American review

2478 Views 8 Replies 5 Participants Last post by JoRatBiker, Mar 20, 2014

redbear6

Discussion Starter · Mar 18, 2014

The bike is solid. It has a deeper and louder sound than my F6B and accelerates just a little quicker.

The ergonomics are fine, but my wife is waiting for helibars to get on the ball as the bars are a little forward for her. The seat is firm and comfortably shaped.

Two downsides (okay, three); the cockpit cowling is pretty much under the rider, like a sport bike. I believe this will cause some scratching depending on the rider attire (she has a new Gerbing heated jacket). The "glove boxes " are small and open only a little. I am sure this is so that the bars don't rip off the covers, but it is still a little inconvenient. The bars are big, high and forward. Some sort of adjustment would be nice, as would a larger windscreen (not as large as the "14 that Honda will offer.

Over all, we are very happy. This bike eats highway and we look forward to years of travel. Even thug the bike weighs six times what my wife weighs, she is able to mange due to a relatively low center of gravity.

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redbear6

Discussion Starter · #2 · Mar 18, 2014

Oh, also the seat has to be removed to use the helmet lock. This is a real pain. the gas cap release is a keyhole on the side of the bike. turn it one way and the cap opens, turn the other way and the seat comes loose. It's a chore and I hope the seat mounting hardware holds up.

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sleepngbear

· #3 · Mar 18, 2014

Thanks for the info.

Just to give us a bit of a benchmark, how tall is your wife? Might give some of us an idea of whether the bars will be an uncomfortable reach without modification. Is there much room for adjustment down at the riser clamps? I've seen a lot of dealers set the bars up high on many bikes for some reason, and usually the very first thing I have to do with I get a bike home is loosen those riser bolts and drop the bars closer to the tank.

And one last question -- why is SHE not a member here???

PS: to anyone questioning this bike's performance -- "It has a deeper and louder sound than my F6B and accelerates just a little quicker" should tell you all you need to know!

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redbear6

Discussion Starter · #4 · Mar 18, 2014

She's about 5"6. She's not on here because she's at work today. The bars seem to be in the middle of their available angles, but any closer may impact the large faux tank.

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sleepngbear

· #5 · Mar 18, 2014

If the front wheel is at full lock in that pic, it looks like there's a bit of room to go down some without touching bodywork ... If not, for sure there will be after-market risers out there to bring them a little closer, if there isn't something out there already that will fit.

Can't wait to hear her impressions after a good long ride.

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Bigdawg

· #6 · Mar 19, 2014

I'm no expert, but I have looked at hundreds of pictures of the ctx1300 & I haven't seen handlebars that look like they sit as high as they do in her picture.

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redbear6

Discussion Starter · #7 · Mar 19, 2014

Moved them down this morning. Have to see what she thinks.

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cheeken

· #8 · Mar 19, 2014

what year is your f6b?

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JoRatBiker

· #9 · Mar 20, 2014

You say the Ergonomics are fine, are you referring to your wife on the bike? You mention she is 5 ft 6 inch. So, how will a 6 foot plus male rider fit on this bike? (Actually 6 ft 3 inch). Or, is that just totally laughable?

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