| Author | Message | ||
     Andychang |
http://sites.google.com/site/freakyfazerfun/recent _rides October 2, 2009. Apartment to Chain O Lakes State Park, RT Chilly 50 degree day in the city. I made one minor mistake of wearing my new red textile jacket with just a t-shirt underneath. I would have benefited from a long sleeve tee. I'm in no way or fashion "harmed" right now, but it was a fairly cold (and somewhat rainy) ride. Started by going up Lake Shore Drive to Sheridan Road, which is something I've done lots of. Wanted to take a look at the scenic areas on Sheridan plus I always like to look at the large and ornate homes on the north shore. Today I had the misfortune of being stuck behind a landscaping truck, so that added to the time it took me to get to Chain O Lakes. Route 41 is under massive construction too past Highland Park with a lot of rough grooved surfaces. It was stop and go traffic for awhile before jumping onto SR 173. It started to drizzle when I first hopped onto 173, but when I got into the actual park, it calmed down. Pretty decent place, and they do horse rentals too, which would be a fun fall activity. On the way back on SR 173, I took a look at a bank temperature reading, which was 47 degrees. The windchill in conjunction with that was probably in the low 40's. I opted to take the 94 on the way home. It was worth it to pay 2.50 instead of sitting through all that traffic again. However, it did start to rain, but not unbearably so. The bike handled the weather just fine. I did get off at Peterson and cut across back to Lake Shore Drive since I saw that it was going to be around 50 minutes from Touhy avenue to the circle. I probably saved 20 minutes or so doing that. All in all an enjoyable fall ride. Will be sad when I put the Fazer in storage next month. | ||
| Garlic_sauce |
This will be my next bike, EB really pissed me off with that marketing venture. Next season I'll be on this little honey, the 2010 Honda CBR600RR.  | ||
| Tortoise |
Honda makes very reliable bikes. I know people with bikes from the '80s (Nighthawks, Silverwings) that do nothing except change the fluids and never have any problems with them. It will be a completely different experience than the Blast. Even the most hardcore Blast fan has to admit the bike needs some wrenching every now and then. I don't really care for the crotch rocket look of the CBR. I actually like the upright position position of the Blast with the stock handlebars, but its just my own taste. Otherwise its a nice looking bike in my opinion. Be careful on that one. Even though its only a 600cc it has 110 horsepower. This is more horsepower than any of the XB's including the 1200cc's. | ||
| Swampy |
Yeah but the redline will be around 13-14,000 RPM. It takes alot to get to the 110 HP. I just rode a buddys Kanatuna 600, it was an older model, it was OK, but there is alot of wasted RPM riding those high reving bikes, not a lot happens at less than 7,000RPM and it is kind of predictable, you just swat the throttle and the RPMs start building and going, and going..... It is a different type of ride. | ||
| Garlic_sauce |
I went and looked at one today at a Honda dealer near my house, it was beautiful. He said I could get an 07 with zero miles on it for WAY less than the 10, obviously. I like the paint scheme of the 10's but the 07's look dope in black, plus the changes are so slight. I hear you on the power difference by the way, the first bike I ever rode was a friend's 98 cbr600. I knew it wasn't the bike I should learn on, I also could barely tip toe at a stop on it. The new CBR's seem a lot more compact, the weight felt similar to my BLAST. I couldn't test ride it unfortunately because it was raining...  The sad thing is I know when I get one of these my BLAST won't get so much use, on the other hand I would rather give it to my dad than try to sell it. The thing that draws towards the super sport bikes is the precision, don't get me wrong, I love my BLAST but the clunky transmission and vibration is starting to bother me. I would rather ride a bike that hums and snicks rather than roars and clunks. | ||
| Tortoise |
I don't mind the vibration. Its common on singles. Besides, it smooths out over 50mph. Sometimes on the Jap bikes you get a high frequency vibration once you are up to speed. You may not notice it much for the first hour but on longer rides it can be annoying. Nothing wrong with Jap bikes though, I'm gonna check out an SV next spring. You're right about the transmission on the Blast, it is very clunky. Feels cheap. | ||
| Ezblast |
Thats the old HD design tranny, HD hates updating a design - pathetically so. If it wasn't for Buell's updating the tubers & XB's which now have great trannys, the Sportster would probably have fell off the for sales charts long ago due to their name becoming antonym to their abilities. The XB and CR trannys just click, and if you do all you can do in adjustments the Blast tranny gets a lot less clunky and a lot more clicky - lol - of course you could just buy a Baker Drum kit or whole tranny and enjoy clicks as well. The only reason our trannys suck is because is because this way there are also a source of parts for the older tubers and Sportsters as well - which is ironic. Because of the Blast those bikes are guaranteed replacement parts way past the ten year deadline most mfgr.s carry parts for. You think though they would up the quality a bit and add a few fine touches to make the tranny more durable - back cut the gears, better bearings, a drum similar to the Baker unit could easily be done, as stock part upgrades, with out affect to assembly - overall - and would delight the owners of the older bikes, also giving HD a more profitable parts sales as current owners of those bikes upgrade to the better parts - selling the sub-par parts that they do has always been a bad habit on their side - Heck if they wanted to be design stuborn, they could have at least use Titanium in the making of the drum clip, and better tempering of the drum, back cut their gears - worries would be over, but instead it is a very cheap piece of stamped steel, like the one from 30 years ago - that's negligent, and no improvements - period. Doesn't say a lot for the parent company. EZ | ||
| Ezblast |
I think the CBR Honda 600cc has to be one of Japans best all around sport bikes. If not the fastest, it still has everything else better than the competition, including reliability, and though not the fastest, still wins a lot of races as well. Though it was stupid for them to pull out if racing just because of Buell, hurts their reputation, all of a sudden afraid of competition? Aprilia, and other new/old mfgr.s happen to be entering as well in next years group - is Honda scared? I sure hope they reconsider that move - it doesn't make them look good at all. EZ | ||
| Patches |
"Thats the old HD design tranny, HD hates updating a design - pathetically so. If it wasn't for Buell's updating the tubers & XB's which now have great trannys, the Sportster would probably have fell off the for sales charts long ago due to their name becoming antonym to their abilities." I do not agree with you. Sportsters were selling fine long before Buell came along. As for the transmission Harley Davidson was long over due for a upgrade. The Sportster transmission goes back to 1952 when it was designed for the K-Model Uni-Case Engine-Transmission combo. I believe the Blast was built cheaply to keep the cost down. If the Blast were 6 to 8 grand I would have not bought one. If Erik Buell had not used Harley Davidson's engine I do not believe Buell Motor Company would exist. Any other engine and it would just be another Company trying to compete with the Japanese sport bike market and it would fail do to the inability to meet the price point. It is easy to trash Harley Davidson since they have ben in business since 1903. I'll just stay with Harley Davidson to me they are still #1. | ||
| Ezblast |
It not a matter of the engine used, but on their unwillingness to up grade parts when shown that would actually improve the reliability of the bike. The best example is when at the year 2000 when they finally upgraded the gaskets, because people refused to buy leakers any more, yet good gasket designs for their motors had been in existence for almost 20 years, and sold as after market at almost triple the price of the stock gasket, and people still bought them over the stock units - that should have told them something a lot sooner - duh! You would think they would want the bikes to be more reliable, but it has never seemed that way, instead it seams they only fix something when enough people start hollering. Yes the Blast is at a cost point, however, part of that cost point is also the fact that it holds the last parts availability in its transmission parts for the Tubers and older Sportsters as well. It would not cost practically any more to have those key items updated and modified and it would improve the reliability of those older models, making them a positive statement for current models as well which are already upgraded with better versions of parts. EZ | ||
| Garlic_sauce |
"you just swat the throttle and the RPMs start building and going, and going..... It is a different type of ride." That's exactly what I'm looking for...  | ||
| Patches |
Agreed, You would think they would have upgraded the transmission when they released the Evolution Engine in 1984 or the Evolution Engine-Sportster in 1986. I just do not understand the reliability problem. Harley Davidson is no less or more reliable than anything else out there. You take the Japanese Metric bikes replacing Chain and Sprockets, my neighbor had to replace his at 5K miles. Shaft Drive bikes having to replace drive units at 30 to 50 thousand miles and that's not cheap to do. British bikes I have not fooled with sense I was a teenager (lord I'm getting old) helped build a Triumph Chopper when I was 13 and also have owned several BSA and Triumph Motorcycles. I have herd they still have electrical problems. There is as many Harley Davidson with a 100K miles on them running around as any other brand. Even a million miles just google Million Mile Harley-Davidson Former Wisconsin State Senator, Dave Zien. No mater what brand bike you ride you are going to have to turn wrenches on it or pay somebody else to. | ||
| Ezblast |
GS - that is what the CR is about as well. EZ | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
"If you cant say anything nice, dont say anything at all"-biting my tongue as I promised I would when I started this thread! Reliability: HD has suffered the same reliability issues that most of the Blasts that show up here do. Somebody who doesnt know what they are doing works on their bike often changing it from stock configuration. Add the use of non-stock HD/OEM designed parts and the problem gets worse. Additionally (as evidenced here at the thumper forum), people work on their bike much sooner than it needs work done (like the addition of chrome on Harleys). Almost everybody does something to their Harley. For the most part 'other' makes are left alone. Harley continues to make/supply parts long after the 10 years 'mark'. That 'mark' is usually that the dealerships wont work on any bikes that old. You can plug in part numbers that are decades old and order them (and yes that does mean some things haven't changed in decades too). Lastly, there is so much hype about reliability issues that it will never die. HD/Buell could make a flawless bike and the problem of reliability would continue. | ||
| Tortoise |
"HD/Buell could make a flawless bike and the problem of reliability would continue." This may be true, however I think the reliability problem is still deserved. I had 4 separate problems before I ever hit 10k miles. In my opinion this is excessive. Especially when my friends that ride Jap bikes never seem to have problems. My Blast is still stock. I have never "worked on my bike sooner than it needed to be done". The Blast design is 10 years old. Maybe the newer Buells are more bulletproof? | ||
| Ezblast |
I'm hoping the CR is. EZ | ||
| Garlic_sauce |
EZ, what's the wet weight on your CR? | ||
| Patches |
If anybody could complain about Harley Davidson Reliability issues it would be me. My old Shovelhead is a 1975 FLH Police Special. The old Shovelhead is about 90% original.  AMF on the tank badges shows it was built during the Dark Ages of Harley Davidson. Quality really suffered for grater Profits the Bowling Ball Company wanted. The previous owner put STD duel plug heads on it (it cost the same as reworking the stock heads to run unleaded gas.) I put Electronic Ignition, S&S Carburetor, Tail Pipes and new Tires on it other wise it is Stock Original. The Speedometer quit working at 27370, ware and tare on the bike looks like it could have over a hundred-thousand miles on it. It is unrestored and mostly unmolested.  The bike still runs as strong as any thing else out there. As for the (2002) Blast I own the only problem I had with it was the Exhaust pipe broke at the muffler from dropping it off the 2x10 I use for a ramp to get it in and out of my Storage Building. My fought. It has ben modified, D&D Exhaust pipe, Custom Air Cleaner, Carburetor Re-jet and European Super-bike Handlebars. Over 7500 miles and still going strong. It does not leak oil and as far as I know it has never had the gaskets changed, I did buy it new. The biggest problem I see is other riders will get on there bikes, start them, jam them into gear and start Flogging the crap out of the throttle taking off like a Bat out of Hell before the bike is warmed up. This very bad for the H-D/Buell engine that uses the Dry-Sump Oil system. Not letting your Vehicle warm up is not good for any Brand Euro, Metric, or Domestic. Just My Opinion please don't take it personal. | ||
| Ezblast |
The CR's weight feels little different from a stock Blast, though I feel the center of gravity is just a bit higher, something to watch for in turns. Power and hi speed stability is what you pay for with the CR - lol EZ | ||
| Garlic_sauce |
Rode my friends 1992 Katana600 yesterday. It felt so smooth and powerful. I never thought I'd say it but I can't wait to get on a CBR600. My dad will officially take over my BLAST, so I don't feel soo bad about it. | ||
| Rainman |
Miss shifts get on my nerves, when downshifting I'll occasionally have to let out the clutch and shift again to get it to move, but otherwise it's no worse in the B-tranny than my 89 Sporty was. I've had zero issues with the Blast, other than the boot, at 10,000 while my Sporty had eaten one battery a year and its stator magnets crapped out at 15,000, costing 1,000 to fix (the design was corrected in 1990, but not for a retro-fit.) There are still lots of issue reported on the other forums, some of which sound like they could be easily addressed at build. Guess that's just the way it is. Bikes have character ... flaws we'd never put up with in our cars! | ||
| Jlnance |
Guess that's just the way it is. Bikes have character ... flaws we'd never put up with in our cars! Yes, which was somewhat of a shock when I started riding bikes. I expect my car to go 200k miles and never break. I never expect to do any work to it other than change tires, brake pads, and oil. It was somewhat of a shock to learn that bikes are not the same way. | ||
| Patches |
In 30 years of working on cars, trucks, motorcycles, yawn-farm or automation equipment both Electronic/Electrical and Mechanical failures. I have never seen or herd of car lasting 200k miles and not having a failure. Especially for under $10K about the price of a XB or under $5K price of the blast. If that were true it would be the only brand, model or type car running the streets. The cost of Materials: Metal, Plastic, Petroleum products, and Overhead: Utility, Property Tax cost continual increase makes it very costly and hard to improve products and still keep the price point to make that product marketable. Also Research and Development of any product tends to be very expensive. This includes Engineering Design changes and Laboratory Testing. As I said Before it does not matter what Brand, Make or Model bike you have you are going to have to work on it or pay somebody else. Just My Opinion please don't take it personal. | ||
| Patches |
Kool Thumper http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeAw66aI_Zg | ||
| Garlic_sauce |
Cool, that things lifts up pretty easy huh? | ||
| Ezblast |
They have bored them out to 500 ccs - lol EZ | ||
| Andychang |
Hi All, Ah, sadly I put the Fazer in storage for the winter. Even though I have a covered garage spot, the snow, salt, and cold of a Chicago winter is something that I just don't want to deal with. Put her in storage on Monday after getting a spare key made. Cost about 3.25USD, and although it does not fit perfectly, it does work. Found that it was getting harder and harder to engage the clutch due to the leaky clutch slave cylinder, so it was a perfect time to just put it up. This is the work that I expect to have completed before next spring: * New set of tires * Possible carb work * Possible valve adjustment (just rolled to 25K miles the other day) * Possible electrical work to make sure that the on/reserve switch actually does work * Clutch slave rebuild * New fork springs I'm storing the Fazer at my mechanic's garage, so it'll be taken care of nicely/winterized and all that good stuff. For the next several months I'll be spending time fishing the harbors and lakefront of Lake Michigan. Hopefully I'll be able to hook a few salmon this weekend. | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
and the Blast needed so little...... | ||
| Andychang |
this is true. but i do prefer the styling of the fazer, and i have not regretted the upgrade at all from a performance standpoint. and i do consider myself lucky to just be replacing a few nominal items at 25K miles. errr, i see a mistake now. i meant "new fork seals", not "new fork springs" in my previous post. | ||
| Garlic_sauce |
Found an '03 CBR. I'll post pics in a little while. |
