Motorcycle Thread

My wife and I got to check out the new Bonneville lineup tonight. So much sexy

Thinking of picking up a new bike in the spring. Right now I've still got my 2005 R6, which I mostly just play around town with. That bike is still spectacular in terms of being a blast to rip around on, and hasn't really cost me a cent outside of normal maintenance. And then I've got a 2011 Multistrada for going on longer trips. It's not much fun to drive that thing around the city. It's almost too tall for me so stops are a bit of a pain, and it runs wicked fucking hot if you're stuck in traffic. And it just feels so big and heavy compared to the R6, even though it's not at all compared to a lot of other bikes out there.

In any case, I was thinking of picking something up for ripping around town on. I doubt I'll sell the R6, since it's not worth more than a few thousand at this point. But maybe I'll just take the insurance off and store it long term, and use the new one for ripping around town. Anyone got any suggestions on a fun, cool looking, city bike? Recently stumbled across the BMW R NineT and the Ducati Scrambler. Those are both pretty cool looking bikes. And I'm somewhat of a Ducati and BMW whore. Problem is, the only local dealer for those two brands is fucking awful, so maybe I should look elsewhere?

Thanks for any suggestions. Truth be told I don't really spend much time keeping track of who is coming out with what.

I'm a Triumph whore. The 2016 Thruxton's sex on wheels. 1200cc 6speed.

Got a PM from The Dauntless One, figured it's worth discussing in this thread.

The Dauntless One_sl said:

Hey man, I know you've talked about motorcycle so I thought I'd ask you. I'm gonna get a motorcycle next month and I've been looking on craigslist to see if there are any good deals. I've been avoiding some models (mostly the Yamaha R3) because it doesn't have ABS. What's your opinion on ABS? Is it something you would strongly suggest getting for a beginner rider?

Click to expand...

Well, I've got a 2005 Yamaha R6 that doesn't have ABS, and that's the bike I learned how to ride on. I just taught myself how to ride prior to taking the safety course, although the safety course taught me a bunch of shit on low speed riding that was hugely helpful. Slipping the clutch is a super important skill to have. It's definitely not a great learner bike, given the seating position, fairly high center of gravity, etc. I also have a 2011 Multistrada that does have ABS and traction control. I've only very, very rarely noticed the ABS come on, and basically never noticed the traction control. I guess I just don't ride it aggressively enough. The only times I've noticed the ABS kick on is when I'm using the rear brake at low speeds. On the R6 the rear brake is pretty useless since 95% of your weight ends up on the front tire, but on the MS I tend to use it more since there's more weight on it with luggage etc, and you don't end up over the handlebars nearly as much due to the seating position.

All that being said, ABS on a bike very well could be the difference between coming through a corner on two wheels, or under/over the bike. There's really not a lot of reason for a modern bike to not have it, at this point. It's just kind of a no-brainer. However, I think there's a lot more important aspects to consider when looking at your first bike to learn on. Your best bet is going to be some sort of cruiser-style bike, with a low center of gravity, not much power, and a comfortable seating position. I can't really offer much advice in that regard, as that style of bike really isn't my thing for the most part. I have however had a bit of a boner for a Moto Guzi V7 since I saw one parked in my back alley a few months ago. Really slick looking cafe-cruiser style bike. They're pretty reasonably priced, look great, and have ABS and traction control. Several other manufacturers make pretty similar ones, but personally I like the style and huge selection that V7 has.

Have fun picking a bike out, it's an awesome hobby! Just be smart when you're learning, and don't get overconfident. I was on a trip a few weeks ago with two buddies, one who's about as experienced as me (40,000 km or so of riding on multiple bikes), and another who is only in his second season on his KTM Adventure 1190. We were on 31A between New Denver and Kaslo, and a decreasing radius right bend tricked him. He came in maybe a touch too hot, probably got sketched out by the concrete barrier on the right hand side (feels like your head is going to hit it even if your wheels are in the middle of the lane), started going wide, crossed the center line, gripped his front brake to slow down, that just made the bike stand up more, and he ended up in the ditch as there was no shoulder. I was behind him when he entered the corner, and basically beside him as he rode the bike for about 100-150' in the ditch before he went down (ditch was sloping away from the road). He entered the corner probably at 60-70 km/hr, hit the ditch at probably 30, and when the bike went down he was maybe going 10-15. So not a huge crash. The bike was pretty much spotless, except for the right pannier got pretty scratched up and the whole pannier frame was a bit off kilter after. I was super impressed that his bike came through it as well as it did. The more experienced guy and I have both dropped our Multistrada's while stationary (stupid uneven gravel surfaces!), and both times it broke the plastic frame the panniers attached to, and damaged mirrors, hand guards, and brake levers.

This is us just after we got the bike upright and our buddy who was ahead of us came back to help us get it out of the ditch. Second pick is me pointing at where he went in, facing in the same direction as he was traveling. You can kind of see his track in the ditch. He was pretty shakey afterward, but for the most part uninjured. Just a really, really huge bruise on the inside of his left thigh from slamming in to his gas tank when the bank went down.




Google Maps of the corner, which coincidentally enough has a couple Multistradas following the map car:Google Maps

Thanks for the great reply Eomer. I think I'm going to settle for a used cb500f that's on craigslist right now. I'm probably going to ding it up learning so no point buying a new motorcycle and paying 30-40% price premium over a good condition used one. I looked at the KTM but it's going to cost me 3k more than the cb500f because they aren't popular around here, so no used ones.

I've never ridden on a motorcycle before so I'm going to take a course next week that ends with me taking the class 6 in eight days. I thought that if I'm going to learn, I should do it properly.

My bike has ABS, and it's used more than I thought it would be. I ride in lots of wet weather, though.

lurkingdirk_sl said:

My bike has ABS, and it's used more than I thought it would be. I ride in lots of wet weather, though.

Click to expand...

Front or rear, though? If you're regularly having your front ABS kick in, you should probably reevaluate your driving habits.

Learning to ride on a street bike is madness. Pretty much everyone should start with an off road bike and get some experience off of pavement if at all possible. Get basic riding skills and familiarity with a motorcycle in general. The difference between good motorcycle riders and inexperienced ones cant be overstated.
Dont expect dings. Almost all damage a bike gets is from a crash. It's rare to just drop it, most people never have.

Warmuth_sl said:

Dont expect dings. Almost all damage a bike gets is from a crash. It's rare to just drop it, most people never have.

Click to expand...

I don't agree with this at all. Up until I dropped my MS a couple weeks ago I hadn't dropped a bike in 10 years of riding, but that's the exception. Most people will drop their bikes at least once or twice when first learning, whether because they forgot to put the stand down, parked on an uneven surface, or were beside some other dumbass who dropped theirs. I don't know a single biker that has never dropped their bike at this point.

Not sure I would recommend a duke 390 for a newbie. It's got some glaring surging issues in 1/2nd gear that will scare the shit out of an inexperienced rider and impede your learning imo. Though the 2017 model is supposed to fix a lot of that. Also being a thumper its 1st is heinously short geared.

Eomer_sl said:

I don't agree with this at all. Up until I dropped my MS a couple weeks ago I hadn't dropped a bike in 10 years of riding, but that's the exception. Most people will drop their bikes at least once or twice when first learning, whether because they forgot to put the stand down, parked on an uneven surface, or were beside some other dumbass who dropped theirs. I don't know a single biker that has never dropped their bike at this point.

Click to expand...

It took you 10 years. Some people will drop their bike but most people I know haven't. I've handled I don't know how many bikes since I frequently work around them, I've never dropped one. Commonly it's the guys with giant ass heavy cruisers and no experience as a_skeleton_03 alluded to that have problems.

Mixtilplix_sl said:

Not sure I would recommend a duke 390 for a newbie. It's got some glaring surging issues in 1/2nd gear that will scare the shit out of an inexperienced rider and impede your learning imo. Though the 2017 model is supposed to fix a lot of that. Also being a thumper its 1st is heinously short geared.

Click to expand...

The short gearing is all of the 300cc bikes these days. Top speed of them is around 100-110mph.

The biggest problem with the 390s is the build quality. Lots of warped heads and flaking camshaft lobes. Let's hope they can improve the subcontractor quality control on them. Not the greatest brand ambassador those engines right now.

But my R3 has a recall incoming for clutch bearings and some other misc things that can end a ride just as quickly.

At least my comically appointed s1k is reliable... ok, even I know that's not the truth but I haven't had any issues yet at 24k miles (7k of them mine in the last 3 months) and a previous life of being an abused race school bike.

Eomer_sl said:

Front or rear, though? If you're regularly having your front ABS kick in, you should probably reevaluate your driving habits.

Click to expand...

Both. And right near my house there's a lot of gravel on the road, so even gearing down to near stop and engaging brakes can cause lock up. I hate gravel. To be honest, I don't actually use my brakes all that much in general driving. Much more gearing down and such. My wife hates driving behind me because I drive like a grandma when I'm on the bike.

First day on bike, I couldn't slalom if my life depended on it today. My MST(test to ride unsupervised) is tomorrow after we learn figure eight and a few other riding skills...

Using your own bike or one they provide? I think the state ones here use a Honda rebel and the Harley place provides a Buell if you don't have a bike.

Honda rebel provided by the school.