What owners say…
OWNERS ARE A mix of youth and experience, as you might expect, with the youngest in our survey in their early 20s and the oldest in their 70s. At 57 Tim Middleton’s somewhere in the middle: “Bikes were my only form of transport from 17 to 30 but then I took a 20-odd year break and only returned to biking six years ago. I went the adventure-style route first but then fancied something sportier and smaller. The CBR ticked all the boxes for me. It’s a brilliant all-rounder centred on the creamy smooth engine. This makes it the best commuter I have ever had but also a brilliant country-road scratcher and perfectly comfortable on a longer journey too. Its also cheap to buy and to run and looks great. For me the lack of different driving modes and switches is a positive boon. I prefer my bikes simple and not to be distracted from my riding.”
David Ridgeway’s towards the younger end of the spectrum at 31, though he’s been riding for 12 years already. “I started on a CBR125R in 2006, passed my test in 2007 and ended up with a ’99 CBR600F. Due to the age a few niggles started to creep in, so I thought a change was due. I rode two 650Fs — the lower mileage one was like a bag of spanners but the 18,000-mile one was smooth as silk, so I went for it. It seems bulletproof. I’ve used it in all-weather commuting and it just goes and goes. The only bad point really is it’s not quite quick enough: it’s maybe too sensible, if that makes sense, or maybe I’ve outgrown it. I can’t really fault it for the market that it is placed in though. Overtaking is as simple as a twist of the wrist, it’s well balanced in traffic.”
Dawn Healey has put 20,000 miles on her 650F since buying it new in 2016: “I had a breakdown in 2013 and my friend convinced me to do a taster lesson for my CBT. I took to it like a duck to water and passed my CBT and test first time, back-to-back (and later did my IAM as well). My 1993 CBR600F was written off by a minicab and with the payout, I bought this baby of mine, which has been my absolute therapy, freedom and best mate ever since! Lovely and lightweight, nimble and with oomph, which I love. The riding position is very comfortable for me, as I used to suffer with backache a lot on my old one. I’m a short arse at 5ft3in and have little legs so I’ve had a lowering kit installed on mine, which helped a lot at first but I’m still only ever one foot down! I’ve toured
“It’s a brilliant allrounder centred on the smooth engine” Tim Middleton CBR650F owner
twice in Europe (six countries in three days — England/france/ Luxembourg/germany/ Netherlands/belgium/france/ England) — and France again this year). Bad points? Definitely the seat! Will at some point upgrade to a memory foam Bagster-style one, as my arse goes well numb after a few hours and the edges dig right in. My first service was £120 as I bought it from the dealership. Second service I had a partial one at the dealership. Now it’s out of warranty, I’ve been servicing it myself — after passing my test I enrolled at college to study motorcycle engineering and maintenance.”