Thinking about a new touring oriented bike

Motogiro

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When I had the FJR, we rode to the Smokie Mountains. Been on the "Dragon, Cherohola, etc, MANY times with that bike.
I suspect I could ride "it" faster on the FZ6, lighter, more flickable and a wider RPM range (14K vs 9K).

As for parking, all my machines are in the garage. On road trips, we try to park outside our room (in the lot).
I did have an alarm (Gorilla, top of the line) on all my "sport / touring, touring bikes".

Parking in the grass, either a 1/2" piece of plywood under the stand will work or they make smaller kick stand pads.
They also make "attachable" pads that clamp to your kick stand pad.

I don't do anymore LD rides, local or trailer the FZ.

My friend and I, when getting on the interstate ramp, would often crank it up (briefly) to 125, then slow down a bunch for interstate traffic.

1/4 mile stats show the FJR just slightly faster than the FZ6 so it's no slouch...The latest FJRs have different mapping modes(mine didn't)
so the newer bikes have the best of both worlds..

You'd be very surprised riding any of the FJRs. I also had an '04 G0ldwing, very comfy, but not nearly the fun of the FJR...

10 years ago, Cherohala Skyway:


I put 90,000 miles on an 04 FJR before a Deer hit me and killed the bike. Rode the FJR on all kinds of roads and conditions all over the western USA. Test ride one of you can, they are a solid rocket ship. Very fun, fast bike. Yes it's bigger than the FZ6 but it can dance quite well. It's fun to have bikes that are not close to the same, choice is good.

I've always been impressed by the FJR as a touring machine because it also had the ability to make quick work in the twisties. I enjoyed Red Wasp riding with his wife, 2 up on Montezuma Valley Road and they were fast!
 

bigborer

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Another option I've found is the CBF1000. There are many reports of comfortable 2up LD.
They are quite abundant, and since the Fireblade engine is massively detuned (~40% down) it should last forever. I could get the 1st gen (pre '10) for 2700-4000€ and the 2nd gen for 4000-5000+€ at the moment, and as winter sets there should be a 5-15% price drop for everything on the market. It doesn't seem to be the best value for money, but it would also keep it's resale value. Not the sharpest machines out there by any means, especially the 1st gen, but with a bit of money spent in stiffer springs and gold valves it should become more than adequate for it's intended purpose of 2up touring- as I got the GF to learn how to hang off a bit riding speed got higher and safer, but breaking would still be the limiting factor (guess which of my body parts get smashed into the tank after she fatigues after holding on through hard breaking...).
 

bigborer

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Found out there is also an FZ1 GT, with full fairing and taller windscreen. I might check one out, if anyone has experience with the FZ1, please tell me if there are any common issues to look for with this model
 

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bigborer

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You might also check out our sister FZ1 site: https://www.998cc.org/forum/cmps_index.php :)
Thanks, I'll check it out

If your going to be doing serious touring, I'd get something with a drive shaft..

I don't think the FZ1 (none that I saw) has a drive shaft.

May be different oversea's...

IMO chain maintenance is not a concern, it's at most spending 3 minutes 1-2 times/trip to spray the chain. I'd much rather have 20-30kg less and no drive shaft. And with ~50$/chain there's no reason to obsess over the maintenance just to hypothetically get few thousand more miles out of it.

As for "serious touring", unless I win the lottery, there is no way that I'll be able to leave town for more than 6-9 days at once, and with GF's average "pillioning" stamina of only ~5h/day, that's only 1500- 3700kms /trip.
 

bigborer

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I've started looking again at the sprint ST- though it's extremely rare round here, after some more searching I've found out that there are plenty spare parts on ebay UK. Also, something that IMO is very nice- it has removable cylinder linings.
Should a FZ1 GT not pop up locally by mid summer, I might just make a trip to Germany and get a sprint...
 

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You are correct but with any second vehicle, no matter how much you test it beforehand, there is still a possibility that something is broken. As the saying goes "hope for the best, but plan for the worse".
Sure I agree that (any) modern motorcycle nikasil plated cylinder should last at least 150k kms, however should any other parts break or wear, at the very least some piston slap would appear, that nikasil cylinder will be ruined very quickly.

Regarding the dependability of a 1050 Sprint, I cannot say much. I couldn't find much complaint, however most of the praise I'd found seemed written in a fan-boy fashion (kind of like BMW and Harley owners speak). I only hope they're not as crap as Jags or Rovers.

As for the dealer network, no matter the brand (even the popular Yamaha and Honda) most of them are so poorly skilled and with such poor reputation that unless I buy new, for as long as I'll be able to hold a wrench I'll never willingly enter their doors. As you know from my fz6 engine thread, right now I've got enough tools that I could do 90% of any work on any bike :). At most, I'd probably need only a few extra proprietary sockets and holders. And with parts, online is still cheaper and faster, regardless of brand. So far, the only bike dealer experience I've got was with the Yamaha dealer in Katerini, Greece, where they wouldn't know or bother to diagnose a simple loose coil connector, leading to a costly tow home and a long story written in that thread...
 

MattR302

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If you're considering the Sprint, you should also consider the Tiger 1050. It's the same engine, but a more upright riding position. It looks like an adventure bike, but it's really a sport-tourer. You guys also get the "sport" model with the single sided swingarm over in Europe.
 

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Thanks, it could be worth considering, however the reviewers say it offers much less wind protection than the Sprint, so probably it wouldn't be that much better than an fz6 + tall windscreen. The much lower top speed (215 vs ~260kmh) seems to confirm that. Also, it has a bit lower fuel range, and 10-20% higher price, likely due to all these (dream-to-be) highway "adventurers" secretly hoping they had the $$$ for a R1200GS.
And speaking of that, I do confess that had I made 5x more money as to pay ~16k € for a bike and not stay up at night fearing it'd be stolen or crashed, while knowing that the depreciation and the (optional) theft/damage insurance would sum up to the cost of a functioning fz1 in only one year, I'd have gotten an S1000XR and called it a day.
 

Monica A

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Thanks Monica!

After witnessing a few (very) close calls with her on public roads, on her MTB, I am glad that my GF explicitly told me that she has no intentions to drive a motorcycle and that she thinks she'd be much safer right behind me that trying to keep up on her own. Also, the fact that she is quite petite means that the most powerful bike she'd be comfortable on would something like a 450cc Honda rebel. If anyone from my family were to ride my FZ6 it would most likely be my mother, though until getting a full "A" license, for their safety, I wouldn't let anyone with zero bike experience try an 100+hp bike.

As for the places to ride I am indeed lucky to have a lot of options. In a few hours I can get to either the Carpathian or Balkan mountains, 1-2 days the Dinarides, 2-3 days to the Alps :) . Only things I'd need are a functioning bike and some free time, hopefully by the end of this month I'll be able to sort out both.

I've been riding street for 6 seasons now. I put more miles on my bike than my car each year (8-10K miles a year on average). I've never laid my bike down (yet). I keep up with the "big boys" in our riding group. Ask VegasRider, he's ridden with me. Riding isn't for everyone for sure, but I encourage ladies to give it a try. Lady riders have an advantage of male riders. We don't have egos that push us to do more than we are capable of. I just ride my own ride. I get there when I get there and you might have to wait for me, but you might not..... We have a pro-racer in our group. On one ride he couldn't catch me and he was so mad. I didn't know he was trying to catch me until we got to our meet up place. lol
 

Monica A

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You are correct but with any second vehicle, no matter how much you test it beforehand, there is still a possibility that something is broken. As the saying goes "hope for the best, but plan for the worse".
Sure I agree that (any) modern motorcycle nikasil plated cylinder should last at least 150k kms, however should any other parts break or wear, at the very least some piston slap would appear, that nikasil cylinder will be ruined very quickly.

Regarding the dependability of a 1050 Sprint, I cannot say much. I couldn't find much complaint, however most of the praise I'd found seemed written in a fan-boy fashion (kind of like BMW and Harley owners speak). I only hope they're not as crap as Jags or Rovers.

As for the dealer network, no matter the brand (even the popular Yamaha and Honda) most of them are so poorly skilled and with such poor reputation that unless I buy new, for as long as I'll be able to hold a wrench I'll never willingly enter their doors. As you know from my fz6 engine thread, right now I've got enough tools that I could do 90% of any work on any bike :). At most, I'd probably need only a few extra proprietary sockets and holders. And with parts, online is still cheaper and faster, regardless of brand. So far, the only bike dealer experience I've got was with the Yamaha dealer in Katerini, Greece, where they wouldn't know or bother to diagnose a simple loose coil connector, leading to a costly tow home and a long story written in that thread...

My Sprint has close to 40K (I've put 20K on it in the last 3 years) and the only problem was a battery went out on me. Hubby took it to a shop to get the values adjusted per manufacturer maintenance schedule and they were in spec. It's ton of fun in the twisties. I can take off from a start in any gear, that's how torguey it is. It's heavier than the FZ6, but not much. I never feel the weight when I'm riding, but I do when trying to move it. (mostly backwards) But I have a reverse gear - my hubby... lol Hubby rebuilt my front shocks (I felt they were too soft) he put heavier springs and fork oil in the stock ones) It came with an upgraded adjustable rear shock.

I hubby has a 6th Generation VFR800 (2005) - he put a straight bar on it instead of clip-ons. he replaced front forks. He has of a top case and usually brings a duffle bag on pillion seat when we go LD (8-10 days 3K miles+) We average 400 mile days - 9-11 hour days.
 

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My Sprint has close to 40K (I've put 20K on it in the last 3 years) and the only problem was a battery went out on me. Hubby took it to a shop to get the values adjusted per manufacturer maintenance schedule and they were in spec. It's ton of fun in the twisties. I can take off from a start in any gear, that's how torguey it is. It's heavier than the FZ6, but not much. I never feel the weight when I'm riding, but I do when trying to move it. (mostly backwards) But I have a reverse gear - my hubby... lol Hubby rebuilt my front shocks (I felt they were too soft) he put heavier springs and fork oil in the stock ones) It came with an upgraded adjustable rear shock.

I hubby has a 6th Generation VFR800 (2005) - he put a straight bar on it instead of clip-ons. he replaced front forks. He has of a top case and usually brings a duffle bag on pillion seat when we go LD (8-10 days 3K miles+) We average 400 mile days - 9-11 hour days.

Thanks for the input!

After a bit of searching is seems that the charging issues are quite common- apparently the rectifier goes bad, and if not replaced quickly it then melts the stator. Not too nice but not the end of the world either, I know for sure same happens to some Aprilias and even Hondas, and it can be replaced before it fails (with the ones from +06 FJRs being an option :) )

Can I ask you how tall are you? What are the main differences you see in the Sprint vs FZ6, especially in wind protection and tourability and range? What FZ6 did you have (naked or fazer)?
 

bigborer

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After some more internet, I did manage to find a few blown (with seized high speed rear wheel) Sprint ST engines, documented with pics and from claimed original owners, also a few cracked internals, and quite some cases of high oil consumption. Apparently there are some variations in quality for their rod bolts, rings and rods, among others.

Some might say "if you keep digging you'll find issues for everything, and a few internet cases only represent 0.01%, the other 99.99% being perfectly happy". And that might be true, and while I fully agree that a few cases don't have any statistical relevancy, it still is something to consider. I also researched a lot for the fz1, and I couldn't find even a single case of sudden catastrophic engine failure, though it was probably sold in 10x volumes.

So probably for peace of mind it'd need at least a partial rebuild and full checkup.

And I can't help but notice the difference in attitude:
Say "my engine broke down":
-this forum would reply: well that isn't too common, but check this and that so we could learn more
-triumph forum would reply: HERESY! you must have done something to molest it! this is a very isolated event, never happened before! burn the infidel!


PS:did any of you from W NA see the moon eclipse in person? Just watched it on the NASA live stream
 

Gary in NJ

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If your concern is what "may" happen, then choose a new bike and enjoy the piece of mind that comes from a warranty. Of course you also get to enjoy the costs associated with a new purchase and the high cost of dealer maintenance.

I haven't owned a new bike since 1984, and I've owned over 20 bikes since then. I always look for clean low mileage bikes and I can't think of a single mechanical failure on any of those bikes. Oh sure, there was lots of maintenance, but with the exception of battery failures I've never been left stranded (I've had two battery failures, one less then a mile from home and the other my wife drove 30+ miles to bring me a battery).

Find a well cared for bike, have it checked out by a trusted mechanic, and enjoy it. Don't worry about what can go wrong, focus on what you've done right.
 

bigborer

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Gary- you are correct. It's a matter of finding the "perfect" compromise.

It seems that the local prices from my OP have risen a bit, and more so for the fz1. It could be that there is much more demand- I've heard that the waiting list for the A license exam has gotten as long as 3 months.
Also, I've discovered that for about 550€ I could get a new Andreani cartridge kit (internet says they're similar to Ohlins).
So for the same price, more or less a few 100€ (for an fz8+Andreani vs fz1), I'd get: 2-3 years newer and lower mileage, better suspension, bit better wind protection, bit better consumption (hopefully better range), 10 kg lighter and probably a bit nimbler from the 10mm thinner rear tire, but a bit lower midrange and much lower top range (about 40 ponies). Not the end of the world- some extra power reserve never hurts, but realistically, especially 2up it'd quite rare to be WOT while in the power range (8000+ RPM).
 

Monica A

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Thanks for the input!

After a bit of searching is seems that the charging issues are quite common- apparently the rectifier goes bad, and if not replaced quickly it then melts the stator. Not too nice but not the end of the world either, I know for sure same happens to some Aprilias and even Hondas, and it can be replaced before it fails (with the ones from +06 FJRs being an option :) )

Can I ask you how tall are you? What are the main differences you see in the Sprint vs FZ6, especially in wind protection and tourability and range? What FZ6 did you have (naked or fazer)?

I am 5'8" tall. I can sit on it with my feet almost flat. I have a hard time pushing it backwards but mainly uphill. It is a little heavy for me, but not bad. I'm not as strong as you, I'm sure. The main difference is the Sprint has more torque. I can do slow 15 mph hairpin curves uphill in 2 or 3 gear no problem. On the FZ, I sometimes would have to downshift into 1st or the bike would act like it was going to stall (had it happen once). I could never start from a standing stop in any gear but 1st on the FZ (I know, that 's the customary gear, but I do have a good reason why I don't sometimes. lol) On the Sprint, I can start in any gear (6th on a slight downhill is easily possible). The other main difference would be the nice faring and windscreen. I have a Street Triple R (I love my triples) too, when I ride it and then my Sprint I really appreciate the faring and windscreen. We've ridden up to 550 miles in one day in 11 hours and I never get tired of riding it. We usually average 400 miles a day because Hubby is getting old (not me - lol) and it is hard on his shoulder.

To clarify, my battery issue wasn't a charging issue. Literally the battery went bad and the cable came loose for some reason. We didn't have the tool for my after market seat with us, so hubby couldn't check it. It worked fine for the first day and a half of our trip.....
 

Gary in NJ

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especially 2up it'd quite rare to be WOT while in the power range (8000+ RPM).

If I was hitting 8,000 rpm with a passenger on the back, there's a good chance that would be my passengers last ride with me. From my experience, woman arn't impressed with a mans ability to twist a throttle. They are more impressed with smooth sifts that keep our helmets from banging into one another.
 
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