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General Category >> Rubber Side Down! >> LS650 vs CBR500R
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Message started by chzeckmate on 02/18/16 at 13:31:11

Title: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by chzeckmate on 02/18/16 at 13:31:11

Okay so as many of you know, I've been shopping for a new CBR500R and I finally found one that fit my budget of $3000.00. It's an almost new 2014 with 680 miles. I bought it in north Texas and drove it home to Houston yesterday.

As you all know the S40 is very torquey so I thought I'd do a little comparison a let you guys know how it went. Off the line the S40 gets a better launch every time and for the first twenty feet the S40 is laughing at the CBR but that half a second of laughing turns to shock and dismay as the CBR puts the S40 behind her and leaves. The CBR will do 0-60 in a little over 5 seconds.

The S40 wins for comfort though. The 300 mile trip to Houston was tiring. Battling a headwind with gusts up to 30mph and the sporty riding posture had me feeling battered after the first 100 miles and even though the bike was smooth and quiet at 80-90 mph I couldn't help but wonder if I might be too old for a bike with this riding position....Time will tell.

Here they are. Two lovely step sisters both vying for my attention. I will endeavor to show them both equal love and affection :)

http://i1297.photobucket.com/albums/ag28/justin_fisher2/cbr_zpsi3wgiaet.png (http://s1297.photobucket.com/user/justin_fisher2/media/cbr_zpsi3wgiaet.png.html)

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by zipidachimp on 02/18/16 at 13:53:03

try it against a dr650 with street tires! 8-)

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by chzeckmate on 02/18/16 at 17:30:03

That would be a close race. The DR650 is way more fun though.

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by Art Webb on 02/18/16 at 18:46:29

I think the DR would eat the Savage's lunch, personally
the RR CBR is pretty sporty, I really like the X variant better, but at 80 MPH, I bet the S40 would beat you up worse, at 80 the wind helps hold you up on a sport bike, on a cruiser it tries to blow you off ;D
unless you have a good windscreen
100 miles was pretty much my limit on the S40, the Ninja 500 I could go farther
as long as we're talking highway
around town the S40 is the winner fer sher

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by chzeckmate on 02/18/16 at 19:08:23

25363033212626440 wrote:

Agreed. I have a good windscreen on my S40 and it's quite comfortable on the freeway, but the problem is once I get to about 70 mph there's no more power. I can go faster, but it takes forever to get more speed out of it.

On the CBR at 70 there's a ton of torque left and a whole other gear to shift up into if I need it. I also wanted something smoother for long trips. The S40 feels like it's going to fly apart at the top of fifth gear and the CBR is smooth as silk all the way to the top of sixth.

You're right that the wind will hold you up on the CBR, but on my 300 mile trip home yesterday, I was heading south into a north headwind that would gust up to around 30 mph. Those gusts were the problem. I would get neatly in position where the wind was holding me up, but then there would be a gust that would force me to lean hard into it and then the wind would just die down and I'd jolt forward...and just like that, there would be another gust. It wasn't possible to get into position and just ride. I wished I'd been heading north. I'm ordering the sport windscreen for the CBR and that should settle that problem. Also, the weather here will even out and the wind won't be like that that for long.

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by Art Webb on 02/18/16 at 19:20:15

Solution, lie down on the tank (total screen coverage) and drape feet on rear tail lights ;D j/k
so is the sport screen less or more screen than the stocker?
I do miss my Ninja 500 for just those reasons, but the peg position just made my hips ache on long rides
the Swing is sort of like a cross between the two, though it's not very stable at low speeds
plenty of power up to the ton (not happy there but will break it), upright riding posture, nice shield, though there's a much better one aftermarket i'd like to have
if only the thing didn't feel so much like an easy chair (miss gripping the tank when the roads get spooky)

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by chzeckmate on 02/18/16 at 19:55:54

I did lie down on the tank most of the way after the first 100 miles of struggling with the wind. I found that the most comfortable way to manage the problem.

As for the sport windscreen, the OEM option isn't much different but Puig makes one and their sport screen is better. It's only about two inches taller, but it has a different angle of attack and it's about an inch wider and also angled differently on each side so the wind is deflected up and to the sides better.

I had seriously considered getting a Ninja 500 but they are just so hard to look at. Even when they were new I thought they were ugly. I'm not a vain person. I'm a function over form person generally, but the Ninja 500, even though it's a very functional machine is such an eyesore that I dropped the idea pretty fast after reading the reviews on the CBR. Function and form. The Honda is a marvelous machine. It isn't spectacular in any single way but it does everything so well as a package that it is spectacular in that way. It is quite possibly the perfect bike.

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by KennyG on 02/18/16 at 20:08:34

ChzeckMate,

I was riding in North Texas yesterday and I can verify how bad the wind was. The wind was worse today.

Kenny G :-[

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by Art Webb on 02/19/16 at 19:09:38

Yeah I live right up the road in Garwood (100 miles from Houston) the wind was pretty bad
my scooter spoils me at times like that
actually the wind was pretty brisk today, too, took the S wing out for my first 'joy ride'
Scooters are practical
they're comfortable
they aren't all that much fun
I miss my Ninja 500, even if it wasn't that pretty (I actually liked how they looked)
I miss my S40
but the scoot is more practical, and works better for an all rounder, and I'm sorta stuck with it for now
Maybe next time a Dual Sport
one day I'll find my perfect bike

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by chzeckmate on 02/20/16 at 00:30:26

Today I found that Honda has really thought of everything. The shape of the seat and its size was a little confusing to me until I had a chance to ride it in my favorite areas of Houston. I realized that the shape of the seat is designed to give you three options. If I sit forward on the seat around town it takes the pressure off my wrists and is very comfortable. If I sit in the middle of the seat it's good for typical highway speeds and the wind will hold me up. If I sit all the way back on the saddle with my behind against the pillion it's great for a jaunt in the twisties. As I become more comfortable with the dynamics of this bike I'm starting to thing it just might be the perfect all around bike. I'm very impressed with this machine. As for the S-Wing, I've heard good things. Seems like a great scooter, but I just don't have it in me to ride one. I think it would be like riding a Rascal through Walmart. No offense, but if I can't have the thrill of a proper motorcycle then I think I'd just as soon get a nice bicycle. A great racing bicycle can be just as exhilarating as a sportbike sometimes.

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by Art Webb on 02/20/16 at 07:24:05

I'm actually in total agreement at this point, the only reason I'm keeping it is I financed it
Like I said,m it's a top notch transportation appliance, and a great ride if you're more into scenery than visceral thrills, but it's not much actual fun
that seat design highlights one of the reasons I love the old Standards so much, they had that flat seat you could really move around on to suit the occasion
Oh how I wish insurance on the CB hadn't been so durned high
the S wing may actually put me off riding :o

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by raydawg on 02/20/16 at 08:03:25

Apples and oranges..... ;D

I ride almost everyday commuting with many other islanders, everything from small dual sports/dirt bikes with lights I mean :P
to big Harley's, I share the ferry with.

As boys will always do, they have a pizzing match mentality, thinking their bike is the perfect bike, etc.
Most everything beats me to the first light(s) off, as I just cruise and enjoy the ride.
What I have noticed about sport bikes is, you gotta adjust yourself a lot according to conditions.....
Nimble as all heck with speeds, turns and open street, but in traffic and having to stop at lights, ya gotta shift yourself around.
All I do is put a foot down :D

Honda makes a GREAT product.....
I was looking at the Shadow(s) when I was shown the savage beast.
Didn't much fancy the weird looking header, seemed bent with no consideration to style and sweep....
However, once riding her with 0 miles on her fresh from the crate, I rode her home after swapping them my first bike, a Honda Rebel, which really was a good learner for me.....
But no matter how cute she is at first, and smitten we are with our first love, every man begins to notice those sporting bigger breasts, er, I mean, CC's, eventually ;D

BTW, being under powered is more dangerous than having too much, in my opine. You need to fit the bike to its task to minimize exposure to trouble, example, you ride in a place that is often windy, you should ride a heavier bike.

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 02/20/16 at 08:59:59

Id go scooter before sidecar. I had a honda 50 twenty-five years ago. Took the kid for rides. We lived in a Big trailer park and next place over was a used oilfield pipe sales place. We'd cruise up and down the dirt paths between the pipe racks.
Everyone who rode it, crashed it, except my wife. A friend slicked it up, painted it, and, I sold it for about what I had in it.
It was fun on little hills, hopped okay, certainly not like a dirt bike.
And, Super Glue WILL close a gap in a cheek where the glasses got landed on.

Less power for accelerating out of a turn just means you gotta pick the best line through and carry as much speed in as it will handle. That's where fun is for me. Finding the max
Speed out of a corner/curve. I tried several approaches on one particular curve that I was hitting sometimes upwards of twice a day. The Maximum lean angle, the most death defying approach wasn't the quickest. It was when I got the bike over to a pretty serious angle, then pushed Me in and down that the exit speeds got better and more consistent.

Title: Re: LS650 vs CBR500R
Post by chzeckmate on 02/21/16 at 01:56:32

I know exactly what you mean the most fun bike I ever had was an RS50. That is the dragon I'm always chasing. I expect I'll never have quite that feeling again, but I'll have a lot of fun trying :)