My last motorcycle

[ajf]

I finally gave up waiting for someone to build what I wanted to replace the old GS650G (a middleweight touring bike with shaft or maybe belt drive and sufficient wind protection to keep the bugs off my faceshield - ie., a modern GS650G).

My second choice was an R1200RT, but the salesman at the local dealership (itself a major negative) rather snootily informed me that even if he could find a base model '08 (his customers don't buy base models), there would be NO end of year discount.  I only wanted one because of its relatively light weight; now I don't have to worry about the rear end failing or cope with the poor steering feedback and the dealer's service department.

So I bought my third choice:  a new '06 FJR1300AE.  I wanted the AE because the clutch pull on the RT is about as heavy as my wonky thumb can handle - the clutch on the A is much heavier.  I'll take delivery in a couple months and have all winter to make it rideable for me - Throttlemeister, aftermarket throttle tube, taller windshield, radar detector mount and possibly bar relocators to accommodate my short arms.  Since I'm turning 60 in a few weeks and I tend to keep my vehicles until they're worn out, I'm pretty sure this will be my last bike (unless I move to somewhere that would justify owning a dual-sport).

The old GS is going to Saskatchewan next weekend, then on the Banff run (if it happens; if not, I'll go myself - Faststage1's trip report plus my limited exploration of eastern Oregon in the Vette last fall have me salivating over it), and finally on my long delayed Alaska trip next spring.  (I wouldn't want to take a bike up there that I couldn't leave there if something major goes wrong.)  Then I'll start riding the FJR - I won't have time to get the necessities ordered, received and mounted before the end of the riding season this year.  

No pictures - everyone knows what it looks like, and I think it's borderline ugly anyway. (My GS with the smoothly sculpted Shoei fairing and classic tank/seat/tail/exposed, air-cooled engine is a much better looking bike, although its lines are pretty well hidden by the ugly, color mismatched hard bags and trunk.  Although I think I have a reasonably well developed aesthetic sense, I really don't care about the appearance of my vehicles.)   Plus I don't want to learn how to post pictures.

[faststage1]

I hear you. Probably a good choice in the end. I looked at the FJR an aweful long time and decided maybe my next next bike. And as much as I am very fond of the R1200RT for its looks and passenger comfort and weight, having to deal with those elitists and pay them thousands of dollars for every little turn of the wrench so I can have my pass booked stamped just so I'm able to maybe sell it one day to some other anal..................
Anyways, nice bike good choice.

[Baz]

AJF:

I have a 2006 A model (Have not ever rode the AE) but I have been very happy with this trouble free bike & now have 20,000 km on it.

Can't beat the FJR on a highway trip.

[bungie4]

Can't beat the FJR on a highway trip.

Here here!

[Against The Wind]

I thought it was "There, there."

[5nines]

That didn't take long
I expect there will be a for sale sign on the SV and the trailer soon
I hope you were able to get the faster blue model
you are going to love that bike

[Huron52]

AJF:

 trouble free bike & now have 20,000 km on it.

Can't beat the FJR on a highway trip.

 20,000 kms  

Just warmed up if you asked me.  

I have 143,000kms on a 04.... oh and yes....and trouble free

If you come to the CFR next year you'll see it there!

[Baz]

 20,000 kms  

Just warmed up if you asked me.  

I have 143,000kms on a 04.... oh and yes....and trouble free

If you come to the CFR next year you'll see it there!

Don't you work Mr?

[ajf]

I expect there will be a for sale sign on the SV and the trailer soon
I hope you were able to get the faster blue model

Nah, I'll keep the SVS for many years.  Different missions.  The FJR is for multi-day rides and for enjoying any twisties I come across at about 10 clicks slower than I'd take them on the SV.  The SV is for riding a couple hours at a time on a compact set of roads that I know well enough to run as fast as I'm willing to go on any public road.  I can't imagine that the big, heavy FJR will give me the SV's sense that my hands are down at the contact patch of the front tire.  I'd be delighted to find out that I'm wrong.  (Thanks again for the test ride on your FJR.  Too bad there are no turns on the roads around there.   )

The AE came only in silver in '06.  I know, I know - the most invisible color.  On warm days I can wear my yellow mesh jacket (which sorta matches the yellow SV).  I don't know what I'm going to do about the black leather jacket.  I need to search for threads on improving the conspicuousness of silver and grey bikes.

[bubba zanetti]

Congrats on the new bike AJF    Last bike ... hmm ... I think you need a year on it and then stay away from magazines and bike shops as a precaution.  

[5nines]

Nah, I'll keep the SVS for many years.  Different missions.  The FJR is for multi-day rides and for enjoying any twisties I come across at about 10 clicks slower than I'd take them on the SV.  The SV is for riding a couple hours at a time on a compact set of roads that I know well enough to run as fast as I'm willing to go on any public road.  I can't imagine that the big, heavy FJR will give me the SV's sense that my hands are down at the contact patch of the front tire.  I'd be delighted to find out that I'm wrong.  (Thanks again for the test ride on your FJR.  Too bad there are no turns on the roads around there.   )

The AE came only in silver in '06.  I know, I know - the most invisible color.  On warm days I can wear my yellow mesh jacket (which sorta matches the yellow SV).  I don't know what I'm going to do about the black leather jacket.  I need to search for threads on improving the conspicuousness of silver and grey bikes.

[5nines]

oops
not enough coffee yet
I was going to point out that dodging pot holes and weaving around patches of sand sealed hi-way can be fun --- sort of

[Huron52]

Don't you work Mr?

Well as a matter of fact... I'm going to be missing two rallies that I wanted to go to because work has gotten in the way.  

 Oh well ....   make some money for some farkles and road trip money for next year!

[ajf]

Congrats on the new bike AJF    Last bike ... hmm ... I think you need a year on it and then stay away from magazines and bike shops as a precaution.  

Thanks for the "advice", but I don't think I'll stop looking at new bikes.  The Edmonton arsonist could choose my garage.  Or I could finally wreck a bike.  You never know . . . Gotta keep up that replacement list!
(SV650S:  1. Duke 690  2. Street Triple.  3.  SV650S.  FJR:  1. Maybe someone will make it.  2. FJR.)

[faststage1]

I approve of your taste in bikes, Dukes & triples......yummmmmmm

[ajf]

I just noticed that the software that came with my camera resizes photos, so now I can post pictures of my new bike.  The first photo is the new FJR awaiting farkling, beside the old GS650G.  I've added pictures of the transport system for the SV650S and the SV on 31a.

Hmm, looks like you have to log in to see the pictures.

[justJim]

What a nice bunch of bikes.    The SV transporter is interesting too. I can see the attraction immediately.

Sorry for the "advice". You do understand that my tongue was planted in my cheek. I rely on folks like you to keep buying new bikes and riding them a few ten thousand miles for me?  Neh ?

Best wishes in your motorcycling and sorry to come off as giving advice.  

[ajf]

Sorry for the "advice". You do understand that my tongue was planted in my cheek. I rely on folks like you to keep buying new bikes and riding them a few ten thousand miles for me?  Neh ?

Best wishes in your motorcycling and sorry to come off as giving advice.  

Bubba never would have apologized.  Bring back Bubba!  

[ajf]

A few thoughts on the FJR after my first long trip.  (I rode it home to Sask, then back across the prairies to Elkford where I joined my brother-in-law on his FJ1200 for a ride along the backroads to Vernon, then back along the same roads and finally back to Edmonton.  About 4000 km.)

With Helibars and my short arms, the forward lean is quite comfortable.  However, as I found out while enduring two separate 4 -5 km sections of stop-and-go on Deerfoot in Calgary during rush hour, the air flowing up under the Rifle windshield is crucial in helping me to hold my weight off the bars.

The seat is getting a bit better as it breaks in, but I suspect I will need an aftermarket seat to ride more than 10 hours in a day.  (I got the longest available frame sliders, and they work, barely, as highway pegs.  Without them I'd have had to waste a lot of time taking breaks while waiting for the butt pain to subside.)

The bike is remarkably plush riding when set up as Yamaha recommends - about as smooth as my Altima.  However, it's rather ponderous on 31a-type roads at those settings.  I used HaulinAshe's suggestions on the FJR forums, and they made a very substantial improvement.  It's still no sportbike, so it takes a lot of force to lean in at higher speeds, and changing lines mid-corner is much more problematic than on my SV650S.  But overall, it was nearly as much fun as the SV, and there's no way I could have run from Elkford to Lumby in one day, let alone back the next day on the SV.

Riding the twisties in my usual, out-of-fashion way with my feet centred on the pegs was going to wear out the sides of my new riding boots by the end of the trip, so I had to learn to ride with the balls of my feet on the pegs.  To my surprise, it worked really well.  The brake seems to be set up for this, as it takes less movement of my foot to reach the pedal than it does with my arch on the peg.  My  left foot never has to move because the bike is the AE model with the auto clutch.

With the stock tires the bike wants to stand up a bit in corners.  I don't like that, because it causes a bit of rider-induced wobble as the front wheel weights and unweights over longer bumps - I can't react quickly enough to provide the necessary variation in pressure on the bars over bumps to keep the bike tracking perfectly.  Hanging off cures this completely, but I feel a bit uncomfortable doing that on the street.  It turned out that that just shifting my upper body inwards a few inches was enough to neutralize the steering.

The auto clutch is a real challenge for someone as poorly coordinated as I am.  At very light throttle settings it seems to be smoothest if I don't back off the throttle during upshifts.  But with more throttle it becomes necessary to back off slightly or the engine overrevs and then the clutch slips noticeably before engaging fully after a shift.  It's too easy to back off too far and the fuel injection seems to shut down completely, then lags after the throttle is opened and finally responds with a lurch.  Downshifts are even harder.  Blipping the throttle as if you are doing racer-style downshifts helps a lot, but I'm far from getting all the variables sorted to the point that I can even imagine doing it reliably.  Of course, if you're satisfied with BMW-like shifts, you'll think the auto clutch is just fine.  On the plus side, it is marvelous to get off the bike after a day in the twisties with no ache in my left thumb - that expectation was the main reason I bought this particular model.

That lurch on opening the throttle is also a big problem when trail braking, then cracking the throttle while turning.  Holding the rear brake on while opening the throttle helps a lot to smooth the power delivery, but it will take a more than one ride in the Kootenays before that becomes second nature to me.

Overall, I'm very happy with the bike.  As a twisties ride it is really quite good.  As a touring bike it is so much better than my old GS650G is so many ways that I'm wavering on my promise to myself that I'd ride the GS to Alaska before getting rid of it.  But, I still wish it weighed 150 pounds less, and I'd happily give up 40 hp if someone made a smaller, lighter version of the FJR.

[5nines]

After riding your bike I had to get back on my 05 and go for a spin IMHO those bars are creepy and make the bike feel weird but the auto shift is kinda cool
How was the trip otherwise, did Greg's FJ keep up?

We could discuss a Vette for KTM swap if you are still headed for Alaska

[ajf]

How was the trip otherwise, did Greg's FJ keep up?

We could discuss a Vette for KTM swap if you are still headed for Alaska

The FJ and Greg could keep up whenever he wanted.  However, the long health-related layoff from riding kept him at a mellow pace most of the time.  No problem - I just slowed to the speed limit on the straights.

Below are pictures of me leaving my sister's at Regina, and Greg and I leaving Elkford.  In the middle of the latter picture is my niece, who bought a Ninja 250 and thinks she's already outgrown it before it's broken in.  She should have come along with us.

Your KTM is a phenomenal machine.  It is exceptionally comfortable with the Day-long seat and wide, tall bars, the power is amazing, the tiny, silly-looking fairing is remarkably effective, and the chassis feels very solid.  Thanks for the test ride!   Now you need good street tires on a second set of wheels and I think you'd have a better twisties bike than the FJR.  And, you could replace the FJR with a Gold Wing for those occasional long, two-up trips.

The Alaska trip is still on, but it keeps getting delayed.  Next on the list is the Vette-SV trip to the Kootenays.  If I don't go next week, the roads will be too crowded until late August to have much fun in the Z06.

[5nines]

That old FJ is one sweet looking bike  

[doenitz]

  Regarding the tires on the FJR.  With my Concours 14, changing to Michelin Pilot Road 2's made a huge difference.  The OEM tires do not work well with the bike.  Perhaps changing to something similar would improve the handling of the FJR.
  Did a 7 day ride to Hyder, Alaska and back thru Vernon and Nelson last month.  Handled the twisties quite well.  Westside road on Okanogan Lake was great fun.