Long distance on an F800

[Gromit]

I have a trip coming up to Norway for a month and I have a dilemma.

I had a 1200 adventure which I loved and I convinced myself to part ex it against a WC.

I test rode the WC the other day and I'm not that keen on it.

I had a G650 and at the same time I ordered the WC I swapped that for a F800GS.
I really like the F800 but I think it might be a bit over pressed for this trip?
Or should I cancel the order for the WC and buy another adventure?

 

[JayC]

Why do you feel an 800cc bike will be over pressed for such a journey? The bike will do the journey fine , the only thing that might be over pressed on an F800 will be your butt.

Hang on a minute - you ordered a WC before test riding it and then the test ride revealed it to be not to your taste and you are now asking whether or not you should cancel the order?

(sighs....)

I'm just going to walk backwards, quietly.... out of this door I came in, shhhh.....

 

[Gromit]

Why do you feel an 800cc bike will be over pressed for such a journey? The bike will do the journey fine , the only thing that might be over pressed on an F800 will be your butt.

Hang on a minute - you ordered a WC before test riding it and then the test ride revealed it to be not to your taste and you are now asking whether or not you should cancel the order?

(sighs....)

I'm just going to walk backwards, quietly.... out of this door I came in, shhhh.....

Ok I suppose the question should will an F800 be fine for this journey or would I be better off getting another adventure for the trip?
Everyone else is going on adventures and I'm a bit worried about keeping up.
Will an F800 carry the amount of crap I'm going to have for a month away?

 

[HR0]

Gromit only you know what the planned trip is about
Camping or hotel ? Five star or slumming it ? Etc solo or 2 up
I have toured europe on my 800gs. no problem
The only thing I can see is if all your mates are on adventures will they be stopping for fuel often enough ! 200 mile stints should be enought before fag or coffee breaks and 3 stops is 500-600 miles which is a good days touring ride

Up to you really

 

[ahutcheon]

Doesn't Norway have somewhat low speed limits? Years ago a friend of mine toured Norway on a Honda 650 Dominator and claimed it was perfect for the job (two up) - and that came from someone whose other bike at the time was a ZZR1100. In days of old, I used to tour europe on GSX400F Suzukis, GPz550s, XT600s, whatever I could afford at the time. You'll be fine. I'd probably take the F800GS out of choice.

 

[Daisy Duke]

The 800 is more than capable of keeping up, after all its who is riding it and not the size if the engine, so there is nothing stopping you keeping up either. An old 650GS single can manage fully loaded up so again not an issue, as someone else already said, it depend what you're planning on doing on the trip

 

[Dellis]

Doesn't Norway have somewhat low speed limits? Years ago a friend of mine toured Norway on a Honda 650 Dominator and claimed it was perfect for the job (two up) - and that came from someone whose other bike at the time was a ZZR1100. In days of old, I used to tour europe on GSX400F Suzukis, GPz550s, XT600s, whatever I could afford at the time. You'll be fine. I'd probably take the F800GS out of choice.

Yes it does! It's 80kph apart from a very few roads in the far north where it reaches the dizzy heights of 90kph. Speeding fines are best described as reassuringly expensive however, we only saw three or four police cars in about 3,500 miles but.......

Dave

 

[Aidan1150]

Fit a Corbin or Sargeant seat to your 800 and away you go.

 

[stephen.stallebrass]

I rode to Mongolia and Siberia on my F800GS fully loaded for 3 months... of course it can do it, the question is can you? Every man and their dog has a bloody R12GS(A).

 

[Watty100]

As a wee lad my Suzook GP100 (11bhp) carried me and a load of camping gear 160 miles to Tenby, a few years later a Z400F carried more gear plus a passenger all the way to to Dorset, that bike put no more than 40bhp to the back wheel. So why are you worried about a modern 800 carrying a bit of kit weighing less than a passenger?
Frankly, I would be more concerned with the lardy Adventures being able to keep up with the 800.
Ride whichever bike your arse can cope with over the miles you'll be doing. And don't buy a 12 grand bike before cocking a leg over it, you wouldn't do it with a cheap 10 grand car now, would you???????????

 

[Dean]

I have a trip coming up to Norway for a month and I have a dilemma.

I had a 1200 adventure which I loved and I convinced myself to part ex it against a WC.

I test rode the WC the other day and I'm not that keen on it.

I had a G650 and at the same time I ordered the WC I swapped that for a F800GS.
I really like the F800 but I think it might be a bit over pressed for this trip?
Or should I cancel the order for the WC and buy another adventure?

so you have a F800GS. and a 1200wc on order that your not keen on, having part exed a bike you loved

You should by the one you want

You should post this thread in the 1200 section for a balanced thinking outside of the boxer opinion

Ok I suppose the question should will an F800 be fine for this journey or would I be better off getting another adventure for the trip?
Everyone else is going on adventures and I'm a bit worried about keeping up.
Will an F800 carry the amount of crap I'm going to have for a month away?

in short yes the F800 will be fine for the Journey

The others that are going on the trip, are they the Joneses ?

depends on yr and there riding style and if it's a race etc, etc, etc

try cutting the crap, I read I article the other day btb about suicide clothing (no not what you think), where when you get new clothes, pants and sox for christmas etc you throw yr old ones. Well idea is keep yr old for yr trip and after wearing throw them away you get less to carry as the trip goes on, probaby works better on shorter trips (I only get a 5-6 day hall pass) you will want to take yr portable mangle no doubt suicide adventure pants imao

yep cut the crap travel light as you can

 

[Silversurfer]

I have a trip coming up to Norway for a month and I have a dilemma.

I had a 1200 adventure which I loved and I convinced myself to part ex it against a WC.

I test rode the WC the other day and I'm not that keen on it.

I had a G650 and at the same time I ordered the WC I swapped that for a F800GS.
I really like the F800 but I think it might be a bit over pressed for this trip?
Or should I cancel the order for the WC and buy another adventure?

I bought the F800 GS - ran it in, had the 600ml service done and then went to Southern Spain for a month with a months camping gear lashed to the pillion seat, full panniers and top box and a tank bag. The only essential mod is to fit the BMW Comfort Seat which I would consider a must for any long distance work. The bike covered all types of roads including off road on Spanish gravel tracks, and I considered it the perfect bike for the trip.
If you are going to load it up it's essential to turn up the rear pre-load to suit. Fuel economy was above 60mpg average but it does work hard on motorways.
I have since toured France/Germany & Switzerland all without problem.
The F800GS has now done nearly 27K in 2yrs and all I have replaced, apart from tyres, is 1 headlight bulb.
All bikes are compromised to some degree or other but the F800 is a good all-rounder so there's no reason why you should not use it for your Norway trip.

 

[tosh23]

The 800 will do it easily, parking up with a load of 1200's the 800 will look tiny ..Parking up a brand new shiney shiney w/c 1200 adv next to old 1200's will look the dogs, Before you go take a trip to touratech in wales, buy a shit loads of bling for it, bolt it all on and be the envy of all that go on the trip... Don't forget the deer whistle, You will need that in Europe...

 

[Mr K]

Once upon a time a 750 twin was the biggest bike you could get.

Get a grip.

 

[wayne800]

I have toured in Europe on an 800gs two up in comfort, just fit a BMW comfort seat & happy days.....

 

[Sgt Bilco]

Mad Mikey Murdoch brought his 800 to Alaska last year amidst a gaggle of 1150's and 1200's. It was never overshadowed once in the 4 week 8400 mile jaunt. The fuel consumption is excellent and they handle really well loaded.

You'll be absolutely fine with it

 

[Tim Cullis]

I remember my nose stuck to the Honda dealer window in the 1970s drooling over the world's first superbike, the Honda CB750. Well, the F800GS is pretty much the same sort of spec (other than two cylinder). And you're going to somewhere that a Honda C90 is more appropriate.

 

[Shadwell]

Without wanting to get involved in”I have done conversations” there are several blokes on here that have done thousands of miles on the 8 over a few weeks.
It is an awesome bike for this sort of trip and never say never but I will never have anything else as an only bike.
Just go for it, you won't be disappointed

 

[Bury_Dave]

Can only repeat what others have said - a fully loaded 800 will still be a lot lighter than a pillioned 800 on a day trip out and the C of G will be lower too.

I'll be doing the Nordkapp trip in June on my 800 - with a low seat and a sheepskin - and a mate on a brand new 1200 Adventure. No help for you in the here and now but I'll let you know how we get on - or don't

Like Shadwell, I can't see a point in time where I would want to part with my 800.

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

Long distance??

Ask Micky, he's got 84,000 up so far

I think the furthest in one ride is Pakistan, from Yorkshire

I'd take his advice on distance, aboard a F800GS