New to biking - Honda NC700X / XL700V Transalp / BMW F650GS?

[wemorgan]

Hi.
I'm new to biking. I passed my test 12 years ago but have not ridden since. I've some refresher lessons booked up, but I'm keen to get my own bike asap, which is why I'm posting this thread. I've the often asked question: What bikes should I consider buying as my first 'big' bike?

I've done some research and so far have these on my short list:

Honda NC700X
Honda XL700V Transalp
BMW F650/700 GS

You can see I like the Adventure style of bike. But the bike would just be used for the occasional 25mile each way commute in the Midlands (mostly rural A and B roads) and some week-end riding around the Cotswolds.

My budget is ~£5k, so naturally I'm looking at second-hand bikes.
Lastly, I'm 6'2 if that makes any difference to the bike.

Any thoughts are much appreciated.

ps. I'm off to the NEC bike show at the end of the month so I hope to at least sit on a few bikes.
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Will

[Rogerborg]

Pip pip.

I went for Ze Beemer, mostly because the local Honda dealer doesn't seem to be in the business of actually selling bikes. I won't rave about it, it's not perfect, but it's pretty good (so far).

65mpg, plenty of torque, very easy to ride, all day comfort. Downsides are the crazy BMW indicator switches (although you'll get used to them); quite a lot of chain slap at low revs (they do all do that); and you'll want to keep a close eye on the paint on the sump and engine as they do seem to be prone to flaking. There were some early issues with crappy Elbonian chains and dodgy coolant hoses, but they should be sorted on any bike that you buy today.

They are quite low bikes though, for "adventure" stylee, so you might want to look at the 800 as well. Oh, and the gearing feels a bit long, but that's a simple swap to the 800 front sprocket.

Tiger 800 would be another contender, have you considered that?
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[wemorgan]

Many thanks for your reply.
____________________
Will

[nighthawk250]

I would not rule out the 650 Vstrom. The NC700X is a good bike, with very good fuel economy, I've owned one, but changed it for a touring bike (Deauville).