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I stick with my original stance in the post, even though I have bought a 1300 myself, because I feel 750 probably the best balanced for all round use. It isn’t necessarily the most fun though!!!
quote:
Originally posted by Gixwould love the gixer1000 but cant justify it really….750 should do me for now.
Famous last words LOL!
Found this Here which I found interesting.
One of the first things a toddler learns is the word “need”. The distinction between need and want comes a lot, lot later.
We tend to apply the same “want” rather than “need” rule to riding a bike. I got thinking about this when I overheard a conversation with one rider pooh-poohing another’s choice of a Monster 600. The first woman said she “needed” the power of her Honda Hornet and that the Monster was underpowered.
So how much power do you really need and what’s it all for?
Back in 75, Triumph were still rolling 750 Bonnevilles off the production line. Though they were outpaced by Japanese 750s, they were still considered a big bike. Power output? Around 50hp, with a top speed of 110-115.
25 years of machine development has dramatically affected attitudes. If you believe the motorcycle press, and most people seem to, the accepted starter bike these days is something like a 600 Bandit, Fazer or Hornet, with many newly qualified jumping straight onto a CBR, R6 or similar. Most new riders accept that something like an R1 is a bit too much to handle, (and judging by the number of low mileage, late reg Yams available in MCN classifieds, so do some of the more experienced owners), but bikes like the ER5 or GS500 are considered OK to learn on or to commute short distances, but otherwise underpowered.
But is that really so? Guess what a GS500, ER5 or a CBF500 puts out? Yes, around 50hp with a top speed of 110-115. What we teach people to ride on now and are pooh-poohed as “learner bikes” were accepted as a “proper” motorcycle back in 75.
I learned to ride years ago in the mid 70s on a CB125S and like most riders at that time graduated to a 250 for a couple of years – in my case a CB250K4, before buying my first “big” bike – a CB400-F – in 1978.
I toured all over Europe on that 400-F, sometimes two up. OK, speeds on motorways have gone up and the bike would struggle there now, but twisty rural roads and Alpine passes are still the same, and overtaking a car doing 50mph is still possible. The bike never felt particularly slow and on a recent ride-out the rider of a 30 year old 400-F was happily in the middle of the pack. Power output? 37hp (claimed), genuine more like 30hp, with a top speed of a gnat’s over 100mph. Pretty much the same as a derestricted 125 Aprilia then.
Somehow, the 600 Supersport category has become seen as the bike for new riders to buy after they pass their test, but today’s “starter” machines are quicker than the legendary (copyright MCN) Z1 yet that bike was sold to expert riders only. CBR-RRs and the like aren’t far off the power output of Barry Sheene’s 500GP RG500 Suzuki.
That’s the context of then and now, but how much power do we actually need to get from A2B? A lot less than most people think is the answer.
Any guesses how much you need to get your knee down round a roundabout at 20mph? About 1 (ONE) hp – you can do it on a strimmer engined mini-moto!
Riding at the legal urban limit of 30mph demands 2hp. Yep, that’s what a restricted moped churns out!
Upping the ante somewhat, 10hp will push you along to the 60mph national limit on a single carriageway. Honda’s long running CG125 pumps out 11hp and will just pull 65 on the clock with a long enough run.
Getting a ban comes easy with just 30hp – that derestricted Aprilia 125’ll just about shift you along at the ton, 30mph over the national limit on the dual carriageway or motorway, and was roughly what the RD250LC produced before everyone stuck a pair of ‘spannies on them and pulled wheelies up and down the high street.
120mph will land you a custodial sentence these days, and you can crack this on a 60hp GPz500 or a Triumph Trident (the REAL one ).
Even though we are now firmly into the law of diminishing returns of horsepower versus drag, a helicopter pursuit and a “maniac rides at 150mph” slot on the evening news will be yours for a bargain basement 100hp. A twenty year old FZ750 or GSXR750, or any of the current crop of supersports 600s will outrun most things the police have on the ground.
OK, enough examples… obviously modern bikes accelerate a damn sight faster, handle and stop better, can tour better and carry more luggage and corner speed, but the bare facts remain – once you get over about 30hp, most of the hp lurking in your motor is redundant most of the time.
So why do modern bikes need huge power outputs? To give huge top speed figures for the road tests of course. Look at the power curves of modern machinery. You may have 100hp on tap, but that’s to overcome drag and get to the theoretical maximum 150mph top speed.
The problem is that the power is delivered so far up the rev range, you can only get to it in the bottom two gears and still stay at vaguely sane speeds. Even on the track it’s not that much use where there isn’t a long straight – which is why racers change the gearing to suit.
Think about those wheelying RD250s – if the front wheel is in the air, you can’t accelerate any faster – and they could hoick the front on 30hp. It’s all down to the gearing and making use of the power where you need it.
So next time you twist your throttle and think how much you really need all that power at your disposal, just reflect a moment on how much is actually being used to push you along. Your motor is hardly working!
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