hard decision on changing bike

[boatman]

Everytime I go a bike shop

I look at all the shiny, nice bikes

I run my fingers over the seats, thinking..............mmm, wouldn't that be nice

All shiny and new, I linger and day dream a while

Then I think, mmmm £10,000 to swap, cheap finance, so much a month, not too much of a burden

Then I think of all that depreciation, losing the Vat as soon as the new bike goes out the showroom

Then I think, what if the......

Seat isn't comfy

Screen is wrong and buffets my helmet

Luggage options

Trinkets

Handlebar jewellery

Dealer servicing, to keep the warranty

All those 'extra' costs, the true cost of farkling, making mistakes with crap accessories


Reality sinks in.....

The shiny, shiny bikes aren't really any better than what I have already

I walk back to my own bike, taking a long look at her as I walk

She's just how I want her, everything works well and suits me - suspension/seat/screen/luggage

Why change?


I pat her tank lovingly, reassuring her that 'she's the one' and whispering quietly that we'll have lots more trips and adventures together, now the money is firmly in my pocket and my credit card intact


I am cured of 'new bike lust'

A man ahead of his time in our now consumerist pcp bike world ,,

[The Sarge]

Everytime I go a bike shop

I look at all the shiny, nice bikes

I run my fingers over the seats, thinking..............mmm, wouldn't that be nice

All shiny and new, I linger and day dream a while

Then I think, mmmm £10,000 to swap, cheap finance, so much a month, not too much of a burden

Then I think of all that depreciation, losing the Vat as soon as the new bike goes out the showroom

Then I think, what if the......

Seat isn't comfy

Screen is wrong and buffets my helmet

Luggage options

Trinkets

Handlebar jewellery

Dealer servicing, to keep the warranty

All those 'extra' costs, the true cost of farkling, making mistakes with crap accessories


Reality sinks in.....

The shiny, shiny bikes aren't really any better than what I have already

I walk back to my own bike, taking a long look at her as I walk

She's just how I want her, everything works well and suits me - suspension/seat/screen/luggage

Why change?


I pat her tank lovingly, reassuring her that 'she's the one' and we'll have lots more trips and adventures together, now the money is firmly in my pocket and my credit card intact


I am cured of 'new bike lust'

Cheers jb just saved me a few grand :laugh: :laugh:

You are of course right JB, if your current bike ticks all your boxes, I just wish I was in the same position :S

[micksea]

agree with jb but couldn"t get that poetic before 9am B)

[Redmurty]

Everytime I go a bike shop

I look at all the shiny, nice bikes

I run my fingers over the seats, thinking..............mmm, wouldn't that be nice

All shiny and new, I linger and day dream a while

Then I think, mmmm £10,000 to swap, cheap finance, so much a month, not too much of a burden

Then I think of all that depreciation, losing the Vat as soon as the new bike goes out the showroom

Then I think, what if the......

Seat isn't comfy

Screen is wrong and buffets my helmet

Luggage options

Trinkets

Handlebar jewellery

Dealer servicing, to keep the warranty

All those 'extra' costs, the true cost of farkling, making mistakes with crap accessories


Reality sinks in.....

The shiny, shiny bikes aren't really any better than what I have already

I walk back to my own bike, taking a long look at her as I walk

She's just how I want her, everything works well and suits me - suspension/seat/screen/luggage

Why change?


I pat her tank lovingly, reassuring her that 'she's the one' and whispering quietly that we'll have lots more trips and adventures together, now the money is firmly in my pocket and my credit card intact


I am cured of 'new bike lust'

Listen to JB wisest of the wise (thumbs) :laugh:

Kept my 955 and bought a DR350 after looking at all the new kit and thinking will it make me a 10k better biker, will it make me 10k happier and is the bike 10k better and the more I look at the super complicated modern bikes the more I'm happier with mine, LUDDITE absolbloodylutely :laugh:

Keep the bike you have sorted to suit you and spend the 10k running it into the ground, or in my case instead of buying the new CCM buy SWMBO a new patio keep her happy :whistle: :pinch: but at the end of the day it's your money so spend it how you like and do what makes you happy (thumbs)

cheers Spud

[johnnyboxer]

You are of course right JB, if your current bike ticks all your boxes, I just wish I was in the same position :S

I find it pays to be logical, nowadays (yes, yes............back along I'd swap to the latest whizz bang and more often than not, be extremely disappointed)

You have to analyse what you really want out of a bike?

Is it?

Touring ability

Load lugging

Pillion poise and comfort

Handling

Ease of use

Outright power and adrenaline


Offroad aplomb

If you don't go offroad, then a 650 single or below, ain't much use

If you tour far and wide, to Europe........ a decent twin/multi with decent power and handling is where it's at

We all dream of offroad touring, but in reality how many of us actually do any?

I don't and I bet only 10% of the membership do any proper offroad touring/trips

So because I don't, I have a 1150 GSA for bike trips

For offroad..... I have smaller 350/400's and a Van

No bike does everything, so you have to narrow it down to WHAT YOU WANT

Simples...........

[The Sarge]

You are of course right JB, if your current bike ticks all your boxes, I just wish I was in the same position :S

I find it pays to be logical, nowadays (yes, yes............back along I'd swap to the latest whizz bang and more often than not, be extremely disappointed)

You have to analyse what you really want out of a bike?

Is it?

Touring ability

Load lugging

Pillion poise and comfort

Handling

Ease of use

Outright power and adrenaline


Offroad aplomb

If you don't go offroad, then a 650 single or below, ain't much use

If you tour far and wide, to Europe........ a decent twin/multi with decent power and handling is where it's at

We all dream of offroad touring, but in reality how many of us actually do any?

I don't and I bet only 10% of the membership do any proper offroad touring/trips

So because I don't, I have a 1150 GSA for bike trips

For offroad..... I have smaller 350/400's and a Van

No bike does everything, so you have to narrow it down to WHAT YOU WANT

Simples...........

Simples !! I wish, I am referring to my CCM 450 JB, we just haven't gelled shall we say :whistle: :pinch: :S

Sarge

[Redmurty]

spent a little time with Tich at TWS wiring and was surprised how old the bikes he was sorting for people were (thumbs) some of these bikes had already done RTW trips and one had gone around twice if I understood right. Only one modern bike in the shop and that was a street fighter build.

Cheers Spud

[johnnyboxer]

Simples !! I wish, I am referring to my CCM 450 JB, we just haven't gelled shall we say :whistle: :pinch: :S

Sarge

Ok, I understand

I'll tell you a little story, if I may

Some years back.....2008 to be precise

BMW had launched the newer 1200GSA, with all the toys, electric suspension/traction control
and in Red, my fave colour

I thought wow, that must be good and took a test ride

It was ok, good ..........but not exceptional

Hey-ho.... it will surely grow on me, though

So I bought the dealer's fully loaded demo for a bargain price (at the time) and a new pair of BMW's finest bread tins, for good measure

The deal was to trade in my mint 13000 mile 1999 R1100GS (big mistake, but the trade-in was very good and more than I paid for it) and my BMW R1150GSA with about 20,000 miles and that I'd owned from new

The deal was 2 bikes, for one ...........and no money to change hands

They collected the 1100GS for me and on the Saturday I was due to collect,my other half ran me down in the car (I took my cheque book and left my lovely 1150 GSA at home instead)

Salesman said, where's the other bike??

I said I couldn't part with her and brought my cheque book instead, so here's the value in cash

Ok, he said

I took the shiny new bike home and rode it all summer (leaving the 1150GSA under a dust sheet all summer, at the back of the garage, unloved)

Now I rode this 1200GSA everywhere and anywhere for 4 months, doing about 3000 miles

It was ok, it had 2 wheels and engine and was reasonably competent and got from A to B

In the Sept, I met up with a mate (he had the same model of 1200GSA) from the South West (we meet up just 2-3 times a year) for a weekend away and riding across Dartmoor from the M5........we arrived at our pub B&B and turned the bike's off, took off our helmets and the first thing he said, was.............'you don't ride that bike as well as your others'

Eureka moment ...!!!

Something I hadn't put my finger on - but he had spotted straight away, even though I'd done 2-3000 miles on this wretched bike, with all it's fancy gadgets and traction control malarkey

I mused on what he said all weekend, got home on the Monday and next day I took off the dust sheet from my unloved 1150 GSA, fired her up and did 200 miles on her, around the Dales

Normal service resumed, acceleration and braking points returned............wowee, by jingo I was happy again

Came home, took some pics of the 1200GSA, wrote an advert out that night and sold her on UKGSER within a couple of days for the same price as I'd paid for her (luckily)

So glad, that I stuck with that particular 1150 GSA, because I couldn't buy a new one again

That was a close shave and an important lesson in my biking life............in that 'all that glitters isn't gold'

[Redmurty]

bought a used and very well sorted GSXR 750 everyone who rode it was shocked and said what have you done to it, me nothing the guy before me had I think as I never found out what he had done. The new Blade came out so off I went all full of anticipation got the keys off Abingdon Honda and away I went I was back in a very short time, the salesman's face had a big grin on it, "liked it that much hey" me "No very under whelmed" his reply "rubbish" so I chucked him the keys to the Suzy and said go try that. Kept that bike for a long while till I fell in love with a "speed triple "

cheers Spud

[92kk k100lt 193214]

Save the money and buy the wife a new patio......did that and the patio is amazing on a sunny weekend for putting the bike on and doing things to it. Also good for having friends bikes parked all around while you do bike things and the BBQ is warming up. Make sure you have an outdoor socket. For the beer fridge. Yep sound advice there.

As for the older bikes, once you have one and get to know it you also know the weak points and how to avoid them. I have had new out of box cars and bikes and find much more satisfaction out of an older bike and car that you can for want of a better word understand. Over the year my bike costs me what it costs in maintenance but zero depreciation. Over 7 years of K100s I have not got to spending on average above €1,000 a year and that includes tyres and batteries and routine servicing. On the two I have put over 60k miles up in that time.

If you like what you have you spend forever changing a new one around to suit you.