HONDA CB500
THIS MONTH I HAVE MOSTLY BEEN…
So I finally have a road bike! Okay it’s not a Panigale, but due to being a baby in the eyes of insurers, I can’t get aboard anything over A2. Bastards! So, my steed? A bright orange Honda CB500F. I literally had no idea what was coming so it was a bit of a shock; but nevertheless having a bike on the road is absolutely incredible – especially when you live in the traffic-infested outskirts of London town. It could be just the ticket. So what’s it like? In all honesty I think it’s great. It turned up with 18 miles on the clock and (sorry Honda) it’s probably had the worst running in period imaginable.
I’m slowly getting closer to getting the thing to wheelie properly, and those Dunlops seem to handle burnouts pretty well. It’s a blast to ride on something that’s fairly slow as well, every single time I’ve been out has resulted in a massive smile, from a bike I never really thought I’d enjoy. True, it does need some more power, better brakes, suspension and far stickier tyres before I unleash it on track, but at least there’s a solid starting point. I’m thinking it’d benefit from investing in some new brake pads, possibly a new exhaust and remap, plus some sporty touring tyres (perhaps a set of Dunlop Sportsmart 2 Max’s). And then, if there’s time, to sneak in some different fork internals – that’d transform the mighty middleweight into a right weapon!
But until then I’m going to be doing a few long rides to see how the thing goes over distance. It may look like a commuter bike but it sure as hell won’t be treated as one! I’ve only done a few hundred miles so far but every ride has been a little splash and dash, meaning that I’ve only really had a taster so far. But no matter what, I can’t wait to take the old girl on track, round somewhere like Brands Indy to see how she copes in the inters group. The general rule is that every bike is a race bike if you push it hard enough!
Hopefully one day I can upgrade to something a bit meatier, but until then I’m having heaps of fun with the little 500. Okay, it probably won’t be very long till she becomes a little dull, so I’m going to throw everything I can to make it awesome. Or as awesome as a bright orange commuter bike can be at any rate. Whoever said A2 would be boring? I’ll prove themwrong!