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Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 8:53 am
by Smaug
I had one before, it was the perfect do-it-all bike. It was sitting a bit more than I liked, so I somewhat impulsively sold it.

I went with a PCX earlier this year because I figured I've got a young family and I won't have time to go touring. Upon further reflection, that may have been a bad idea, because guys like me are the ones who REALLY need to get away from it all sometimes.

But I've already planned one tour, (the one to the Smokies) and it is going to require me to burn two extra days of vacation because I'm on a 150. and with nothing extra to see in exchange for going slower. (central and Southern IL don't have much to offer, in the way of sight-seeing.

I was thinking of adding a bike for the longer trips, but for the amount of them I'd take, it's not worth the expense of the upkeep that goes along with a second bike. (registration, title, insurance, maintenance, etc.) That points me to the perfect do-it-all bike, which is the Silver Wing. I've found a late model ABS-equipped one locally for $4k and am thinking hard about trading in the PCX.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 10:13 am
by Mel46
It is hard to talk someone out of something they have such a desire for. I had a Burgman 400 that was great. I had to think long and hard before I sold it. In the end, I traded it down to my PCX 150 simply because I spend more time riding locally than touring or riding around on country roads.
YOU have to decide what your primary use for your bike will be. One tour per year leaves a lot of time spent locally. You will have to decide if you have enough room for it, if it will be more or less difficult to park when you are out, if it will be worth the extra time it will take for maintenance. You will have to decide if it will serve you better than a smaller bike on an everyday basis. If you think it will be a better fit, then by all means do it.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 11:29 am
by Smaug
Mel46 wrote:It is hard to talk someone out of something they have such a desire for. I had a Burgman 400 that was great. I had to think long and hard before I sold it. In the end, I traded it down to my PCX 150 simply because I spend more time riding locally than touring or riding around on country roads.
YOU have to decide what your primary use for your bike will be. One tour per year leaves a lot of time spent locally. You will have to decide if you have enough room for it, if it will be more or less difficult to park when you are out, if it will be worth the extra time it will take for maintenance. You will have to decide if it will serve you better than a smaller bike on an everyday basis. If you think it will be a better fit, then by all means do it.
The PCX is certainly a better fit for 95% of the riding I do. The "problem" is that it's not a good fit for the other 5%.

By contrast, a Silver Wing would be a good fit for ALL of the riding I'd do, just not as efficient around town. Maintenance-wise, Silver Wings need less maintenance than PCX's. Insurance would go up. Gas consumption would double.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 1:19 pm
by djbass
A young family takes a lot of time. I think that some forget about the big scooter and to defer 5% of the drive for the future.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 1:25 pm
by Mister Paul
The thing that put me off the Silver Wing I tested was the service intervals, that it's an old-model scoot and that the MPG isn't great in comparison with others. I got a CB500X instead for a year. I now have an SH300 which, despite not being a maxi-scooter, I find a much better bike for local and distance than the maxis I have tried or owned.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 3:58 pm
by easyrider
I found the PCX to be a little bit too light for my needs as well. I went with the 300 Forza.. Like it a lot.. Has more power for the hills and a bit more comfortable and light enough to muscle around the garage and parking. Worked out well for me. Easy maintenance and rides nice. You sit more down into it than on top of it like a PCX.. Both are nice and nimble ..

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:46 pm
by PCX150Rider
Sounds like cc-itis. I get that once in a while. I kept the last 3 two wheelers I previously purchased before I bought the PCX. I knew there would still be days I'd want to do some forest road riding on the KLR, and some days I'd want to do some Interstate or longer distance riding on the GSF1200S, and ugly winter/snowy/rainy days when I'd rather get the 49cc Roughhouse all dirty than my new PCX. . .but the PCX just has "pizazz" for getting around town in style with great MPG, ample MPH, and plenty of FPT (fun per trip). I sometimes tell myself I need the "883" Super low for that 5th bike to be able to have a different ride for each day of the work week. And then on weekends mix it up. Oh. . .and it fits nicely between 650cc and 1200cc. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: 8) o_O ;)

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 8:02 pm
by you you
Smaug wrote:
Mel46 wrote:It is hard to talk someone out of something they have such a desire for. I had a Burgman 400 that was great. I had to think long and hard before I sold it. In the end, I traded it down to my PCX 150 simply because I spend more time riding locally than touring or riding around on country roads.
YOU have to decide what your primary use for your bike will be. One tour per year leaves a lot of time spent locally. You will have to decide if you have enough room for it, if it will be more or less difficult to park when you are out, if it will be worth the extra time it will take for maintenance. You will have to decide if it will serve you better than a smaller bike on an everyday basis. If you think it will be a better fit, then by all means do it.
The PCX is certainly a better fit for 95% of the riding I do. The "problem" is that it's not a good fit for the other 5%.

By contrast, a Silver Wing would be a good fit for ALL of the riding I'd do, just not as efficient around town. Maintenance-wise, Silver Wings need less maintenance than PCX's. Insurance would go up. Gas consumption would double.
Got to pay to play. It's your choice based on your priorities.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 9:16 pm
by TheMaverick
Is it an option to stick with the PCX and just rent something for those times where you need to get away on something bigger? (perhaps treat yourself to something substantially bigger for those times)?

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2017 11:48 pm
by alx123
Is a Forza, which is quite in the middle of what you need, out of the question?

Or a Burg 400..

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 1:34 am
by gn2
Fly to somewhere scenic and hire a bike there.
Sorted.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 8:29 am
by Smaug
gn2 wrote:Fly to somewhere scenic and hire a bike there.
Sorted.
Typically in the US, only 50cc are available for rental, and in the rare places where they will rent larger, they're motorcycles.
alx123 wrote:Is a Forza, which is quite in the middle of what you need, out of the question?

Or a Burg 400..
Burg 400 is not out. I had one before and it was a great bike. Not as good at the expressway running as the Silver Wing. It runs out of steam and fuel economy tanks above 75 mph or so. Silver Wing pulls all the way up to 100 mph, so cruising at 80 is no problem. It also doesn't have issues of oil consumption at high RPM like singles sometimes do.

Forza, I'm a little nervous about. There have been a lot of recalls on them. I also don't really like the styling of them. I'd probably go for a used Burgman or Majesty before I'd settle for a Forza. (no offense to Forza owners here) Or maybe even a Piaggio BV350.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 8:31 am
by Smaug
you you wrote:Got to pay to play. It's your choice based on your priorities.
Yep. I think I'm going to hang onto the PCX and do this first long trip, and see how it goes. I expect my back to be sore for a week afterwards, but we'll see. Got to give it a fair shake.

Nice used Silver Wings with just a few thousand miles on them pop up all the time for around $4k here, so it is just damned tempting.

In other news, I have a Shad 33L top case on the way for the PCX. (That would be transferable to the Silver Wing anyway)

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 9:47 am
by Mel46
If you ride for any distance consider one of these. I have one similar to it that I picked up at a motorcycle shop locally.
http://www.partzilla.com/parts/detail/a ... 60498.html

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:25 pm
by GeorgeSK
I got a similar back support, and it helps on longer rides. Yes, it is more "stuff" to wear, but if you can move the next day, it may be worth it to you. A $50 gamble, but for me it paid off. BTW - I ordered a large, but had to go down to a medium. My waist is somewhere in the 34-36 range, and the large could not be adjusted small enough.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AQ ... bw_c_x_3_w

If you do a search on back-a-line for motorcycle riding, you will find a fair number of testimonials.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:43 pm
by Mister Paul
Smaug wrote:
gn2 wrote:Fly to somewhere scenic and hire a bike there.
Sorted.
Typically in the US, only 50cc are available for rental, and in the rare places where they will rent larger, they're motorcycles.
alx123 wrote:Is a Forza, which is quite in the middle of what you need, out of the question?

Or a Burg 400..
Burg 400 is not out. I had one before and it was a great bike. Not as good at the expressway running as the Silver Wing. It runs out of steam and fuel economy tanks above 75 mph or so. Silver Wing pulls all the way up to 100 mph, so cruising at 80 is no problem. It also doesn't have issues of oil consumption at high RPM like singles sometimes do.

Forza, I'm a little nervous about. There have been a lot of recalls on them. I also don't really like the styling of them. I'd probably go for a used Burgman or Majesty before I'd settle for a Forza. (no offense to Forza owners here) Or maybe even a Piaggio BV350.
A lot of recalls? I'm only aware of the fuel pump issue. Another poster on here will go on about the rear caliper dragging, but mine was ok.

I ran one for about (I think) 8k miles over 12 months. It cost me a rear tyre and normal servicing. With a tall screen on it's pretty comfortable, but I'm still surprised that I was re-positioning myself more during long journeys on it than on my SH300. Oh, and on the motorway it's like a sail for crosswinds. I had to pull over once as it was side-winding so badly.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 2:53 pm
by Brent
Smaug,

Why not just rent a silverwing for the trip and keep the 150, since it fits your needs 95% of the time?!?

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 3:31 pm
by Coastal Mountainer
Forgive me for putting in a plug for a non scooter but here goes. You might want to consider a Honda CTX700 DCT fairing model. Weighs less than the Silverwing (based on 2013 specs I found) and offers plenty of features that make the transition from a PCX very easy.

This Honda is rock solid, extremely dependable, and easy to ride with the dual clutch automatic transmission. Performance is great, it rides smooth, and easily handles city streets and interstate speeds. It was introduced in 2014 and used models with low mileage run $4500-$6000. Gas mileage is usually around 70 mpg.

Just something to consider.

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 11:29 pm
by Smaug
I just traded in my PCX on this Silver Wing.

You guys did a rotten job of talking me out of it. :?

Re: Talk me out of a Silver Wing

Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2017 11:49 pm
by TheMaverick
Smaug wrote:I just traded in my PCX on this Silver Wing.

You guys did a rotten job of talking me out of it. :?
Congrats on the new purchase - looks great. I wonder if 4 times the engine capacity will mean 1/2 the economy?