Funny. Only time I have ever heard of hand numbness on a Harley and that includes many I know who are on them all day, day in and out. . Only time I have ever had that was on some of the Jap 4's. Buzzy motors put my hands and feet right out.
Every FJ rider I have known loved it. That dynamic may have changed but an awful lot of non Harley people work very hard to keep it going.
The Frankenbike is about fifty pounds lighter than stock, so about a 500 pound bike. I have a Uni-Go trailer for it so I don't have to deal with the width and weight of side cases (A mono-wheel trailer that leans with the bike). Even the paddock stand fits in it. And, I can leave it in the motel room for day rides. The tow hitch and frame are not on the bike right now, obviously, but I have them (I must have one of the only Uni-Go hitches for an R1100RT that there is, and it's the same chassis). This is just like mine, right down to the color (I originally bought it for my Pacific Blue K1200LT). Image Unavailable, Please Login Center stand was cast iron and way over ten pounds. I was shocked at how heavy it was when we removed it. R1100S front fork is also many pounds lighter, as is the tubular Telelever a-arm. I never unintentionally wheelied the bike until we lightened it! Then there's the Luftmeister exhaust, all the bag mount hardware, &c (A lighter exhaust is on the list, as are Ohlins RGS shocks and springs). It is super tall though - I have a 35" inseam, so no problem, but not for the inseam challenged! - it's a bear to pick up if you drop it though. I carry a jack to get it partway up just for that eventuality. I wouldn't take it on any serious off road adventures, but with different wheels and tires, even rough dirt roads would not be any problem. I will not have the sport bike wheels and tires on it for the Alaska trip.
I'm listening. I rode one last summer and didn't pick up any weird vibes. My buddy that was with me had a restored Ft Lauderdale PD Road King he got a lot of compliments on. I see tons of "new" Harley riders in NC because it's so popular to rent one from Eaglerider and do the BlueRidge. I'll be aware and make sure I ask how their ride is going. I had an older, new at the time, FJ1200. Maybe mid-90's. It was air cooled. It was the first bike I ever had that did everything well. Real brakes, some wind coverage, tons of power, rigid frame and comfy. Up until that point, every bike I had was missing something.
I don't know how much it compresses with you on it but static at least it looks like it has good ground clearance and suspension travel. With dual sport tires I'd bet it would do well. I am surprised about the cast iron center stand on a BMW. Also a little surprised its 500 lbs. I am accustomed to to the days when BMWs looked heavier than they were. But it is still pretty cool.
The new Goldwing is less than 800 lbs. Yes still a big bike but "only" 300 more than the 500 lb request. The suspension is radical. Honda went nuts with this bike. I really really dislike the prior Goldwings no matter how comfortable they are. Just too massive. I really don't feel in my bones the difference between the air old cooled FJ100 and this new GW in handling or performance. The difference in livability is staggering. Harleys are in a previous eon. I'd take my 1984 FJ over a new Harley "Sport cruiser" any day. It took me one and only one Harley to figure that out.
On a two hour ride on the Road King my hands go numb. To the point where it becomes dangerous. It literally takes a day to get full feeling back. Cant imagine a Route 66 tour on that bike. Maybe I'm too sensitive. Be gentle. I drove my buddy's big V2 Indian and it was a magic carpet ride in comparison.
Harley guy here for bigger trips … I think they're great. My last bigger trip was from Spokane, WA, to St. Cloud, MN, in 2018. Link is here …. https://ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/bike-trip-spokane-wa-to-st-cloud-mn.581715/ In 2019, left Crosslake, MN, and headed East thru the "UP" to Charlavioux and Traverse City, Michigan and back. Never had that problem … ~ 60,000 miles on mine ( bought new in 2006 ). First big trip was from Las Vegas to MN ( 2008 ? ). Second big one a year later was from Scottsdale to MN ( 2009 ? ). MDS
Everyone is different but I have never heard of that before. I have been on mine for 11 and 12 hour days plenty of times.
And that is the difference between a true touring motorcycle and a sport touring bike. They have different purposes. In my experience after a long day on the road it the difference between looking for a nice place for dinner and looking for a good bed to get some rest.
I agree. My RT gets blown around more and requires more focus than a Harley. I consider the RT to on the line between Sport Touring and a Touring bike. probably closer to the Sport side. No way I'm spending 10 hours in the saddle. I like to spend about 8 with a lot of stops and then shoot the bull in the bar. I'm a little surprised by the numb hands. Harleys just don't seem to have a lot of high frequency buzz to them in my experience.
RT's and BMW's in general have a great reputation but that is kind of my take on them. The furthest I ever rode one was across a parking lot. And on top of the frequency issue they are rubber mounted. Everyone has different tastes but whatever you think of Harley they are very well evolved for parking your butt on all day long, day in and out. . If there were widespread complaints of that the Motor Co would do something about it.
I will put in a vote for the Multistrada. Handles great, amazing power, sounds great, comfortable all day long with two up. We have had coast to coast and it will go down the expressway as well as twisty as it gets. Never skips a beat and nothing on my 63 year old body hurts when putting it away for the day. Plenty of luggage capacity to as well. The most comfortable bike I’ve ever ridden long distance. Albeit a little tall. Coming off of a BMW RT 1200, the Multi is a blast, the BMW competent. Rented an Ultra Glide in Tenn. last summer for a couple of days. Could not go around a corner and weighs a ton. IMHO, not much fun. The Multi does need maintenance at 15k intervals. It’s worth it. A motorcycle needs to have big power, sound great, it should be fast in a corner, and brake like crazy. Image Unavailable, Please Login
I still love my Tiger, but I did some multi-day rides with a bunch of guys who have BMW GSs, and I was mostly converted. Now one of their friends can't ride any more and has to sell his 2015 1200GS Adventure, so I think I'm about to become a BMW GS owner. Still keeping the Tiger, though, as I have some extended off/soft road stuff that I'm going to do this summer, and I think the Tiger 800 will be a better fit. Truth is, I have no plans to sell the Tiger-- I figure I'll just have both for a while and see how it goes.
I'll be interested to learn how you like it. I had a 4000 mile 2016 GS1200 fall into my lap last year. I've also got an RT and a Triumph Speed twin. I bought it as an extra bike for friends that come to visit. I thought it was ugly, don't get the dual purpose as it's far too big for me to take it seriously off road and so on. They are common as can be in Asheville. A year later, I almost never ride my RT. I'm going to trailer a bike to Michigan and ride around there for a week. I'm going to probably take the GS even though that's a perfect trip for the RT. I didn't see me liking the GS but I do. I really wanted to try a MultiStrada but backed away due to service issues in Asheville. I've also got all the BMW tools.
My friend who has owned a bunch of GSs (and has quite a collection of other bikes) says he likes the GS because it does everything okay, but nothing great. But sometimes that is what you want. We'll see. I get it in a few weeks-- I figure if I don't like it, I can always sell it. First ride will be a 150 mile round trip to the BMW dealer to get it serviced.
I wish the GS had a little longer 6th hear but I don’t ride that fast so no a big deal. I like the clunky luggage that holds a ton and doesn’t scratch. Also, the little fairing offers about 5x the coverage I thought it would. Your friends description is spot on IMO.