Hate that bike.

[Kentol750]

I'm with grr666, never been that bothered, tried one and hated it. Reminded me of when I cornered on a vespa and ground it out. As for cylinders, 1 for fun, 2 whilst having soul, isn't quite as pokey as 3 and 4 just makes long miles easy. Didn't guzzi do 180mph on a v8 60 years ago?
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Some bikes.

[DJP]

[ThatDippyTwat]

[biker7]

[stevo as b4]

Well this thread has derailed way OT. But fuck all the Harley snobs, I actually know more people like you that own or have owned them who also ride 90's Jap sports bikes.

Two things though:

1, I have and never will get why Japanese cruisers are so ridiculed and looked down on compared to generally inferior built and less advanced HD's though. 4 cams, 8valves, balancer shafts and EFI all sound superior to the original iron horse IMO. And some of the Japanese bikes go and stop alot better too. But they are seen as pure horse shit compared to an HD generally?

2, Generalisations and pigeon holing, well this is the norm and something I believe in to a large extent. You could have 200 BCF'ers that don't claim to be bikers but they are all individuals instead. What a load of Bullshit that is. You won't get 200 different opinions on any subject or about any bike. Therefore alot of these so called self proclaimed individuals are the same or close enough to box up into little groups. It does no harm to have lots of little groups of the same thinkers and opinion people anyway as more people are defined by having a common interest, or feeling than not.

There's not enough bikes or opinions out there for us to all have something so totally different or to have such conflicting different thoughts, we like animals like to associate ourselves with other like minded folk and stick to a group we have a common view/feeling/connection with, so by and large the whole individual thing in all areas of life is total horse shit.

Takes more balls to admit we are a load of clones and fanbois than it does to pretend we are all free thinking highly opinionated independent individuals though.

[Travis Bickle]

[Kentol750]

Stevo just did a baby tef..... bless.
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Some bikes.

[el_oso]

[chickenstrip]

I don't like Harleys and cruisers. Hate is too strong a word, as they never inflicted trauma on me as the 400 Superdream did - I never rode one. But if I did ride one, I suspect they would, so I won't ever do that.
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Chickenystripgeezer's Biking Life (Latest update 19/10/18) Belgium, France, Italy, Austria tour 2016 Picos de Europa, Pyrenees and French Alps tour 2017 Scotland Trip 1, now with BONUS FEATURE edit, 5/10/19, on page 2 Scotland Trip 2 Luxembourg, Black Forest, Switzerland, Vosges Trip 2017
THERE'S MILLIONS OF CHICKENSTRIPS OUT THERE!

[Bhud]

[Travis Bickle]

NC700X / NC750X was on my list of bikes to consider buying next. Think I'm set on a V-Strom though but these bikes did appeal to me... Until I realised the power and torque is less than the ER6 I done my test on. They're probably fantastic commuters.
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Must Go Faster
1999 Yamaha FZS600 Fazer

[Polarbear]

[struan80]

If I'm honest I like basically all bikes, even the Shadow has a small place in my heart.

[Robby]

Harleys. Everyone has an opinion on them.

If you're never ridden one, you definately won't get it. They are shit on paper. They can also be shit to ride, depending on what you're trying to get out of it. A stock sportster 883 is shit. Once you've done the exhaust, intake and remap, it's quite good.

They're different to ride, which is why I like them. They make every Japanese bike feel the same. Too revvy, too polished.

I found them to be incredibly reliable, never had any trouble. Good finish too, which is to be expected. Harley are not scrimping on the paint, powder coat or chrome to save weight or cost. They are heavy, expensive bikes.

Harley group riders can be dicks, just like any other group of riders (sportsbike riders, baaklaaf). Riding in groups turns people into arseholes.

I like Harleys. I've had two, I'll have more in the future. I'll also have more Japanese and European bikes.

[biker7]

[Travis Bickle]

My YBR is painfully slow but I still love it. I'll probably hate it after I get my next bike...
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Must Go Faster
1999 Yamaha FZS600 Fazer

[ThatDippyTwat]

[Travis Bickle]

Yeah I could be looking back at it with nostalgia or hatred, impossible to know until the time comes...
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Must Go Faster
1999 Yamaha FZS600 Fazer

[M.C]

[Bhud]

I wasn't going to say anything, but yeah, thumbs-up from taxi drivers and a Harley Sportster being 'not for beginners' kind of gives the game away as to why it was bought in the first place.

People have asked me whether my bike is a 125 (probably because of the narrow 90s-style rear wheel). That's fine with me. I have just a few roads that I use to seriously challenge myself, and which I've set up my shocks and brakes and ride for.

These are the things I value:
1) Function over form (monoshock better than traditional twin shock, cradle frame better than 80s UJM, trellis and engine-as-stressed-member overhead frames as the best, OHC better than pushrods, etc.)
2) Solo riding over group riding
3) Whether I took that familiar hilly country road bend (where I test myself) to the best of my ability
4) Cost-effectiveness (never having to think twice about putting in fuel, replacing tyres, oil, etc. because I haven't blown thousands on a bike)

I appreciate that not everyone shares the same set of values. But the opinion of taxi drivers and random people in the street, and wanting to be thought of as a highly experienced and skilled rider (whether as reason to buy a Hayabusa or a Harley), etc. is something I would strenuously walk backwards from. Probably a generational thing at work there, and a lot in common with rider attitudes in the USA, where the licensing/testing process is easier, but in any case, there you go. IIRC, when Hunter S Thompson took a Ducati 900SS out for a ride, he had the class to admit he never went faster than 95mph on it, and that the bike scared him when he pushed it, and he never pulled out the 'this machine is not for beginners, son' card. Well, realistically, this is the optimum country right here for 95mph blasts on winding country roads, and neither a Busa nor a Harley is the right machine for that sort of riding. In the USA a Honda Rebel 250 is the beginner's beginner bike, and is derided after a mere couple of hours riding around a car park. It's as if they spend a couple of hours on a 250 to get their ticket, and then rush to the showroom to get their tricked-out Harley or stretch(?) Hayabusa. But I've yet to see any video footage of someone pushing a Rebel 250 to its limit. You can stretch your credit limit far easier than a bike's limit.

[Travis Bickle]

I think there's a lot of needless flaming/trolling going on in this thread... Can't we all just respect one another and sit around sucking each others cocks telling each other how good we all are rather than having a dig at each other?
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Must Go Faster
1999 Yamaha FZS600 Fazer

[struan80]

[M.C]

[Travis Bickle]

[Polarbear]