The why thread , wherein we answer all of the important questions of the day ,

[leafman60]

KLR

Ive ridden one long distance. Great all around bike and very inexpensive.

However, an old friend who had one summed it up nicely.  Riding a KLR all day is like "being strapped down to a giant chainsaw."

[alanp]

Here we go again.

The weight spec for the 2012 Stelvio is for the Stelvio NTX and it INCLUDES the weight of all the stock items on the NTX such as aluminum bags, crash bars, aux lights, skid plate etc.

As with the BMW GS, the Honda Africa Twin comes stock without those things and they are not included in the weight.

So, okay lets take the weights presented here 503 vs 598.  That's a 95 pound difference.  Adding all the accessories to the Honda to make it comparable to the Stelvio would easily put it in very close range to the weight of the Guzzi. 

.

Leaf, you are correct that was the NTX. However, you are still making up numbers when you could use real ones.  The wet weight of the standard Stelvio is 553, 50 lb more than the Honda. 

[redrider]

Pete, you hit that one dead center. So how much does a service visit cost? What needs to be removed just to get at the wonderfully engineered do-dad listed in the service manual? Shops here routinely omit some line items to save time but still charge the customer for the work. (Gold Wing valve checks come to mind) While the AT may have arrived with a splash, a year from now it may not even be a ripple in the pond. The Honda Way.

I would love to have a Norton P11 for the trails. My Commando weighs 402 with fluids on the inside.

[LowRyter]

Well, yes, but with bikes the numbers from the manufacturer are usually very optimistic.  That thing could actually weigh 550 pounds, stripped !

I sat on all of them at the bike show,  compared to Beemer, KTM, Yamaha, Triumph and Suzuki, it's the easiest to pull off the stand, feels the lightest, has the best balance, narrowest and most natural peg/bar placement.  IMO it felt like a 650 vs 1200.  I have no idea what the actually weigh but the Honda feels much lighter.

You're 3+ inches taller than me and might have a different perspective.  I think that 90% of the folks would agree me with me once they sit on them. 

BTW- Cycle World made the same observations when comparing the Honda to 3 competitors. 

[Triple Jim]

I'd go for something like a KTM 690, at 330 lbs wet.  The 390 is no slouch either.

[LowRyter]

Here we go again.

The weight spec for the 2012 Stelvio is for the Stelvio NTX and it INCLUDES the weight of all the stock items on the NTX such as aluminum bags, crash bars, aux lights, skid plate etc.

As with the BMW GS, the Honda Africa Twin comes stock without those things and they are not included in the weight.

So, okay lets take the weights presented here 503 vs 598.  That's a 95 pound difference.  Adding all the accessories to the Honda to make it comparable to the Stelvio would easily put it in very close range to the weight of the Guzzi. 

.

I hate to do this because I am speaking for another member of the board.  He's owned a Stelvio and now owns the last generation RT GS.  He also works at place with a big scale.  He's weighed both bikes.

The Beemer is lighter by a good amount.  Both bikes have bags and farkles. 

[rocker59]

R1 - 390lbs dry.

Why are they so light?  How to they do it?  Is it magic?

[rocker59]

Really?  Why blue of all colors?

Yeah, I know there's some voodoo about molecules in the atmosphere scattering blue light more than red.

But, wouldn't a different color be cool every now and then?

[Lannis]

Really?  Why blue of all colors?

Yeah, I know there's some voodoo about molecules in the atmosphere scattering blue light more than red.

But, wouldn't a different color be cool every now and then?

You can have a different color if you can wean yourself off of this nitrogen/oxygen we seem to enjoy, and breathe ammonia or some bigger molecule.   Otherwise, we're stuck with it ...

Lannis

[rocker59]

Really? 

I know it's some voodoo about the water absorbing red wavelengths, but why?

Wouldn't a purple ocean be cool?

Yeah.  I think so, too...

[rocker59]

But I wan't my nitrogen/oxygen, and I want a golden sky.

That would be cool, don't you agree?

[oldbike54]

  LR , not RT , GS , right ?

 Dusty

[webmost]

Really?  Why blue of all colors?

Yeah, I know there's some voodoo about molecules in the atmosphere scattering blue light more than red.

But, wouldn't a different color be cool every now and then?

You could move to Seattle or some such, and enjoy the grey.

I know. Blue skies are such a bummer.

[webmost]

Nice KLR. Buell headlights?

Nah, some guy near Pittsburgh home-made that twin headlight rack, then swapped it off when he sold his KLR, and put it on CL. I actually scored those twin lights about six or eight months before I bought the bike. That's what you call pre-farkling. One is low beam & the other is high.

Hell, you should see her now. I quit counting somewhere around seventy farkles. Everything from the doo-hickey to a custom cigar rest, sub sandwich rack, and a hat rack. My fave bike.

[Triple Jim]

This confirms my point of view on why heavy motorcycles are heavy.

[oldbike54]

 Yes 

 Dusty

[webmost]

Really? 

I know it's some voodoo about the water absorbing red wavelengths, but why?

Wouldn't a purple ocean be cool?

Yeah.  I think so, too...

Deep sea is blue, cause most nothing lives there.

[oldbike54]

 Last time I looked the Gulf Coast water looked brown 

 Dusty

[Phang]

because they've got the help from the musical instruments  metallurgist

[Chuck in Indiana]

because they've got the help from the musical instruments  metallurgist

Yeah, it has to do with the tuning forks. One of them spanked me on the Skorpion on the Snake, so they must be doing something right..

[Triple Jim]

It has to do with the way oxygen scatters shorter wavelengths more than the longer ones.

[Triple Jim]

I hope this isn't considered a hijack, but I'm going to change the oil in my Guzzi soon, and need to know what the best one to use is.  Thanks in advance!

[Cam3512]

All right, all right, point taken!

[oldbike54]

 You're all wrong , it's helium in the frame and tires , and the exclusive use of lightweight oils 

 Dusty

[Chuck in Indiana]

Oils, you say? Is it Winter already? 

[oldbike54]

Oils, you say? Is it Winter already? 

 Not here . However , seems as good a time as any to discuss the use of nano-tags in modern oil . Apparently the manufacturers have started employing nano-tags as a way to identify brand , weight, and type of oil used in a given vehicle . This way , if an end user decides to cheap out and use non-approved oil , the manufacturers can void warranty claims .

 Dusty

[Rich A]

Suspended particulate matter--phytoplankton and such.

Rich A

[Zoom Zoom]

Really?  Why blue of all colors?

Yeah, I know there's some voodoo about molecules in the atmosphere scattering blue light more than red.

But, wouldn't a different color be cool every now and then?

Everyone knows this............... .............

Just Because!

John Henry

[Zoom Zoom]

Well, once again.............. ......

Just Because!

John Henry

[PJPR01]

It's a zero sum game...if Hondas and Harleys are heavy, Yamaha's have to be light to keep things in balance in the universe.