And you make a neat gun

for the people who are

still alive

dcfoley@dcfoley.com

So, here’s my problem. Retrofitting ABS onto the Nighthawk isn’t really an option. There are very few bikes available with ABS, and almost all are around $10k and up (new).  Even disregarding price, most are either heavy touring bikes, ill-equipped for the small town commuting that I enjoy, a few sport bike offerings, or, of course, BMW.  Suzuki, it turns out, offers two bikes that fall outside of these categories: the V-Strom and SV 650N.  Both share a v-twin, which is supposedly a good motor, but unfortunately has less power and torque than my current ride. The Vstrom is a street-heavy “adventure” horse while the SV is a modified sports bike.  I have sat on an SV and seriously considered a used model when I was first looking at bikes.  While it seems like a good bike, it isn’t as comfortable as the NH, particularly since the footpegs are much closer to the seat.  The Vstrom is more tempting, with a riding position like mine (still a crap stock saddle in my opinion, but that’s easy to change) and the dual-headlight fairing that would add to the bike’s usefullness. Both have a great aftermarket, as opposed to the nearly zero availability of NH parts. Unfortunately, not only would I be stepping down on power, I would be paying about 4x for the insurance without insuring the bike itself. Not really sure why slower bikes would injure others more often. Most of all, there’s the reliability issue, especially critical since I would be buying used. Despite their problems with the tech-heavy halo bikes, nothing beats a Honda for reliability.  I was tempted by the BMW R1100R but the BMWs, despite a reputation of solid build and reliability that’s attached to anything German, break. Expensively.  I recently ran accross an amusing illustration of this phenomenon on ADVRider; two guys expecting few dirt roads send their Nighthawks over to Russia to ride with a KTM and a BMW GS (big dirt bikes, essentially).  Turns out they ran a significant amount of siberian “highway” that BMWs are made for. Except the Eurobikes break, repeatedly and the Hondas keep going. So, this brings me to my ultimate point. I want to live the life afforded to the Europeans by Honda. I want my bike, only better. I want an ABS-equipped CB1300F.

Ads via [Consumerist]

Why did the beancounters take over when Soichiro died?

  So far, all that I have changed on the bike is to add a better headlight bulb, a pulsing circuit for said headlight (people still turn in front of me, but it helps), and hidden LED lighting for better side visibility at night.  I would reccomend these mods for all bikes.  The other additions that I am still pondering are a windshield (long trips without one would be not so great) and hard saddle bags (it would be nice to throw my gear into lockable on-bike storage instead of carrying it). 

  The bike rides fantastically.  It’s stable , with a long wheelbase and, let’s face it, heavy frame.  It doesn’t flick like a CBR but it will definitely leave the Harley crowd behind in the twisties, and the dirt-bike seating position and handlebars make it easy to control.  If you are used to breaking the rear wheel loose in full control on the dirt, this bike will not dissapoint on wet pavement.  One of my friends actually described it as “like riding a Cadillac dirt bike” after a run on it.  Of course, he’s comparing it to his beater sports bikes, but it’s still strong praise in my book.  There have been no comfort complaints from the pillion either.  My only issue with the ride is that I can’t find the right setting for the rear preload; either I have it nice and soft but it bottoms out when I go over some of the more heinous intersection dips or I have it dialed up enough to avoid bottoming but it slopes the seat up enough to cause me to gradually slide into the tank.  Maybe I should just slow down a bit on the big bumps and quite pretending I’m on a dualsport. (speaking of which, hypermoto bikes are my main temptation away from this one. Check this out.)

  Overall I would say that I made the right call for me.  Thanks to Robert, Doug, and Suveen for pointing me this way.  However, if you do not have some prior dirt bike experience, a lighter 250CC starter bike might be the way to jump in.  In any case, whatever you buy, get the first one used.

  Concerning the gear:

  The Cortech jacket and gloves are worrying me.  The mesh appears to be polyester and it sends out hairs every time it gets hit with velcro.  Not a good sign for holding up when I need it.  At least the leather sections are generous on the jacket.  I would highly reccomend my Olympia Airglide 2 mesh pants.  They come with a liner like the jacket and worked well in the colder months.  They seem strong and fit snugly enough that the armor will likely stay on my knees, unlike the other zip-off pants I tried.  The Gmax helmet has been working alright so far, save for the common complaint of any naked cycle rider: noise.  If i am planning to be at highway speed for more than 5 minutes, I pop in some earplugs (usually keep some in the pants and a box under the seat).  Still, it would be better to have a helmet quiet enough to avoid this extra step.  The venting seems adequate for TX summer, which is saying something I suppose.

  So far the bike has given me nothing but happiness, making my commute enjoyable when it’s too hot to pedal.  Hopefully the Honda reliability will continue.

Seen at the LebowskiFest 08 [Asylum]

Big Ideas (don’t get any) from James Houston on Vimeo.

Zen.