macrev (11/30/82)
I ride a 1979 Honda CM400T, and it's beginning to look like I won't be getting anything bigger for a while. I want to take a trip this spring -- about 1500 miles roundtrip. The question: Will my 400cc bike stand up to two or three days of nearly constant revving for six or seven hours each day? (I have to assume, of course, that my body will stand the punishment.) Is there really any reason that I can't tour on a medium-sized bike? Seems to me people used to do it on even smaller bikes. NOTE: My bike has 15000 miles on it. At 55 mph it cranks 5200 rpm, and it's redlined at about 9500. Thanks, Mike Lynch BTL Short Hills (201)564-2571 mhuxi!macrev
hsc (12/01/82)
We have, over the years, seen quite a few people touring (one-up) on the old Honda CB350 twins. My wife had a used CB350-IV (four cylinders, 325 actual cc's, 10,500 rpm redline, ~6,000 rpm cruise). She took it N.J. to the Florida Keys and back, and also on a 10,000-mile grand tour of the U.S. and Canada, including LOTS of mountains, plus deserts, etc. Only trouble in all that time was a weeping head gasket that the Honda shop in Flathead Lake, Montana, fixed in less than a day. She sold the bike to a friend when she bought her current CX500. The friend recently tore down the CB350 because it had ~40,000 miles and because he was taking a mechanic's course and wanted to practice. The engine was in essentially perfect shape, so he dusted it off and put it back together. "Constant revving" does not hurt modern bike engines; they love it. Short (2~3 miles) trips, infrequent use, infrequent oil changes, lugging in too high a gear, and (less often) drag-racing behavior are what hurt. Change the oil and filter regularly, service the chain, and watch the tire pressure and battery water, and your CM400T will take you anywhere. Have fun, Harvey S. Cohen BTL-LZ1C314 (201)576-6059 houxn!hsc Lincroft, N. J.
kos (12/02/82)
#R:houxn:-32300:uiucdcs:8800004:000:470 uiucdcs!kos Dec 1 17:18:00 1982 I would agree with the previous respondent. I ride a '73 Honda CB450 (the old DOHC twin) and I have made several long road trips. Never a problem. I do ride alone, however, and I could see two-up touring putting an extra edge of wear on things, but it's been my experience that the bike has plenty of power to spare, even at highway (> 55 mph) speeds. Your 400 should be just fine. (By the way: I live in central Illinois and ride through Illinois and Missouri.)