Brian(formerly neon4891)
Brian(formerly neon4891) MegaDork
12/5/21 12:21 p.m.

I'm going into bike 2 with the goal of racking up miles, 45 mile round trip commute, weekly 100-300 mile day trips, and multiple long distance overnight trips, including NY to FL.   
 

I'm considering modding a Rebel 1100, DCT preferred but not required. Parts wish list is Honda heated grips and "touring" fairing, heated Corbin dual tour, and almost the entire T-Rex Racing catalog, forwards, center stand, crash bar with Highway pegs, and givi hard bag mounts.  I figure it will come to about $13k. Any thoughts on this build?

bgkast
bgkast GRM+ Memberand PowerDork
12/5/21 12:32 p.m.

Unless you are really stuck on the cruiser look or automatic gearbox I think you can buy or build a functionally equivalent bike for a quarter of the price. I just picked up a 2007 Triumph tiger with hard bags, aftermarket oversized windshield, gel seat, etc for less than $4K. There are lots of good options for touring bikes out there.

 

ddavidv
ddavidv UltimaDork
12/6/21 7:17 a.m.

I've toured several times on my Tiger 800. Great bike for that. Mine is farkled to the max and I'd let it's 46k mile self go for around $5500. I'm ready for something different.

the_machina
the_machina Reader
12/6/21 11:04 a.m.

Unless you really love the cruiser seating position, I don't know if 300 miles a day is going to be comfy on that bike, no matter what.

wawazat
wawazat SuperDork
12/6/21 4:58 p.m.

Not a fan AT ALL of forward controls after riding my Harley with them.  Lifting out of the saddle for road stuff is a challenge.  Standard peg locations on my Ducati make that a non-issue.  

Brian(formerly neon4891)
Brian(formerly neon4891) MegaDork
12/9/21 10:55 a.m.

Went to my local Honda dealer yesterday because the website listed an 1100 in stock.  Nope, not until the end of March. Sat on a 500 and it was ok.  It will be interesting to see how much bigger the 1100 is. 

Other bikes on the floor looked interesting.  There was the NC 750 DCT I looked at when I lost my CB 500 X.  A CTX 1300 on consignment was a definite oddball, but I liked it.  Info was scarce beyond "low miles, I think he wants $5,500".  Lastly I sat on a 'Wing and was informed of "available 84 month financing on Goldwings". 7 year financing on any bike is a hard NO. 

Mr. Lee
Mr. Lee GRM+ Memberand PowerDork
6/17/22 11:41 a.m.

30k for a touring wing is a tough pill to swallow. Especially if new and you're adding tax, prep fees etc will probably end up around 35-37. That's more than SWMBO Corolla hatchback XSE. That said having grown up on them they're all a sweet ride for distance. I routinely steal dads 1200 when I get the chance and will disappear for 8 hours or more at a time with it. Having ridden a 21 model at a demo day last year I can see where the draw is. The new ones are stupid quick for something that large, and it's still like riding a lazy boy recliner when you're not in attack mode. Once in motion the weight doesn't really feel like it's there. I'll say this my dad commuted a hour each way for YEARS on his first 1200 wing before someone hit it from behind while target fixating on the shovel spinning down the highway that had come off a landscaping trailer. Hit hard enough from behind to lift the bike and lay it on its side. Dad stayed on the bike and other than some road rash where his fatigues tore away walked away with a sprained ankle. Still have the bike at his place as a reminder of what could happen.

 

I'm just having trouble debating between a wing or an "adventure" bike for my next ride the 1290 KTM, Tiger 900/1200 and a used current generation wing all fall in the same price bracket. Good luck with your hunt. 

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