I feel like a child waiting for Christmas......

Feel free to take the piss but I'm Demo riding a couple of 2nd bike options tomorrow, as I fancy something a bit different. (I'm keeping the FireBlade though)

BMW F800GS:


Honda NC700X:

 

Cheers Matt.

I know there is nothing "thrilling" about either of these, so many here wont "get" it.....but I love the look of them so giving them a go.

 

Same here, I can have fun with pretty much anything I interact with (car, bike, horsey..... ride-on mower )

 

Have u tried a KTM SMT. Now they do look like fun. Same sort of style your looking at but then some

 

Sort of, I looked at 990/950 Adventures.
Build Quality and finish...worlds apart.


Honda has spoilt me

 

ooooooo Today's the day

 

This Exhaust make it look a lot better tbh......This will be the first bike NOT to wear an Akrapovic ti IF I do get one!



I'm not sure on the Akrapovic

 

I've just got a tdm900 spot on for all sorts



I've fitted HID lights, gaters, mud guard extenders front and rear, clear indicator lenses, crash bars, centre stand, MRA screen, yam top box, removed pair and flapper and some other stuff! I've signed a contract that promises NO MORE mods, and defo NO Akras

 

Following my mini euro trip on the blade last year I convinced myself i needed an F800GS, and i bought a fully loaded one with the full vario luggage, sat nav, heated grips, and all the bolt on accessories gs owners like.......anyway, i went out with my sportsbike buddies on a sunday and surprised them with my new toy. Once they stopped laughing we hit the road and it was surprisingly good fun, and whilst its no blade you you can still keep up and scratch about up to sensible speeds.

Trouble for me was everytime i was free for a ride i opened the garage and picked the blade. I havent done another euro trip since. I ended up using it just 3 times in 6 months so flogged it and lost a nice round £100. So the way i look at it, if you buy at the right price you can try it out for very little money and who knows, you may just love it.

Enjoy yourself.

 

What a fantastic afternoon.
Both bikes were very good, Both were very different to each other (I knew this before I started, it has helped me decide which way forward).
Of these two, One stood out clearly as the better bike for my needs.

 

Sorry, bloody photobucket wasn't working on Firefox last night so couldn't upload pictures.

Here we go:

First I rode the F800GS.


It rode nice, very soft on the suspension...It felt just like a Big DRZ tbh, but with more go.
The gearbox was nice, the engine was good but had to be revved to get the best from it, the brakes were good, The seat felt like it had a lip or maybe a step around the front edge as it was digging into my inner thigh as I like to grip with my knees/legs (This comes from horse-riding), the clutch was heavy though (much heavier than my Fireblade) and had made my left wrist ache after about 30mins.





All in all I did enjoy it, I stayed out on it for about 45mins but by then then felt I'd had enough.

I did book a demo for the F650GS twin (to ride this morning) as this is slightly more road based but I'm unable to get across to ride it today so have just rang and cancelled that.

A big thank you to Paul at Bahnstormer Motorrad, A real pleasure to meet/chat with him again.

 

Sorry, bloody photobucket wasn't working on Firefox last night so couldn't upload pictures.

Here we go:

After trying the F800GS I popped across to Blade Honda to ride the NC700X.


First thing to comment on (and the thing that divides opinion between those than know how to get the best from any engine, and those that just blindly rev he tits off everything) is the engine.
The engine in this bike it very low-revving (redline is at 7k) but thankfully the pull is very good right from tick-over, I found it best to keep it between 3-6k, the engine is keen and has a lovely note to it (They do sound amazing on open pipes), despite what I'd read they do pull well even in top gear...in short, get to know the power delivery and ride it accordingly.

It squeezed through traffic well and had good punch for quick and safe overtaking even at speed.
The Gearbox was typical Honda (nice solid feel to it) and shifted positively.
The Brakes (although single disc on front) were very good and never felt lacking.
The seat was very comfy, no problems at all.
The Clutch very light with good feel to it.
The handling was superb, it felt very light to flick from left to right and cornered very well with a very stable feel to it.
The suspension (although older style forks) was very good, tbh it felt just right as it never felt too soft on the brakes yet it didn't wallow or bounce on bumps mid-corner, it absorbed potholes well too.
The screen was perfect, kept the wind off my chest and didn't notice and buffeting..plus not too big to spoil the look of the bike.
The finish was very good, and as expected everything is well thought-out including a huge storage area under the dummy tank (fuel tank is under the pillion seat), it would be very easy to put a 12v power-socket in the main storage area.
Styling is always a matter of personal taste and I love the look of it (The IXIL exhaust transforms the only bit I don't like)






I was out on it for an hour and a half and only took it back when I did as time was getting on a bit, could have easily and happily stayed out on it all day.

A big thank you to Andy at Blade Honda, I will be back.

I absolutely loved it.

 

Cheers Martin.
To Add:
I had a good look at a white one, the paint is big flake metallic (I thought it was just flat white)
I think White will be the colour I go for.