Honda Fireblade...

[Steve H]

Apologies to the under 25’s but I’ve got a test ride on a Fireblade on Saturday – I’m torn between sticking with a 600 or moving up to a litre bike so thought I’d obtain a few test rides before making my mind up.

I'll attempt a bit of a write up after the event but I'd be grateful for any advice from the 'Blade owners on here, things to look out for, pros and cons of ownership, etc.

Ta
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Mellow Yellow
The BCF Top TEN - 2010, 2009, 2008, The Original.

[colin1]

make sure you try an r1 too, preferably of the 98 variety
blackbirds are cheap these days too, as are falcos

good excuse for a few test rides
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colin1 is officially faster than god

[Steve H]

Don't fancy the Blackbird but my local Yamaha dealer has a beautiful R1 race rep like this 'un...

https://www.yamaha-motor.co.uk/Images/2006_YZF-R1_Photo_08_tcm46-78079.jpg

I'll be test riding the usual suspects and attempting to form an opinion from there
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Mellow Yellow
The BCF Top TEN - 2010, 2009, 2008, The Original.

[Raffles_Gentleman Thug]

[Gazdaman]

Give a mille a go aswell just to add a bit of spice to the mix.

I had a friend with a zx9-r and a mille. The kwak scared the ba-jesus out of him. Whereas he loved his mille.

A litre bike doesn't have to be scary. (And it sounded amazing)

Gaz

[dainesefreak]

Which Blade is it mate?

[Motkram]

No need to apologise, they are an old mans bike anyhow. I had an rry blade for a while and hated it. It did everything well (apart from the FI low down) but it was just soooooo boring; I just never wanted to ride it.
I think the latest incarnation is a little more focused.
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Part-time GSXR1000 pilot>Micron Serpert system+K&N, PC111, Sigma slipper clutch, Brembo m/c+Galfer discs, Gilles rearsets, Translogic Quickshifter.

GP125>GSF400>VFR400NC30>YZF600R>YZFR1(1998)+KLR250>YZFR1(2003)>CBR900RRY>YZFR1(2002)>GSXR1000K1+RGV250

[dainesefreak]

[Steve H]

[dainesefreak]

Just wondered whether it was old or new as there's quite a big difference from the 918, 929, 954 models to the 1000RR models. Might be a bit of an ambiguous question, but how would you describe the TT ride and what are you looking for from a 1000cc machine comparatively, something completely different or a similarity? If you catch my drift.

[Steve H]

Honestly? I don’t really know exactly what I’m looking for – I use the TT on most days and despite having the latest tunes loaded into it I still get the odd 'jolt' when I’m rolling the throttle on. Initially it wasn’t a problem and despite being used to it I do find myself compromising my riding style and consequently my ability as a rider suffers in view of the fact that the bike is holding me back at some points during a ride (specifically coming out of corners where the roll on ‘jolt’ unsteadies the whole set up).

I’ve been riding long enough now to feel that I want a bike that I don’t really need to rev the arse off to be exhilarated by it, this is what I feel like I’m doing at the moment – don’t get me wrong, I still love riding the TT and at times I can be totally absorbed in a ride however I feel that I might be ready for something more (this might change after the test ride obviously!).

I’d also be grateful of the (fabled?) litre bikes ability to pull throughout the rev range which might cause less gear changes.

In short, I want a change and I don’t want to leave the Sportsbike class – I should’ve just typed that as opposed to posting the aforementioned babble
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Mellow Yellow
The BCF Top TEN - 2010, 2009, 2008, The Original.

[dainesefreak]

I'm on my third Blade now and to be quite honest they are faultless performers. I had two 954's before this 1000RR and they were better road bikes, probably in the same vane as the TT, the 1000 is a lot more track biased. The front is far more loaded, the riding position is more weighted on the wrists and the pegs are quite high. I'm only a 5.6"-5.7" tiddler so I find the position ok but it is something that takes a few hours in the seat for the body to acclimatise to when you first own it. It sort of has a front end weightiness feel to it that you notice when you first take it for a spin, but when it gets shifting it holds a tight reassuring line that the electronic steering damper doesn't let waiver (The HESD is very good by the way). The engine is really smooth and really starts to fly at 8000 rpm and I mean it makes your face obey gravity and your eyes pop out, literally. It's so smooth that all the wanabes and kids like to quote the journo's about blandness. For me though it's what makes it a workable road bike and not a race bike on the road. I'm quite happy that it does what it's told, when it's told because I ride it on all roads in all weathers. The Radial brakes are very good, the previous standard 954 calipers were good and these are similar but have more "feel". I actually appreciate the "feel" thing now, never really took any notice of the bollocks the journos talk, but I actually got this one. I've found that the suspension on my three Blades has been spot on for the road, really compliant and never caused me any hassles or undue concern. One thing though is the slight snatchiness of the fuel injection, you do feel a click as it rolls back on from a partial or neutral throttle. If you can be asked to fit a PCIII to a new bike then it really makes the whole package faultless. I did by the way.

If you fancy something more road biased like the 954 used to be, the R1 is supposed to be the most comfortable and tame 1000cc on the road at the moment. I actually wanted one before I bought my first 954 Blade in 2002 but just couldn't get a decent deal. Yamaha have really cut down on the dealers percentages and it's difficult for them to discount as much at the other brands apparently. I was only offered full RRP and I've tried twice now. The Honda garage down the road beat the Yam deal by a mile and there wasn't enough in it for my heart to win out.

Oh yes and the engine is good enough for easy pulls away from a standstill in 2nd and will drop down to about 12-15mph in third at islands then fly up to high three figure speeds in the same gear. It really does make one lazy riding possible.

I'd be really interested to hear how you get on and what you do eventually test ride.

[Wave2k]

apologies to the U 25's why, my bikes are over 600 .
I rode a 2004 (new shape) RSVR last night, i have to say i was pretty impressed.
not your common as muck R1 or GSXR. sounds awsome and goes like stink.
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Ducati 1299 Panigale
2009 Corvette C6 z51
RS125->CBR400->RXS100->GSXR750K2->Ducati749S->CBR600RR5->TL1000R->DRz400->RSVR1000->Honda VTR SP1->CBR400->GSXR1000K6->Honda H100->CBR600RR3->Ducati1299

[Steve H]

[dainesefreak]

I can also recommend somewhere that did me a really good deal if you can be arsed with the trip and like the bike.

[JonB]

How about you let me test ride one once you have bought one Steve?
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[dainesefreak]

He might not pick it up till after your bedtime.

[brooky]

[chalky143]

My m8 went on a test ride on a fireblade 1000 and he loves his speed but his words were OMFG!!!! lol
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Current bike :: sv650 minitwin race bike
Previous bikes::cbr600 steelie race bike, 1989 Honda vfr750f, 2013 Honda fireblade, 2013 Ducati multistrata 1200s, 2012 Triumph street triple R, 1999 yamaha r6, vfr 800, ducati 600ss, vfr 400x2, ntv 650, bandit 600, cagiva mito 125, aprilia rs 50, honda c90x2, honda hornet 600x2, cbr 600, aprilia rx50, suzuki katana
My bike pics: https://www.bikepics.com/members/chalky143/

[Steve H]

Ill take a couple of pics if I've got sufficient time and attempt a write up without the words 'Shovel', 'off', 'the', 'proverbial' and 'Shit'

Jon, I haven't commited to buying anything yet however you're more than welcome to take the TT out anytime pal. Just don't blame me when an old bloke approaches you and says 'In 1932 I rode a Triumph, it were grand, I had her up to 12 mph on the A38 when it was just a dirt track'
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Mellow Yellow
The BCF Top TEN - 2010, 2009, 2008, The Original.

[GearboxGeezer]

Ever since I saw a 1000cc GSX take off from the lights when I was walking down the road, I have been shit scared to even think of the thought of me ridding a 1000cc..

Seriously, the other cars barely got into 1st gear by the time this guy had reached the bend ( good 700m away from the lights ) and he must of been doing atleast 100mph around there.

I will get one one day though

[Danny]

I test rode an '06 Fireblade a few weeks ago.
I was quite tempted; it's exceedingly comfortable for a sports bike and does everything very well. The only downside is that the power delivery is a bit boring for an all out sports bike.

The main reason I decided not to get it was that I already have a zx636 and to be honest it's more fun, so not much point getting the 'blade.

Btw, I am 21 and have had no problems getting test rides.

[colin1]

[colin1]