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Just got a F650CS today

S

STANHY

Guest
Yahoo! I just rode home on my new (to me) 2003 F650CS tonight. Grinning from ear to ear. I bought an R1100R last month....and it was way too heavy for me to manage (I'm a new rider) So, when I was in getting a flat fixed on my little Honda 250cc bike, I mentioned to the guy that I had decided to get an F650CS. He replies "We have one." (this is at a Yamaha dealership)
Well, after picking my jaw off my chest, I went to look at it, figuring that it would be a yucky color, or really high miles, or a rat.
Nope. Black and silver (well graphite is the proper term) which is the color I had chosen, only 4400 miles, and clean as can be. I test rode it last night and bought it today. I love how it feels! Nice, low center of gravity, nimble, pretty forgiving on torque and HP. I have to learn it all over again, but it isn't intimidating at all. So I traded the little Honda in for it.
Damn...I went from my first bike in May to my third bike today....I'm done buying bikes for a while!
My husband is loving the R1100R though. Looks like it's his early birthday present....he's been telling people that I got it for him for his birthday. Last night I told him, "Happy birthday! I bought myself a bike!!"
:bikes
 
enjoy the ride

You're lucky to have found the right ride at the right time of your riding career!
The F650 line is a nice bike may you ride long and prosper...
 
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F650 CS Owner Here

You are going to love this machine. :dance

And wait until you calculate your gas mileage. :thumb
 
Congratulations! Several of my friends recently bought F650s and just rave about them. Enjoy many a happy mile.
 
Thanks all! I can say I feel in love with this bike the instant I rode out of the yard on my test ride. Man, it just feels nice, sounds nice, handles nice, looks nice, you name it.
Any suggestions on windshields and such? It's dead stock, and I missed my windshield last night when the temps dipped into the 40's. I'm planning on using those heated handgrips today when I go to work.
Any other accessory suggestions? I pack lunch, so the stuff bay will come in handy. It has the original backpack bag, but it's kinda beat up. I found the Wunderlich site and saw they had the hard top for it. Are those decent? I like the thought of a locking area. Are they waterproof?
It didn't have any saddlebags on it. I'm not sure if I'll need those for my raingear or if the tailbag I already have will work on the luggage rack.
I'm planning/hoping to ride throughout the winter as long as it's dry and open.(if I'm not freezing my butt off!) :bliss
 
Stanhy said:
Any suggestions on windshields

I just installed a Wunderlich shield on my 650..Its the best windshield for this bike IMO. The 650 is a great bike.

Paulbach is right...Givi makes a nice rear top box. They come in different sizes to fit your needs..
Click to expand...
 

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The hard case

The hard case for the front is well worth the cost. It locks in place and should be waterproof. I say "should" because mine has yet to leak. It does have a generous wide rubber gasket - not a small O-ring. It can be keyed to match your ignition key.

Instead of saddle bags - hard to fit - get the GIVI case for the rear. They hold a lot and are very durable.

The handshields are nice since they block the cold air and cee bailey even has a windshield to accomodate the handshields.

Be sure to bookmark this website:

http://www.f650.com/

It should be your first stop for all questions regarding the F650s. There is even a special section for CS riders - the black belt riders.

Again, congratulations - that 650CS is one special ride; nimble, fast and the extraordinary gas mileage. I have gotten over 70 miles per gallon on a few tanks.

:heart
 
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F650CS love affair

Congratulations! I have ridden a CS for two years and love it. It is a great all around bike and good in city traffic. The single with balance shaft is as smooth as the new oilheads. Most of my riding is 2-up (passenger weighs only 115#) and have plenty of power. Love the 62mpg. Have installed a CEEBailey 7-inch taller windshield, additional LED tail/brake light, shearling seat pad, center stand, and custom made GPS and bag mounts. I really like the back-pack tank bag, funky but very convenient. Too bad BMW is no longer importing the cycle. My other bike is a K75S but I ride the CS much more often.

Be sure you or the dealer checks all six cells when filling the battery as two of the caps are hard to get to. DO NOT use synthetic oil as the clutch is wet plate, running in engine oil. When starting the bike, make sure the throttle is fully closed as the computer memorizes its position every time the starter is operated. The low fuel light usually goes on at 150 miles, giving about a comfortable 50 mile+ reserve. Also, the oil drain plug is aluminum so do not overtorque and be sure use a 6-point socket.
 
Consultant: thank you for the good info. Any pics of your ride? I'm thinking that I might do the hard top for the stuffbay, a center stand, additional lighting, a GPS (eventually) and a good windshield. Maybe a tailbag or a small Givi bag. Does that affect the handling when you install a larger bag back there?

I checked out the F650 link that Paulbach posted. That's a great resource, being able to look at the various manufacturers all on one page.

I'm thinking a windshield that is about 10" to 12" will be enough to throw the air up over me. I'm 5'5". (The stock "shield" is about, what, 4" if or so?)
Do you think those are good sizes to do what I want? Or will a 7" windshield work too? I don't fully know the aerodynamics of this bike yet.

How do you like yours? Does it give you enough protection?

My husband took the 650 out last night (first time he's had a chance to ride it, because I've been hogging it!) His response when he rode back in was that it was very responsive and much easier to move around than the R1100R....but he's not getting this one! :D
 
The standard windshield is pretty good but I am 5'11 so I need a taller one. I don't have the hard luggage bay cover. I would send a pix of the bags & mount but I don't know how to reduce the resolution so I can post it.. I fabricated the mounts myself as I didn't like to move the turn signals and thought the price a bit high. The bags are discontinued Nonfango items purchased from Repsycle here in Ohio. The LED taillight is a standard trailer unit mounted where the rear reflector was. I don't like to drill holes so I make strange brackets. I also made a set of jumper cables using Anderson connectors directly to the battery. I also installed another outlet directly to the battery (with a fuse) for the passenger's heated vest.
 
I'm picking up a '97 F650ST in New Orleans on Thursday and riding it back to Santa Fe, NM. I'm excited. After riding my heavy-ish '01 R1100RT I'm thinking the F650 might be a better size for me. Be interesting to compare how the bikes compare. I LIKE thumpers: I'll have to see how this Rotax single works. :german
 
Stanhy said:
Yahoo! I just rode home on my new (to me) 2003 F650CS tonight. Grinning from ear to ear. I bought an R1100R last month....and it was way too heavy for me to manage (I'm a new rider) So, when I was in getting a flat fixed on my little Honda 250cc bike, I mentioned to the guy that I had decided to get an F650CS. He replies "We have one." (this is at a Yamaha dealership)
Well, after picking my jaw off my chest, I went to look at it, figuring that it would be a yucky color, or really high miles, or a rat.
Nope. Black and silver (well graphite is the proper term) which is the color I had chosen, only 4400 miles, and clean as can be. I test rode it last night and bought it today. I love how it feels! Nice, low center of gravity, nimble, pretty forgiving on torque and HP. I have to learn it all over again, but it isn't intimidating at all. So I traded the little Honda in for it.
Damn...I went from my first bike in May to my third bike today....I'm done buying bikes for a while!
My husband is loving the R1100R though. Looks like it's his early birthday present....he's been telling people that I got it for him for his birthday. Last night I told him, "Happy birthday! I bought myself a bike!!"
:bikes
Click to expand...


Congrats on your new bike, those bikes are awesome! Have many miles and much enjoyment.
 
The CS is a nice machine. I'm on my second one. Hard baggage is easy to install and about BMW bag cost. On my newest CS, I went with Hepco and Becker to get smaller cases. Marsee made a great tank bag for the CS. It has been out of production for some time but some dealers still have them. The hard case with sound came with my new CS. The locking case is nice but it doesn't look as good as the Marsee bag. Cee Bailey makes a great looking windshield. The dark gray goes very well with the gray CS. GS handguards help with the cold and wet.

You should find the the CS performance just about equal to the R1100R with your husband on the R; however, you'll have to keep the rpms up on the CS.
Enjoy!
 

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