Big 2k All Rounder.

Despite excellent service up and down Alpine passes I'm replacing my
Divvy 600 after 5 years & thinking about options for the replacement.

My wish list is:
Alloy Frame
Alloy Swing Arm.
Shaft Drive.
Approx 1ltr Bike in detuned grunty state. (90-110bhp).
Easy access to valves/carb.
No need to take cams out to do clearances.
Stainless Exhaust. (Really stainless - no mild steel collector boxs.)
Naked.

Capable of being loaded to the gunwhales with 16st rider + luggage +
passengers + road kill antelope without hassle.
Mechanically capable of effortless motorway touring &
Sussex/Welsh/Worcestershire twisties.
Air Cooled. (With Oil Cooler would be fine)
Cheap + Plentiful parts.
Mill that goes on forever.

These are in no particular order and I know compromises will be
required. I've got £2000ish. (2.5 tops.)

Bikes on my 'possible' list are:

GSX1100 G
Guzzi 1100 Sport (Perfect - No luggage available)
Bandit 1200 (Perfect - but chain)
RF 900
Divvy 900 (Pretty good - but I've had a Divvy 6 for 5 years & can't
raise enthusiasm for 'em.)
FJ1200
XJ900F
XJR1200
ZZR1100

Anyone care to comment on my potential list or add some bikes I
haven't considered? The only reason for the absence of big BMW twins
is the stark fact I can't afford one.

Am expecting endless discussion about the flaws in shafties and the
need for a fairing. Have my fingers crossed for some imaginative cheap
big touring bike suggestions from the silent majority!

Thanks in advance.

 

Even before I got as far as your list, you'd painted a pretty picture of the
Guzzi 1100 sport. I know someone who has one, and the only think he doesn't
like about it is commuting through London. He uses his Le Mans for that
instead.

I believe it only makes 80 brake though.

 

My wish list is:

FJ1200 - hits the spot apart from not being a shaftie. Comfortable 2 up mile
muncher that can carry unreasonable amounts of luggage. Should get a very
good one for that money.

HTH

Buzby

 

FJ1200 - hits the spot apart from not being a shaftie. Comfortable 2 up mile
muncher that can carry unreasonable amounts of luggage. Should get a very
good one for that money.
[/QUOTE]


I agree, fitted with a Scot-oiler and long range feed you can forget
about it not being a shafty.
Increase the gear ratio to drop the engine revs and the fuel consumption
drops with very little loss of performance.

 

Wonder why they didn't sell too well. Nothing fundamentally wrong, just
lardy and barge like.

Soft bags and a custome made rear carrier?, how important is luggage for
the other 48 weeks of the yaer?

If that is your only objection, then get a scottoiler. Better bike than the
1100G. Seriously, I got an average of 18,000 miles out of each chain on the
600f without a scottoiler, without regular cleaning, just overapplying lube
I know flings and letting the fling take the crud with it. Chap here has
got 35,000 miles from his chain on a Triumph Trident, and still it looks
fresh. Mind, if you've had a Divvy 600 for years, you know about chains I
guess.

Stomp stomp stomp and more stomp. Fit a scottoiler.

Getting on a bit. A good example of the 900F is a fine bike to own. I'd
swap the GTR for one.

Are you sure?, some of the earlier ones fall into your price range now.
Mind, TOG would no doubt beat you to the thing.

I prefer shafties, but I wouldn't pass up a chain driven bike I fancied on
the basis it wasn't a shaftie. Fairings are good, but below a certain
speed, which is bike dependant, I don't miss them.

If you want a huge touring bike for not much money that has a reasonable
pace, the Kawasaki GTR1000 is OK. Bit of a barge and the finish is not all
it could be. Yes, it is water cooled, yes the fairing rattles, but I find
mine to be extremely comfy two up and loaded with luggage, and I only need
to stop for fuel, not to massage my arse. It may be too much of a
compromise for you. Can be a bit of an arse commuting on it as it is wide
when the luggage is fitted.

 

Absolutely. Fit and fill the touring reservoir, then forget it for
10k miles.

What he said. Comfy, loads of space to move around when on a run,
loads of grunt everywhere - limited tank range, ~100 to reserve is the
major drawback.

Actually, having one of these - and back-to-back with a Bandit12, it
_does_ have heaps of grunt. Ok, it's about 10 lb/ft of torque down on
the Bandit, but mine develops 75 lb/ft from ~2500 rpm. 15bhp up on a
Bandit too, but nowhere near as comfy. Soft luggage would bear on the
lardy bodywork too, and hard luggage would make it as wide as a Gold
Wing.

 

This is an exaggeration, surely?

 

A stock ZRX puts out about 70lbs torque at 2500, so that sounds only a
tad high to me, for a 900.

 

First of all *many* thanks for all the useful replies. I've lurked on
UKRM for many a year and 10 useful replies to a post is unheard of!
;-)

First I'll explain my wish list for all.

Alloy Frame
Alloy Swing Arm.

- I've had a steel fram efor 5 years now. It's storng enough, I don't
mind the weight. What I object to is that there will always be one or
two nicks in the paint, and they always *begin* to rust. This is
purely cosmetic but I hate it. I want the bike to stay mint. However
this requiremnt is likly to be the first to be comprimised on.

Shaft Drive.

- Don't mind adjusting the chain, don't mind replacing C+S. Have used
a scotoiler for 5 years. No, what I object to is cleaing the oil the
chain throws out off my bike. Not crucial but enough for me to want a
shaft.

Stainless Exhaust. (Really stainless - no mild steel collector boxs.)

- Rules out a lot but Bandit has it. IIRC.

Air Cooled. (With Oil Cooler would be fine)

- No real logic. Just hate water cooling. If I wanted to provide a
reason I'd argue that it's one more thing to check and if you get a
stone through your rad and don't notice the temp you're gonna cook
your head gasket/seize the bike. Water cooling issues seems to often
be the killer of cars. Not quite so bad in bikes but still at th eback
of my mind.

Now to my comments on the bikes:

GSX1100 G

- Would have one - doubt I'd find a decent one. Few about so parts
might be tricky.

Guzzi 1100 Sport (Perfect - No luggage available)

- Love it. Really love it. If I can find a way to get a top box on it
will simply buy one. It's simply and sexy. Want it bad, bu want hard
luggage bad. Am looking into hard luggage.

Bandit 1200 (Perfect - but chain)

- Will probably end up with one of these and live with stone chips on
frame and chain. One concern is weak shocks. I don't want to spend 600
quid on after market shocks. Is it possible to live with the standard
rear shock?

RF 900

- Love em but too many compromises. Also 125 BHP form a 900 doesn't
scream 'mill lasts for ever' at me.

Divvy 900

- I like these. I've found my Divvy to be capable and... fun. No
problem at all keeping up with sports bikes on real life roads.
Perfect poor mans tourer - but I've had a Divvy 6 for 5 years & can't
raise enthusiasm for another 5 years of Divvyhood..

FJ1200


- Perfect. Love em and would put up with the chain for one. BIggest
problem is that they're so good there aren't any sub 20k mile ones
about because people tend to use them. My odds of getting mint one
before I see a Bandit 1200 are zero.

XJ900F

- Love em but unlikly to find a good one in reasonable time.

XJR1200

- Feel the same way as I do about the Bandit. If I see a good 'un I'll
buy it.

ZZR1100

- Tricky. F**King good bike at f**King cheap price. But I *hate* the
way they look and 150bhp from the 1100 is sounding a little too highly
tuned and tempermental. Won't turn a good one down but can't see my
buying one.

Thanks for the suggestions and comments. NO time to reply to all but
all have been printed off to read at home! UKRM at it's best!

 

<waves dyno printout>

No.

 

Oh no it isn't.
;-)

Bandits have mild steel headers/downpipes. Double-skinned,
restrictive and heavy as hell. There is also a no-brain mild section
between the stainless collector and the stainless link pipe.
Replacement free-flowing stainless syatem is sensible but costly.

I take your point on this. I hate water cooling on the basis that it
is one (or several ) more thing(s) to go wrong and to keep a check on.
There is also the bloody rad fan blowing hot air all over you in town
in hot weather.

I had a (possibly _the_ ) completely standard Bandit 12. 1800 miles
on it at purchase, 12k when it was killed. I never had a problem with
the completely stock, factory settings suspension, just accepted that
it would get a bit floaty when thrashed hard down twisty roads for
more than 20 minutes at a time, and would wallow two-up. Jacked up
the rear (with the equivalent of Bandit6 dogbones but in stainless)
which helped turn in and stability both.

A Maxton rebuilt shock comes in at (iirc) ~300 quid and will do you
nicely. Heavier oil in the forks and away you go.

I bloody hope it will ;-) 110 bhp from stock, I believe.

Try one like Lozzo has. "Restricted" it produces 125 bhp if longevity
is a concern - and still goes very very quickly.


Best of luck.

 

Toad of Toad Hall fascinated us all by saying...

WHAT? The ZZR1100 motor is one of the most unburstable and reliable
engines known to man, and temperamental they most certainly aren't. It
appears to me that your riding pace isn't 'on the throttle stop'
everywhere, so in a sympathetic riders hands it should last almost
forever. They have torque like you wouldn't believe, good enough to be
able to go from 25mph to 175 mph in a top gear roll-on. They also have
the best pillion seat I've ever sat on, this side of a Gold-Wing.
Handling is excellent too with pretty good brakes to help you when
needed.

BTW, they don't put out 150bhp as standard. Until the D5 model they were
restricted to 125bhp, and even when the extra ponies are liberated 140bhp
is more the norm. Not that the extra 15 bhp makes any difference to the
top end, it just helps a little in the midrange. I know cos I've had 2
derestricted ones, and the one I currently own is still at 125bhp. It
makes so little difference that I decided not to bother derestricting
this one.


--
Lozzo
ZZR1100D, GPZ500S, CB250RS
BOTAFOT#57/70a, BOTAFOF#57, two#49, MIB#22, TCP#7, BONY#9,
ANORAK#9, DIAABTCOD#14, UKRMT5BB, IBW#013, MIRTTH#15a/16,
BotToS#8, GP#2, SBS#10, SH#3, DFV#14.
Url for ukrm newbies : http://www.ukrm.net/faq/ukrmscbt.html
www.mjkleathers.com

 

Oh tosh. Kawasaki have sold thousands of them, over a model run
lasting 13 years (if you include the recent 1200 version) and apart
from the elsewhere mentioned dodgy manufaturing issue with a batch of
cranks/rods, (around 1992) they are incredibly relieable.

Look up "unburstable" in the disctionary and it says "See ZZR1100".

 

Points at the >1 litre bike in the .sig. At least according to Mr.
Kawasaki it's a stainless steel system,but judging by the current
colour of the exhaust system currently, it snot a SS system.

 

When I do the service on mine in the spring I take the silencers off
clean repaint the wheel and road sides. Then put about 10cc of the old
engine oil into the collector box through each exhaust connection and 10
cc into the ends of the silencers where they would connect to the box.

When the service is finished I park the bike outside and let it tick
over for 5 minutes. Then ride off on a low throttle setting for a mile
or two. Once I'm on my own nail it for a few miles laying smoke. This
seems to keep the Swiss Cheese syndrome starting.

 

why do you go through some much effort then?

 

I could have sworn I typed "from" in front of starting.

Put it down to all the effort I made trying to get on the French run
with half a days notice.

 

I have had the Seca 2, which is the Divvy 600 to you, since 93. I have
had 35K of problem free riding. I too have been trying to find a bike
that is as comfortable and as good all around as my Seca, but with
more of the good stuff. The Bandit 1200 has shorter handle bars that
might drive you nuts, as it does me. A bike to consider should be the
95-96 Kawasaki GPZ1100 which has the power and a comfortable
suspension . The handle bars are clip-on style, but it makes sense
when you sit on the machine. This bike may not meet your criteria,
but I urge you to Google the bike and read the Motorcyclist Online
review, and the online comparison of the Bandit vs. GPZ1100.


Seattle

 

http://www.kawasaki.com/html/motorcycles/streetbikes/zrx1200r/main.asp