How much do you love........

How much do you love your Bandit?

I was thinking this to myself whilst cleaning my Bandit the other day.

Cleaning the rear sets, buffing up the petrol tank and admiring the simplicity of the whole bike I thought "I really do love this machine". Although is it the machine itself or the possibilities it holds, the destinations it can take me, the way you get pulled by the bars when you crack the throttle in 3rd gear or when you make that perfect gear change from 5th to 6th. Swinging the bike through a set of sweepers and the bike feeling like its my old BMX from years back. Hearing that beautiful deep hum from the exhaust and having my hands compress when hard on the brakes. Its all of the above and more.

I think the enjoyment/love comes from the sum of all those experiences and they're something that can't be taken away from me.

I know I don't get that experience from driving a tin top and I am sure all fellow motorcyclists can relate.

I think the love or otherwise for the Bandit is directly proportional to ones experience with other bikes.
For some they're the best thing since sliced bread. For others they're just a bike.
For me they're more than the sum of it's parts but I have a strange relationship with mine as posted herehttps://nswbandits.forumotion.net/t1545-letter-to-suzuki#15394 my opinion hasn't changed.

I know where you're coming from Truck Bandit. I really like mine. Smooth as all hec.
Lately I've been enjoying just dawdling along some of the back roads around here in the recent cool and sunny weather (when cars allow!) - just smooth and slowly - fantastic!
How universal is this big 'B'....it can pull your arms off with a twist of the wrist or you can just 'purr' it down low. ' Love it too.

7.5

Well I think mine is a keeper.

It certainly is the most sophisticated machine I've owned. The closest previous bike I've had was a Honda 750 a K2. I've long regretted selling that one and it was agricultural by comparison. This thing is a similar weight, and has 4 cylinders but that is pretty much where the similarity ends. The Bandit is so smooth, has far more torque low down and the power just keeps coming. It's a bit unfair to compare the power though, considering the difference of around half a litre.

I thought the Honda had very good brakes; I haven't had to test the Bandit under similar conditions yet, the test will be whether I can haul it down with both tyres protesting. I could with the Honda and retain control in a straight line of course) The control just off lock was excellent. My Bandit has no ABS, and frankly, I think I need it and don't want it. It seems to stop well, the question will be how much fine control does one have just off lock. That's a question I can't answer yet. One thing is for sure, there appears to be less dive under hard braking.

The lights are better than on the K2. It gets way better fuel economy, at any speed. The K2 used to just guzzle fuel if I got on it a bit, whereas the Bandits consumption of the juice doesn't change as much with throttle openings. The big difference is in the apparent effortlessness of the engine. At any legal speed, incline, or overtaking, the Bandit just isn't working at all, whereas with the K2, it needed some use of the gears to get the best out of it. If I get down near Melbourne one day, I must take a ride up "Pretty Sally" just for a further comparison.

I like mine a lot, and I haven't even used it in the way I had intended much yet. Add to that liquid cooling and I think I'm going to have mine a long time.

How we feel about the Bandit is no doubt effected by our o'all riding experiences to date.
My 1250 is the first big four cylinder bike in my biking career. My last bike was a 650 twin, and before that 500s. So for me the Bandit is the ultra big smoothy ("love it" - there I go again!) - it's the peak of my biking experience.
I am sure there are a lot of Bandit owners who have had bigger and more sophisticated machines under their control at some time. For them it's easier to be more objective and to be able to assess the Bandit against others.
For me though, well I'm just a sucker for the big 'B'.

The Bandit is the best bike I've owned. (only owned 4 - GN250, GR650, GSX600F and the Bandit 1200). It is not the best bike I've ridden. But having said that, I'm yet to ride something that has made me want to sell the Bandit.

Love is a BIG word, lots of commitment, emotion, n stuff....so, naaa, not much!

The Bandit is "just OK", in my book. I'll give it a 7......just

Now whats this buffing and cleaning you speak of ?

I love the Bandit for its easy hands on ability. The upgrades and stuff you can do at home with a few basic tools is very satisfying. Plus dollar saving. A big 8.

I plan to keep mine until it is worn out - hopefully that will be never. But I'll sell it if I feel the weight is too much once I get "old" (not sure when that is). One main reason not to sell it is that it is worth very little: approaching 47,000kms and has damage from two drops - I simply wouldn't get what it is worth to me to keep. Hope that made sense.

My wife reckons I love my bike more than her. Well, I can ride it whenever I want, it doesn't complain if I look at other bikes, (or ride them), it turns on the moment I want it to and it never nags me. If only it could cook......

I just love to ride , & the Bandit was the best all rounder new bike for my budget . I am more than happy with it & plan on having it for a long time , ...........are there other bikes I would have ........shit yeah , can I afford them ..................um no ...............do I feel like I have second best ..........no/ I'm happy with what I have

Love is a strong word, but I think it's the love of all the combined experience of riding and travelling, with the Bandit being a major part of that.

Buffing......well, it's more like a spray and wipe the bugs off. But a little bit every week keeps her looking good.

I know they aren't worth too much second hand, (I got $2000 trade-in on my 2005 with 115 000kms since brand new). I didn't worry cause i got my fun out of the bike and all it cost me was servicing, fuel and tyres. I didn't buy it to be an investment, I bought it to ride.

My rating of the Bandit as an overall package compared to other bikes, I'd say at 7.5 - 8. it doesn't have Traction Control, different maps, heated grips, wheelie control blah blah blah. It still feels like an old school basic machine where the rider still rides the thing and you have to play with the throttle on accelleration and take it easy in the rain. I always have my mental list of bikes i'd buy if I won the lottery but realistically, the Bandit is top of the list at the moment.

Hope this rain clears for some weekend riding!!!