OzSTOC
Welcome - Getting started & FAQs - Read Here First... => Introduce Yourself & Your Bike => Topic started by: Zed14 on January 01, 2020, 11:15:50 PM
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Hi All
I've known Diesel for a few years from long distance circles and he encouraged me to pop my head in and to say hi. Firstly I have to admit I love my big Kawasaki and while the ZX14R may not look like your normal touring bike it does a lot of miles including a 50CC run a couple of years ago (on my previous ZX14) and many other big trips.
So why am I here... mid 2019 we were fortunate enough to spent a week riding a K1600GT in the Swiss alps (great bike, amazing roads, spectacular scenery!) and I realised after that trip that while my 14 does a great job at pillioning and weekend trips (it's fairly heavily farckled for long distance and travelling) it just isn't as comfortable for either of us and we'd probably need to look for a more tour friendly bike to do longer trips on together. So while I have no intention of parting with my 14 I am looking for an older more touring orientated bike.
So I'm toying with the idea of an early ST1300 as that's more in my budget. The K1600GT's ride position for me was ideal but out of my budget. I have largely ruled out the GTR1400 as I just haven't been able to make friends with it, and we found the FJR to be too cramped. I know that this group will sing the praises of the big Honda but I'd really like to have a sit on and test the ST1300 to assess the ride position and the 2-up room before I make any decisions. I don't know anyone local with an ST, so if there is anyone in the Canberra area I'd love to hear from you.
cheers
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You're right, of course- we're all dyed-in-the-wool fans of our beloved STs. Not without cause, because you will know their sterling reputation in the IBR and among Australian Ironbutters. Apart from the comfort (which can, as you would expect, be improved with an Airhawk under a sheepskin, or expensive custom-made seats) there's the lovely 29 litre tank, with 28 litres usable returning around 500 kays on a trip.
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Hi Glen,
I have had my 2008 ST1300 since new and it has only done 25,000 kms but my 2014 GL1800 (ex Honda Demo) had done 1,730 kms when I picked it up in Sept 15 has now done over 60,000 kms.
So my Wing has been first choice for the longer runs both solo and 2 up for the following:-
Cruise Control
Comfort
Sound system.
The there is an MC Cruise and Honda sound system waiting to be fitted to my ST and with a plan to purchase a Russell Day seat I am hoping these will bring the ST close to the wing.
I originally purchased a 88 GL1500 to do a lap of Australia in stages leaving the ST always available at home while the wing was waiting for me at various points around Australia, The plan was to sell the wing after the lap but the more I ride wings the more they grow on me. The 88 Gl1500 was replaced by a 2000 GL1500 which was then replaced by the GL1800.
The major reasons for moving upto a GL1800 were ABS, Fuel Injection and ease of removing the back wheel. The GL1500 would eat up the kms almost as well as the GL1800 does.
Good luck in finding something that suits you and your pillion.
Cheers Glen
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G'day Zed14, welcome to the forum :hatwave
I'm in QLD so won't be able to help with a test ride :'( but I'm sure if you attend a local RTE (Ride To Eat) you'll get to sit on one, have a look over the bikes there and have a chat about them at the very least :grin
Before I got my first ST I did a lot of research on all the sport touring bikes available and the ST came out on top for price, realilabilty, comfort and the fact that they are a great all rounder road bike.
I didn't like how quite they are so I added some after market exhausts which give the bike a great note 8)
As for comfort I added bar risers (I'm 6'3" tall) and after market seats and screen to make it perfect for the wife and I :runyay
The ST is a excellent bike when standard (there are people in the club that find the stock setup perfect for them) but as with any bike there are many mods that can be done to improve the bike and make it perfect for you and with the ST it can be done for very little cost :thumbsup
(Unless you decide to go crazy with mods for the fun of it ;-*)
Anyway, good luck and I hope you find the right bike for you.
BTW you are always welcome to attend any RTE even on another brand of bike (We have some guys rock up of spyders :Spyder)
Cheers
Shiney
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Welcome Zed14 to OzSTOC from Toowoomba in Queensland :hatwave
Hope you can find a suitable ST1300 they are a great bike :thumb
Enjoy the Forum :thumbsup
:beer
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Hi Zed14 and welcome to OzSTOC from SA. :hatwave I feel certain that if you turned up at one of our RTEs, someone would let you have a test ride of a ST1300.
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Thanks for the welcome.
West Aussie glen - yes I have thought about the Goldwing and we liked the new Goldwing we took out for 45 minutes and we are looking at a ride on an older 1800 but I thought the ST maybe a good step from a much more sports orientated bike.
I'll certainly look at the RTE calendar and see what fits into my calendar.
cheers
Glen
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West Aussie glen - yes I have thought about the Goldwing and we liked the new Goldwing we took out for 45 minutes and we are looking at a ride on an older 1800 but I thought the ST maybe a good step from a much more sports orientated bike.
I had a GL1800 for 9 months and could never call it "sporty". I know some people throw them around but I can't stand that sound of the underbody grinding the ground. The ST1300 does the sport-style enough for me. I've had riders on sports bikes trying to keep up through the twisties.
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I don't think anybody ever called the pre 2018 GL1800 sporty, but as a 2 up tourer that doesn't need to be modified it is very hard to find anything better. Unfortunately although the new wing maybe "sportier" it has 30% less luggage capacity and pillion seat that is not as comfortable.
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I've put 40k on a 1400GTR, 65k on a '12Goldwing, 40k on a ST1300 and 40k so far on my K1600GT.
The bike that keeps a smile on my face is the K1600GT.
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Thanks for the comments we took a ST for a spin on the weekend and it followed us home.
(https://zed14.files.wordpress.com/2020/01/20200111_142310.jpg)
We were looking for something that sat firmly on the touring side of sports-tourers as my ZX14R sits very firmly on the sports side of the continuum.
Next is to start doing some digging here to look at farkle recommendations.
Then we just need a free weekend to give it a good run.
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Congrats on the new wheels! :beer
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Nice bike..me thinks you is going to be seriously impressed...
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Next is to start doing some digging here to look at farkle recommendations.
Congrats on the purchase of your "new" bike. Many owners have felt the need for the Holy Trinity of comfort farkles, being Seat, Screen, Risers. Have a browse through the lists of what our owners had added to enhance their bikes here http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=4592.0 (http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=4592.0) You will find plenty of ideas and suggestions to add to your riding experience.
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Congrats for St Helena VIC, as well.
Next is to start doing some digging here to look at farkle recommendations.
...... the Holy Trinity of comfort farkles, being Seat, Screen, Risers. Have a browse through the lists of what our owners had added to enhance their bikes here [url]http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=4592.0[/url] ([url]http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=4592.0[/url]) You will find plenty of ideas and suggestions to add to your riding experience.
* Seat - an RDL for me.
* Screen - a higher, wider screen for me, can't remember details, WAG may be along soon with those.
* Risers - not necessary for me.
* Heated grips - Oxford.
* RAM mounts - fiddled and farkled for a while, settled on a dash top mount
* 12 volt and USB charge points
Enjoy ............
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* Screen - a higher, wider screen for me, can't remember details, WAG may be along soon with those.
The gold standard for screens seems to be Bike Quip, and may of us have fitted them. See https://www.st1300-accessories.co.uk/ (https://www.st1300-accessories.co.uk/)
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The new bike looks great, congrats :hatwave
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* Screen - a higher, wider screen for me, can't remember details, WAG may be along soon with those.
The gold standard for screens seems to be Bike Quip, and may of us have fitted them. See https://www.st1300-accessories.co.uk/ (https://www.st1300-accessories.co.uk/)
Have a look also at the CalSci screens. I have one on my 1300 and am very happy with it. I did a swap last year with another rider who has a bikequip screen. Both do a good job of keeping out the wind and the elements. I like the CalSci because it is so clear that as long as you keep it clean it’s like looking through glass, and also it gives no optical distortion so it’s quite pleasant to look through on those occasions when you might want to ride with it right up.
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Thanks for the comments we took a ST for a spin on the weekend and it followed us home.
(https://zed14.files.wordpress.com/2020/01/20200111_142310.jpg)
We were looking for something that sat firmly on the touring side of sports-tourers as my ZX14R sits very firmly on the sports side of the continuum.
Next is to start doing some digging here to look at farkle recommendations.
Then we just need a free weekend to give it a good run.
Noice.
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Nice buy. Year? kms?
Some of my farkles:-
Tip Over Bars:-
http://www.bygdawg.com/bars.html (http://www.bygdawg.com/bars.html)
Cruise Control:-
https://www.mccruise.com/ (https://www.mccruise.com/)
Throttle Tamer:-
https://www.g2ergo.com/ (https://www.g2ergo.com/)
Gear Indicator (Plug and Play for 2008 onwards)
https://www.healtech-electronics.com/products/gipro/ (https://www.healtech-electronics.com/products/gipro/) and purchased from :-
http://www.amcmotorcycles.com/ (http://www.amcmotorcycles.com/)
Pendle Parking Brake
http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=13047.msg1245248#msg1245248 (http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=13047.msg1245248#msg1245248)
Front mudguard extension:-
http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=10855.0 (http://ozstoc.com/index.php?topic=10855.0)
Radiator Guard:-
https://www.radguard.com.au/ (https://www.radguard.com.au/)
Rear Shock Protector:-
https://www.st1300-accessories.co.uk/product-page/st1300-rear-shock-protector (https://www.st1300-accessories.co.uk/product-page/st1300-rear-shock-protector)
Bike Quip Windscreen as per StinkyPete's post above post
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Thanks for those links, Glen! :thumb
I checked out the Throttle Tamer and tried to enter my bike details but found the ST1300 wasn't an option although the 1100 was...
I wonder if they have discontinued the Throttle Tamer for the 1300??? Shame if they have as it sounds like a worthwhile "farkle".
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Thanks for those links, Glen! :thumb
I checked out the Throttle Tamer and tried to enter my bike details but found the ST1300 wasn't an option although the 1100 was...
I wonder if they have discontinued the Throttle Tamer for the 1300??? Shame if they have as it sounds like a worthwhile "farkle".
I just tried to find the paperwork but no luck. Maybe worthwhile emailing them.
But I did find some more info that I added to the above list.
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Thanks! :thumbs
I might do that at some point...
Can you still use heated grips with the throttle tamer?
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Can you still use heated grips with the throttle tamer?
Don't see why not. For me it definitely smoothed the throttle operation specially with 2 up.
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Nice buy. Year? kms?
Some of my farkles:-
the bike is
2005
70,000km
It is fairly farkleless
- it has a throttle lock on it
- and I think it has a low set of risers on it as it has an alloy centre plate.
I took it out for a 100km spin last night and it certainly needs some better globes and driving lights (when you're used to great lights it's hard to go back (my current long distance bike https://zed14.com/2017/06/24/lighting-part-ii/ (https://zed14.com/2017/06/24/lighting-part-ii/) has a full LED setup and unlike the ST the mounting options for lights on a ZX14R are fairly limited.
I'm not so worried about a cruise control at this stage and will try the throttle lock for a while. I've done a 50cc ride and many other Iron Butt rides on my ZX14R without cruise and this bike is much easier on your wrists. So I'll see how I go.
The other things that are one my list at this stage
- somewhere to mount the GPS - thinking of the bikequip shelf, or tapping the alloy plate on the risers.
- pannier liners (as this will be our touring bike and these are essential)
- visit to MJM to rework the seat
- maybe a screen - the standard one does seem noisey
- right angle valve stems when I get my next set of rubber
- oh and when winter gets closer some heated grips
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Thanks for the info on your lighting setup. Having gone for a night ride in the hills this week I'm on the warpath for a good set of driving lights :-)