dduelin
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I rode my NC700X on a 525 mile ride yesterday. This was a day ride on roads I had been on before, the idea being to see how it worked for the back road traveling I really prefer to do but also nearly 200 miles on the interstate because sometimes I just have to get across several states in minimum time in order to get to a rally or ride at the other end. I also wanted to ride tank to tank at least once to see if the seat can do it and what kind of mileage the bars on the fuel gauge represents. I packed my road kit of tire repair tools with air compressor in the "not a tank" storage compartment, added my favorite tank bag, a small tool kit, a sheepskin seat cover (just in case the seat is a 60 minute seat), and two bottles of water and shut the lid. This is a very convenient feature for commuters and for a day ride.
Running back roads at an aggressive pace was a pleasure. The bike really corners and holds the road really well. It changes direction as easily as thinking about it and flinging it into corners both fast and slow is fun stuff. Twice I was in a little hot and these times when you have to push the lower bar harder and just make the corner the bike was confidence inspiring. In the early morning the roads were damp in places from quick rain showers and I had to tiptoe at times around wet debris on the pavement. It handles really well and the Metzeler tires seemed to work just fine for me. Despite the budget suspension, bumps in corners don't upset the chosen line and the line is easily changed if needed. For comparison I weigh about 152 pounds in street clothes, about like the ideal Japanese rider. I guess it could be better but the suspension is not a limiting factor for me. Since it does not have the upper rpm range (read horsepower) to propel you out of fast corners you have to carry speed to apex and be low to midway in the power band to accelerate out of the corner. Just like my old airhead. I had no problem with this but riders accustomed to wringing a bike's neck to get down the road will bump the rev limiter often. The front brake is very strong and progressive enough to feel comfortable trail braking. Mine buzzes under hard braking. Engine vibration is pleasant, of low frequency, and never intrudes. The mirrors remain sharp across the rev range. I never noticed a lack of wind protection and what there is is quiet and does not cause buffeting to my helmet. Adjusted for exact mileage this tank delivered 63.6 US mpg running an aggressive pace on rural roads. Aggressive just to reinterate Aggressive. The last fuel bar lit up blinking red/black at 185 miles and at 196.5 corrected miles the tank took 3.088 gallons leaving another 40 miles in the tank. That is nearly 240 mile range bombing back roads. The seat worked fine for me and was not an issue but I was stopping and getting off the bike at least once an hour for this or that during this part of the day. The bars are high and wide and the seating position works well.
After lunch I turned for home and got on Interstate I -10, setting the "cruise control" on 75 mph. I used the 90 cent O-ring for a throttle lock. I will eventually install a Throttlemeister but I read about the O ring and I used it for this ride. A rubber O-ring of 1 inch ID with a 1/8" cross section works well on my bike. I kept it on the bar end and it easily rolled into place with a gloved hand. If you haven't used one it jams the throttle grip against the bar end and holds the throttle open to wherever it is set at although you can over-ride it easily if necessary. (Just like my $160 Throttlemeister, do I really need the TM?). I wanted to ride this tank out and see if I could sit on the bike for 3 hours at 70 to 80 mph. I did not make 3 hours because I got home in about 2 hours 45 minutes. The speed was 70 to 80 except for a couple of places where I rode through rain showers. I can manage 2 or 3 hours on the seat easily enough though and that was a big question mark for me - and this was late in the day after I had already ridden 325 miles on back roads. The problem was with wind management, not the seat. As the day wore on an easterly breeze came up and it was right in my face. With the speed of 75 and a 10 or 15 mph wind I was battling 85 to 90 mph winds. If the air was clean it was bad enough but dirty air buffeting from cars and trucks was tiresome. The ease with which the bike makes direction changes works against in turbulence and crosswinds. It moved around a lot. My other bike is a ST1300 so I am not used to getting blown around like that. I will have to install an aftermarket windscreen to travel long stretches on the interstate. They are available of course. At 65 to 70 mph the wind management is adequate as is but tiring at the higher interstate speeds. There is no buzz or unpleasant vibration in the seat, bars, or mirrors. You know you are riding a motorcycle but the single counter balancer does a good job of delivering the right amount and the right kind of vibration to the rider. This tank dropped to the last bar (there are 5) at about 172 miles. I filled up at 193.9 miles and the tank took 3.34 gallons US for 58 mpg. There was only 21 miles left in the tank so the range at interstate speeds, though battling a good headwind, was 215 miles. I think in better conditions the range is easily 230 miles at 75 mph, making 200 miles between stops with a good reserve.
For the 90% of the miles I put on my bikes, non-touring miles that is, I am extremely pleased with my new Honda so far. I did not buy it as a tourer and that is asking a bit much from it although it will deliver with a little farkling. I will add a rack and top box for light touring. For the fun of riding on weekends and the pure pleasure of running cross country little roads on long weekends I think it will do just fine. Aside from this one long ride, ride fuel mileage has been in the 60's and 70's so far. It is not hard to achieve 70+ mpg and this is not dawdling along at 45 mph in top gear. Normal highway riding at 55-65 mph gave me 71 mpg during break-in. Time will tell if it delivers Honda reliability and ease of ownership but I have owned many Hondas in 40 years and none let me down in this respect. The fit and finish is very good and the usual maintenance items appear easy to get to. I have changed the oil once and that was straight forward. The filter is easy to access and the bike does not get oil on itself when draining sump and filter.
Running back roads at an aggressive pace was a pleasure. The bike really corners and holds the road really well. It changes direction as easily as thinking about it and flinging it into corners both fast and slow is fun stuff. Twice I was in a little hot and these times when you have to push the lower bar harder and just make the corner the bike was confidence inspiring. In the early morning the roads were damp in places from quick rain showers and I had to tiptoe at times around wet debris on the pavement. It handles really well and the Metzeler tires seemed to work just fine for me. Despite the budget suspension, bumps in corners don't upset the chosen line and the line is easily changed if needed. For comparison I weigh about 152 pounds in street clothes, about like the ideal Japanese rider. I guess it could be better but the suspension is not a limiting factor for me. Since it does not have the upper rpm range (read horsepower) to propel you out of fast corners you have to carry speed to apex and be low to midway in the power band to accelerate out of the corner. Just like my old airhead. I had no problem with this but riders accustomed to wringing a bike's neck to get down the road will bump the rev limiter often. The front brake is very strong and progressive enough to feel comfortable trail braking. Mine buzzes under hard braking. Engine vibration is pleasant, of low frequency, and never intrudes. The mirrors remain sharp across the rev range. I never noticed a lack of wind protection and what there is is quiet and does not cause buffeting to my helmet. Adjusted for exact mileage this tank delivered 63.6 US mpg running an aggressive pace on rural roads. Aggressive just to reinterate Aggressive. The last fuel bar lit up blinking red/black at 185 miles and at 196.5 corrected miles the tank took 3.088 gallons leaving another 40 miles in the tank. That is nearly 240 mile range bombing back roads. The seat worked fine for me and was not an issue but I was stopping and getting off the bike at least once an hour for this or that during this part of the day. The bars are high and wide and the seating position works well.
After lunch I turned for home and got on Interstate I -10, setting the "cruise control" on 75 mph. I used the 90 cent O-ring for a throttle lock. I will eventually install a Throttlemeister but I read about the O ring and I used it for this ride. A rubber O-ring of 1 inch ID with a 1/8" cross section works well on my bike. I kept it on the bar end and it easily rolled into place with a gloved hand. If you haven't used one it jams the throttle grip against the bar end and holds the throttle open to wherever it is set at although you can over-ride it easily if necessary. (Just like my $160 Throttlemeister, do I really need the TM?). I wanted to ride this tank out and see if I could sit on the bike for 3 hours at 70 to 80 mph. I did not make 3 hours because I got home in about 2 hours 45 minutes. The speed was 70 to 80 except for a couple of places where I rode through rain showers. I can manage 2 or 3 hours on the seat easily enough though and that was a big question mark for me - and this was late in the day after I had already ridden 325 miles on back roads. The problem was with wind management, not the seat. As the day wore on an easterly breeze came up and it was right in my face. With the speed of 75 and a 10 or 15 mph wind I was battling 85 to 90 mph winds. If the air was clean it was bad enough but dirty air buffeting from cars and trucks was tiresome. The ease with which the bike makes direction changes works against in turbulence and crosswinds. It moved around a lot. My other bike is a ST1300 so I am not used to getting blown around like that. I will have to install an aftermarket windscreen to travel long stretches on the interstate. They are available of course. At 65 to 70 mph the wind management is adequate as is but tiring at the higher interstate speeds. There is no buzz or unpleasant vibration in the seat, bars, or mirrors. You know you are riding a motorcycle but the single counter balancer does a good job of delivering the right amount and the right kind of vibration to the rider. This tank dropped to the last bar (there are 5) at about 172 miles. I filled up at 193.9 miles and the tank took 3.34 gallons US for 58 mpg. There was only 21 miles left in the tank so the range at interstate speeds, though battling a good headwind, was 215 miles. I think in better conditions the range is easily 230 miles at 75 mph, making 200 miles between stops with a good reserve.
For the 90% of the miles I put on my bikes, non-touring miles that is, I am extremely pleased with my new Honda so far. I did not buy it as a tourer and that is asking a bit much from it although it will deliver with a little farkling. I will add a rack and top box for light touring. For the fun of riding on weekends and the pure pleasure of running cross country little roads on long weekends I think it will do just fine. Aside from this one long ride, ride fuel mileage has been in the 60's and 70's so far. It is not hard to achieve 70+ mpg and this is not dawdling along at 45 mph in top gear. Normal highway riding at 55-65 mph gave me 71 mpg during break-in. Time will tell if it delivers Honda reliability and ease of ownership but I have owned many Hondas in 40 years and none let me down in this respect. The fit and finish is very good and the usual maintenance items appear easy to get to. I have changed the oil once and that was straight forward. The filter is easy to access and the bike does not get oil on itself when draining sump and filter.
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