Decisions decisions

[Charlie]

Thinking of getting rid of my Fireblade. Not convinced I want too, more of a thought that I should do.

Most of my miles are commuting, 44miles a day. Most of the miles are on a motorway, most of my time is in a 30. Living out in the hills and the road from the house is very steep, making the thought of commuting on the Fireblade in winter not too pleasant. I've already managed to drop it turning it round on a steep hill, no real damage, guess I was rushing and not being careful. This makes me think I should get something I wouldn't mind dropping and which can handle the odd fall better than a Fireblade will.

I've moved back North from the South and I am looking forward to enjoying the northern roads like I used to as a teenager. Not really enjoyed riding my bike as much as I used to when I was younger. I am hoping being back north will!

Seen a couple of bikes that I think could match what I want:
Honda Africa Twin - Seen a rough looking hack for not a lot of money. Probably a bit heavy
Honda Transalp - Not seen one in particular, not sure if I want a 700 or 650
Yamaha xt660z tenere - seen a reasonably priced one, bit dubious about why it has a different colour tank and recovered seat. They seem a bit heavy for the power. I often felt my xt600 lack power and handling.

I enjoy my riding my fireblade it handles really well has great acceleration and nice protection from the rain when I haven't got over trousers on.

Tl:dr
I haven't a clue if I should sell my fireblade and get something more practical which I am hoping will be more suitable and enjoyable than my blade.

Any ideas?
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Past: Honda x8rs, Honda City fly, Honda Hornet 250, Honda VFR750, Yamaha xt600e.
Current: Honda CBR929RR & Yamaha XT660Z Tenere

[DrSnoosnoo]

Swap it for my cg. You could throw it off a cliff and it'd still work, if you want toughness. Top speed is an issue though.
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I'm Sam; Northern, Ginger, Lover
Did have: '95 ZZR600 '83 CG125 '97 ZZR1100 '15 Hypermotard 821 SP Do Have: '10 ZX10R

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

It doesn't get much more practical than the 'Blade. Some have accused them of being boring. I think what you want is something worse, but with "character".
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[barrkel]

Mostly just commuting? Motorway? Most of the time in 30 zones? Won't be disabled from a drop?

T-Max. Weight / CoG will be low so actually easy to hold up. Comfy as a chair on the motorway. Automatic makes 30mph stop-start-filter non-tedious, just point and squirt. No levers to bend or snap in a drop other than brake lever, and you have one on each side. You're not going to easily put a hole in the engine covers either.

Probably not the answer you were looking for though
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Bikes: S1000R, SH350; Exes: Vity 125, PS125, YBR125, ER6f, VFR800, Brutale 920, CB600F, SH300x4
Best road ever ridden: www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2MhNxUEYtQ

[Charlie]

The whole taking a drop thing probably just means it needs to be old and something that I care less about how it looks. My fireblade is a nice bike and I want to keep it that way, but the all year round commuting means it won't stay nice however.

Guess that probably means I should get either that Africa Twin (if it hasn't already gone) or an old transalp.
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Past: Honda x8rs, Honda City fly, Honda Hornet 250, Honda VFR750, Yamaha xt600e.
Current: Honda CBR929RR & Yamaha XT660Z Tenere

[P.]

Just grab yourself a commuter. If you don't want to really give a shit about it some £500 500 twin or something. That is remarkably cheap and who gives a shit what it looks like

[Charlie]

Thing is I don't want 2 bikes so need something that will still be good fun to ride while being cheap enough to not worry about commuting.

Moon on a stick anyone?
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Past: Honda x8rs, Honda City fly, Honda Hornet 250, Honda VFR750, Yamaha xt600e.
Current: Honda CBR929RR & Yamaha XT660Z Tenere

[Robby]

If you're going for something with significantly less power, then get something naked so it still feels quick.

On country roads I prefer something light and punchy with an upright position to have a chance of seeing over some of the hedges. Good brakes are necessary to have some confidence, along with the chance of fitting some reasonable tyres. So a supermoto would be ideal.

I would enjoy an Africa Twin or a Transalp, it's my sort of bike. Just bear in mind that after a fireblade it'll have crap brakes, no power, vague handling and similar fuel burn.

See if you can try an MT-03. They look nice, and have good specs on paper.

[Alex A]

Go trade it in against a Yamaha MT-07. Perfect for the job and (for a new bike) it's not likely to depreciate much.