First 1000 miles

Hello All

I have now done my first 1000 miles and would like, for the benefit of those thinking about a big scoot, and perhaps for general interest, give a review of living with a silverwing.

I am an engineer / innovator / inventor,  6 foot, and reasonably proportioned at 12 stone, 32” legs and waist, the Japanese I believe to be on average ..... smaller, although just as clever at making machines.

I found it took quite a bit of nerve to actually buy a big scoot, but find I have reached an age (50 !!!!!) where I just don’t give too much thought to what others think of me or what I  ride, and as it is the only sort of bike I havn’t owned yet, I now have one, a 2012, 4500 miles,  in black,  Airflow screen, leg wind deflectors, a Givi top box, and some mirror extenders from Hong Kong.

The Good:
Wind protection, better than my BMW R1150RT, jeans don’t flap about.
Acceleration, acceptable ... make that, suprisingly good, it seems that the wind protection does the same to you as when driving a car, in that it doesn’t seem that quick until you look in the mirrors and see how far away everything and everbody is, (except for a Porsch, but more on that later)
Speed, not as fast as a new Porsch but fast enough for me, my days of 160 mph are over, and I like to enjoy the ride, I now think that if you are sliding the back and front tyres you are pushing your luck, (must be getting old)
2 up Performance, good, never seems to struggle.
Brakes, effective, but could be a bit more feely at the lever, perhaps some different pads may improve them,  they do the job, and the ABS works.
Luggage Capacity, plenty, but the top box is a must have extra.
Handling, ......... odd, till you get used to it, no tank between your knees and no foot pegs means using a different technique, but I seem to be able to now put it on the bit of road I desire, and have stopped adding corners to roundabouts !  it is actually quite nimble once you get the confidance to throw it about a bit.
Fuel consumption, best so far 62 mpg UK, worst 55 mpg UK  (it was that Porsch)
Amusement value, 85% + , as much fun as riding any bike but with added practicality which makes me ride more often, you can even go shopping, filling a couple of baskets, then going for more beer, and then finding out there is room for wine as well as a bottle of rum in the scoot boot.

The Bad:
The seat: whilst almost all bikes  become a pain in the a** after a few hours, some do it too you quicker than others, my KTM SMC would give pain after 20 mins (and fuel stops every 80 miles !) the silverwing seat isn’t so bad, soft and wide, but the bum rest is too far forward for me, as has been commented on by others, I moved it up one hole on its bracket as suggested on this forum which improved things, then I made a thin pad and attached it to the brackets, then I did a ‘leroy’ and made it into a back rest, made mine out of 3mm stainless steel which gives some ‘spring’ to it and stopps it thumping me in the back over bumps in the road, now it just vibrates a bit .... still not happy with it, next I am going to make a 2 inch thick pad to sit on, the seat is just too low, Of course all this is just about what I feel is comfy, others have no issues, so not a valid negative about the machine.
Services, at 4000 mile are going to come round very quickly.

The Porsch
A guttural roar I heard behind me, I was pottering along at about 40 on a 40mph town road, I looked in the mirror and saw a Porsch attempting to enter the Givi top box, I ignord it and carried on, we then pulled up to a roundabout and the porker made its move, with a squealing of tyres, some smoke, and loads of noise, it dived into the wrong lane, squirreld
passed me and left me feeling a little slow. Some miles down the road a set of traffic lights stopped the porker and a row of caravans which I pottered alongside until arriving at the front of the row, waited for the green light, and then off I went with a nice clear road ahead.
some miles later the porsch arrived into view in the mirrors, so I thought it an opportunity to see what the scoot was like at speed ! As mentioned earlier, it aint as fast as a new Porsch but the scoot behaved well at an indicated 110 mph, and this proved fast enough that the porsch didn’t fancy an overtake.
Eventualy I pulled into town to get a coffee, the Porsch parked next to me, he got out and walked over, “that thing goes well, how much do they cost ? ” he said, “ £4500 to £6500 ish , your thing seems to go well ” I replied, “but you looked like you were having more fun than I was” ..........  yes I probably was.

THanks CB. Interesting read. Yep, the Silver Wing sure does surprise 'em.

I'm not intentionally picking you up on your spelling mate but it's Porsche not Porsch, and you pronounce it "Por-sha" not "Porsh”.   

I'd rather be in one of my Porsches when it is persisting down.

On a side note I find the seat really comfortable even on 300+ miles days.

Cheers,

Very good review, mine's an older model and I'm just managing 52-55 mpg but that's with wife on board, don't know if it's good or bad. Sitting on the couch watching TV for a few hours would also be a pain in the a**, so I wouldn't consider the SW seat a bad point.

For me the seat becomes unbearable after 1 hour of riding! My wife has the same complaint. Usually a 5 minute break will cure the numb a** syndrome (NAS). I dont know how guys can do those 300 mile trips without getting the aforementioned NAS. 
 Someday i/we will get a couple airhawk seat cushions but at $200cdn it remains someday!

I've got the Airhawk Cruiser Medium neoprene seat cushion and I use it occasionally, it's not essential for 300 mile days but wearing the correct underwear is, and as an aid to rider comfort a lot cheaper than buying an Airhawk or a Corbin or Russell seat.

First, don't wear anything cotton as it absorbs moisture and gets damp, so wear synthetic material that wicks moisture aways from your skin and evaporates. More important is that they don't have seams anywhere near your butt cheeks because it's the seams especially damp cotton pressing into your arse over a period of time that create the 'hot spots' that cause the discomfort.

I'm not going to recommend styles of synthetic underpants, they can be briefs, boxers, or longer like cycling shorts, as long as they are close fitting and you can easily reach in and "go through the gate" or "over the fence".    They're also a doodle to rinse through and dry on camping trips, or in hotel rooms.

Another thing you can do on the move is to occasionally lift your bum off the seat for a second or two, it's easy to do in the FF position and you can feel the benefit.

Meldrew i have tried the lifting off the seat thing for a second or two but it seems it only brings relief for a second or two. Were thinking the airhawk seat is our only hope for cure! The problem for me doesnt seem to be a buildup of heat but a lack of circulation due to the seat structure.

hotwings wrote:

Meldrew i have tried the lifting off the seat thing for a second or two but it seems it only brings relief for a second or two. Were thinking the airhawk seat is our only hope for cure! The problem for me doesnt seem to be a buildup of heat but a lack of circulation due to the seat structure.

Have a look at the Beadrider.

Cheers,

Good synopsis Charlie. I am about your size and have done many 300 plus mile days. Some on here claim 500+ days. With the stock seat; 500 is a stretch for me. Besides I am just not in that big a hurry anymore. With the buttrest-backrest conversion my seat is pretty good. But if I was constantly on the road touring I would get a custom seat for my SWing.

I rode over 700 miles in one day on a trip with beads, an Air-hawk and the bare seat, changing out each time I stopped for fuel or a break and I find the beads the best of them all. The beads get used most but I do keep the Air-hawk under the seat just in case I want a change in seating. If I could only have one it would be the beads. Here in the Florida heat the beads are the best to keep the bottom cool and comfortable.

Tracey uses a sheepskin pad.
http://www.alaskaleatheronline.com/servlet/the-template/Buttpads/Page

I prefer the BeadRider.
http://www.beadrider.com

Both are great for preventing monkey butt in the Arizona Valley temperatures.

Meldrew wrote:

I've got the Airhawk Cruiser Medium neoprene seat cushion and I use it occasionally, it's not essential for 300 mile days but wearing the correct underwear is, and as an aid to rider comfort a lot cheaper than buying an Airhawk or a Corbin or Russell seat.

First, don't wear anything cotton as it absorbs moisture and gets damp, so wear synthetic material that wicks moisture aways from your skin and evaporates. More important is that they don't have seams anywhere near your butt cheeks because it's the seams especially damp cotton pressing into your arse over a period of time that create the 'hot spots' that cause the discomfort.

I'm not going to recommend styles of synthetic underpants, they can be briefs, boxers, or longer like cycling shorts, as long as they are close fitting and you can easily reach in and "go through the gate" or "over the fence".    They're also a doodle to rinse through and dry on camping trips, or in hotel rooms.

Another thing you can do on the move is to occasionally lift your bum off the seat for a second or two, it's easy to do in the FF position and you can feel the benefit.

For a moment there I thought Mildrew's taking the micky about wearing the correct underwear. I think it also depends on what actually is that one feels after long rides. If it's a burning sensation I would agree about the material that the underwear is made of but in my experience it's the butt bones that suffer and not any different from sitting in my car or anywhere else for that matter and the best cure for this is a gel seat. I do actually lift my bum occasionally but it's for a different reason and I do get a shove in the ribs from my wife when I do this