Topic: Anybody Own a HONDA VARADERO? I DO NOW!

[RAFster122s]

Nice sport touring bike, should be fun in Twisties and comfortable on a trip...
Top heaviness in my VStrom and CX500 both disappear when moving more than 5 mph.
Be careful backing it out of a parking spot on any kind of slope...
Broke my shoulder doing that on my CX not long after getting it. Doesn't help that if I turn my head too far I get a bit of vertigo when I turn back... Yeah, my neck is kinda messed up...
Nerve ablations every 6-9 (to a year) months helps a lot.

[70CB750]

Pictures today.

Looking good!


Now it just needs a sidecar hooked up to it   

[BenelliSEI]

Quite a tall adventure bike.  The storage trunks look Huge !      The machine looks immaculate 
 The bike's profile looks good from the front:plenty of tall fairing/wind protection w/o it being too wide and it should be able to slice neatly through headwinds quite well.. w/o those huge luggage boxes. 

I’m not a fan of the boxes, the top one will likely never get used. They make getting on and off very awkward! The bike came with all the original bits, so I may remove the bracket and reinstall the stock part. The side boxes will only go on for trips.

Interestingly, all the box brackets are held on by 1/4 lock, quick disconnect fittings. They all come off in a few minutes……

[BenelliSEI]

Nice sport touring bike, should be fun in Twisties and comfortable on a trip...
Top heaviness in my VStrom and CX500 both disappear when moving more than 5 mph.
Be careful backing it out of a parking spot on any kind of slope...
Broke my shoulder doing that on my CX not long after getting it. Doesn't help that if I turn my head too far I get a bit of vertigo when I turn back... Yeah, my neck is kinda messed up...
Nerve ablations every 6-9 (to a year) months helps a lot.

Supposedly it’s very nice on a decent gravel road, useless in mud or sand. Just too heavy.

[Kelly E]

It seems to me that the "adventure" of adventure bikes is trying not to dump it on the dirt, the environment it's supposedly made for.

[RAFster122s]

Heavy loose sand is a challenge for any bike and tires for mud and sand are specialized and many bikes for off-road or adventure struggle with those conditions.

[BenelliSEI]

It seems to me that the "adventure" of adventure bikes is trying not to dump it on the dirt, the environment it's supposedly made for.

David…… You are correct! They are just too big and heavy. My KLR 650 is pretty good, as long as it has less than 1/2 a tank of fuel! What I like about the Varadero is I’m very unlikely to meet another one!

[grcamna2]

Quite a tall adventure bike.  The storage trunks look Huge !      The machine looks immaculate 
 The bike's profile looks good from the front:plenty of tall fairing/wind protection w/o it being too wide and it should be able to slice neatly through headwinds quite well.. w/o those huge luggage boxes. 

I’m not a fan of the boxes, the top one will likely never get used. They make getting on and off very awkward! The bike came with all the original bits, so I may remove the bracket and reinstall the stock part. The side boxes will only go on for trips.

Interestingly, all the box brackets are held on by 1/4 lock, quick disconnect fittings. They all come off in a few minutes……

I think it was excellent of the PO to include everything in the sale 

[MauiK3]

Deep sand is tough on everything. Just look at what Matt’s off road recovery (YouTube) goes through to operate his tow business in the southern Utah sand dunes.
Big high flotation tires, beefed up running gear, large deflection suspension, big radiators, you name it. Oh, low end torque, lots of it.

[BenelliSEI]

Quite a tall adventure bike.  The storage trunks look Huge !      The machine looks immaculate 
 The bike's profile looks good from the front:plenty of tall fairing/wind protection w/o it being too wide and it should be able to slice neatly through headwinds quite well.. w/o those huge luggage boxes. 

I’m not a fan of the boxes, the top one will likely never get used. They make getting on and off very awkward! The bike came with all the original bits, so I may remove the bracket and reinstall the stock part. The side boxes will only go on for trips.

Interestingly, all the box brackets are held on by 1/4 lock, quick disconnect fittings. They all come off in a few minutes……

I think it was excellent of the PO to include everything in the sale 

He’s a good guy. Today I noticed a pair of original foot pegs in the boxes. The larger ones on the bike have removable rubber pads to expose the serrated edges on them, for slimy weather? Best part of all this was the price. Less than US$3K!

Can’t wait to get it plated, insured and out for a good run.

[BenelliSEI]

Slowly wading through the Owner’s Manual. Like all of the Honda literature, full of interesting details and stuff to try out.

Stumbled on some good news; its fuel injection is set up for “regular 87” pump gas. $1.70/litre here today, “Super” is over $2/litre.

[grcamna2]

Very nice transaction 

[bek1966]

Great looking bike and at a very reasonable price.  Great purchase on your part!

Brad

[BenelliSEI]

Thanks, everyone. I’ll report back after I get a good ride in!

[BenelliSEI]

Front tire arrived today, back in the shop tomorrow.

[scunny]

Ride the torque wave, that's my impression from the motor, about 5000 rpm and shift around there,

[BenelliSEI]

Ride the torque wave, that's my impression from the motor, about 5000 rpm and shift around there,

Should be fun, through a six-speed transmission!

[34barab]

Very nice looking bike.  Factory crash bars?  Best of luck with it.

[BenelliSEI]

Very nice looking bike.  Factory crash bars?  Best of luck with it.

All the bars and frames are from “SW Motech”.

Sweated off the old front tire and then mounted the new one. Left it hanging on the side of my black shed, in the sunlight, for a few hours. It was so warm it almost popped on by hand! Tubless tires on a mag wheel are a treat! The Conti tire only needed 3/4 oz. of balance weight.

[Prospect]

Great find John. Enjoy the trip. I spent my early 20's in North western Ontario. Lived in thunder Bay, Fort Frances, Red Lake, Armstrong and have been to almost all the town up there including native reserves. There is actually a dirt road from Pickle lake leading north west to a native reserve called weagamow lake if you care to venture further. Bring bug repellent.

[BenelliSEI]

Great find John. Enjoy the trip. I spent my early 20's in North western Ontario. Lived in thunder Bay, Fort Frances, Red Lake, Armstrong and have been to almost all the town up there including native reserves. There is actually a dirt road from Pickle lake leading north west to a native reserve called weagamow lake if you care to venture further. Bring bug repellent.

Everyone mentions the bugs! Just got the insurance sorted, so first real ride may even be today!

[BenelliSEI]

The Varadero has two stacked plates above the stock rear carrier to attach the “top box”. The top one removes easily, by unlocking three Dzus style 1/4 turn fasteners. The lower one is bolted on permanently. You can see it in the picture I last posted. The black plastic trim plate (under it) that nicely finished the stock carrier cannot be used. Also, the fasteners did not tie into the crossbar for the side bags. It looked weak, sloppy and 1/2 complete…..

So, this morning I wasted a few hours reworking it all. Made up a few alloy spacers, scrounged up some longer hardware and made it “right”. The black trim plate has a few extra holes and is back under it all (where it belongs). The two rear fasteners reach down and through the side box brace. I also mounted the license plate bolts right through the heavy plastic of the rear fender tail. Twice as strong and tidy. No one else will notice the change…….

[RAFster122s]

Nice work John, should be stronger. Thing that kills me is the weight rating often quoted by manufacturers for a rack is ridiculously low. Silly like 5-7 pounds. Cannot carry a gallon of milk? Really? We know that isn't true but they do that anyway. Not sure what liability they are trying to avoid.

[BenelliSEI]

Nice work John, should be stronger. Thing that kills me is the weight rating often quoted by manufacturers for a rack is ridiculously low. Silly like 5-7 pounds. Cannot carry a gallon of milk? Really? We know that isn't true but they do that anyway. Not sure what liability they are trying to avoid.

This one is rated at 22 lbs.!!!

[grcamna2]

Did you take it out on a run John ?