RT suprise

Test drove the Rt right before the gs,and loved it to bits. It was pissing down ,and that didnt bother me ,Its just the weight of the thing that gets me ,and the amount of times i keep dropping my gs,with it catching me off guard the rt would be a mess by now. if money was no object id have both:flag
 
I'm fairly tempted by the RT but wonder whether I'd be so keen to thread thro' the cars to the head of the queue?
Click to expand...

Very little in it (1200RT & 1150GS). The GS is easier to thread through gaps but thats primarily because it has much better steering lock. In most respects theres no clear winner.
 
I suppose this will sound like heresy, but I think the RT is the more nimble of the two, comparing it to a GSA, although I concede I have done many more miles on an RT, so there's a fair bit of familiarity.:thumb2
 
Like many, I think that the RT is a great bike. It'll do so much and can lift it's skirt in a way that'll surprise many a 'sportsbike' rider when you want to get a shift on. One of my last rides on one (I had an 1150) was from Tain to Wigan in 4 hours in complete comfort.

However, and it's a completely personal thing, the RT just didn't tug at my heart strings like the GS does for some reason.
 
Opposite bike

when my GSA had some work done on it
Bahnstormers gave me a lovely RT to ride home on :D

i found that you get the opposite effect to the problems with the GSA for short people
where tall lanky people like me self are very suited to the GSA ie very comfortable and can sit flat footed
the RT is the exact opposite - yes i can sit flat footed but have a good look at that tank - where it goes up at the sides then sort of bulges out quite sharply at the top - i found that my legs wont fit under the crease ther fore i was riding with my legs much wider open and it became quite uncomfortable

the second odd thing was where the frame is wider at the back where the gear change is than the front i was riding pigeon footed - ie my heal was forced out by the frame and the front of my foot was pointing in - this coupled with my knees being forced to stay outside the top of the tank made the ride very uncomfortable for a lanky git like me

but if you are the right build you will love it - its a lovely comfortable fast quiet and smooth bike :thumb2

now on the other hand i am looking forward to a try on the new 1600 :D
 
RT is the best "all-rounder" there is in my opinion.

I bought a new 11RT in 98 when I was commuting anywhere between 80 and 140 miles a day.

I quickly found that it did pretty much everything I needed and made my life easy due to the sheer amount of weather protection and luggage carrying capacity. It made the drudgery of motorways bearable, the weather a non-issue and yet was still fun on twisty roads.

And whilst not hanging around I still got a reliable 50+ mpg.

My R11Rt is also, so far, the only vehicle on which I've ever received a speeding fine.

With the 1100/1150 everything is just about as wide as it needs to be - so threading through traffic is pretty easy. The panniers on the 1200 are wider and if I bought a 1200 I reckon I'd get some city cases.

Anyway I ended up using my RT as "the spare bike" whilst chasing more fun / excitement on other bikes but my Brother-in-law nagged me into selling it to him, he then promptly wrote it off! :eek:

I still dream about one day finding a low mileage, non-cat, radio equipped R11RT in silver, or maybe black, and giving up on newer fangled machines.

Now where's me pipe and slippers.
 
RT1100

Brought a 'S' reg one a month ago to replace my GS1150, Got to say it's been a pleasure to ride !! The only pain is taking off all the plastic to do any maintance on it, but I am getting quicker :D

Mine had a new speedo fitted so not too sure on mileage I think about 75K but still goes well !! Although a little smokey when first started up in the mornings.

But for £1100.00 its a cheap qiuck run around which I hope to take over to Europe on July this. :aidan
 
Gazzabart said:
i found that you get the opposite effect to the problems with the GSA for short people
where tall lanky people like me self are very suited to the GSA ie very comfortable and can sit flat footed
the RT is the exact opposite - yes i can sit flat footed but have a good look at that tank - where it goes up at the sides then sort of bulges out quite sharply at the top - i found that my legs wont fit under the crease ther fore i was riding with my legs much wider open and it became quite uncomfortable

the second odd thing was where the frame is wider at the back where the gear change is than the front i was riding pigeon footed - ie my heal was forced out by the frame and the front of my foot was pointing in - this coupled with my knees being forced to stay outside the top of the tank made the ride very uncomfortable for a lanky git like me
Click to expand...
I had the same problem - coupled with my big feet made trying to find the end of the foot levers without hitting fairing really difficult, whereas the GSA with standard seat on high gives me excellent seat to peg height and less to get feet and knees tangled up with.

A.
 
Seamaster said:
I rather fancy this:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...code/ss92lf/keywords/rt/radius/1501?logcode=p although I am sure they have put the price up by £500 since looking last night!
Click to expand...

Bit of a puzzle that bike, Looking at the pics, its fitted with the later air box, or maybe a later engine? and I thought RT's had a rear disc?
Looking at the pics again I reckon its a R100T thats had a full fairing fitted and either a later airbox for some reason or a later engine, you can make out "R100T" on the sidepanels, certainly overpriced if its a bitsa !
 
Gazzabart said:
when my GSA had some work done on it
Bahnstormers gave me a lovely RT to ride home on :D

i found that you get the opposite effect to the problems with the GSA for short people
where tall lanky people like me self are very suited to the GSA ie very comfortable and can sit flat footed
the RT is the exact opposite - yes i can sit flat footed but have a good look at that tank - where it goes up at the sides then sort of bulges out quite sharply at the top - i found that my legs wont fit under the crease ther fore i was riding with my legs much wider open and it became quite uncomfortable

the second odd thing was where the frame is wider at the back where the gear change is than the front i was riding pigeon footed - ie my heal was forced out by the frame and the front of my foot was pointing in - this coupled with my knees being forced to stay outside the top of the tank made the ride very uncomfortable for a lanky git like me

but if you are the right build you will love it - its a lovely comfortable fast quiet and smooth bike :thumb2

now on the other hand i am looking forward to a try on the new 1600 :D
Click to expand...

At Bahnstormer over the W/E I had the opportunity to look at the 1200RT and 1600GT from above ( bikes parked next to the wall on the pub side ).

Tank/cockpit on the GT significantly narrower, as a mater of fact it looks smaller, the back of the bike looks the same as the RT, even the rear cluster lights look the same ( I wonder if they fit the RT , those LED lights look good) and the top box from the RT will fit the GT. Shame is about 65/70 kg heavier than the RT:(
 
R1200RT

Allan Jefferies had 48 gs bikes in for sale and 2 rt, wonder why? had the long way round bubble burst or are they all on that rent, buy, hand it back if things get tight. Still i think you get more for your cash with a rt at least the sods leave the luggage on.
 
I rode an RT as a loan bike when my GSA was in for a service.

Couldn't stand it, bland, boring and felt gutless. BUT that was riding down the country roads I would normally blast down with the GS, so not really a fair comparison. Once on the open road though it was a different story.

I have to say though that having ridden with friends on the motorway (GS vs RT), and also the swiss passes, that they do handle, they're not gutless, and certainly not boring. You have to take them for what they are, they're not a back road scratcher, not a sports bike, but they are a damned good tourer, and on A and fast B roads then they are pretty F* good.

I'd certainly consider one, especially if I could house an RT along side an old trials / off-roader, so I could still take the road less travelled.

Cheers
 
I just bought a new twin cam RT SE + Dynamic Pack and pick it up next week:JB Wanted a wee change after 3 yrs on my last GS. Still keeping my Triumph TBS though for that sunny day / naked bike fix:D

The new RT really handles, I also much prefered it to the K13GT when test riding...I think its an addiction to the Boxer:thumb2
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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