hey all! new member here, from lovely seattle, washington.
i just purchased a ctx700d after trading in a perfectly great bv 350. why did i do that? petty reasons: i wanted abs (gasp), i wanted something a bit more comfortable for touring/commuting, and i wanted a bit more juice for the highway hauling.
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apologies for the horrible picture! it's evening here. i'll post nicer ones later. i got my bike from the kind gents at ride motorsports in woodinville, who agreeably enable my fiscal imprudence. my other ride is a '13 suzuki sfv 650 (nee gladius) which i've put about 2K miles on in the last two months. it is a painful, terrible touring bike, but it is a absolute rip on the backroads of seattle and the eastside. i adore it.
the ctx700d is a different beast. i put about 5K on an aprilia mana for two years, and for performance, the mana smokes the ctx. however, the mana was a top-heavy, ungainly 550 lb (wet) beast that did not like the narrow parade speed dancing on seattle's hills, and it took a nasty drop. i've also rocked a cbr250, and aprilia sportcity 250, and a honda sh150i prior, and my wife has a cute little pcx 150 (and zero interest in upgrading it). needless to say, i have ptw problem, and i hope this signals some peace to my wallet for awhile.
to provide some useful content, i'm of mixed feelings on the ctx700. first, it's ugly, but since i wanted to tour a bit along with my slab commutes, i needed a fairing -- and that ruled out the prettier naked edition. (besides, if i wanna look cool, i'll roll out on the zook.) the dct is a strange beast, as the audible shifting clunks seem very alien initially (i keep suffering from a phantom clutch grab, too), especially after my time on the mana. the forward controls seem comfortable, albeit totally unnatural. i built my skills, such as they are, three years ago on a cbr250 and then on the mana, and my preference is for mid controls.
the "meh" aside, here's the good: it has really solid power delivery, it handles like a dream with that low center of gravity, the front brake has good bite despite the single disc (i don't use the rear much and never have), the paddle shift is fun for aggressive engine brake engagement, the abs is solid, and THE SEAT IS SO. ****. COMFORTABLE. i'm not even 40 yet, and still, if this is just a taste of a goldwing, i know where my sad, sad motorcycle future lies, and it ain't on an inline 4. (there may be a ducati diavel en route, though.)
i put about 120 miles on it today, breaking the seal on the tires, and ranged through heavy traffic to mild rain to some pleasant sweepers out by duvall to slab shenanigans at 80+ mph, and it was as easy as riding the bv 350. (by the way, the bv 350 *is* an awesome scooter. i'm still a LITTLE baffled that i decided to trade it in, but a few near rainslick slideouts made me decide i want abs. that, and the desire to tour with some buddies in late august.)
anyway, glad to join! when i get some more time in the saddle, i'll write up a comparison to the aprilia mana 850 gt. (happy to compare it to the sfv 650, too, but they really aren't comparable. the sfv 650 is called a beginner's bike as well, so i guess that's something, but i still can't fathom why beyond the nice broad friction zone and the low-ish seat.) oh, and if it helps: i'm 5'11" and 185 lbs.
also! are there any standard cheap (read: non oem) saddle bags or top case kits for this, like from givi or shad? the oem prices are APPALLING.
castellan
i just purchased a ctx700d after trading in a perfectly great bv 350. why did i do that? petty reasons: i wanted abs (gasp), i wanted something a bit more comfortable for touring/commuting, and i wanted a bit more juice for the highway hauling.
apologies for the horrible picture! it's evening here. i'll post nicer ones later. i got my bike from the kind gents at ride motorsports in woodinville, who agreeably enable my fiscal imprudence. my other ride is a '13 suzuki sfv 650 (nee gladius) which i've put about 2K miles on in the last two months. it is a painful, terrible touring bike, but it is a absolute rip on the backroads of seattle and the eastside. i adore it.
the ctx700d is a different beast. i put about 5K on an aprilia mana for two years, and for performance, the mana smokes the ctx. however, the mana was a top-heavy, ungainly 550 lb (wet) beast that did not like the narrow parade speed dancing on seattle's hills, and it took a nasty drop. i've also rocked a cbr250, and aprilia sportcity 250, and a honda sh150i prior, and my wife has a cute little pcx 150 (and zero interest in upgrading it). needless to say, i have ptw problem, and i hope this signals some peace to my wallet for awhile.
to provide some useful content, i'm of mixed feelings on the ctx700. first, it's ugly, but since i wanted to tour a bit along with my slab commutes, i needed a fairing -- and that ruled out the prettier naked edition. (besides, if i wanna look cool, i'll roll out on the zook.) the dct is a strange beast, as the audible shifting clunks seem very alien initially (i keep suffering from a phantom clutch grab, too), especially after my time on the mana. the forward controls seem comfortable, albeit totally unnatural. i built my skills, such as they are, three years ago on a cbr250 and then on the mana, and my preference is for mid controls.
the "meh" aside, here's the good: it has really solid power delivery, it handles like a dream with that low center of gravity, the front brake has good bite despite the single disc (i don't use the rear much and never have), the paddle shift is fun for aggressive engine brake engagement, the abs is solid, and THE SEAT IS SO. ****. COMFORTABLE. i'm not even 40 yet, and still, if this is just a taste of a goldwing, i know where my sad, sad motorcycle future lies, and it ain't on an inline 4. (there may be a ducati diavel en route, though.)
i put about 120 miles on it today, breaking the seal on the tires, and ranged through heavy traffic to mild rain to some pleasant sweepers out by duvall to slab shenanigans at 80+ mph, and it was as easy as riding the bv 350. (by the way, the bv 350 *is* an awesome scooter. i'm still a LITTLE baffled that i decided to trade it in, but a few near rainslick slideouts made me decide i want abs. that, and the desire to tour with some buddies in late august.)
anyway, glad to join! when i get some more time in the saddle, i'll write up a comparison to the aprilia mana 850 gt. (happy to compare it to the sfv 650, too, but they really aren't comparable. the sfv 650 is called a beginner's bike as well, so i guess that's something, but i still can't fathom why beyond the nice broad friction zone and the low-ish seat.) oh, and if it helps: i'm 5'11" and 185 lbs.
also! are there any standard cheap (read: non oem) saddle bags or top case kits for this, like from givi or shad? the oem prices are APPALLING.
castellan
