Right, so I got back into biking earlier this year after a 10 year absence with a cheap 2010 Bonneville SE which I bought sight unseen as it was a deal and I was busy at the time.
I've really been re-bitten (is that a word?) by the bug as previously I was commuting on a boring Honda and not into the whole lifestyle side of things. Now I am and I'm doing way more fun miles than I thought I would whilst also commuting when not cycling in.
I absolutely love the bike - its a peach of an engine, it looks lovely and its super easy to ride but there are 2 things I want that it doesn't/can't have.
Its too small for my gangly long legs and it has no real gravel road credentials.
So here is my wish list:
Twin (non negotiable - I absolutely do not want another inline 4 ever and I think a single will be too ploddy even for me.)
Reasonable seat height or at least seat to peg length for a 33 in inseam.
Great looks - modern classic etc
Sub 10k (secondhand)
Reliable and cheap to service, the less electronics the better.
Less than 10 years old, 5-6 would be great.
Capable of a high mileage - if i love it I'll want to keep it and do some serious touring like down to Morocco, up to the Artic Circle etc
Oh so yeah, luggage (though I can travel light)
I think I know what I want but I'd be interested in other suggestions........what ya got?
Tenere I reckon. Maybe a CF Moto 800mtx , maybe 450MT.
The Tenere does have a peach of an engine, and I speak from experience as an owner of an MT-07.
T7 or Transalp
Twin (non negotiable - I absolutely do not want another inline 4 ever
Can I ask why?
(This is not a leading question, rather I've been thinking "hmm, bike?" for a little while now)
Twin (non negotiable - I absolutely do not want another inline 4 ever and I think a single will be too ploddy even for me.)
Triple? Triumph Tiger 900, 850 or 660 sport ticks all your boxes if a triple isn't off the table, though the higher spec 900s do have a lot of electronic gizmos. Triumph triples are superb motors.
Twin? Beemer GS or RS, left field a guzzi v85tt
Honda CB500X - fugly modern bike, sorry. Fell asleep whilst reading the review.
Triples - yes I know the engines are smooth and sublime but they are basically too powerful for me and not really the character I'm looking for.
Light gravel does not need a Tenere - I'm not Itchy Boots. Nice bike though and getting more my thing.
Must admit I do like that Kove but again, too offroaaaad for me right now.
Can I ask why?
(This is not a leading question, rather I've been thinking "hmm, bike?" for a little while now)
Inline 4s are great for fast acceleration etc but they like to be revved and create most power higher towards the redline which is not how I ride and awful for any kind of non paved roads. Sports bikes and Sports Tourers tend to have this engine and I credit my last two bikes (both inline 4) with not nurturing my interest in motorcycling - just getting me from A to B.
Nobody has gone near my two choices yet!
Edit Kilo just got my main choice - V85TT
Enfield Bear 650
Voge? DS900 or the rally?
Transalp. Less hardcore than a T7, more core than a CBX
Ducati Multistrada
Re the Bear - I almost certainly would have bought one of those instead of my Bonneville if I'd known they existed but they were so new I'd never heard of them at the beginning of this year. Now I'm still tempted but not really looking for a drop in power - I kind of like the 65-75 range and the Bear is 47.
The Transalp 750 is a real contender but tbh the 21" spoked front wheel puts me off a bit. I like that you can get a tubeless version of the 85TT
Was an ex demo, with 700 miles on the clock, got it for just over £8k, which allowed me to get the Guzzi side cases too
The other model variants are better equipped for off road
Vstrom 650 has a 19" front wheel....
I'd go with the guzzi too for that kind of riding - added bonus of shaft drive too.
Although not what I'd buy for your kind of riding, I bought a 10yo Honda cbf1000 recently & it's totally changed my view of il4 bikes despite being a detuned fireblade engine, it both chugs along & zooms when you want it too, it's all about the fuelling 🙂
My last bike was a CBF1000, before that I had a 600. To me they got the job of getting into work done, never broke down and were reasonably comfortable to ride but they never drew me to get on them just for a ride or take the long way home I'm afraid.
Yep the Guzzi is front runner, in the TT guise with the tubeless spoked - though that ex-demo strada above was a bargain I reckon.
The other bike I've been thinking about is the Triumph Scrambler 1200 XC (now discontinued). Its apparently lower then the XE with less tech. Not sure about that exhaust though..supposed to be pretty hot, especially on the early bikes. Also has more power than I need. Deffo wins in the looks department though
GSA1200 -- ticks all the boxes - esp for the taller rider
CF MOTO 450MT
I was lined up in Guildford high street on the DGR at the weekend right next to a (very nice) guy on a GSA1250. It was like being beside a monster truck! I do like the smaller BMW adventure bikes but I really want something a bit more retro. The BMWS are not lookers...
Triples - yes I know the engines are smooth and sublime but they are basically too powerful for me and not really the character I'm looking for.
If you want character, get something with a vee formation, twin or four would be my take. Modern bikes are beyond my awareness tbh, but I used to test the things for a bike mag and if you want character, vees just ooze 'thing'. Even relatively bland ones like the VFR Hondas.
Edit: are Guzzis a bit less agricultural than they used to be? I quite liked them for their quirkiness, but I don't think I'd ever have bought one.
Even relatively bland ones like the VFR Hondas.
😡 Reported
Loved my pre V-Tech VFR, wish I'd kept it 🙁
Re…”are Guzzis a bit less agricultural than they used to be? I quite liked them for their quirkiness, but I don't think I'd ever have bought one”
I am a recent returner to motorcycling and the V85TT is the most refined bike I’ve ever owned and wasn’t appreciably more agricultural than either the Transalp or Tiger I tested… since starting again 3 years back I’ve only ridden an XSR700. Other bikes I’m comparing it to are late 90s/early noughties: Bandit 1200, TRX850, Fazer thousand and Triumph 955 Sprint RS.
I think the Piaggio ownership has transformed their electronics
Must admit I do like that Kove but again, too offroaaaad for me right now.
They do less off-roady versions...
https://kovemotouk.com/bikes/800x-touring/
BMW R12 GS?
BMW R12 GS?
Nice looking bike but expensive. It feels to me like BMW are trying to rinse hipsters with that at 14k. I mean the R Nine T was a genuinely innovative new bike when launched and created a niche which has been copied by other manufacturers. I think I'd rather buy an F900GS at that price.
CRF1100 Africa Twin from c 2022 for about £9k and spend the £1k on petrol, ferrys and campsites while you travel. I had the 1000 for 7 yrs and 40k miles. It was superb. I know a few that have 100k plus miles...again, no issues at all.
I've had a KTM 990 Supermoto for the last 6 and a bit years and it is absolutely sublime. Without a doubt the most fun I've had on a motorbike and it tours exceptionally well for an unfaired bike. On that basis I'd recommend the 990 Adventure of the same era (around 2010). There are reports of the fuel-injected engine being a bit snatchy at low speeds compared to the older carbed 950, not something I've ever struggled with but apparently can be sorted with a Power Commander.
https://www.motorcyclenews.com/bike-reviews/ktm/990-adventure/2003/
Fantic Caballero 700. Yamaha motor, nice quality, good gentle off road potential. I'm strongly tempted myself. There's nearly £2000 off at the moment, about £7000.
That offroad would have to be pretty gentle - from the pictures it looks like it has less clearance than my Bonnie.
I've got my eye on a nice Transalp 750 but I'm away from next week so haven't got any time. How easy is it to sort a puncture on a non tubeless wheel in the real world?
That offroad would have to be pretty gentle - from the pictures it looks like it has less clearance than my Bonnie.
I've got my eye on a nice Transalp 750 but I'm away from next week so haven't got any time. How easy is it to sort a puncture on a non tubeless wheel in the real world?
The Transalp is a great bike, I may be biased as I’ve got one. I much prefer it to an Africa Twin I had a few years back, that was just a very heavy lump by comparison.
With regards fixing punctures, it seem to be often raised by people how problematic tuned tyres can be. I thought about splashing out for a set of tubeless wheels for my Transalp but after thinking hard about it I realised that I’ve never punctured on 25+ years on motorbikes so spending £2k on tubeless wheels was a bit daft.
Visordown seen to think that the Fantic is ok for 'Gravel'.
I genuinely think that is the ugliest motorcycle I've ever ever seen - and what in everything that's holy is going on with that seat? and the ground clearance!!! and the tacho and that screen....and the lights....arggghhhh its hideous.
From every angle its an abomination.
Just buy the bike you have identified as the "one" then.
It seems most suggestions just get dismissed as unacceptable for one reason or another.
Not true - somebody suggested a Transalp and now seriously thinking of getting one. Its not a bike I'd considered but it seems to tick most boxes. I'm particular but openminded.
From every angle its an abomination.
I'll take that as a no then 😜
Transalps are good but dull, I had a stripped down one with an Africa Twin engine many yrs ago, was fun as an oversized super moto
How about gravelifying a newer (post-2016) Bonneville 900 or 1200?
Raise the seat, Pirelli MT60s, high-rise bars.
One option I'm toying with is to keep my existing Bonnie and fit a taller seat and risers for commuting, road riding etc and then get something like a Himalaya 450 or other smaller capacity bike that is capable of touring and offroad. Like those Kove's or CF Motos. It would have to be cheap though as my budget would be 3-4k down if I didn't trade in my current bike.
I think the Kove 450 rally is an interesting tool but I think you’d need the terrain for it to enjoy it.
I suppose the issue is what your off-road duties entail, tootling down some gravel , mud(yuck) or riding some sand and rock on more extreme terrain.
Only the price of a e-bike 🙂
The newer Transalps are very different to the old ones . They use the 750 parallel twin out of the 750 Hornet and are much "peppier" than the older version.From every angle its an abomination.
I'll take that as a no then 😜
Transalps are good but dull, I had a stripped down one with an Africa Twin engine many yrs ago, was fun as an oversized super moto
