Matt Strange

Probably not, as I bet the differences are quite small. I've only ridden an early model ST1050 besides this, around an 07 plate. That model I would trade, as the 2020 is a big improvement, but between this and yours......honestly that'd be worth a test ride (for you).

I've edited the original post, £13,600 OTR but you may get a better deal. Amazing spec for that money.

I'll get there.....

Took one of these for a spin before the lockdown Price as Spec £13,600 OTR: Speed Triple 1050 RS in Matte Black/Yellow decal scheme. 148BHP 10500RPM 86ft/lb torque 7150RPM Ohlins 43 mm NIX30 Forks with adjustable preload, rebound and compression damping Öhlins TTX36 twin tube monoshock with preload, rebound and compression damping Brembo monoblocs of some description, not sure of spec. Full Stainless Arrow system 5 inch full colour TFT 6 axis electronics with anti wheelie/Abs/traction, crusie control possibly slide and engine brake control exists but didn't get to try them on a road test tbh! The blipper/quickshifter was out of action, apparently there was a recall and this bike had it deactivated There are 5 modes selectable, the usual wet/road/race and i think wither two custom settings or 5+2 (if that makes sense). Right on with my experience. I'm a touch over 6ft, weigh 17st in my gear, but I have a short inside leg of 31''. This isn't much of an issue in general, I can always put at least one foot down on pretty much any bike bar a motor-x bike. This STRS i can pretty much plant both feet on the ground and there's not much of a stretch to the bars, everything is very 'upright' as you'd expect really. However, it is very stubby and despite the short reach, it does still feel very tiny front to back.It does suffer the older bike's poor turning circle but this doesn't matter a bit unless you do a lot of very tight town work/filtering. 90% of the time, not a problem. The turning circle doesn't come into play on any a/b roads or even 90 sharp turns or dual carriageway width 180 turns. you'll struggle to U- turn it on a back street is probably what I'm trying to say! Onto the riding, one thing to top everything else: This bike has the Crispest throttle I have ever experienced. This bike really is a joy in pretty much any rider mode or situation, be it off the line, sharp corner exits, short shifting, flat out - I couldn't get it to stumble at all, it is sensational. That goes for the overall handling too, fast flowing roads, sharper/more technical slower bends, even flip/flop quick left/right/left etc. Yeah, serious fun, despite the bike having a reasonably heavy feel at first. I don't recall any niggle during my test really, and I was out for a full hour. The engine has lots of punch and spins/revs up quickly which is surprising given the torque - definitely not a lazy machine. A perfect road engine but the sound I found a touch disappointing, I think I just like the V4/Ducati V twin sound too much. Maybe a different system would help? The suspension is utterly beautiful, very predictable trailing the front into a turn and no squat or wiggle on the gas either. It's up there with the best manual suspension definitely, I am rather heavy and even though the sag/preload could do with more refining, it really wasn't much of an issue. i'm confident at even my weight it could be setup near perfect. No problem with the gearbox, a very nice unit and similar in feel to my K6 which is a compliment, honest. No dodgy neutrals, went into gear every time. Shame about no blip/QS available to me at the time. The TFT dash is really nice, has a fuel gauge plus most information like temperatures etc, trip computer stuff too. Switches and buttons are both logical and easy to use. Not sure about phone connectivity. It wasn't a particularity warm or cool day, sunny and around 10C. The underseat exhausts didn't give me sweaty bottom, no idea what it'll be like in summer. After the hour was up, I had zero comfort issues which is very impressive. My GSXR1000 k6 isn't too bad but I do get achy knee/wrists by that time normally. Downsides? Well, it's almost too refined and nice! I do prefer a bike with a bit more raw character, if only it had the mechanical/brutal sound of a Ducati monster 1200 or a bit of the chassis movement of the KTM1290. I did try to dial it down a touch with the electronics but it still handles very predictably. No idea about luggage/touring options, fuel consumption, servicing/running costs (although RRP is around £13k which is a steal these days) or pillion practicality. didn't track it but I'm sure it would be very well suited to it. Track use may show up a lack of power compared to the other naked machines, it's really not an issue on the road. Would I buy one?. Maybe. Despite it being a touch ‘nice’ it is an extremely good overall package. I'd have it over most bar maybe the Tuono V4 and the Monster 1200. The monster isn't quite as dynamic but I just love that sound of the V-Twin and hence I'd forgive a few minor shortcomings it has to the STRS. Superduke? Not sure about the 2020 new (ugly) one, I think I'd rather have a 2017-2019 Model over this. 2016 and under, nope. I don't think a Tuono is really worth the extra money over this bike either. But I'd prefer it because I'm daft and like noise.

There are several dubs on the DVD/Blurays

I wouldn't have said it was a perfect fit, especially with regard to it being particularly comfortable but my Ducati 1098s that I had brand new in 2008 certainly made me stop and look at it more than once!

Honda CBR929 Fireblade back in 2002, numerous motocross etc before that. I didn't bother with a road bike until i was 24, didn't see the point in having a 50cc until 17 and I could only afford a car at 17 so went that route. A spin on a friend's bike (in a supermarket carpark) made me want a road bike, I could afford both bike + car at 24 as I was several years into being a qualified trade.

Betterer than an Angry wasp with a sat-nav strapped to its head though?

I hate the instrument cluster on the Streetfighter V4, it looks like a sat-nav stuck on top of the headlight. Ducati need me in their styling department Before: After:

It would take a lot of riding a 2nd bike to see any kind of return in terms of mpg saved over a zzr600, not including maintenance, tax and insurance etc x2

You don't need the other two cylinders for the bhp/capacity, I'd doubt there's much in it below 100mph either. It'll make a great road sports bike if it's similar to the 959 riding position. £15k is great considering the 959 was £14.3k

That looks like a Bandit 600 with an aftermarket LED headlight.

I've yet to see any manufacturer make a naked bike that has an attractive front end, the headlight cowl/instrument cluster on them is always grim. That Kawasaki will weight 40kg more than the rest?

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In short, a new 959 in a V4 dress that will address the shortcomings of the old bike i.e. it adds a single sided swing arm and colour TFT dash from the V4 to go along with the new v4 style fairings. And apparently an extra 5BHP so around 160 in total.

Needs a supercharger Heh, it does look good for a smaller cc machine, better than the KTM790 duke which is like a Chinese 125cc.

If you want you wheels and swingarm covered in oil, go ahead, the whole point of lubricating a chain is down to if there is any indication of stiffness in the links (The only time i ever use lubricant, usually high viscosity gear oil ). It is nothing to do with metal on metal contract between the rollers and the sprocket teeth. I've done over 6K on my GSXR1000 including three tracks days, I've adjusted the chain once about 500 miles ago. I keep it clean, not smothered in lube which probably flies/burns off after ten minutes of riding.

I have an X-ring chain, I clean it using paraffin from a 5l tub from the BBQ section of the local supermarket then wipe off the excess. The chain and sprockets aren't supposed to be wet.

My broker doesn't sell ETN or allow trades

Flogged all my TRX @ $0.048 so nearly doubled my investment, thankfully it covers my current disaster with XRP . I've noticed trx is down to $0.041 today so may buy back in seeing as the price is so low, it was up to $0.22 at one point.

XRP is doing well Thankfully I bought some Tron (trx) nearly right at the bottom of its dip (around $0.02 per coin, super cheap) and that has made up for the current XRP disaster (down 30-40% at present). HODL on xrp!

The 1299's exhaust will fit, see above

I think the first thing i should mention is that at the time of the review I own a K6 GSXR1000, so a lot of my opinion is going to be based on how the two bikes compare. I've ridden several of the in-between bikes i.e. the K8, L2, L5 and none of them really made me feel I was missing out in any way by owning my K6. And to put it bluntly,neither does the latest incarnation of the GSXR1000, even the top ‘R’ version I rode. OK, a slight fib, some things i did like. Especially the suspension, it is just fantastic on our crap roads, better even than the Ohlins ttx/FGRT 214 combo on a Panigale 959 I've ridden. It makes the bike exceptionally well balanced and apart from a slightly more noticeable weight transfer on the brakes and when flicking through bends, 95% as sharp and enjoyable as the Ducati. High praise for Suzuki that they can make an IL4 handle like that. The traction control is nice, though i could just retrofit a Bazzaz unit to my bike. But everything else I could live without. The biggest thing for me is that It's lacking character, the engine is turbine smooth and all the power increase is right at the top of the rev range from my perception, certainly it didn't make me think my K6 was any slower low down or through the midrange so for (sensible) road use it is irrelevant. The Euro 4 can probably doesn't help with the overall feel of the bike as I have a Yoshi can on my bike, but even then my k6 has a lovely induction growl which is seemingly missing from this L8 - I'd have thought a quieter end can would have made it more perceptible if there was any to be there in the first place. The L8 looks great in my opinion, I do love the retro 1980s blue/black scheme my tester was painted in, especially the blue wheels and forks. Rather ‘TRON’ like if you remember that film. The fit/finish of the panels, the paint and fastener quality is definitely higher than my bike too, hard to say what the L8 will look like at 11 years old but i'd wager better than mine if treated in the same manner. Another plus is that it's more comfortable, bar and peg position especially as I'm long in the body which usually puts a lot of weight on my wrists, and there's a fuel gauge at last too!. However. I didn't get on with the blipper very well, it seemed rather glitchy, especially around 4-5k in town. Probably not an issue ragging around a track but it should work fine at those revs. There's a possible UK recall on this issue a.f.a.i.k.?. The throttle felt a bit spongey and disconnected too, surprisingly it was actually worse in full power mode! Didn't help that it had too much play before engaging when twisiting it off the stop. In short, I'd only buy one if I was after an ultimate track weapon. Road use, meh, not special enough for me to change really. My 'stats' : 39 years old, 184cm tall (6 foot, 1/2 inch in old), 100Kg (approx 16.5 stone), 79cm inside leg (31 inches), medium sized hands, size 9 boot. GSXR1000R stats (as tested): 202PS in line four, 999.8cc. Showa Balance free suspension, quick shift/auto blipper, launch control, two tone TFT screen, Brembo calipers (Nissin at rear), traction control, adjustable modes for power/throttle response/anti wheelie/ABS and some other stuff I've probably missed or didn't notice. Tested on a cool, damp, sunny winter day, and the approx temperature 6C. Approx 45 mins of mixed riding/roads etc. The car park where the photos were taken was considerably wetter than most of the roads, so i got to test it in both wet and dry situations

My XRP holding is down by a few cents in the $, OK it's not strictly a crypto seeing as the tokens can't be mined but I'd like to see it back over $3.80

I sank $1k into ripple yesterday @ $1.10. Edit: so almost exactly 910 'coins'