shield the last couple of trips to town. If and when Texas goes to open carry, I figure a crossdraw rig for my 686 4" to go with my shorts and flip flops. (Jk. Pocket carrying the shield is working out fine)

on a motorcycle?

i have a big bike, a goldwing, and a 30inch inseam. You get use to it.

Only to the store about a block away. I don't normally do that.

i stopped at a mcdonalds in flagstaff saturday, guy had a 2004 silver wing just like mine. Got to talking to him, said he bet i didn't have as many miles as him. Mine has about 32k on it, his was at 385k. He was running to california with a pack coming from all over to meet there. Some of them got caught in laramie during the snow this weekend.
He said he never has had trouble with the engine, some with the driveshaft due to pulling a trailer. But think about it, 385000 miles and still going strong.

Edit.. oops I re-read and saw you said Silverwing. My BIL rode his rain, sun, ice, whatever for years. Like I said before, a couple of months ago he raided his retirement and bought a CTX700N. But he still has the Silverwing

Sounds like you're having the same fun with your CB500X as I am. Got mine last year because I wanted the modern equivalent of an old 70’s CB350 or CB450. Not a superbike, not some big heavy cruiser, but a nice, nimble runabout. City traffic scares the hell out of me, actually texters scare me, so I ride mine mostly on the twisty roads we have in abundance around these parts where it’s just perfect. A road with a 35 or 40 mph speed limit is sporty at 55 or so, not pushing the envelope but just a ton of fun. So I’ve heard, of course, I would never exceed the posted speed limit!

Only thing I still haven’t gotten used to is riding down the freeway at 65-70 with the tach at 5500 rpm, since it redlines at 8500. But apparently these motors are made for that and will run at that speed forever with no ill effects.


Parked above the Payette River in Idaholast summer.

Yep. I'm having a blast. On the way home with it, on the interstate, I took it to about 87 without really realizing I was doing it. Kind of freaked me out a little when I saw the tach. I'm going to use this as mainly an around town and backroad burner. The only bad thing about Texas is that the backroads are mostly 70-75 mph now.

I stated in the original post that I was looking at cruisers. But that's all I really knew about. I had been kind of looking at something like this, but really didn't start thinking seriously about it until others started posting. So I started reading reviews and forums about this class of bikes and made a decision to go look at these little Hondas. I'm really glad I did.

Same here, freeway speeds are 80 mph on open country and 65 through built up areas. Country roads vary from 55 to 65. If’n I had my druthers I’d ask Honda to make a slightly taller 6th gear for highway speeds, I lose track of gears and keep reaching for that elusive “7th” gear at top end. My old 1970 CB350 redlined at around 11,000 IIRC so I was a bit shocked to see this one at 8500.

I posed this question to the head of the service department where I bought this, a real friendly older guy, and he said that with all of the protections Honda builds if you ran this 471cc engine at 14,000 rpm for a couple of hours you might damage it but probably not. That may be a bit of hyperbole but he really reassured me that they were made to handle high rpm’s for long periods so cruising at highway speeds with that engine buzzing away won’t hurt them one bit.

Yep. The old friend who decided not to sell his KLR650 suggested that we take a trip across the state to Big Bend this fall. I'm aready looking foward to making that happen.