[gauravanekar]

Is CBR 250ABS an upgrade from Pulsar AS200 in its current avatar? I like touring more than anything else. My pulsar has aged considerably in 3.5 years, hence I am considering CBR250 and Dominar, unable to decide.

[aargee]

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Interesting. May be I expected more. Do you have any notes as to which bikes have poor low end and which ones better CBR?

No I don't have; poor low end is a relative term & hence I would say, motorcycles capable of moving without throttle when the clutch is released properly vs moving with the aid of throttle. The latter ones may fit your definition.

Originally Posted by ashwinprakas

I believe argee was trying to make a point with an example, rather than recommend the same

Exactly

[bharath79]

Originally Posted by gauravanekar

Is CBR 250ABS an upgrade from Pulsar AS200 in its current avatar? I like touring more than anything else. My pulsar has aged considerably in 3.5 years, hence I am considering CBR250 and Dominar, unable to decide.

I would suggest the Dominar. Nothing against the CBR 250 but Dominar 2019 has all the goodies and safety features at a reasonable price point.

Better yet try the new 300 from Honda.

Regards
Bharath

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

CBR's low end torque is nothing great. I have had my share of stalling with less throttle input - you need to revv it a bit to ensure it moves smoothly. After 4000 rpm, it becomes an animal though.

Couldn't agree more. While I haven't had many instances of stalling the bike, the constant gear-changes needed due to the poor low-end of the CBR is probably the only irritating part of an otherwise nice ownership experience for me.

[Redline Shooter]

I am planning to pick up a pre-worshipped CBR 250r. I have seen a few bikes which have this issue with the backlight or the meter console. I remember reading about this problem somewhere. But what I want to know is if this fault can be fixed or not ,specifically in Bangalore? Does anyone here has an experience with the same or can help me with a lead or how much can it cost me? For good reasons I don't want to replace the meter console.
Suggestions Please! Thanks in advance.

[bevivek]

I am a born again biker and bought a pre owned CBR a few months back and have been going on weekend breakfast rides (< 200 kms) just to get back to biking.

The ceeber is renowned for its refined low vibey nature and the one i bought is smooth far as i can make out but since i lack other points of reference wondered if there is some way of comparing its vibeyness.

I saw vlogs of the Interceptor and GT twins doing the tea cup test, i.e. keep a cup of tea or open bottle of pepsi on the tank and see if it hangs on if you blip the engine.

By that jugaad measure (such as it is) my ceeber fails the test. If you dont blip the engine the glass of water stays on but if you keep blipping or revving the engine (not high revs 5-6k rpm) then after a minute or so the glass starts to slip to one side. The bike is on a paddock stand.

On rides after a 2 hour long ride my hands start to tingle but unable to make out if this is due the bike or my posture

Basically trying to compare my bike’s vibeyness and refinement with those of other owners

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by bevivek

Basically trying to compare my bike’s vibeyness and refinement with those of other owners

I can understand the excitement but isn't this a little too much?

Jokes apart, the CBR though comes with a counter-balancer is still a single-pot and it is prone to some vibrations as it is in the character of a single cylinder to give off resonance vibrations i.e unless its a Duke 690 with multiple balancers in place.

As for wrist going numb, you could start with changing the hand-grips as they tend to wear out after a year or two at best, position does make a difference on such machines, but if the vibrations are unnerving then you could start by ensuring all the engine mounts are within spec, though I doubt that would be the case as loose engine mounts make the motorcycle exceptionally vibey.

Cheers,
A.P.

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Interesting. May be I expected more. Do you have any notes as to which bikes have poor low end and which ones better CBR?

Go with Dilip Bam's simple measure by dividing the stroke with the bore dimension, if any motorcycle returns a higher value than the CBR 250R then it has a comparative better low end.

Eg:

CBR250R - 0.72
Pulsar 220 - 0.93
Karizma - 1.01

[aargee]

Originally Posted by bevivek

On rides after a 2 hour long ride my hands start to tingle but unable to make out if this is due the bike or my posture

May be you need to get used to. I always get that tingling sense on the right pinky finger, but that's like after 10+ hours of continuous riding.

Originally Posted by bevivek

Basically trying to compare my bike’s vibeyness and refinement with those of other owners

Change all the rubbers from fairing to exhaust, it will not eliminate the vibes, but will bring down them, especially the engine mount rubber.

All other internet videos & theories on posture are good enough for people who're riding the bike & providing the feedback. Keep all those points in mind & apply them whenever & wherever you feel required. Otherwise, keep riding & learn from it rather than strongly believing in those paid & biased theories!!

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by bevivek

...On rides after a 2 hour long ride my hands start to tingle but unable to make out if this is due the bike or my posture...

I feel you brother! I had this issue initially and was thinking where's the famous refinement argument gone. Honestly, I don't feel this now a days even after 3-4 hours ride (though I tend to take a break around 2 hours). Guess I may have got used to it.

[bevivek]

Originally Posted by ashwinprakas

I can understand the excitement but isn't this a little too much? lol

Lol. Not yet frothing at the mouth though AP.

Originally Posted by ashwinprakas

Jokes apart, the CBR though comes with a counter-balancer is still a single-pot and it is prone to some vibrations

True. Do know there will be more vibrations on the CBR, just trying to understand if the vibrations I get are par for the course for the machine.

Originally Posted by ashwinprakas

As for wrist going numb, you could start with changing the hand-grips as they tend to wear out after a year or two at best

Thanks, the previous owner had added foam rubber cushions to the grips and which are worn out. I was planning to replace them. Should I replace the grip as well?

Don't want to give the impression it vibrates like crazy. Not at all. I do feel it after a couple hours in the saddle but as this is my first quasi sports bike and I am still getting used to the right posture for riding these things, the tingling might be well be due to my weight falling on my palms.

Originally Posted by aargee

May be you need to get used to. I always get that tingling sense on the right pinky finger, but that's like after 10+ hours of continuous riding.

RG you set a very high bar. 10+ hours ! Dilli dur ast as they say. Just trying to spend longer and longer in the saddle with each ride. I guess a lot of the tingling might be due to my weight on the palms. Have gone through various videos on how to ride such machines (easy posture with loose hands, gripping the tank, etc) and practicing them but more practice will make perfect.

Originally Posted by aargee

Change all the rubbers from fairing to exhaust, it will not eliminate the vibes, but will bring down them, especially the engine mount rubber.

Thanks, will do this in my next servicing. As I said above, the vibrations are not too bad. Just trying to check if what I experience on my machine is similar to what others do.

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

I feel you brother! I had this issue initially and was thinking where's the famous refinement argument gone. Honestly, I don't feel this now a days even after 3-4 hours ride (though I tend to take a break around 2 hours). Guess I may have got used to it.

Good to meet another mortal ! Thanks for the encouragement. I am planning a Bhutan ride later this year and trying to work up to that.

[aargee]

Will segregate what to be done & what needs to be done with a pinch of salt...

Originally Posted by bevivek

I guess a lot of the tingling might be due to my weight on the palms

Pls don't assume. Shift the riding posture & ride whenever you feel pain. If the wrist pains, shift the weight to back. If back pains, shift to shoulders, if shoulder pains, shift to butt, if butt pains, shift back to wrist. By this time you would've done atleast 4-5 hours. And see what works.

Originally Posted by bevivek

Have gone through various videos on how to ride such machines (easy posture with loose hands, gripping the tank, etc)

Take this with a pinch of salt
Like in medicine, there's no one medicine that works all & even the famous penicillin will not work with everyone. So we cannot say, if you take penicillin your disease will be cured. So what works for majority are written & published & it may or may not work for you or even for me.

We're not in any race or competition to adhere the rules of race track. Our end objective is to have fun, ride safe, come home alive with all the memories of a beautiful ride. So it does not matter whether we follow Keith Code or the VLogs. Learn them, they're absolutely essential, but if something from that doesn't work for you, suit yourself for a safe, fun & memorable ride.

Originally Posted by bevivek

and practicing them but more practice will make perfect

Yes, do this more & more. Most importantly learn from every ride what works & what doesn't.

Originally Posted by bevivek

Just trying to check if what I experience on my machine is similar to what others do

Do one thing, before going for a long ride, take any of your friend's RE, ride it for about 50-60 Km & then take out your CBR

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by bevivek

Thanks, the previous owner had added foam rubber cushions to the grips and which are worn out. I was planning to replace them. Should I replace the grip as well?

Scrap those extra cushions/grips.

I find it ridiculous to go for those on such machines built to return the best possible feedback, I'd suggest you scrap those along with the current stock grip and get a new pair.

While you're at it you could also replace the throttle cables, not a mandate but replacing all consumables would be the first thing I do when I get my hands on a pre-owned machine.

And a new pair of grips and control cables go a long way when it comes to motorcycle feedback and throttle response, I used to change them once every year on mine but since my running has dropped quite a bit I've extended the interval to 2 years. But then CBR spares aren't cheap so do put some thought into it.

[bevivek]

Thanks @aargee @ashwinprakash


@aargee: you suggested I should change all the rubbers. Forgive my question, but what all would come in this category? Can you point me to where I can get more informed on this?

I am also in the look out for a good Honda service centre / independent folk in Pune for such non trivial work since the svc the prev owner used didn't do a good job on the bike when I gave it a few weeks back. I heard Slipstream performance are good general fixers with a well equipped workshop. Any other recommendations?

[bevivek]

Has anyone tried the piggybacked performance improvement systems like Powertronic or Magnum dyno boost?

[aargee]

Originally Posted by bevivek

@aargee: you suggested I should change all the rubbers. Forgive my question, but what all would come in this category? Can you point me to where I can get more informed on this?

Honda ASC. Ask them to place order for all the rubbers in the entire motorcycle. If the ASC says it cannot be done, they don't know what it means, it cannot be done like that etc etc, then simply switch the ASC. It CAN BE done & I've personally done it like 2 times so far in 4 years time frame.

I've placed order for replacing all the rubbers as well. If you are cost conscious, you can skip replacing the rubbers at the exhaust where each one of them cost over Rs 500. All the remaining rubbers should cost not more than Rs 1000 on entire motorcycle

Originally Posted by bevivek

Has anyone tried the piggybacked performance improvement systems like Powertronic or Magnum dyno boost?

Power Commander offers the one where they claim you need to change the header which will give you 10% boost. However, if you simply change the header & don't use the piggyback, you still gain 10% increase (from 25 Bhp to 27 Bhp). And a piggyback will simply bring down your FE.

If you're a city rider, it doesn't matter much, but if you're doing interstate runs, then it will very badly affect your overall timing. For instance, if you do Chennai - Bombay run, you'll have to refuel 5 times bare minimum excluding the full tank at the start of the journey. However with a piggyback, you'll have to refuel atleast 5 times or even 6 to be on safer side. If each refueling takes 10 minutes, you've simply lost 20 minutes easily. While on the actual run, you tend to lose over 1-1.5 hours.