Topic: Ok...which bike would you take?

[techy5025]

I am contemplating riding from Orlando to Alaska in the summer of next year. This would not be a iron butt ride but one that would take a month or so...enjoy the scenery so to speak. Not being the type that likes sleeping in tents, motels would be used. Daily mileage would probably average 500 miles or so. Except for construction sites, I'm led to believe that all will be on paved roads.

So, I have two choices of bikes....one of the CB's or the CBR. The CB750 would be more comfortable to ride, but it is a 38 year old bike. The obvious solution would be to get a modern touring bike, but then I would have four bikes in the garage as I seem to be incapable of selling or trading bikes. 

So, given the two choices, which would you take? 

Jim

[neil young]

not that this will aid you in any way.a couple of friends of mine rode to south carolina a few years back.rosa on an cb 550 and anthony on a fairly new harley?he laughed and laughed at her untill his bike broke down for the third time and hers got her there and back no problems.newer dosnt always mean better

[Dusthawk]

I would ride the CB. Just do a good tune up and put some spare bulbs, fuses and points in a small sack and head out. CBR's are a dime a dozen on the roads and uncomfortable to boot. But a CB750 cruzzin' along will turn heads and save your back and kidneys a lot of grief.

JMHO,

Jeff

[CrisPDuk]

I agree with Jeff

If I was planning a long cruise I wouldn't hesitate to take my 550

[Bob Wessner]

Just a thought, and my $.02 only, of course, 500 miles per day over a long period of time is a lot of miles on a motorcycle of any kind. If your final arrival date and stops along the way are planned around this, you might want to reconsider/recalculate.

When you do make the trip, we are expecting lots of pics and a log. Sounds like fun.

[johnny-from-bel]

CB750. Needs no justification.

[Glenn Stauffer]

Here is a trip report for a ride from Seattle to Inuvik in the Northwest Territories of Canada.  Some interesting information on taking a CB750 on a long trip far from services.

http://www.geocities.com/pgilland/Arctic_Summer.html

[kuyarico]

Interesting read.

How the hell did he find the axle nut that fell off the bike? Talk about trying to find a needle in a haystack.

[andy750]

Id take the CB750. Having done a couple of long distance trips I know the CB750 is very reliable and as long as well tuned then you should have minimal problems. Punctures are the usual suspects so unless you practice changing tubes yourself you will need to rely on passing strangers to help the wheel to a service station (done this often enough). Apart from this everything else should be ok. Id say go for it!!

cheers
Andy

[Klark Kent]

you are taking the 750.

with a fraction of the dough it would take to purchase a new tourer or chiropracty after taking the cbr, you could prpare that 750 to be MORE reliable than either.  I am sure the combined wisdom of this forum could form a checklist of projects procedures and purchases that would battle ready the K0 for the task.  so stop worrying about which bike and start taalking about the route you are taking so we can all figure out when and where we want to meet up and ride a leg or two of this trek with you.  the risk of taking the sohc4 is greatly reduced by the fact that you could potentially be no more than ten feet from several mechanics that specialize in your bike.  i think it was that picture of all the vw busses rolling into inuvik, but it got me thinking about the benefits of having a lot of us riding together, like we could keep each others bikes running forever, let alone to alaska.

so maybe you had a different trip in mind.  a solo journey.  i would still take the CB.  you have obviously taken great care of your 750, but even if you hadn't these bikes are bulletproof and the more you ride them the better they run.  this trip will do for your bike what it will do for  you, which i suspect is open up all the senses and let the fast fast air clean out all the dust and doubt and general not all you can beness.  the 750 needs this as badly as you do, man.

just a bunch of cents that hopefully add up to the 5 words i wrote to begin with and probably should have quit with.
-KK

[ieism]

With the gasprices you have in the USA it's probably irrelevant, but have you considered gasmilage?
On a trip that long here in Europe, the price difference between my CB and a more fuelefficient bike would be huge. Hundreds of euro's probably.

But I would rather ride the cb than a modern sportsbike.

[andy750]

Ieism,

Have done both long distance trips in the US and Europe I can say that wherever you ride your going to be filling up a lot and though it might be cheaper in the US it dosent make a whole lot of difference, unless you are on a very tight budget. On my Mexico trip most of the cash I spent in 2 months was on gas - at 16,000 miles and averaging $8-$10/tank I spent around $1200 for gas alone.

 Going trans-USA (5500 miles) two years later on the same CB750 I spent less in gas of course but I didnt notice  -its all relative - on that trip around $320 in gas. Touring around Europe on my CB750K4 (same bike for all trips) for 3 week and 6000 miles used up a lot of gas (converting from euros to $$ I spent around $770 total on gas) as well but if you are thinking about that while doing the trip then you arent really doing the trip for the right reasons in my opinion. I dont have much money but what I do have Ill gladly spend it on a tank of gas to get my CB750 where it has to go. As others have mentioned wherever you go on a CB750 people will stop and talk about it, help you out etc etc etc.....

On day to day mileage I wouldnt think about 500 miles/day on a CB750 for a month. Ive done that as have others and it makes some loooong days. A good average is 350 -400/day and have a couple of long days of 550 - 600 miles when you need to get some mileage. For me the long days take about 10-11 hours as I stop, sightsee, have lunch etc etc....of course all depends on where you are riding through :-) .

keep us posted!!
cheers
Andy

[74cb750]

sounds like a fun trip.
I would probably take the cb750.

My brothers took a triple-up velo/bicycle cross-country and stopped telling people from Idaho on, that they were from New Hampshire as it was too much of a conversation starter...that never stopped.

just don't tell people it is a cb750.
peace,
michel

[johnny-from-bel]

With the gasprices you have in the USA it's probably irrelevant, but have you considered gasmilage?
On a trip that long here in Europe, the price difference between my CB and a more fuelefficient bike would be huge. Hundreds of euro's probably.

But I would rather ride the cb than a modern sportsbike.

Booze, women, motorcycles, all good things in life cost money

[333]

CB.  But I would be interested in the answer to the same question from a CBR forum. 

[greenjeans]

Another vote for the CB....couldn't imagine what my back would be after that many miles on a sport bike...
Sounds like a great road trip.  Have fun.
Maybe see if you can rent "Long Way Round" before you leave to give you some inspiration.

[jbailey]

If you are seriously considering this trip I would have to say neither bike is "preferable".  I have a 1975 CB550K, but I have a 2005 Kawasaki Concours for "serious" riding.  The Honda is great fun and I love the classic looks, but the suspension, tires, engine, seat and most everything else on these old bikes were not designed for transcontinental driving.  A 100-200 mile spin on a nice summer day is nothing like what you will encounter once you get 500 miles down the road from Orlando.  Earlier this spring I tool a five day 2000 mile ride on the Concours.  If I had taken the Honda, I would probably be just being released from the Hospital.

[andy750]

jbailey - all depends on how you like to ride. See my previous posts and links to some CB750 travels. Clearly the 750 can go anywhere a modern bike can. Read Jupiters Travels  by Ted Simon - round the world on a 70`s Triumph. Riding an old bike gives you an adventure no modern comfy cruiser ever will.

just my opinion of course.
cheers
Andy

[jbailey]

I never said it couldn't be done on an old bike.  30 years ago, adventurers would try riding great distances on anything.  This is the twenty-first century.  Would you rather drive cross country in a new car or a Model T?  People HAVE done it in a Model T.  I wouldn't even try it.

If you want to do Marathon type riding, do it on something designed for it.

[canyon750]

I would take the CB750.  I'm looking at the repairabilty (is that a word???  ) of the bike on the road.  Sure the CBR would be able to get parts in stock at most dealerships but the CB you could almost repair with duct tape and chewing gum!  I recently took a tour on my VFR (1200 miles in 3 days) and because of the travel ability of the bike I could easily push 400 miles a day.  I think the CB could have handled it just as well.

Also, think of the attention you would get on each bike.  Let's say you roll into a "Harley" town.  How many of those guy do you think will give you the time of day if you rolled up on a CBR???  Especially if you needed some assistance...  The one thing about the CB is it doesn't matter who you run into, there is going to be a respect that you just won't get on the "crotch rocket".  Safe journey.

My $0.02 USD...

[CrisPDuk]

I haven't dove it in a Model T, But I have travelled across Europe in a 1958 Ford Pop

It never once let us down, the regular maintenance it did need could easily have been carried out by the side of the road, if necessary. As it happens we never needed to, one of the great joys of travlling in old machinery is, no matter where you are in the world, people are always interested, and always keen to lend a hand/tool/workshop

We could easily have done the trip in air conditioned comfort in any number of modern cars, but where would the fun have been in that

PS: The trip was 8 years ago, my friend still owns the Pop, it still does big miles every year, and it still has not let him down, nor needed any major work

[jbailey]

There was a thing on the news the other day about a guy going cross country in a horse drawn wagon (one horse).  Does that mean everyone that goes with a car or winnebago (or motrocycle) is taking the "comfy" way?

To misquote Andy750, "Riding an old wagon gives you an adventure no modern comfy cruiser ever will."  Anything with a padded seat is the way pansies travel.

This poor guy is about to ride from Florida to Alaska.  Has anyone here ever attempted that?  Has anyone even come close?  My advice is to be prepared with the best equipment you can for any situation.  This trip is NOT a trip to be taken lightly.  It is NOT a ride across Europe, or anywhere else.  There ar NO dealers of any kind once you get very far north of Montana.  Telling him that it's a good idea to take off on either of his choices for bikes is BAD advice from people who sit at home and have never had the balls to try such a ride.

[andy750]

Ok jbailey you clearly have an opinion on this but to dismiss his ride as undoable you sound like a naysayer who likes to tell people things like this cant be done. It can. Look at the previous posts - old vehicles can go anywhere as long as properly maintained. Glen has posted a link to a guy who has the very same trip on a CB750.

Look at MY links - Ive done a 16,000 mile trip on a 1974 CB750 from Boston, MA to Mexico and back in 2001. Not to Tijuana - all around Mexico! Jungles, mountains, deserted beaches!! Ive been to places you only dream about on your Concours! Ive rode on roads that were so bad they make river beds look flat. Ive driven over beaches, down one track jungle lanes, across windy planes, got gas from a big barrel behind someones house....Your comfy modern bike would not have made such a ride believe me. My 30+ year old bike did and carried me back home to Boston with sand in the carbs!! I know what Im talking about!!

 Ive done these kinds of rides. Ive been in places where there are NO mechanics, or people for 100s of miles. I broke down many times due to punctures on my trip in a land where no one spoke English - I got by!! People stop and helped, patched up the inner tube and away I went - try that on a Concours!! You clearly dont get any of this. Going to Alasaka on a CB750 is perfectly doable. You may want to wrap yourself up in cotton wool and spend $$s to get yourself somewhere safely and in the most comfortable fashion possible but there are those of us here who like adventure. Something different. Something that no one else or few would try. Not everyone wants to ride to Alaska or Round the World on a brand new BMW.

When my bike breaks down its 9/10 a puncture. Mechanically these bikes are SOLID. When your bike breaks down where are you going to plug it in to diagnose the problem?? Or get a new coolant hose or whatever other modern part you need? CB750s dont need dealers to solve our problems. They just need us or someone with a hammer 

And its not only me - there are plenty of guys on this Forum who have done similar trips - look up "nomadmachine" - 12,000 miles, 3 months on a 1972 CB750. And there are others  -look in the Trip Reports.

Before you bad mouth a lot of people on this Forum get your facts straight. No one is giving bad advice to this guy, only prior experience. Where have you rode to on your bike? Anywhere outside the USA?

cheers
Andy

[seaweb11]

Take the CB, and feel free to drop in on your way up or down

P.S. jbailey   your not getting very far here. 200 miles and your bum was sore............

I did a 2 week 4000 mile Vancouver to SanFran and back with a lot of side trips a couple summers ago and had a great time. 78cb 750 with clubman bars...........

I was alone....I had no radio music, no CB, no cell phone, no warrantee,"in fact I had just built it the previous winter"  and no guarantees of succeeding!

 That's the point!  If every one could do it, they would.

Take a truck and camper if you want the trip to be a real pain and predictable

I have always found the best times traveling by air sea or land were the ones when sh*t broke down. Ever landed in a farmers field with a plane, ever had a prawn trap wrapped up in your prop in Alaska, ever had a throttle cable go on you on the PCHwy in CA, ever had a trailer wheel melt off the axle on a holiday Sunday?  These are the things that make the trip worth wile, and allow you to meet people along the way. These become your most memorable times of any trip. 

Aircraft landing was in Aldergrove BC and the farmer was very cool
Prawan trap issue solved with the assistance of most of the population of a very small indian village
Throttle cable, I don't have room or the time to go into all the folks who helped on that one
Melted wheel, we had to bribe the guy to leave his house with the promise of all the cold beer we had in our cooler. He was watching NASCAR and did not want to go out in the 120 degree heat to cut weld the mess off the axle for us.  It worked!

Take the trip, and hold your head high as an explorer of your world on a journey to no where in particular.

[Roach Carver]

as many members as there are on here I am sure that parts won't be a huge problem. I would take the cb (or a model T if I had one) It would be nice to have a route planned with contact numbers from the members of this forum along the way in case you did need some parts or assistance.