So the Beemer had its first service yesterday so thought I'd share a comparison of my last two bikes. 2012 S1K vs 08 Fireblade - both bikes bought from new and I part-ex'd the blade for the S1K.
First impressions:
The BMW looks bigger than the Blade but is actually smaller, foot pegs are a tad higher and the seat has you over the bars a lot more the Blade. Not a bad thing just an observation, it does give you a great feeling of what the front is doing though, which on the Blade was a tad detached. It was reminiscent of my old 05 ZX6R, which had a fantastic front end and gave great feedback. That said it could be tyres, the BMW came with BT 016 Pro and the Blade had 2CTs at the end.
On the topic of looks the BMW has some terrible plastics - I have 2 BMW cars and the plastics are really good quality on them so I don't understand why the quality guys let this slip through. It seems the bike builders spent on their budget on the engine and chassis and to satisfy the accountants they had to make do with crap plastics to bring it on the money. If they did this on their cars they would get a pasting by the Top Gear boys. Still it gives me an excuse to put some carbon bits on the Xmas list
On the road:
The BMW chassis is much more 'precise' and you are able to place it in a bend and change your line if needed. That's not to say that you can't on the Blade, just that it is easier on the BMW.
Lots of mechanical grip on both bikes.
The Blade is a LOT more comfy - I toured on the Blade (France, Switzerland, Wales !) but I can't see me doing the same on the BMW. Too cramped. Took it up to Bolton to see the in-laws and after 100 miles I needed to get off to spare my wrists and stretch my legs. To put that into context we rode to the South of France in 2 days on the Blade and I felt fresh, no aches or pains at all.
Brakes on S1K are awesome and easily beat the Blade by far. Initial feel from the brakes on the Blade was good but it did require a bit of a tug and they did fade after a hard track session. The BMW brakes just stop the bike, no fuss, no drama but they do need a bit of 'finessing' to get a good feel, if you gave the BMW brakes a good tug you could be over the bars (I know !!)
Now for the fun part, the engine. The Blade had an engine which was smoothness personified, no fuelling issues, just smooth power whenever you wanted it and I didn't think I would ever get an engine so creamy again - until I rode the BMW that is. It is really, really smooth. BMW make some great engines (their straight six engines are in my opinion some of the best in the world) so I shouldn't be surprised.... but I was. That said the Blade always felt like it had something holding it back, when getting a lick on above 10K revs, it just felt that there was a giant hand saying 'now then sonny, we shouldn't be going that fast' and stopping the engine from breathing a little easier. Mind you at those speeds that could have just good old common sense tapping you on the shoulder.
With the BMW engine though above 10k and the same giant hand is giving you the finger and urging to hurry up, whilst blowing more air into the engine. It is the only bike where (CLICHE ALERT) it truly feels like it was pulling my arms out of their sockets. The torque above 100mph simply shoves you back and shoves the bike forward - love it.
On the track:
I'll let you know when is awful weather finishes !
Summary:
So in summary, chassis, brakes, engine are all better than the Blade, which in turn is more comfortable than the BMW (that old Honda cliche again about fitting everyone comes to mind). It depends what you want from your biking. I work 70 miles from home and commuting on the bike is out of the question so I am unashamedly a weekend warrior, so my biking is my way of letting off steam and getting my adrenalin fix and the BMW delivers more than the Blade.
Thanks for letting me put pen to paper, I've tried to be objective (on a very subjective matter) I know there are a few guys here who have also moved from Blade to Beemer. I'm glad I swapped bikes, just need to spend more time 'bonding' with the new bike now - the Blade became very familiar (like a comfy pair of slippers) so it was time to move on.
Cheers
First impressions:
The BMW looks bigger than the Blade but is actually smaller, foot pegs are a tad higher and the seat has you over the bars a lot more the Blade. Not a bad thing just an observation, it does give you a great feeling of what the front is doing though, which on the Blade was a tad detached. It was reminiscent of my old 05 ZX6R, which had a fantastic front end and gave great feedback. That said it could be tyres, the BMW came with BT 016 Pro and the Blade had 2CTs at the end.
On the topic of looks the BMW has some terrible plastics - I have 2 BMW cars and the plastics are really good quality on them so I don't understand why the quality guys let this slip through. It seems the bike builders spent on their budget on the engine and chassis and to satisfy the accountants they had to make do with crap plastics to bring it on the money. If they did this on their cars they would get a pasting by the Top Gear boys. Still it gives me an excuse to put some carbon bits on the Xmas list
On the road:
The BMW chassis is much more 'precise' and you are able to place it in a bend and change your line if needed. That's not to say that you can't on the Blade, just that it is easier on the BMW.
Lots of mechanical grip on both bikes.
The Blade is a LOT more comfy - I toured on the Blade (France, Switzerland, Wales !) but I can't see me doing the same on the BMW. Too cramped. Took it up to Bolton to see the in-laws and after 100 miles I needed to get off to spare my wrists and stretch my legs. To put that into context we rode to the South of France in 2 days on the Blade and I felt fresh, no aches or pains at all.
Brakes on S1K are awesome and easily beat the Blade by far. Initial feel from the brakes on the Blade was good but it did require a bit of a tug and they did fade after a hard track session. The BMW brakes just stop the bike, no fuss, no drama but they do need a bit of 'finessing' to get a good feel, if you gave the BMW brakes a good tug you could be over the bars (I know !!)
Now for the fun part, the engine. The Blade had an engine which was smoothness personified, no fuelling issues, just smooth power whenever you wanted it and I didn't think I would ever get an engine so creamy again - until I rode the BMW that is. It is really, really smooth. BMW make some great engines (their straight six engines are in my opinion some of the best in the world) so I shouldn't be surprised.... but I was. That said the Blade always felt like it had something holding it back, when getting a lick on above 10K revs, it just felt that there was a giant hand saying 'now then sonny, we shouldn't be going that fast' and stopping the engine from breathing a little easier. Mind you at those speeds that could have just good old common sense tapping you on the shoulder.
With the BMW engine though above 10k and the same giant hand is giving you the finger and urging to hurry up, whilst blowing more air into the engine. It is the only bike where (CLICHE ALERT) it truly feels like it was pulling my arms out of their sockets. The torque above 100mph simply shoves you back and shoves the bike forward - love it.
On the track:
I'll let you know when is awful weather finishes !
Summary:
So in summary, chassis, brakes, engine are all better than the Blade, which in turn is more comfortable than the BMW (that old Honda cliche again about fitting everyone comes to mind). It depends what you want from your biking. I work 70 miles from home and commuting on the bike is out of the question so I am unashamedly a weekend warrior, so my biking is my way of letting off steam and getting my adrenalin fix and the BMW delivers more than the Blade.
Thanks for letting me put pen to paper, I've tried to be objective (on a very subjective matter) I know there are a few guys here who have also moved from Blade to Beemer. I'm glad I swapped bikes, just need to spend more time 'bonding' with the new bike now - the Blade became very familiar (like a comfy pair of slippers) so it was time to move on.
Cheers
