From 1150 to 700 experience?

[Sweaty Sock]

I've recently sold my beloved 26 yr old 1150gs, bought ten years ago, on this very forum. One of my favourite bikes of all time, I kid you not.
Even as a reasonably fit 64 I'd lost some confidence with the 250kg mass, esp moving about, let alone dropping it. But it has gone to an enthusiast, younger, who will look after it.
I'm looking to extend my riding for a good few years yet, like to make good progress but I'm not 30 anymore
What is my experience likely to be going onto a parallel twin in terms of familiarity and reliability? I was disappointed with how the finish held up compared with my Hondas of a similar age, but the GS gave me few problems other than eating its own starter motor and some dodgy electrics.
I've been looking at Suzuki Vstrom 650s as an alternative but keep coming back to the F twins... not a huge budget, so used around £3k max. Or is that dangerous territory? I don't mind routine maintenance, but I already have a couple of projects... I just want something to ride!!

 

[MickDB1]

I have a f700 gs
It suits me better than a bigger bike.
Love it.
Got a 7 year old un for 5k with 7k miles on it.
Cheapest deal on the market I think.
Youl get a 20k + mile un for your price I recon.
Good luck.

The engine is simple . No issues Ive heard of.
Seat... get a comfort one if yer can
HTHY

 

[DrFarkoff]

I've recently sold my beloved 26 yr old 1150gs, bought ten years ago, on this very forum. One of my favourite bikes of all time, I kid you not.
Even as a reasonably fit 64 I'd lost some confidence with the 250kg mass, esp moving about, let alone dropping it. But it has gone to an enthusiast, younger, who will look after it.
I'm looking to extend my riding for a good few years yet, like to make good progress but I'm not 30 anymore
What is my experience likely to be going onto a parallel twin in terms of familiarity and reliability? I was disappointed with how the finish held up compared with my Hondas of a similar age, but the GS gave me few problems other than eating its own starter motor and some dodgy electrics.
I've been looking at Suzuki Vstrom 650s as an alternative but keep coming back to the F twins... not a huge budget, so used around £3k max. Or is that dangerous territory? I don't mind routine maintenance, but I already have a couple of projects... I just want something to ride!!

What about an older Airhead ?

Easy to Maintain I brought an R100GS home today and thought My My isn;t that light after dealing with an 1150GSA LOL

Nice to see ya still out and about Sweaty Old bean !

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

I looked at one recently (last week)
Decided at 225kg fuelled they weren’t much lighter than my 1150 GSA (25-30kg) and the F.700GS is a good 20kg heavier than my Tenere 700 and has worse suspension
So gave up on that idea