After quite a bit of test-riding, research and general hemming and hawing, I pulled the trigger on a lovely red 2010 NT with less than 6000 miles today (my second one). I'll be picking it up next week.
Farkle time!!!
Farkle time!!!
Boomerang NT Owner
- Thread starter KazooST
- Start date
Curious how the Triumph and the NT compare. For me, I think maintaining the chain would get "old", but the additional power and 6 speed sounds cool. Do you plan to keep the Triumph too?
OP
OP
Yes, I'm keeping the Triumph. It's gorgeous - especially since I had it painted British Racing Green - and ridiculously smooth and fast. The chain is no problem. I lube mine once a week with some Teflon chain spray and replaced the chain and sprockets in two hours at the 30,000-mile mark. As a side note, I rode the Sprint over 400 miles today while bike hunting. It is also a blast when I spend the 90 seconds stripping off the bags and take it out for a twisty road romp.
One of the reasons for getting a second NT is that I have a long commute and the NT is a great freeway runner, with good weather protection and comfy ergonomics for my two hours per day in the saddle. It has a much more "relaxed" feel than the Triumph and I have missed that relaxed riding. With both bikes I can now also keep the miles lower on both and enjoy them for many years to come.
One of the reasons for getting a second NT is that I have a long commute and the NT is a great freeway runner, with good weather protection and comfy ergonomics for my two hours per day in the saddle. It has a much more "relaxed" feel than the Triumph and I have missed that relaxed riding. With both bikes I can now also keep the miles lower on both and enjoy them for many years to come.
I appreciate your thought that the NT is going to be your commuter bike because it is more relaxed. I've been thinking lately of getting a new bike, but I can't think of anything that I'd rather have if I have to have one bike.
Terry
Terry
Every rider needs at least two bikes......works for me.
Congrats on the new NT.
Congrats on the new NT.
OP
OP
Thanks for the support! I won't pick her up until the new tires are on; as part of the deal the dealer tossed in a new set of PR4s at his cost with free labor. The stock, 7-year-old Slipstones were looking pretty sad. He knew which lube to use on the splines and seems to run a pretty tight shop.
Since I have to wait I have been giving the credit card a workout:
Shad SH48 topcase and mount
MCL adjustable footpeg lowering mounts
Handlebar risers and Transalp clutch cable
Kaoko throttle lock
Nat'l Cycle V-stream windshield
Fuzeblock
Denali Soundbomb Compact horn
Left and right tipover wing covers
I already have a set of ADV lights and a voltmeter/USB charging port ready to install and the bike came with the Honda heated grips and wind deflector winglets.
Whew!
Since I have to wait I have been giving the credit card a workout:
Shad SH48 topcase and mount
MCL adjustable footpeg lowering mounts
Handlebar risers and Transalp clutch cable
Kaoko throttle lock
Nat'l Cycle V-stream windshield
Fuzeblock
Denali Soundbomb Compact horn
Left and right tipover wing covers
I already have a set of ADV lights and a voltmeter/USB charging port ready to install and the bike came with the Honda heated grips and wind deflector winglets.
Whew!
Frosty
Site Supporter
+1
After riding /farkling the BMW 800GT, I took the NT on a 150 mile lunch ride. The NT feels way more comfortable. I am lucky to be able to have both.
Sounds like you're getting the bike pretty well farkled. I hope you don't regret the Shad topcase. That's what I started with and I had the bottom crack out of two of them. Twisted Throttle replaced the first one with no questions. The second one broke while I was in Bay St Lawrence on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia on my Epic Ride. The guy whose wife owned the campground gave me some bungee cords and we got it lashed down for my ride back through PEI, New Brunswick, and Maine. It stayed on till I got to Twisted Throttle and this time they would not replace it. They told me it was way overloaded. By then I didn't want another Shad anyway. I bought a Givi Maxia from them. I had had a Givi that lasted for 165,000 miles on my two '99 Concours and it had survived a crash that totaled the first one and lasted for another 50,000 on the second one. It's still on the bike, but I don't think the guy I sold it to has put very many miles on the bike. I wish you better luck!
Ah-hah! I'm glad you shared that! I had suspected as much. I'll keep my NT -- comfort is my prime consideration, given my advanced age and state of decrepitude.
OP
OP
Phil Tarman;151601 I hope you don't regret the Shad topcase. That's what I started with and I had the bottom crack out of two of them... I wish you better luck
Coyote Chris
Site Supporter
I agree with everyone. Two bikes are better than one and if they are a bit different, that is fine. If summer were four months longer, I might even have three. As it is, I dont have time to do all the riding I want to.
I walk too much killing gophers and pulling weeds....but I am glad I dont have to make a decision on having only one bike....the NT fits me very well for my needs....its light on the controls, as we say....my FJR is wonderful but you have to be
on top of it all the time and not listen to it say, "Lets do the ton again! That was fun!" (The NT would say, "You want me to go HOW fast? Really? We are just out here smelling the flowers, remember...?."
Coyote Chris
Site Supporter
WVRider
Site Supporter
Ditto Terry's thoughts exactly. Especially the one bike thing.
WVRider
Site Supporter
HA HA ! I had one get into my top bag in Yellowstone and steal my snacks. Looks like the same one but you know how it is, they all look the sameI agree. Keep the weight low....I am ditching my pet raven!
Coyote Chris
Site Supporter
Did I tell you the story? I didnt know this happened, and it does frequently. These ravens have discovered how to work zippers. I saw my gloves on the ground and figured that someone was looking for an iPhone, etc.HA HA ! I had one get into my top bag in Yellowstone and steal my snacks. Looks like the same one but you know how it is, they all look the same
When I got to my camp site, I found a businesscard of a photog cruising the west who explained the real situation. She sent me the pics! (The raven was after my gooey breakfast roll in a zip lock bag. "Nevermore!"
Coyote Chris
Site Supporter
I wonder....the FJR's rear sub-frame is so weak that if you install a top box and go over railroad tracks with a heavily loaded box, it whipsaws the sub-frame till it cracks in two. Yamaha isnt doing anything but a guy sells us a sub frame stiffener called a "stiffy".
I dont have to tell YOU about all the little issues the Connie had that Kawasaki refused to fix.
OP
OP
Just a quick update...
Phil, the Shad 48 I bought was significantly "floppier" and generally more cheaply built than I felt comfortable with, so I went with a tried-and-true Givi V46. I liked the Shad mount more; big and flat with lots of tie-down points, but the V46 is a lot sturdier and of much higher quality.
Oh, and the literature that came with the Shad warned not to exceed 75 mph with it on board. That's just plain silly!
Cheers,