callmebob Posted June 22, 2009 Share Posted June 22, 2009 Just completed a 6,500 mile trip from Houston to British Columbia and back. A couple of things worth mentioning: The bike was loaded with about 20 pounds in each pannier, about 25 pounds in the BMW fabric tail bag, a bed roll and a ground pad. Whenever I entered the wash of a truck or any other turbulent air, the bike flopped around like a rag doll. After 1,000 miles or so I realized I wasn't going to die, so I got used to it. Back home two weeks later when I took all the stuff off, the bike was solid as a rock. Item two: warped rotors at 1,200 miles. Got them replaced in Houston when I got home, but it was a nuisance on the trip because dealers don't carry rotors; it's about a two-day wait for the parts. Item three: had to replace both tires at 6,000 miles (or nurse them along another thousand and hope for better prices) at a cost of just over $300 per tire. Carramba! Talk about road hazards. Best thing about the K1200GT: the astonishing power band. I kept my fingers crossed going into the mountains because I remembered my old K1200RS, which made me change gears constantly at low speeds and never had a happy one. The GT can pull in SIXTH gear from 30 mph to 160. Don't ask me how. It's a dream to ride in the mountains, where you have to keep slowing down for tight curves. Worst thing about the GT: Everything seems designed to keep owners from doing anything. Can't even get the front wheel off without a special lift, and that's when it's on the center stand. Can't balance your own rear wheel, either, because the hub is shaped funny. Clymer doesn't have a service book for the later model GTs yet. Average mileage was 42.1 at, um, large speeds. The cops in Wyoming are extra smart. They use instant-on, and point it at vehicles going away from them so trailing vehicles can't detect the burst. The storms in northern Idaho are un-freaking-believable. At one point I thought about whether I've ever heard of a rider getting killed when his motorcycle was blown off the road, and got confidence from the fact that I hadn't. Very sporty ride for about a day and a half. Managed to miss the golf ball-sized hail from the day before, though. Link to comment
smiller Posted June 22, 2009 Share Posted June 22, 2009 Worst thing about the GT: Everything seems designed to keep owners from doing anything. Can't even get the front wheel off without a special lift, and that's when it's on the center stand. Can't balance your own rear wheel, either, because the hub is shaped funny. No special lift is required, just use a small floor jack and a 2x4 under the front of the bike... it takes only a little force to rock the bike back onto the rear wheel. And Marc Parnes will sell you an adapter for the rear wheel for $35. Don't have a Marc Parnes balancer? Well, live and learn... Link to comment
Rhys Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 So where in WY did you get caught? Link to comment
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