Hi guys,

I was getting my tyre changed on my Varadero 125 the other day and the gentleman fitting the new one told me about this site. I've had a look round, and think its fantastic as I am currently planning a European tour.

Basically I will be doing my DAS at the end of May, having ridden my 125 for 3 months.

I'll be moving to central London in July and am therefore planning on getting a hornet 600 as its style suits that environment.

Will I be realistically able to do a 2 week tour of Europe on a brand new hornet 600? I've searched the site and haven't really found any info on it. Does anyone know where I can get panniers that will fit to it, etc?

Hi Garthunkle

I considered doing all my trips on a Hornet 900 but decided to go for a lighter more versatile bike. I did one 10 day trip on the bike and found it quite heavy.

There is a seperate site for the hornets - I think it goes by the name of hornetsnest. I had a Giviv box fitted to my Hornet and I almost think you can get brackets for Givi panniers as well. Check with your local Honda dealer - they fitted my top box & bracket.

Cheers

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Peter

http://peter-onamission.blogspot.com

My thinking was that because it was a 600 and a naked it should be fairly light and maneuverable compared to a big tourer? Correct me if I'm wrong.

You're not wrong!

here BTW.

Yes, there are specialist websites for just about every make and model of bike, but this one is about travelling by bike, especially long(ish) distances: have a read into here for your European trip - there is a load of good information.

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Dave

There's absolutely no reason why you can't tour nice, tarmac european roads on a Hornet 600 :-)
The only thing i'd be concerned about with you is lack of experience of long distance riding on a 600. You say you've only been riding a 125 for 3 months and then plan on this road trip shortly after getting your full licence which means about 5 months riding experience before your trip. Riding round London is nothing like riding 250miles a day on the 'wrong' side of the road! I'd suggest getting some decent weekend day trips under your belt first - you'll get a better feel for the bike over distance.
I'm more into street bikes too and they're great fun BUT they aren't really designed for long distances so you might need to find out what adjustments you need to make (seat cushioning for example).

Good luck with the DAS!

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Four wheels move the body. Two wheels move the soul.

Cheers for the advice. I just think iot isn't worth buying or renting a tourer style bike for a few weeks riding in Europe. I definately think that lack of experience will be one of the biggest problems that I will face on the tour. I huess it might be worthwhile doing a mini trip around the UK before I go and do Europe. would let me ride in the Bike before hitting the continent as well.

Does anyone know how easy it will be for me to tour Europe having just passed my DAS, in terms of regulation? I presume if I have my full licence it doesn't matter how experienced I am before I can go and ride in a different country?

Good bikes but the underseat/off to one side exhaust may prove a problem for soft luggage (and ali boxes just wouldn't look right). Looked at a few last year and didn't buy one last year for this reason alone.

Have you considered the Honda CBR600F? Same engine, a little more power but makes a great tourer. Much more practical than the current race rep 600's too. Yamaha's YZF600 Thundercat is also worth a look, as is the Fazer 600/FZ6 if you really want a (half) naked bike.

Hi garthunkle, I recently finished a 3k mile tour of Europe on a 1998 Hornet 600. Here is what I noted. Firstly the bike has NO wind protection, there will be a constant flow of air over every part of your body. This strains the neck, legs, arms and stomach. If you are not willing to put up with that discomfort then it is the wrong bike to be spending 4-5 hours on a day. Again with the wind... Pick your time of year carefully. I went in December and I can promise you this is the wrong bike to be riding around Europe on in the winter. There were points when I was close to tears from the cold and I had electric hand and feet warmers, mittens and very good winter riding gear. The only other thing that lets the bike down is range. Realistically you can only do 100 miles before starting to panic about where the next petrol station is. Now, the most out of the way I got was Hungary and there they only label their petrol stations when you are about 3k away from them.

Apart from that the Hornet is a very good bike. You are obviously not picking it for its touring capabilities but it can tour as well as plenty of other bikes if you don't mind a bit of discomfort. The main thing to note is that it is hugely reliable. I am reasonably competent with a spanner and packed a toolkit just in case. I used it once to adjust the chain!

Send me a PM if you have any particular questions about the hornet, I think I bonded with that bike about as much as a person can in 3k miles

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http://www.motorcycleodyssey.co.uk

Something of a bad winter riding experience Hornet600, but it was also pretty predictable for winter in Europe, or anywhere else in winter for that matter.
Of course, the same cold temperature & wind chill factors would apply to any "naked" bike, so it is not a specific problem of the Hornet.
Ultimately, if your body is losing heat faster than you are generating replacement heat then you will get cold - I reckon we have all been there at some time or another!

The wind effect on a naked bike can be OK in the middle of summer - in fact it can be a blessing in a heat wave.
The actual wind pressure at speed can also be OK if riding within the comfort zone for such bikes - but yes, as speed is increased there is not a linear relationship in the wind pressure/drag. Nevertheless, a laminar wind flow over the whole exposed body that produces a constant and even wind pressure can be more acceptable than turbulent air coming off poorly designed fairings etc.


Just as a point: if there is feedback to be exchanged about the bike then posting on here rather than using the PM system would let everyone read and learn from it - it is such posts which generate more information from subsequent posts after all.

Cheers,

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Dave

Sure thing walkabout. Never really had a faired bike so can't say about uneven windflow but I did put a screen on the hornet which basically turned my helmet into a tumbledrier. double bubble + hornet = ARGHHHH

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http://www.motorcycleodyssey.co.uk

Thanks for the useful info.

Hornet600 - How much did it cost to run the Hornet a day whilst touring? What MPG does it do?

Also, are you saying the windshield that Honda do, is not worth buying?

About 50 mpg but obviously varies depending on how hard you ride it.
Mine came with a small windshield and have simply left it on so cannot comment on what difference it makes.

I had a mid '90's Ducati SS which did exactly the same, despite it being the full faired model. The screen was just about the right height to rattle your head about at speed and IMHO, the fairing contributed to instability in sidewinds. Looked pretty though.

My model, a 1998 unfaired 600 hornet, did considerably less than 50mpg and I would really imagine that this is true for most hornets. They are very thirsty bikes! I found that a tank would last me just under 100 miles before needing to go to reserve no matter how I rode it unless I exceeded 90mph. Beyond 90mph it really drank heavily! reserve lasts about 20 miles.

Other running costs I couldn't put in, your tyres last as long as they do on any bike, it doesn't burn oil and basic maintenance is very simple. In my trip the only costs I paid beyond petrol was 1 repair (damn tramlines) and 1 new tyre because of a nail.

the reason the double bubble was a waste of time is because it created 2 streams of air, 1 either side of my head which basically forced my head from side to side. It was fun for about 30 seconds!

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http://www.motorcycleodyssey.co.uk

Its not an exact science and there are fairing/screen combinations that work OK, for me at least.
A very comfortable bike for me was a Honda Blackbird with a double bubble fairing: there are many variables including your own body size of course. I guess this is why there is a big after-market in screens etc.

Yes, buffeting of the head can be a big problem: for instance, a lot of riders seem to get it with the standard screen on the Suzi DL1000 V Strom.

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Dave