Kawasaki Concours Forum
The C-14, aka Kawasaki Concours-14, the new one :) => The Bike - C14/GTR 1400 => Topic started by: danl on September 30, 2011, 03:02:44 PM
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Hey everyone, just wanted to make a post and say hello. I've been reading here and some of the other Connie forums for the last few days deciding on my new bike- it was between the C14 and the FJR1300. I test rode them both for about 30 minutes each yesterday and went back today to make my choice, the Concours. I've been loving this bike for a couple years and always sat on it at the dealer and knew one day I'd have one. I'm the proud new owner of a 2011 ABS version in black. Got about 70 miles on it this afternoon before I had to come home, but tomorrow is another day. Loving it so far!
My wife and I are Kawasaki fans, we started with a Vulcan 750, and she has a Vulcan 1500 cruiser. I traded in a Vulcan 1600 for the Connie. A totally different riding style, a little to get used to but my time in the saddle today told me I made the right choice.
I'll have lots of questions later, so please be patient with me! :)
Dan
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Congrats on the new bike. A buddy of mine has a 1600 Vulcan. Absolutley loves it. You'll have to remember to slow down for the wife now.
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Welcome! You didn't ask for any advice, so I'll offer some anyway. Give yourself at least 1000 miles with the bike as stock as possible, before you start customizing. I also went from cruiser to C14, and I made changes early on to try to make the bike comfortable to me, some of which were not well considered. After more than 20,000 miles, I'm still tweaking, but some of the early mods had to be backed off. When I picked the bike up, I felt like I was standing on my head, since I was accustomed to sitting back with my feet up and my arms relaxed. I started with risers, wedges, a spencer seat mod, and a Givi windshield. Looking back, I would have been better off spending the extra money on an LSL handlebar kit. I also had to have the seat remade by another company, mostly because I really did not know what I needed done when I sent it to spencers. If I had waited a while, I think I could have made better choices with about the same money. I have no regrets, and the only thing that will get me off my 2009 c14 will be a 2012 or 2013 C14. I can't imagine going with anything else.
+1 on slow down for the wife. Mine rides behind me on a Can-Am spyder and gets pretty annoyed when I zoom off ahead of her.
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yeah, you have 10.5K RPM red line, and tighter gearing. So slow up a little when riding with your wife. So she doesn't feel rushed. Oh and you'll have to keep it in a lower gear when following or you'll ride up the tail pipe when she lets up and engine breaks. I think it's great you two can ride together. Congratulations on the new 2011 Black! I have one too, and I love it. I ride her everywhere.
Be safe and keep the shinny side up.
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Welcome Dan! :chugbeer:
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Congrats, and welcome!
Just wait till u get past the break in period, and u can spin the needle higher... ;D ;D
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Welcome and have fun on your new bike.
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Congrats!
It just gets better with time. 8)
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Hello and welcome.
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My wife and I are Kawasaki fans, we started with a Vulcan 750, and she has a Vulcan 1500 cruiser. I traded in a Vulcan 1600 for the Connie. A totally different riding style, a little to get used to but my time in the saddle today told me I made the right choice.
Dan
Another cruiser rider trades up to a high-performance super-sport-touring C14. Like PeeWee Herman flying the Space Shuttle - LOL !!
Does anyone consider working their way up the sport bike spectrum? I can't even imagine jumping off a low power, poor handling cruiser right to the ultimate sport-touring bike?
Go Darwin......
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Congrats on the new scoot. I think you made an excellent choice ;)
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Congrats and welcome aboard!!
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Thanks for the welcome everybody!
Redbarber- I will heed your advice and give it some time before doing any comfort mods. I do feel risers are something I'll want, but I'll give it some time.
Zedhed, thanks for the vote of confidence. I especially like the Peewee Herman reference. :) I understand the power of this bike and respect it. There is no way I'm going to jump on it and start doing stupid stuff. I bought it for touring and how easy it handles. Hitting the redline isn't even on my radar, ever. Hopefully Darwin will understand that and give me a pass.
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I'm not so sure that cruiser to ST is such a stretch. Other than the riders posture, my C14 at over 700 lbs, is not that different from my Valkyrie at 900+. Probably closer than to a 600 crotch rocket. Put my 280 lb 5' 9" frame on a 600 class bike and I would look like a meatball on a toothpick viewed from behind. I made the move primarily because I was curious about a term I had heard but never really experienced: "lean angle".
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I'm not so sure that cruiser to ST is such a stretch. Other than the riders posture, my C14 at over 700 lbs, is not that different from my Valkyrie at 900+. Probably closer than to a 600 crotch rocket. Put my 280 lb 5' 9" frame on a 600 class bike and I would look like a meatball on a toothpick viewed from behind. I made the move primarily because I was curious about a term I had heard but never really experienced: "lean angle".
And has your curiousity been satisfied?
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I'm getting there. Still more lean in the bike than in the rider. I love to ride the twisties, hate the slabs, but I'm still not as confident in my cornering as the bike and the awesome PR3's deserve.
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The Connie sure can rail, that's for sure. Mine feels even better 2-up.
It's really fast, too. 8)
(http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp236/Jimmymac25/Merle030.jpg)
Oh, this was about your new Bike.
Not my old one. :chugbeer:
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I'm getting there. Still more lean in the bike than in the rider. I love to ride the twisties, hate the slabs, but I'm still not as confident in my cornering as the bike and the awesome PR3's deserve.
I think quite a few of us are in your corner...
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You have to get acquainted with your bike and learn to trust it. It won't happen over night, but the bike is very capable.
(http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m245/flygirl5485/126260.jpg)
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You have to get acquainted with your bike and learn to trust it. It won't happen over night, but the bike is very capable.
(http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m245/flygirl5485/126260.jpg)
SWEET!!!
Full tilt Connie! Nice job dude!
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You have to get acquainted with your bike and learn to trust it. It won't happen over night, but the bike is very capable.
(http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m245/flygirl5485/126260.jpg)
Where's the "like" button!
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Where's the "like" button!
You can check this thread for some more pics from my trip.
http://www.zggtr.org/index.php?topic=3767.15 (http://www.zggtr.org/index.php?topic=3767.15)
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You can check this thread for some more pics from my trip.
http://www.zggtr.org/index.php?topic=3767.15 (http://www.zggtr.org/index.php?topic=3767.15)
My Gosh! That's an extreme angle. Nice skills leaning her over. Way to wear out the sides before the center on those tires.
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Of course the weather here is forecast to be crappy. Sunday thru Wednesday, temps in the 50's and rainy. The temps are not so bad, I have gear for that, but the rain isn't much fun for joy rides. So, I've only had time to get 120 miles on the Connie so far. Saturday we took a 65 mile ride on some of the back roads around here and it just gets easier and easier to adjust to. Of all the bikes I've owned, I never felt like any were "the one", but that feeling is there now, the Connie is "the one".
I'm already thinking about mods (yes, I know, I was told to wait, but it's ok to think about it right?). A larger windshield is definitely needed. I had a National Cycle Switchblade 2 up and home made lowers on my Vulcan, and there was no wind noise and no helmet buffeting. On the Connie stock shield the wind noise is as loud as when I'd take the switchblade off of the 1600, no matter what position I put it in. I usually ride with ear plugs so thats not such a big deal, but having some protection from the wind and weather will be a factor on long rides. With the stock shield in the top position, if I duck my head down just a couple inches, all the noise goes away, so I'm thinking a shield 2-3" taller is all I'll need. In the low position it'll be good for the wind in the face feel, and all the way up will be good for those interstate mile eating legs of the trip. Just having the adjustment option is awesome.
Handlebar risers are the other item I'm going to do right away. I think the ones with the ram mount ball built in so I can mount my gps.
After those 2 items I think I'll be good for a while. We'll see how the seat holds up after some day long rides. At some point I'd like to get a trunk, but for now, I have a soft tail bag that has served me well on my other bikes.
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Of course the weather here is forecast to be crappy. Sunday thru Wednesday, temps in the 50's and rainy. The temps are not so bad, I have gear for that, but the rain isn't much fun for joy rides. So, I've only had time to get 120 miles on the Connie so far. Saturday we took a 65 mile ride on some of the back roads around here and it just gets easier and easier to adjust to. Of all the bikes I've owned, I never felt like any were "the one", but that feeling is there now, the Connie is "the one".
I'm already thinking about mods (yes, I know, I was told to wait, but it's ok to think about it right?). A larger windshield is definitely needed. I had a National Cycle Switchblade 2 up and home made lowers on my Vulcan, and there was no wind noise and no helmet buffeting. On the Connie stock shield the wind noise is as loud as when I'd take the switchblade off of the 1600, no matter what position I put it in. I usually ride with ear plugs so thats not such a big deal, but having some protection from the wind and weather will be a factor on long rides. With the stock shield in the top position, if I duck my head down just a couple inches, all the noise goes away, so I'm thinking a shield 2-3" taller is all I'll need. In the low position it'll be good for the wind in the face feel, and all the way up will be good for those interstate mile eating legs of the trip. Just having the adjustment option is awesome.
Handlebar risers are the other item I'm going to do right away. I think the ones with the ram mount ball built in so I can mount my gps.
After those 2 items I think I'll be good for a while. We'll see how the seat holds up after some day long rides. At some point I'd like to get a trunk, but for now, I have a soft tail bag that has served me well on my other bikes.
Sweet! I feel the same way. It is The One for me.
I put a Laminar Lip at the top of my shield and it went silent. That stocker sure is a loud one. It's quieter to stand on the pegs and get out of the dirty air!
It looks a little goofy, but it works great for me.
(http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp236/Jimmymac25/Jeremyrun008.jpg)
(http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp236/Jimmymac25/Jeremyrun024.jpg)
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...With the stock shield in the top position, if I duck my head down just a couple inches, all the noise goes away, so I'm thinking a shield 2-3" taller is all I'll need. In the low position it'll be good for the wind in the face feel, and all the way up will be good for those interstate mile eating legs of the trip. Just having the adjustment option is awesome.
Handlebar risers are the other item I'm going to do right away. I think the ones with the ram mount ball built in so I can mount my gps.
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I went with a Givi WindFlip windshield when I changed mine. It's supposed to be 3.3" taller than stock, but that's stock for a 2009. Since your stock windshield is already taller, It's not likely to help you any. (It was cheap tho).
I picked up a Vstream from a friend, and that's going to be my winter shield. It's like the one on the right in Jimmymac's picture. It's alot quieter for me, but at 5'9, I don't need a lot of height. I'm guessing it's about 1.5 to 2.5 inches taller than your stock screen. Keep in mind that if you are even considering a lowered seat, (there are a number of offerings), you would be effectively raising your windshield there too.
As far as the risers, you probably can't go wrong there. I have Murphs, which are only about 1 3/8" if I remember correctly. Some days, I wish I had gone for 2" risers, but not enough to spend the extra coin now. I also went with the RAM mount, and it's very handy for the GPS.
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I saw that vstream, I think that's what I'm going to get. It's a little wider too. The parts mgr at my dealer has a Connie too, he got the 2" risers and likes them a lot. I think I'm going to get those.
Here's some pics, not that anyone hasn't seen this bike before :)
(http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj60/dan88z/Bikes/Connie/DSCN1980.jpg)
(http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj60/dan88z/Bikes/Connie/DSCN1982.jpg)
(http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj60/dan88z/Bikes/Connie/DSCN1983.jpg)
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Another cruiser rider trades up to a high-performance super-sport-touring C14. Like PeeWee Herman flying the Space Shuttle - LOL !!
Does anyone consider working their way up the sport bike spectrum? I can't even imagine jumping off a low power, poor handling cruiser right to the ultimate sport-touring bike?
Go Darwin......
Fairly new COncours owner here also.
FUnny reading your comment.
I went to the dealer to get a part for my Mean Streak mid May and 4 days later rode an 08 COnnie with 6 K on the clock home. Never occurred to me to "work my way up". I still pick and choose bikes between the Meanie and the COnnie. When my lady wants to get out on her Harley Dyna I ride the Mean Streak. That is the only way I can tolerate riding with her on that air cooled, non responsive hunk of iron. The Meanie is not really a low powered , poor handling bike when compared to the things with HD markings my friends ride.
In that period since Mid May I put 8k on the COnnie and have had a great time in the transition from Cruiser to SPort bike. Since the Girl Friend lives 180 miles away I keep the Meanie at her house and ride the Connie back and forth to Southeast Ohio where Ohio 78, 278 and 56 through Hocking Hills polishes up my sport bike skills pretty quickly. Don't know about 2 up but since the bags are always packed with 50-70 lbs of gear I kind of get what you are saying. Increasing angles weekly 8). Nice thread.
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I saw that vstream, I think that's what I'm going to get. It's a little wider too. The parts mgr at my dealer has a Connie too, he got the 2" risers and likes them a lot. I think I'm going to get those. ...
After a year and a half with mine, I'll tell you one thing I've learned. If I had it to do all over again, I would have saved the money from buying the risers, and from the wedges, and from having my handlbars cut and re-welded at a different angle, and from a variety of grips and grip puppies. Instead I would have taken that money ($265) and put it toward the LSL handlebar conversion. Even after everything I've done, I'm still looking for true comfort for my wrists and hands.
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I saw that vstream, I think that's what I'm going to get. It's a little wider too. The parts mgr at my dealer has a Connie too, he got the 2" risers and likes them a lot. I think I'm going to get those.
Here's some pics, not that anyone hasn't seen this bike before :)
(http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj60/dan88z/Bikes/Connie/DSCN1980.jpg)
(http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj60/dan88z/Bikes/Connie/DSCN1982.jpg)
(http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj60/dan88z/Bikes/Connie/DSCN1983.jpg)
Congrats Danl on the new Bike! I see from your T tag that your another Delaware Connie owner,and from your comment about the Service Manager owning one I take it that you bought from Diamond! Good shop!They've always taken good care of me. :thumbs:
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Yes, I got it at Diamond. It's the 5th bike we bought from them, they always take care of us.
What part of the state are you from? We should ride!
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I'm just North of Dover and I'm always looking for a excuse to ride!