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Question Soon-to-be Honda NC750X owner. I have a few questions.

Avarria

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I, by some miracle, stopped by a local Honda Powersports dealership near me and they had a 2022 Honda NC750X DCT on order that was supposed to arrive this month. I put in my deposit. I gave up ever finding this motorcycle and was about to buy a Kawasaki Versys X-300. Talk about lucky! I had called all over East TN trying to find this thing.

I did have a few questions, though.

What tires would be best for light off-road use? I live in the middle of the woods and have to traverse gravel and dirt. My old scooter I learned on last year (first bike - 2013 Yamaha Zuma 125) had 70/30 Road/Off-Road tires. They struggled a bit sometimes, but then again, 12-inch tires aren't known for their off-road ability. I think the 2022 NC750X comes with Metzeler Tourance NEXT tires and I am not sure if they meet my needs. 90% of my time is on the paved road, but that 10% off-road can be trying.

Are aftermarket low seats worth looking into? I know Seat Concepts makes one. I can almost flat-foot the bike with my motorcycle boots on (sat on a non-DCT last year).

I ordered a set of SW-Motech crash bars. Any other recommendations for aftermarket items? The crash bars from Honda didn't look very protective.

Thanks!
 
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Welcome to the forum and good luck with your soon to arrive NC.

There is a Tire Tech Talk section of the forum where you can discuss tire choices. I suggest you ride your gravel and dirt on the stock tires and see how it goes. I have run 80/20 and 60/40 tires as well as street. If your gravel and dirt is only 10% of your riding, and it’s not super loose stuff, the street tires might do just fine.

As for the lowered seat, if you lower the seat you will increase the required knee bend to the pegs. If you lower the whole bike, your seat peg/bar relationship will remain unchanged. I don’t know if the NC you sat on last year was a ‘21 or if it was a prior year. Just so you know, the suspension travel was reduced on the NCX beginning with the ‘21 model year as compared to ‘12-‘20.

I always suggest people wait until they take delivery and ride the bike awhile before making many modification decisions.
 
The Dunlop tires that came on my 2020 do okay on the forest service roads. Living in Knoxville you will probably be going to Deals Gap and beyond fairly regularly. The more street oriented tires will serve you much better there.

As for other mods, even though a little pricey, OEM center stands are worth their weight in gold unless you are going to get serious off road. Another really nice item is the Givi EA116 tank bag.
 
Another really nice item is the Givi EA116 tank bag.
I’m just a 2012 owner that reads what people post here, but I don’t think the Givi EA116 is applicable to the OP’s 2022 NC750X model. The Honda frunk lid no longer has the necessary slots (that you have on your 2020) for mounting that tank bag.
 
I’m just a 2012 owner that reads what people post here, but I don’t think the Givi EA116 is applicable to the OP’s 2022 NC750X model. The Honda frunk lid no longer has the necessary slots (that you have on your 2020) for mounting that tank bag.
I had no idea. Too bad they did that. The easy on and off made the bag a jewel.
 
The Dunlop tires that came on my 2020 do okay on the forest service roads. Living in Knoxville you will probably be going to Deals Gap and beyond fairly regularly. The more street oriented tires will serve you much better there.

As for other mods, even though a little pricey, OEM center stands are worth their weight in gold unless you are going to get serious off road. Another really nice item is the Givi EA116 tank bag.
I noticed that the SW MOTECH engine guard said it wasn't compatible with the OEM center stand. I definitely want a center stand and I know SW MOTECH makes their own. Will I need the engine guards if I only ride on gravel and dirt? I am definitely not going off the beaten path to undeveloped roads.
 
Welcome to the forum and good luck with your soon to arrive NC.

There is a Tire Tech Talk section of the forum where you can discuss tire choices. I suggest you ride your gravel and dirt on the stock tires and see how it goes. I have run 80/20 and 60/40 tires as well as street. If your gravel and dirt is only 10% of your riding, and it’s not super loose stuff, the street tires might do just fine.

As for the lowered seat, if you lower the seat you will increase the required knee bend to the pegs. If you lower the whole bike, your seat peg/bar relationship will remain unchanged. I don’t know if the NC you sat on last year was a ‘21 or if it was a prior year. Just so you know, the suspension travel was reduced on the NCX beginning with the ‘21 model year as compared to ‘12-‘20.

I always suggest people wait until they take delivery and ride the bike awhile before making many modification decisions.
Ah, thank you for the suggestion! I will check out that forum.

I had thought about that with the lowered seat and was worried about that. I am 5'7" with a 30.75" inseam. I sat on the 2021 model last year, so it was a bit lower. I remember seeing the Honda NC700X back when I first became interested in actually buying a motorcycle in 2020, but the thing was so tall I wasn't comfortable even getting on it after travelling all the way from Knoxville to Chattanooga to look at it. I love adventure bikes, but they're all so tall. The lower seat height on the NC750X and the DCT transmission had me sold from when I heard about it.

That's good advice. I will wait until I get it before I start changing the ergonomics.
 
I noticed that the SW MOTECH engine guard said it wasn't compatible with the OEM center stand. I definitely want a center stand and I know SW MOTECH makes their own. Will I need the engine guards if I only ride on gravel and dirt? I am definitely not going off the beaten path to undeveloped roads.
I would check with SW Motech to be sure their center stand is compatible with your engine guards.

I went with R Gaza crash bars and one of the less expensive skid plates. My main concern is protecting the bike (and ME) in case of a mishap on the street. You would not need one of the really expensive skid plates to protect the motor unless you plan on going somewhere like Windrock or Royal Blue. It's still not a bad idea to have some sort of protection on the bottom of the engine for road hazards or rolling off of a curb.

Something else that just came to mind is a radiator shield. They are cheap compared to a radiator.
 
I noticed that the SW MOTECH engine guard said it wasn't compatible with the OEM center stand. I definitely want a center stand and I know SW MOTECH makes their own. Will I need the engine guards if I only ride on gravel and dirt? I am definitely not going off the beaten path to undeveloped roads.
You need the engine guards only if you expect to drop the bike. I’m not trying to be rude but only you can decide that.

The Honda center stand is much cheaper than the SW-Motech center stand. Both work equally well. At least on the 2012-2015 models, I understood the the SW-Motech bars worked with the Honda centerstand. I can’t see how engine guards could even interfere with a center stand unless they include a skid plate. You might want to check with them on that.
 
You need the engine guards only if you expect to drop the bike. I’m not trying to be rude but only you can decide that.

The Honda center stand is much cheaper than the SW-Motech center stand. Both work equally well. At least on the 2012-2015 models, I understood the the SW-Motech bars worked with the Honda centerstand. I can’t see how engine guards could even interfere with a center stand unless they include a skid plate. You might want to check with them on that.
Ah, I should probably clarify. I have the SW-MOTECH crash bars. I wanted them on the bike before I ever rode it off the lot. They call their skid plate engine guards for some reason. Perhaps I misunderstood what was on their website, but it appears what they call their engine guard is just a skid plate. A very expensive one I might add :(. I just dunno if I need protection from roots, rocks, etc.
 
Ah, I should probably clarify. I have the SW-MOTECH crash bars. I wanted them on the bike before I ever rode it off the lot. They call their skid plate engine guards for some reason. Perhaps I misunderstood what was on their website, but it appears what they call their engine guard is just a skid plate. A very expensive one I might add :(. I just dunno if I need protection from roots, rocks, etc.
The coolant bottle, oil pan, and exhaust pipe are the vulnerable pieces underneath, but you would have to bounce off a curb or huge rock to damage them. Yes, things happen, like once the front wheel of my NC flipped up a piece of loose asphalt and dented the oil filter. But in general, hitting the bottom is incommon. I don’t run a skid plate on my NC. I did for awhile but I took it off and sold it.
 
The coolant bottle, oil pan, and exhaust pipe are the vulnerable pieces underneath, but you would have to bounce off a curb or huge rock to damage them. Yes, things happen, like once the front wheel of my NC flipped up a piece of loose asphalt and dented the oil filter. But in general, hitting the bottom is incommon. I don’t run a skid plate on my NC. I did for awhile but I took it off and sold it.
That's good news. That saves me a boatload of money. I was shocked how expensive their skid plate was.

With this in mind, I might go ahead and get the OEM center stand. I really want one as they make simple maintenance so much easier. That, and it allows me to park the bike with more confidence when I won't be riding anymore that day.
 
Here is what I've added to my 2022 NC750X DCT: Givi Windscreen ($120), SW-Motech ION footpegs ($140), OEM Center Stand (think it was like $240 but dealer included with the sale), Battery Tender (dealer included the cable, I already had the battery tender), Oxford Heated Grips ($90), Shad SH58X top case rack ($140, already had the top case from another bike). I have a set of SW-Motech bar back risers. Dealer I bought the bike from would not install them (concerned about cable length). Have another dealer who is going to try. They said worse case, they order longer cables. And I have a Pyramid Fender Extender ($36) that I plan on installing this week. Only thing left that I want to do this year is a new seat. But depending on what I go with, may be a winter project. If I have to send my seat in, I'll wait.

Still to come would be crash bars (SW-Motech a good possibility), USB in frunk, Barkbuster hand guards, and a Puig rear fender. I'm sure I'll find a few more items I need to have. Haven't found a place to ride off road so OEM tires working for me.
 
Here is what I've added to my 2022 NC750X DCT: Givi Windscreen ($120), SW-Motech ION footpegs ($140), OEM Center Stand (think it was like $240 but dealer included with the sale), Battery Tender (dealer included the cable, I already had the battery tender), Oxford Heated Grips ($90), Shad SH58X top case rack ($140, already had the top case from another bike). I have a set of SW-Motech bar back risers. Dealer I bought the bike from would not install them (concerned about cable length). Have another dealer who is going to try. They said worse case, they order longer cables. And I have a Pyramid Fender Extender ($36) that I plan on installing this week. Only thing left that I want to do this year is a new seat. But depending on what I go with, may be a winter project. If I have to send my seat in, I'll wait.

Still to come would be crash bars (SW-Motech a good possibility), USB in frunk, Barkbuster hand guards, and a Puig rear fender. I'm sure I'll find a few more items I need to have. Haven't found a place to ride off road so OEM tires working for me.
Thanks for the reply! I have had my eyes on Barkbuster handguards. My previous ride had them (Storm). The one time I dropped the bike, they saved my handlebars from damage. I would eventually like a top case, but they charge a fortune for those things due to having to buy their proprietary rack. I will get one eventually for sure, though.

I am just curious, which Barkbusters did you go with? I noticed they had the single point and two point mount. That made things extremely confusing. I will probably just go with the Storm again since it helped keep my hands somewhat comfortable in 45+ temperatures.
 
Thanks for the reply! I have had my eyes on Barkbuster handguards. My previous ride had them (Storm). The one time I dropped the bike, they saved my handlebars from damage. I would eventually like a top case, but they charge a fortune for those things due to having to buy their proprietary rack. I will get one eventually for sure, though.

I am just curious, which Barkbusters did you go with? I noticed they had the single point and two point mount. That made things extremely confusing. I will probably just go with the Storm again since it helped keep my hands somewhat comfortable in 45+ temperatures.
The Barkbusters are are my "still to do" list. I would probably go with the Storm 2 point mount. They do say they easily fit the DCT. My only concern is that I already have my Oxford heated grips on and the instructions say you have to remove the bar end weights and to do so you have to roll up the end of the grips. Haven't really investigated that much yet though as this is a winter project for me.
 
Thanks for the reply! I have had my eyes on Barkbuster handguards. My previous ride had them (Storm). The one time I dropped the bike, they saved my handlebars from damage. I would eventually like a top case, but they charge a fortune for those things due to having to buy their proprietary rack. I will get one eventually for sure, though.

I am just curious, which Barkbusters did you go with? I noticed they had the single point and two point mount. That made things extremely confusing. I will probably just go with the Storm again since it helped keep my hands somewhat comfortable in 45+ temperatures.
I have the 2 point mount and love them. I use the VPS not the storm but they work quite well. If you want drop protection get 2 point mounts.
 
The Barkbusters are are my "still to do" list. I would probably go with the Storm 2 point mount. They do say they easily fit the DCT. My only concern is that I already have my Oxford heated grips on and the instructions say you have to remove the bar end weights and to do so you have to roll up the end of the grips. Haven't really investigated that much yet though as this is a winter project for me.
I’ve installed Barkbuster Storm 2 point mount on two NC700XDs and I did not remove the stock bar end weights. Just use the stock bar end weight machine screws instead of the supplied BB ones. The threaded portion of the screws up into the bar ends is shorter but still plenty long enough for my purposes.
 
I have the 2 point mount and love them. I use the VPS not the storm but they work quite well. If you want drop protection get 2 point mounts.
What are the exact ones you bought? Revzilla has a bunch of different choices of different bar sizes and everything. The Barkbusters website makes it much easier, but they don't sell directly to consumers, unfortunately.
 
What are the exact ones you bought? Revzilla has a bunch of different choices of different bar sizes and everything. The Barkbusters website makes it much easier, but they don't sell directly to consumers, unfortunately.
SKU 1085398. These are the aluminum backbones only and you can add the plastics of your choice separately.
 
I’ve installed Barkbuster Storm 2 point mount on two NC700XDs and I did not remove the stock bar end weights. Just use the stock bar end weight machine screws instead of the supplied BB ones. The threaded portion of the screws up into the bar ends is shorter but still plenty long enough for my purposes.
When I installed my two point Barkbusters I used the included bar end weights because the screws are obviously thicker and stronger.
 
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