Unusual Bike Desires...

[Doc883]

My 'Dream' bike was always a Ducati 748 (or 916) but I never managed to own one and now I'm a retired biker no chance of ever realising it.
Had to settle with my RVF400, a cracking little bike The wife had a CBR400RR 'Baby' Fireblade at the time but I still preferred the RVF.

[Lazydonkey]

Monster for me too Gareth.

I went out to buy a Z750 and ended up coming home with a Buell. oops.

[Gareth]

Monster for me too Gareth.

I went out to buy a Z750 and ended up coming home with a Buell. oops.

Interesting.....
I would love a Ducati Street Fighter but too pricey....and too hot to handle for me.
Why no to the Z750?
I'm quite keen on naked street bike.

[Lazydonkey]

Put simply it didn't give me the horn. It's a great bike and it's characterful for what it is but it didnt scream "want one" for me.

In contrast the Buell wasn't nearly as good objectively but made me smile for a good few years.

Didn't ride either before i bought, decision made purely on looks / sound

Naked bikes are a great option for newbies and experienced bikers alike - and a lot cheaper to insure usually. Can't see me parting with my street for a while.

[Gareth]

Put simply it didn't give me the horn. It's a great bike and it's characterful for what it is but it didnt scream "want one" for me.

In contrast the Buell wasn't nearly as good objectively but made me smile for a good few years.

Didn't ride either before i bought, decision made purely on looks / sound

Naked bikes are a great option for newbies and experienced bikers alike - and a lot cheaper to insure usually. Can't see me parting with my street for a while.

Liking this

[Mikie711]

Still loving my Multistrada but also really like the new Monsters. Still miss my Speed Trip, turned me into a right hooligan especially in traffic.

[Lazydonkey]

Gareth - street triple is an awesome bike. Easy to ride for a beginner but fun and challenging enough to keep you smiling for years.

[Gareth]

Mike,

That's a stunner!
So educate me.

Speed Triple vs Street R vs Duke Monster 796
First bike....for fair weather biking. Odd trip to work. Polishing

[j2 lot]

I had a Street R as a loan bike and was impressed with how easy it was to ride and a bit of an eye opener when you get on the throttle after riding a Bonny for a couple of years. ....

[Lazydonkey]

Mike,

That's a stunner!
So educate me.

Speed Triple vs Street R vs Duke Monster 796
First bike....for fair weather biking. Odd trip to work. Polishing

Speed is 1000cc instead of 600cc on the street......and as a first bike 1000 is probably more than you need. On my bike If you come up behind someone doing say 55mph and go to overtake, you can overtake in 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th or 6th depending on how quickly you want to get past. 1st tops out at 60 odd. Even after 2 years of having the bike and 5 years if having a licence lower gear overtakes still blow my mind. I can join a short slip road in second, be well into 3 figures by the time i join the motorway and then short shift into 4th. Its mental compared to cars and thats just a 600cc with just over 100 bhp.

Basic street vs r is all about rear suspension and front callipers.....stiffer and bigger respecively. Not meant to be a huge difference although the standard bike is quite soft at the back. It was more than good enough for vxjon, ddtb and ape to have as a first bike. If you can afford an r id go for that as it will keep you amused for longer.

796 is a lovely bike if you fit. The 696 is quite small, the 7 is taller but try for size before you buy. The only thing id change my bike for would be a 1100 monster but its a load of extra cash.

[Mikie711]

Mike,

That's a stunner!
So educate me.

Speed Triple vs Street R vs Duke Monster 796
First bike....for fair weather biking. Odd trip to work. Polishing

Speed is 1000cc instead of 600cc on the street......and as a first bike 1000 is probably more than you need. On my bike If you come up behind someone doing say 55mph and go to overtake, you can overtake in 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th or 6th depending on how quickly you want to get past. 1st tops out at 60 odd. Even after 2 years of having the bike and 5 years if having a licence lower gear overtakes still blow my mind. I can join a short slip road in second, be well into 3 figures by the time i join the motorway and then short shift into 4th. Its mental compared to cars and thats just a 600cc with just over 100 bhp.

Basic street vs r is all about rear suspension and front callipers.....stiffer and bigger respecively. Not meant to be a huge difference although the standard bike is quite soft at the back. It was more than good enough for vxjon, ddtb and ape to have as a first bike. If you can afford an r id go for that as it will keep you amused for longer.

796 is a lovely bike if you fit. The 696 is quite small, the 7 is taller but try for size before you buy. The only thing id change my bike for would be a 1100 monster but its a load of extra cash.

Couple of things to add to the above. The street trip is a 675cc and likes to be rev'd. Plenty quick enough and in the street trip will be easy to ride and maneuver due ti upright riding position and relatively wide bars. The speed triple is just the same but has more weight and obviously more power but not for the faint hearted. I had a 675 daytona and it had quite a power band but don't know if the street is fueled the same way.
Monster, any of them is a lazier type of engine being a V twin and very easy to get along with. Not everyones cup of tea but I prefer V twins. Again easy to ride but will feel wider than the triple because the lower crankcase on the Dukes sticks out quite far. IIRC the seat height on the new model Monsters is pretty standard now, not much between any of them. Best bet is to pop into Shirlaws and try a Triple for size and for the Ducati unless someone has one in as a trade in the Glasgow is your nearest dealer. Bit of a pain for servicing but as yet no service center up here yet. One thing I have noticed with the new Multistrada, other than a huge price hike, is the build quality is much better but that will be the Audi influence creeping in.
Lastly, with a V twin go bigger the difference between the 796 and the 1100 evo is 13bhp and 18ft/lbs torque so not a massive jump.
Probably better buying a second hand version of either the Duke or Triumph as you will want to change it after the first year as your insurance will tumble with a year under your belt.
Oh and for polishing the Duke wins hands down

[mckeann]

Street triple with Low boy exhaust looks the danglies and sounds lovely

[mckeann]

and the 675 triple is very torquey compared to the 675 daytona, but does lack the last 1000rpm at the top end.

I rode the 1050 speed, and the 675 street back to back, and althought the 1050 fitted me better, i preffered the smaller engines character and handling.

[Gareth]

Guess I need to try both.
Preferably get something that I'm not going to outgrow too quickly.
Really like the MV Agusta Brutale too....

[Shug]

I've personally looked at Agustas, but the fact that there's no Scottish dealers and they are still more Italian than Ducati WRT build quality issues put me off.

If you're looking new, also take a look at Yamaha's brand new MT-09. Significantly cheaper than a Street trip new, bigger engine, still a triple, better build quality. One mag calls it the most significant new Japanese bike since the FireBlade.