[Guest]

It seems like there a few of us who have both bikes. I know BMW prides itself on its engineering, which is diametrically opposed to the "lifestyle" image normally associated with Harley Davidson. I'm just wondering what drew the others to the XR.

As for me, I looked into HD since my wife had a Nightster and I found the BMW didn't really like "cruising". I picked up an XL883 to ride with her and found that its performance was way unsatisfactory to me. That bike was traded in on a Ducati Sport 1000 which had the handling and all I liked with a neat retro style, but the handlebars were set WAY too low to allow for any comfort over an hour's worth of riding.

I was thrilled to see the XR announcement since I finally found a Harley that had some performance. I was also considering a V Rod, but the handling was too slow for me. But the XR gives a bit of performance to the V Rod and Ducati in return for saner ergos.

So it seems like the XR niche is being filled by guys like me who have ridden BMWs and Ducs and wanted a Harley without the "lifestyle" part of HD ownership.

FWIW, I have an '07 K1200S and used to own a '00 K1200RS.

 

[Dallara]

Beemer's & Duc's...

~


I've had both BMW's and Ducati's, along with lots of other brands.

First BMW was a 1981 BMW R100RT. Guy traded it in to my Honda store and I liked it so I bought and rode it for a while. Had continual problems with the friggin' charging system and was constantly fighting a dead battery issue. Got tired of that and put it on the floor to sell.

Oddly enough, it was that BMW that got me my first Ducati. A guy who REALLY didn't know what he had traded in a 1980 Ducati 900SS in on the BMW R100RT. Said he couldn't live with the 900SS' riding position any longer. He took a bath on the Ducati and I made good money on the Beemer... It was a dream deal.

Man, was that Ducati incredible...

Black and gold, and had the complete "Imola" kit included with it, though not installed. I had that Duc a good, long while, and finally installed the cams, 40mm "pumper" Dellorto's, and the high, open-megaphone pipes. Wow, was it fast for a twin of the time!!! But with those pipes it was WAAAAAAAY too loud. I ended up running the stock header pipes with a trick set of Conti mufflers and all was wonderful. Despite all the rumors, stories, and fables that Ducati was as reliable as a rock, never missed a beat, and was actually quite easy to work on, including setting the valve clearances - desmodromic's and all. Had the seat redone with better foam and vinyl and rode it all over the place. Only problem it ever had was a tendency for the headlight to fall out of the fairing over the right kind of bump at the right speed. Only happened a few times, and the wires always caught it, but it was exciting at night one time when it fell out at about 100 MPH...

Wish I had never sold it...

Next BMW was a 2002 R1150R, and was without a doubt one of the best bikes I ever owned. Never had a problem with it other than the usual leaking fuel clamps. Fixed those and put an Odyssey battery in it, modded it a bit, and rode it for a couple of years. Sold it to the guy who rides my vintage MX'ers, and he later traded it to my accountant, so I still do all the maintenance on it. Still runs like a champ.

I now own two other Ducati's along with the XR1200 and a couple of others.

Maybe there is a common thread there.

Dallara


~

 

[Floridacars]

Rounding out stable

I bought the XR to add a standard to the collection, I have 6 77 and 78 Triumph Bonnevilles, only 2 are running now, and neither is dependable enough to go far from home.

I have a BMW K1200LT for the long comfortable ride with the wife.

I also have a 2000 Triumph Sprint RS for the fast rides, it handles like a dream, and has power to spare. I get a lot of strange looks from the local sportbike crowd when an old man on a Brit bike won't let them run away from them.

The XR replaced a 2000 HD FXDWG2 which caused considerable pain if ridden for more than 1/2 hour. I have a bad back, and the forward controls pinched a nerve causing my legs to go numb.

XR is a fun, easy to ride, comfortable bike. No racer, no cruiser, no tourer, just plain fun !

Also available is a Ducati 900 SS CR, a 2001 Speed Triple, a 1993 Kawasaki 600 Ninja, Jaguar car, Maserati car, 1992 Cadillac Allante, Deuce and a half, trucks, jeeps, 1979 Triumph Spitfire (under construction) another Maserati Spyder (also under construction).

 

[longbow13]

Don't have a BMW currently (or an XR for that matter, though it's on the way!), but my first bike was a 1981 R65. Rode the snot out of that thing commuting in California when I didn't own a car. Fun and easy bike to ride, and was a blast in some of the tight corners in the hills where I used to live. I'm sure I wasn't riding fast, but it felt like it muscling that thing around.
Unfortunately it had some ignition coil problems that I was too ignorant to diagnose. The dealer apparently wasn't willing or able to diagnose them either...so I had to deal with the bike suddenly shutting down on me on occasion...not fun on the Oakland to SF bay bridge, or when I was on a date, etc.
My uncle has a mid 60's R50 that I've ridden. Fun old bike.
Modern BMW's look a bit too Spaceman Spiff for my tastes, though I wouldn't mind one of their touring bikes as a 2nd or 3rd bike. The old R80GS Paris-Dakar models are tempting too.

 

[beemerjim]

I've got a 05 R1200ST and an 01 650GS. Have owned several BMW's in the past. Also, have a 72 Bonneville. Bought the XR for many of the reasons already mentioned. Kinda felt like I was missing something by not having a Harley, but didn't want to be part of the steriotypical crowd. Plus, wanted a bike that would do what I wanted it to do, i.e. turn and stop. I'm enjoying it. Other Harley riders still don't wave. Maybe it's the helmet and the aerostitch I'm wearing.

 

[Floridacars]

Lots don't wave

I don't get many waves on the XR, and less on the BMW. Maybe it's the shorts, flip-flops and ball cap turned backwards.

 

[WKinNJ]

Closest Bike I have right now to a Beemer is a Ural Patrol (Russians stole the engine design from BMW during WWII) and my better-half's F650s. Got into the "retro" thing with a used 2001 Triumph Bonneville, then came a Ducati sport classic and finally my first HD, the XR1200.

 

[Guest]

So I'm not the only one who got rid of a Ducati Sport Classic for an XR1200? What made you get rid of your Duc?

I'll admit I was having second thoughts about the Duc for a while and then i rode the XR again today. I think the Duc will stay at the dealer.

 

[filthyboatguy]

I don't have a BMW (had a mint 83' 320is once) but my other bike is a 81' Honda CB900F, which I consider very closely related to the XR only in the sense that they feel very simliar the road.

 

[Floridacars]

Cb 900 f

I had an 81 900 F, the first modern big multi I owned. I loved that bike, put smoothbores, supertrapp and an onterio 1003cc big bore kit. Drove it everywhere. Had a sportrack and girlfriend at the time, strapped everything on the rack or girlfriend and off we went. Fast, smooth and easy to ride.

 

[filthyboatguy]

I had an 81 900 F, the first modern big multi I owned. I loved that bike, put smoothbores, supertrapp and an onterio 1003cc big bore kit. Drove it everywhere. Had a sportrack and girlfriend at the time, strapped everything on the rack or girlfriend and off we went. Fast, smooth and easy to ride.

Drove my first one in 1990 from San Diego to Panama City, FL for dive school, ran like a champ.

This baby is waiting for some CR29s for Christmas!!

And my 750 I sold earlier this year.

Sorry for the threadjack

 

[Dallara]

Wow...

~


Damn, Boat...

I knew you had a CB900F, but I had no idea you had also owned a CB750F. Those pictures of yours bring a definite tear to my eye. As you well know I also had a CB900F, but what you may not know is that I also had a 1979 CB750F... And in the same color scheme as yours above.

In fact, I won got my very first road race podium (2nd at the 1979 Austin Aqua Fest) on my CB750F, and also had my first road race win on the same bike at Texas World Speedway the same year. Unlike my CB900F, my CB750F was pretty much used for only WERA production road racing. I got it used with 968 miles on it (guy bought it and then almost immediately traded it back in on a CBX) and I used it almost exclusively for road racing in 1979, 1980, and a tiny bit in 1981.

I got the CB900F in 1981 and used it not just for road racing, but also for drag racing, my daily driver, and as a cross country touring mount.

Man, those were incredible bikes... Some of the finest Honda ever built.

Thanks for the pics.

Dallara


~

 

[filthyboatguy]

I should have never sold the 750, I don't ever plan to sell any bike ever again.

Biggest regrets:

1. 1985 Yamaha RZ350C, sold in 1991, perfect condition
2. 1981 Honda CB900F, my first one, Bassani, 591s, fork brace, euro kit bars and rearsets
3. 1985 Suzuki GS550E, stocker, high school ride
4. 1983 Honda XL600, wheelie machine, rode it 1500 miles in 2 days on a whim once
5. 1975(?) Honda CB360, cool little twin
6. 2001 Suzuki SV650, it could do it all, and the sound of that Leo Vince
7. 2001 KTM Supermoto (actually was called the Supermoto), LC4 based street ride, supermoto cool before supermoto began it's second coming
8. I won't even mention all the mini bikes...but I was a fool for selling this one after I built it

 

[Floridacars]

Progress

If you are like many of us, one bike must be sold to make room for, or pay for the next. If I kept all of the bikes I owned and liked, I would have more than Barbers (well, in my mind).

I had seen pictures of your CB900F and CB750F before, but just glanced, didn't realize they were two different bikes, same color, etc.

It reminded me of the time I built my 900F. I had the tank on a milk crate on my porch as I adjusted the valves, just after installing the Onterio big bore kit. It was built to run on the street, had all the goodies. Supertrapp, smoothbores, low bars, sweet, sweet, sweet. Well, I was working as the parts manager for the local Honda car dealership, and one of the body shops volunteered to repaint my bike after my room mate knocked the tank off the milk crate. It was painted black, and before I got the decal kit I was riding one day and along comes a box stock CB750F. He pulls up next to me at a light, gives me the "look" and off we go. Needless to say he became a small speck in my mirror. He pulled up at next light, same thing. We finally went to the local "go fast" road (Ranger Camp Rd) where I proceeded to give him as many views of my tail light as he wanted, maybe more. Frustrated he asked what the hell I was on. I casually replied, "same as yours, a stock CB750".

Next morning I got a call from the Honda bike svc mgr, a friend of mine, who asked if I had raced a silver 750 the day before. I told him the story, seems the guy was waiting at the door when they opened, demanding they fix or replace his bike, it was totally defective, blah, blah, blah.

Ya know, if it weren't for the squids we wouldn't have very many stories to tell. And let me add, there are plenty of stories where I am the squid, we all were at one time or another.

Thanks for the memories.

 

[magoo]

great stories!

Ahhh, the upside of the highjack....several great stories in a row...nice reading, thanks guys!

I used to live in the town where floridacars lives now. The road he mentions, Ranger Camp, is the perfect spot for this type of activity....long, laser straight, no houses or businesses....just let her rip....as long as there are no Homeland Security guys driving around....[]

 

[WKinNJ]

So I'm not the only one who got rid of a Ducati Sport Classic for an XR1200? What made you get rid of your Duc?

I'll admit I was having second thoughts about the Duc for a while and then i rode the XR again today. I think the Duc will stay at the dealer.

I thought that was your post on the sport classic board. So it looks like you are keeping the XR? Actually still have the Ducati and the Triumph (made the mistake of buying an old farm with some large out buildings where I can store way too much "stuff"). Triumph definitely leans toward being a "classic reborn" and the Duc falls more on the sport-bike side of the mix. The XR seems to combine the two - cruising bike that is not afraid of turns and I now ride it a lot more than the others. Sounds like you made a good choice.

 

[Guest]

The guys on the Duc forum don't seem to think so. They're looking at it from a purely technological standpoint and while I can agree with them, what good is a bike if it's too uncomfortable to ride?

 

[Dallara]

Ah, yes... Old Friends...

~

I should have never sold the 750, I don't ever plan to sell any bike ever again.

Biggest regrets...

Wow... Haven't thought about that in a long, long time.

Bikes I shouldn't have parted with... Oddly enough, the vast majority of them are Honda's, though there are a few of other brands.

Honda's:

- Any of the 1973 Honda CR250M Elsinore's I raced
- my 1975 CR125M
- 1973 Honda CB350F Four - way overlooked, and IMHO, actually better than the praised CB400F
- Like you, my 1979 CB750F
- Any of my three 1979 0r 1980 CBX's (all owned in the later 1980's)
- a wonderful, used 1979 CX500 (also owned in the late 1980's)
- 1981 CB900F
- 1982 CR250R, which I actually won road races with, against TZ250's, modified much less than you would think
- My first Interceptor, a 1983 VF750F
- 1983 Honda MVX250F - a Japanese domestic model V-3 two-stroke I imported into the USA
- 1986 XR250R
- 1988 CR250R

I also loved my 1986 VFR750 Interceptor, but I never sold it and still have it tucked away...

Actually, since about then I haven't seen many Honda's I would actually want...

Other brand bikes I shouldn't have parted with, in no particular order:

- my 1973 Yamaha RD350 or either of my two RD400's, one a 1977 and the other a 1979 Daytona Special
- any Triumph TR-6 along the way
- a 1990 ATK406
- my 1970 Penton 125 Six-Days
- either of the two Husqvarna 400CR's I raced, one a 1973 and the other a 1975
- 2000 Kawasaki W650
- the aforementioned 1980 Ducati 900SS bevelhead

Then there is the list of bikes I owned, but in many ways wished I never have. Bikes like:

- 1975 Honda CB750F - a pig
- 1983 Honda CB1100F - a REAL pig
- 1982 Honda VF750S Sabre - the BIGGEST pig of all. Tried to kill me more than once when I tried to road race it
- 1985 KTM250MX - blew a waterpump seal every time I rode it, seriously.
- any of the various Honda radial-valve XR500's and XR600's I wrongly conceived I could make into motocrossers. Big, heavy pigs
- 1983 Honda CR480- the most malevolent and evil motorcycle I ever owned. It did almost kill me, try its hardest to paralyze me, but only succeeding in breaking my back


I'm sure there are ones I have forgotten on each list, but that's the sad part... Now my memory is becoming another thing I am losing I don't want to see go!!!

Dallara


~

 

[filthyboatguy]

- 1983 Honda CB1100F - a REAL pig

Really, explain why? I always thought it was the final step in the evolution of the air cooled Honda DOHC?

No racing heritage, but not a bad looking bike.

 

[breezybikerdeb]

Last Picture

I should have never sold the 750, I don't ever plan to sell any bike ever again.

Biggest regrets:

1. 1985 Yamaha RZ350C, sold in 1991, perfect condition
2. 1981 Honda CB900F, my first one, Bassani, 591s, fork brace, euro kit bars and rearsets
3. 1985 Suzuki GS550E, stocker, high school ride
4. 1983 Honda XL600, wheelie machine, rode it 1500 miles in 2 days on a whim once
5. 1975(?) Honda CB360, cool little twin
6. 2001 Suzuki SV650, it could do it all, and the sound of that Leo Vince
7. 2001 KTM Supermoto (actually was called the Supermoto), LC4 based street ride, supermoto cool before supermoto began it's second coming
8. I won't even mention all the mini bikes...but I was a fool for selling this one after I built it

What is the HP to weight ratio