A Clockwork Teapot

I've got an F650CS as a loaner. It's a bit like an NHS-approved safety
appliance - think Z200 without the character...

More later (if I survive...)

 

platypus wrote in

I had one of those from Rydales as a loaner. I thought it was great around
the narrow streets of Cardiff. Squeezes through gaps that would be
impossible on the GS.

Not so good on open road though. Suspension seemed to bottom out at the
slightest bump.

 

What's the advantage of the F650CS over the F650GS (Dakar)? Is it just
the helmet-storage thing? I quite like the look of the F650FS-Dakar,
but as usual with BMW it's overpriced for what it is.

 

Sir wants to have a go an a 'proper' F650[1], sir does.

[1] It's fixed now

 

Dual Purpose? Taller seat height. No rubber band.

 

In

The CS has the belt drive too does'nt it?



--
Steve Parry

http://www.gwynfryn.co.uk

http://www.arrivedeprived.org.uk/

K100RS SE
F650
(not forgetting the SK90PY)

 

and that's an "advantage" is it?

 

*Ding*

I mean *Twang*

 

darsy wrote

Absolutely.

Tens of thousands of miles of completely maintenance and trouble free
riding.

The sooner we abandon the stupid and old fashioned affection we have for
chain driven bikes the better imho.

 

darsy wrote in

I concur. Whilst the CS makes an excellent town bike it is a lot of
money compared to say the much better SV650.

The Dakar would be ideal for your commute and larking about on a Sunday.
I've 2 mates who had F650GSes; both traded up to 1150s as the 650 is
hard work on a long ride. As you say £5.5k is a lot of money when you
consider the DR-Z is over £1k cheaper and something I'd much rather own
as a second bike.

Have you looked at the new SV650 powered V-strom? Low seat height
according to the blurb. Comes in black.

 

yeah, I've heard it's pretty good.

Fancy a single though.

 

SV650 powered? Sounds like a V-hom

 

<looks outside>

Not a scottoiler in sight


--

Kevin - Basildon
XV535
GPZ305 (her's)
BOTAFOT#67 BOTAFOF#23
OSOS#29

 

Softer suspension on the CS. I think the engine is in a different state
of tune, but ICBW.

 

*Waves*

 

Good.

Right, I'm back, having hoked the CS mercilessly up to Gloucester, 50-odd
miles of abuse at lunchtime, then back to Bristol this afternoon to retrieve
the Progressotron.

This is what it looks like:

http://www.ohsmer.de/bmw2.jpg

The CS will indicate 110 on the motorway, and get up to around the ton on
most reasonably straight bits of open road. The screen seems to be
unobtrusively effective.

It's lovely and light, handles brilliantly (by my standards), brakes quite
well.

The riding position's a bit funny: lowish seat, pegs a bit high and back,
semi-rearset style, but the bars are sit-up-and-beg. It cries out for
clip-ons, but there's no way you could fit them without hacking off the
droop-snoot.

The exhaust is about the size of an old-fashioned dustbin - think Iraqi
supergun. There's a tiny little tube goes into it, and a tiny little hole
in the back, out of which comes a tiny little poot-poot clockwork-teapotty
noise. Thrashed, it sounds like a hoover.

I know that practically any single which has its valves in the cylinder head
gives its best when thrashed, but this is ridiculous. Trickling around
town, it's as lumpy as rancid elephant spunk. Kangaroo petrol scenario. On
the open road, nailed to the stop, it's fab if you keep it above 5K (and
don't run into the rev limiter), but running along on a steady throttle, it
all goes lumpy-surgey again.

I blame the fool injection. Maybe it could be set up better, or re-chipped,
or fitted with a FOAD flywheel, but I'd swap 20mph off the top end for more
torque in the 3-4K range, and smooth delivery at part-throttle.

Sharp bends, you need to go down the box by two as a minimum, preferably
three. The box is perfectly fine in action, it just sounds like an old tin
moneybox full of old pennies falling off the shelf onto the floor.

It's a pity about the power delivery oddities, 'cos the chassis is fab. If
the power and torque were better arranged, it would be a brilliant everyday
bike, esp for the 33bhp tendency. As it stands, a tentative rider would try
to pootle around on it and have their confidence destroyed by the jerky
power delivery, and the overconfident rider will thrash it everywhere at the
ton (like what I did) and end up in a hedge.

 

platypus wrote in

I had one for 3 days whilst Rydales negotiated with BMW over an out of
warranty claim [1] for a failed rear caliper on the GS. I found the CS to
be fine around town with no histrionics from the Fi. I suspect the bike you
rode needs a tweak although it could be that I'm quite forgiving of lumpy
Fi as the 1150 boxer is not exactly smooth at low revs.

[1] 3 year old caliper, corroded piston, BMW paid 50% even though the bike
only had a 12 month warranty [2]
[2] warranty now 3 years on new bikes

 

yeah, but in butch outdoors-y clothing...erm..

 

<Baffled[1]>

Where else would you find the valves?


[1] Unless you're really referring to side valves, which were obsolete
fifty years ago.

 

*ding*

....or rather,


chuff


lamppost


chuff


lamppost


chuff


lamppost


chuff


lamppost


chuff


lamppost


chuff


lamppost


chuff


lamppost


chuff


etc