RTW mostly paved - bandit 1200 vs 1200gs
 

hi all,

i am planning a trip RTW, heading east from london to vladivostok, freight bike to alaska, then alaska to NY via LA. i am no off road afficonado and have a pretty duff left knee, so mostly paved roads.

current bike is a bandit 1200s, heavily upgraded - racetech fork conversion, fork brace, WP full adjust shock, braced swingarm, rebored, piston kit, rejetted etc, puts out about 142 at the wheel. modded seat and added some highway pegs. handles great now and very comfortable. i've done many many multi thousand mile trips round europe on it and love it.

would love to hear some comments on doing this trip on this bike, vs a 2014 1200gs. i don't doubt i could do it on my bandit, but wonder whether doing it on a 1200gs might be easier/more comfortable/more capable. especially when the roads get less than stellar. and having the option to offroad a little if i want is appealing. i test rode one and thought it was a very impressive bike. definitely prefer my bandit's engine and power tho. comfort level and on road handling ability seems similar to me.

cheers!

gary.

Hi Gary and welcome,
For me the best bike for the trip is the one you will most enjoy doing it on which for you could be either of the bikes mentioned. In practical terms I think the GS would be the better bike but something smaller such as a 650 or 800 even better especially when road deteriorates. There is also the matter of reliability and getting spares for something as heavily modified as the Suzuki sounds which would give me second thoughts about taking it.

You know and like the Bandit. The GS is a unfamiliar and an unknown quantity to you with barely any advantage on weight or complexity. If you are swapping go sub- 680cc with proper off road capability and get some practice runs and mechanical prep in before you go. Don't swap just because Charlie Boredom used one and MCN links GS and RTW like Ducati and wheelie.

Andy

hi guys thanks for the comments.

i have mostly definitely considered going lighter as in x-challenge or KTM 690 enduro. obviously better for off-road. thing is if 97% of the trip is going to be paved (picking a figure out of the air), then to me its not worth taking a bike that is better for the other 3% of the trip. i could even hire a suitably light bike in ulaanbatur or something for a foray into mongolia.

@andy i am leaning towards your view of bandit (known quantity) vs GS. only thing tempting me about the GS is it would be better for the 3% off road bits! or would it?! :scooter:

@mark, points taken. re repairs to the bandit etc, i don't think that part would be a problem. non of the mods make it outlandish on the spares front. and i can do pretty much any repairs myself on that bike. which is another plus for the bandit vs GS.

gary.

Tyres make the biggest difference. Once you have tyres that work on a surface one lardy tourer is much like another. If you fit K60's/TCK-80's etc. I don't think there will be much difference.

I must add I have never ridden a Bandit off road. My Bonneville on K60's was better (lighter) than my R1100 on gravel/dust roads but both you would describe as survivors while my XT600 could be fun.

Check out the obvious ways to wreck a bike too. The GS may come with a functional plastic guard over say the oil filter while the Bandit may not. Ten quids forth a aluminium and P clips will rectify this at less money than swapping the bike.

Andy