Sitting here burning up the iPhone will watching over the grandkid...
What I would want in a motorcycle.
1) ABILITY TO PULL 80 ALL DAY LONG ON THE INTERSTATE.
Essential when crossing the Continent. I have heard this eliminates the Harley Sportsters which do pull 80, but which beat you Death doing so.
2) ROOM FOR A PASSENGER.
Doesn’t have to be a sofa, but shouldn’t be S&M gear either. This eliminates sportbikes which impart a gynecological exam chair posture to the passenger.
3) THREE CYLINDERS OR LESS.
When loping along at a moderate speed, one to three cylinders impart a pleasant, companiable rhythm whereas IME inline fours are just dull as a post when not wound out.
4) SERIOUS CORNERINGING CLEARANCE.
When it comes to roadbike skills, corners are everything. Gotta be able to lean 30+ degrees in corners. This eliminates all Harleys except for the Sportster cafe racer, which barely makes the cut.
5) PICK-UPPABLE BY ONE PERSON AFTER TIP-OVER.
I have this phobia of being found dead in the desert....... next to my tipped-over motorcycle.
Might eleminate the Harley Dresser And GoldWing-class motorcycles
So far Bristoe’s 650 Bergmann scooter is one of the top picks :
6) REBUILDABLE IN A PARKING LOT.
Only ones still that simple anymore I know of are the air cooled 650 thumper dual sports by Suzuki and Honda.
7) A FOREVER MOTORCYCLE.
A classic worth keeping forever, supported by a continuing availability of parts.
Not sure I know of one that meets all of the above.
"...if the gentlemen of Virginia shall send us a dozen of their sons, we would take great care in their education, instruct them in all we know, and make men of them." Canasatego 1744
"Come, shall we go and kill us venison? And yet it irks me the poor dappled fools, Being native burghers of this desert city, Should in their own confines with forked heads Have their round haunches gored."
I've always loved the big BMW boxers. Not sure how parking lot rebuildable they are.
They haven’t built an AirHead (air-cooled motor) since 1995. Pretty sure the OilHeads are quite complex.
"...if the gentlemen of Virginia shall send us a dozen of their sons, we would take great care in their education, instruct them in all we know, and make men of them." Canasatego 1744
650 Burgman's are very good middleweight touring machines. But they're asphalt machines. They don't handle dirt or gravel very well. They're also definitely not rebuildable on the side of the road. But very few motorcycles are,...none, actually,...unless you plan on carrying a very extensive tool set with you.
Lot's of bikes out there these days can go 50K or more with nothing but regular maintenance, so I don't think extensive roadside repairs are going to be much of a factor with many.
My opinion,..past a certain age it's very difficult to accept the compromises necessary to have a bike that's both flickable and still provide long term touring ability. The big Burgman does it better than most.
I have been looking at the Suzuki and Honda 650's. They need a 6th gear and they need to set lower. The Dual sports are made for guys with a 40" inseams.
kwg
For liberals and anarchists, power and control is opium, selling envy is the fastest and easiest way to get it. TRR. American conservative. Never trust a white liberal. Malcom X Current NRA member.
Well these are not 3 cylinders they're anything but dull, tons of low to mid-range grunt. Suzuki Bandit 1250, Yamaha MT10, Suzuki GSX-S1000 and the Honda VFR 800.
Since you're looking at a Burgman then you don't mind non-classic styling, so the Honda NM4 or CTX700 might fill the bill. 670cc parallel twin, low seat height - 25 and 28 inches respectively, 180 mile range (3 gal tank at 61 mpg), both are automatic 6 speed tranny with a manual mode. Probably not the greatest rear seat for a passenger but an accessory is a passenger seat with a back rest. Not too heavy compared to a lot of big touring bikes, just over and under 500 pounds according to the specs. There are vids about how to lift any bike single handedly by using your legs and lower back. Don't know if they'll go 80mph all day but they are listed under Honda's touring bikes so I'd imagine they should stand up to all day cruising.
These were both panned by gear heads when first introduced because they don't look traditional but they're still selling although I doubt they will ever achieve true classic status.
NM4
CTX700
Gunnery, gunnery, gunnery. Hit the target, all else is twaddle!
cruising 80 all day will eliminate most if not all harleys unless the new ones are remarkably better riding than previous years. and being able to pick it up yourself is a matter of technique usually. no motorcycle built in the past 25 years is parking lot rebuildable unless you have a schit ton if tools, skill and knowledge.
cruising 80 all day will eliminate most if not all harleys unless the new ones are remarkably better riding than previous years. and being able to pick it up yourself is a matter of technique usually. no motorcycle built in the past 25 years is parking lot rebuildable unless you have a schit ton if tools, skill and knowledge.
The 2009 Harley Dyna I recently sold had no problem at 80. In fact, that's where it felt best. It was geared so high that you really didn't want to shift into 6th speed at much below 65. At 80 everything was just smoothing out and feeling right.
Done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven.
Easy question..... “Beemer”! One of the BMW On/Off road bikes.....800cc’s and up! memtb
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“I’d like to be a good rifleman…..but, I prefer to be a good hunter”! memtb 2024
I've always loved the big BMW boxers. Not sure how parking lot rebuildable they are.
BMW just came out with a new upgraded R1200RT replacement (I own a 2015 R1200RT) . . .
The 2019 R125RT
Triumph also makes a beautiful (3 cylinder) sport touring bike . . . discontinued after 2017 Triumph Trophy SE (worth a look, its a peach of a bike)
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