Is motorcycling allowed?

[the nerd]

I totally forgot how good the Versys 650 is... 

 

geez what a bike, in the traffic its effortless, low down torque for ever and just pulls out of a hole! 

 

I made the right decision (Again) 

[Allrounder]

I absolutely like the looks of the versys, but for some reason they stay to expensive for me. Would sell my GS in a heartbeat for a versys.  

[the nerd]

I absolutely like the looks of the versys, but for some reason they stay to expensive for me. Would sell my GS in a heartbeat for a versys.  

 

Ya they hold their value, I paid the same now as I paid in 2014 for my first one. 

[Ed-Zulu]

The sad day has arrived that I'm selling my F800GS.

 

On the flip said the wife said I can buy a Super Duke R later on

She sounds really nice, you should hang on to her

[BenReaper]

Sat in the Cape Town traffic for the first time in years yesterday afternoon and noticed that the Honda NC is quite a popular choice for commuting.

Although I've never been much of a fan of the Honda NC and Kawasaki Versys looks wise there is no denying that is a great choice for a commuter. The comfortable seating position and power delivery of these bikes make them great in traffic.

I currently commute on my GSXR 750 and its a horrible commuter, the hunched over seating position and where the power is delivered is not designed for this. And I have to drop my boy of at school aswell.

When my DR is fixed I'll start commuting on that , pretty sure it will be way better.

Edited February 22, 2019 by BenReaper

[Andymann]

Sat in the Cape Town traffic for the first time in years yesterday afternoon and noticed that the Honda NC is quite a popular choice for commuting.

Although I've never been much of a fan of the Honda NC and Kawasaki Versys looks wise there is no denying that is a great choice for a commuter. The comfortable seating position and power delivery of these bikes make them great in traffic.

I currently commute on my GSXR 750 and its a horrible commuter, the hunched over seating position and where the power is delivered is not designed for this. And I have to drop my boy of at school aswell.

When my DR is fixed I'll start commuting on that , pretty sure it will be way better.

I decided to do my dealer visits on an R1 back in the day.  Used to go from home in Pretoria to World of Yamaha to Centurion Yamaha to Linex to Wilrogate and around to JHB Yamaha and then back home to Pretoria.  Lasted about 2 weeks and I gave it back and grabbed the TMAX scooter.  It was a pain in the arse (literally, because the underseat pipes actually burn your arse) to commute on the R1.  Can't think that any superbike is pleasant to commute on.

[Steven Knoetze (sk27)]

I decided to do my dealer visits on an R1 back in the day.  Used to go from home in Pretoria to World of Yamaha to Centurion Yamaha to Linex to Wilrogate and around to JHB Yamaha and then back home to Pretoria.  Lasted about 2 weeks and I gave it back and grabbed the TMAX scooter.  It was a pain in the arse (literally, because the underseat pipes actually burn your arse) to commute on the R1.  Can't think that any superbike is pleasant to com

 

I would LOVE a TMAX!!!!!

[Allrounder]

I would love a bws scooter!!

[Hairy]

just how "safe" are scooters in terms of handling and braking?

 

I decided to do my dealer visits on an R1 back in the day.  Used to go from home in Pretoria to World of Yamaha to Centurion Yamaha to Linex to Wilrogate and around to JHB Yamaha and then back home to Pretoria.  Lasted about 2 weeks and I gave it back and grabbed the TMAX scooter.  It was a pain in the arse (literally, because the underseat pipes actually burn your arse) to commute on the R1.  Can't think that any superbike is pleasant to commute on.

[BenReaper]

I decided to do my dealer visits on an R1 back in the day. Used to go from home in Pretoria to World of Yamaha to Centurion Yamaha to Linex to Wilrogate and around to JHB Yamaha and then back home to Pretoria. Lasted about 2 weeks and I gave it back and grabbed the TMAX scooter. It was a pain in the arse (literally, because the underseat pipes actually burn your arse) to commute on the R1. Can't think that any superbike is pleasant to commute on.

Years ago I had this GSXR SRAD of mine in Streetfighter guise, was a way more comfortable in traffic but still to nippy though.

Toying with the idea of a small 400cc streetfighter build, enough power for whatever and you can make it as comfortable as the custom seat you put on.

[BenReaper]

Thst or a motard.....

[BenReaper]

So Friday on my way home my SRAD started jerking a few times and eventually died on me. Found the main fuse blown and called the wife to come fetch me with the bakkie.

Only got round to looking for the problem this afternoon and got really lucky. Took the tailpiece of first and moved on to the front fairing to inspect the wiring loom. As I took of the fairing panel I saw that the loom had started rubbing against the fork and had scuffed of the insulation and this caused a dead short on the wire.

Taped the wires back up, repositioned the loom slightly as to not rub against the fork again and I'm good to go again.

 

A plus point that came out of this incident is that in anticipation that I might be without a bike for a day or two while stripping the loom I proceeded to assemble my singlespeed commuter that hasn't been used in more than a year as backup to get to work.

Now that its running again I might aswell start using it again and give the motorbike a bit of rest.

[Andymann]

just how "safe" are scooters in terms of handling and braking?

A TMAX is really just an automatic motorbike with a scooter body.  I might have my groups wrong, but if I recall Bill Hunter comfortably led the C group times at a trackday once.  And that was the old 500 TMAX.  That bike handled and stopped as well as any roadbike. The new one has a proper aluminium frame and bigger wheels so it's even better.

 

And from a safety point of view there were two things I felt really comfortable with - with the storage space under the seat, I didn't have to carry a bag on my back which I always felt covered my Hi-Vis vest making it a bit less effective.  And with no tank and frame between my legs I also felt that if I was ever hit from the side by a car, my legs wouldn't get too badly injured.

 

BWhiz is a little less so....tiny wheels, front brake hardly any better than a decent MTB brake, and acceleration which can quickly get you into trouble means you need to keep your wits about you.  I get a bit nervous when my Wife takes the BWhiz.....

[Hairy]

Did a little searching on various classifieds ... a used TMAX is the same price as a rather decent second hand motorbike!
 

A TMAX is really just an automatic motorbike with a scooter body.  I might have my groups wrong, but if I recall Bill Hunter comfortably led the C group times at a trackday once.  And that was the old 500 TMAX.  That bike handled and stopped as well as any roadbike. The new one has a proper aluminium frame and bigger wheels so it's even better.

 

And from a safety point of view there were two things I felt really comfortable with - with the storage space under the seat, I didn't have to carry a bag on my back which I always felt covered my Hi-Vis vest making it a bit less effective.  And with no tank and frame between my legs I also felt that if I was ever hit from the side by a car, my legs wouldn't get too badly injured.

 

BWhiz is a little less so....tiny wheels, front brake hardly any better than a decent MTB brake, and acceleration which can quickly get you into trouble means you need to keep your wits about you.  I get a bit nervous when my Wife takes the BWhiz.....

[V12man]

Did a little searching on various classifieds ... a used TMAX is the same price as a rather decent second hand motorbike!

 

Yes BUT... Rossi rides one as daily transport.... try it - you might like it.

[Andymann]

Did a little searching on various classifieds ... a used TMAX is the same price as a rather decent second hand motorbike!

 

 The thing is, it really is a pretty decent motorbike.  Unfortunately, it's labelled as a Scooter and gets a pretty bad rap.

 

The TMAX I rode when I commuted was the only motorbike I have ridden where I felt that if for whatever reason I could not own a car, this would be a genuine alternative.