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onelove221

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Oct 2, 2015
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Location
Washington, DC, USA
Hi all,

I've been hanging around here among other places (other forums for the H2, RSV4, R1, Panigale) doing research before deciding which superbike to purchase.

A little about me.

I have been riding off and on since I was a teenager but got back into the sport hard a few years ago when I bought my dream bike....a 2004 Honda RC51, Nicky Hayden edition. I rode that and was pretty happy for a while but it was becoming increasingly clear that the RC was a pretty severe street ride. Between the heat coming off the side radiators, the aggressive WSB geometry and brakes, & the early tech RFI the bike just wasn't happy unless it was leaned over at 80mph or more.

Sooo, I bought myself a BMW K1300S as a fun commuter bike. I did some long distance rides on it, added a few aftermarket goodies and had it tuned to make around 170bhp at the wheel. BMW K bikes are the M5s of the motorcycling world - able to shock pure sports machines but you never quite forget all that weight being sent to war with the laws of physics. Truth be told, I'll probably buy another one in a couple of years. They are truly great machines.

My original plan was to buy a new bike in the spring as a graduation present for myself but I was in my dealership scheduling a service appointment and there she was.

#3423

I was smitten. I did the math and concluded I could swing it if I got rid of the K13S, so a few phone calls later and a deal was struck. There was a bit of drama with my bank and the title but making an already long story short, I picked her up this afternoon.

She's a 2014 Competition w/ less than 1000 miles on the clock. The only thing missing from this machine is the 2D front fork position sensor, something I plan to rectify over the long cold winter.

Riding Impressions So Far

Coming off of the K1300S, which is a decently quick machine (she walked down a Ducati 1098R recently) to the HP4 has been illuminating. It's exactly how I imagine WWII pilots reared on a steady diet of reciprocating engined P-51 Mustangs and Corsairs must have felt the first time they experienced the jet engined F-86 Sabres.

Your whole sense of speed gets realigned.

And then there's the handling. So light and transparent.

Even my Ohlins shod Honda feels lethargic and dull by comparison. Not to mention woefully underpowered (123bhp at the wheel)

I plan to wade into the performance of this machine slowly and make very minimal mods. Some sliders for the frame and axles, a nice seat cover and maybe a taller windscreen. That's it.

Flashing it for more power is a project for later. Much later.
 
Hi and welcome to the HP4 club. I had a K1300R until recently (I know you didn't get them in the states) so I can appreciate your dilemma with the HP4, but as you say, it's a whole other level. Are you on I-BMW? Enjoy :).
 
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Hi onelove, you've got a cracker there, less than a 1000 miles! Like a Thourobred you have to let her gallop.

Enjoy.

JimmyMac
 

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