Daily use bike

[mab1067]

General question to all. Due to the down turn in Oil & Gas i will shortly find myself having to commute 70 miles on a daily basis? So, here where my dilemma begins. Obviously I have my year old K1300S 30th Edition and dont want to ruin her over the winter. I do have a car but not the most economical Focus ST-3 and will need for a good amount of the winter. Therefore any suggestions for a winter hack, probably 20 miles open roads then into filtering for the last 10 miles??
Need something that I will probably drop as will try to use most of time but still require the protection from wind chill etc.
Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[panman]

hi consider a honda 650 deauville 50+ to the gallon comfy and shaft drive,but most of all
they WILL go to the moon and back with a fair degree of weather protection. the 650 model
can be picked up for very handy money. good luck
panman

[chriscanning]

Yup if your looking for an absolute donkey then it's got to be Dullville if you looking something a little more to share the load with your K I'd either go VFR800 but make sure the older you go the more need to check on the rear headers or 955 Triumph Tiger I've had mine 15 years with the exception of the female fuel connectors they have no vices and run forever.

This is mine.

[Timbox]

I'd agree with all above but also would put a Wee-Strom in there(650 V-Strom), like the Tiger you get a good high position to see over the tin boxes, early ones cheap, engine bulletproof, but like most Suzis needs care to go through winter. Dear departed Kevin Ash's favourite all round bike

[Duc750]

Having commuted for a long time into London I would say you want a bike with long service intervals that is easy to service. Think cost of oil and filters etc.
My weapon of choice was a K1100 LT (ex police) I no longer commute into London so it'll be up for sale soon.
other bikes I've used with success were and r850r bmw, a cb500 (borrowed from a mate) and a VFR750.
All of which can be had cheap and will survive a winter admirably.
If you want to go newer then a Versys 650 takes some beating.
I also had a gpz500 which was more gaffer tape and cable ties than bike and a 250 superdream which was painted post box red with a roller

[bluetoaster]

It depends on the roads you will ride on. If it is 70 miles of motorway then I suggest something with a fairing. My commute for the past couple of years has been 70+ miles a day on a mixture of dual carriageway and town filtering.

In my case I have a Kawasaki Z750S for that. It has enough oomph to not be too dull, but is small, narrow and well balanced for when I hit traffic and start filtering. It is also cheap enough that I use it all year round and in all weathers, and mechanically simple enough that it is easily kept sound.

[gramey]

It's difficult to go far wrong with a VFR750/800, if you get one that's been looked after most will have had the headers replaced with stainless ones and Honda build quality is generally better than most.

[JackSnipe]

I would'nt bother with MC's I would go the Scooter route for the better protection and the ease of use for your journey. Sounds like you are heading into a city or large conurbation so will need a mix of abilities. I have had a Honda SH300 that would easily do the job, a bit more power and bulk a Burgman 400. Get the ACF 50 out, you do not even need a top box with the Burg 400 as under the seat there is more storage space than in a sports car ( maybe, maybe not but it is big) All are fast get away machines so ideally suited to city use as well.
Forget if the bikers secretly or not call you a " Big girls blouse !" I have a Burg 650  and I can tell you it is a sublime performer and in their own way the other scoots I have mentioned are as well, plus they are not gas guslers, the SH can do 80 mpg plus, the Burg 400 high 60's plus.

JS

[Dusty]

Some good suggestions here but, for me, it would have to be the Deauville, if only for its shaft drive.

However, have you considered a cheap diesel car? When I was faced with a 130 mile round trip for commuting, I bought a diesel Corsa which, at 55-60 mpg and £30 VED was pretty cheap to run and much more comfortable than any two wheeler in the winter, especially on the motorway. When you factor in servicing and tyre costs, it's as cheap as most bikes. Obviously, parking may be a problem that rules this out and it won't allow filtering, but having also commuted on the bike, I found that the difference on a longer journey wasn't a great advantage.

[mab1067]

Yip, all good suggestions. Just missed out on a K1200S with 33525miles. Full service history etc and all recalls complete. £2000 in Lincoln. Was almost on my way and guy called to say it was sold. So its very possible to get something cheap and good at same time. Looking at trading the Focus for Diesel me thinks might be best option as present. Will keep you posted, cheers guys

[gibbo]

Yes, as many have commented, the Dullville would be the one for me, and you can pick up an early one for just over a grand. 

[Phmode]

I would'nt bother with MC's I would go the Scooter route for the better protection and the ease of use for your journey.

JS

I agree. Having started my two-wheeled life (well, three-wheeled really cos it had a spare bolted across the back of the carrier) on a Triumph Tigress, I would go the scooter route if a) it had to filter a lot or not get there in time and b) I had to do your journey. The thought of having 70 miles worth of the shite cars and trucks chuck at you in the depths of winter fills me with horror. A scoot means you don't really get drowned, a Burgman will run as fast as any bike for commuting and, unlike that K12S, it will barely cost a penny to run.

Brian (who couldn't wait to get off a scoot onto a 'real' bike, and now here he is trying to get you onto one  )

[JackSnipe]

Load of good suggestions including the Dullville, like the sound of Brian's Tigress, saw one a bit ago and for its age it looked a real good little bike shame we let such industries wither on the vine as those early bikes had some great innovations. Any way I digress now is a good time to buy a bike or scooter. Dealers bend over back wards to sell as do many private sellers at this time of year. If you have the wedge the world is your Lobster ( Oyster if you must)

Incidentally I have just gone up in the scooter world I have let my 2007 650 Burgman (15000 miles) go and replaced it by a 2014 Burgman 650 the latest model with only 580 Miles on the clock. This must be one of the most refined bikes/scooters around as they have essentially been producing the same basic bike since 2003. This time Suzuki have tweaked its drive train to eliminate lash, uprated the brakes with fully floating calipers, added lightened latest model Bosch ABS. Slicked up the looks to be less lard arse and modernised the paint colours. Mine is a smart Matt Grey. They have sorted the Floorboards for the vertically challenged by having a cut out where the legs dangle ! Improved its fuel economy by 15 % (Confirmed in independent testing by VWAG) and also made the drive train less heavy to move when wheeling same around the place. I was on my old Burg yesterday in high winds and she was rock solid, ok she moves with the wind but never gives the feeling of disappearing off into the street furniture. Rode to Gods country "Rochdale" no offence to anybody residing in that neck of the woods but an more apt phrase than "Norther Power House" would be replace Power with Dump. Bloody hell it is awful, a disgrace in civic decline.

JS

[Steve CH]

I ran a GSX650F as a commuter for three years not the fastest thing on the planet but reliable and comfortable. It ran 55 to 60 mpg it also had four pot caliper brakes much better than the two pot ones on a lot of other mid range bikes.

Steve

[AndyLP]

The early Yamaha Fazer 600 is an awesome work horse, easy to maintain and service with cheap parts.  Holds value very well.

Now I use my K12S all year round, for work and play, any reason to ride it really. Am I nuts?  Rode a GS for many years and miles but the K12S makes me smile the most.