[windiesel]

Originally Posted by Pythonic

Be careful in choosing 180+ kg bikes . My dad bought a H’ness when he was 50, the first lot after prebooking it. After 6 months he just dumped it on me as a graduation gift, the sly fellow. He found it hard to manage it daily, and my dad’s a stout 5’11’ guy with 0 health issues.

With this in mind I would suggest you to choose h’ness or cb 350 rs which can be easier to handle. Consider the triumph 400 twins but they may not have the presence or looks and I believe jawa offerings also have the same weight range but they don’t have the looks and presence of H’ness which is rivalled only by RE.

I would also look at kawasaki’s w175 as it’s much lighter at 130ish kgs. Congrats on retirement to your dad.

Oh, come on Sonny! I'll be 59 in Sep, I do have some health issues and I currently have 2 bikes in my garage, a Meteor 350, done 23000kms and a Triumph Speed 400, done 1600. I ride everyday to office 50km round trip through Delhi traffic. There are so many people elder than me in my riding club here, a few of them ride SM650s, I've not seen any of them ride small, light bikes. A large, heavy bike is more stable, inspires confidence and above all, has an n times better road presence...the hoi polloi stay away! BTW, my next bike is going to be either the Classic 650 or the Honda NX500.
Wish your dad happy riding from my side!

[Gansan]

I had posted this in the Ronin thread last year. A former boss of mine, now 75 years old, bought the Ronin and is very happy about it. He did a solo trip from Rajasthan to Chennai last year. And a Rajasthan - Kolkata trip this year. He speaks very highly of the bike. Please ask your dad to check it out. The resale value will be zilch, but that should not matter at your dad's age.

[Pythonic]

Originally Posted by windiesel

Oh, come on Sonny! I'll be 59 in Sep, I do have some health issues and I currently have 2 bikes in my garage, a Meteor 350, done 23000kms and a Triumph Speed 400, done 1600. I ride everyday to office 50km round trip through Delhi traffic. There are so many people elder than me in my riding club here, a few of them ride SM650s, I've not seen any of them ride small, light bikes. A large, heavy bike is more stable, inspires confidence and above all, has an n times better road presence...the hoi polloi stay away! BTW, my next bike is going to be either the Classic 650 or the Honda NX500.
Wish your dad happy riding from my side!

Haha, I’ll convey your wishes sir. We did a 600 km trip this winter break with him on his new Ronin. You make good points worth considering by OP’s dad. I wish happy riding to you too

[amit_purohit20]

Originally Posted by Gansan

I had posted this in the Ronin thread last year. A former boss of mine, now 75 years old, bought the Ronin and is very happy about it. He did a solo trip from Rajasthan to Chennai last year. And a Rajasthan - Kolkata trip this year. He speaks very highly of the bike. Please ask your dad to check it out. The resale value will be zilch, but that should not matter at your dad's age.

I personally feel the passion of a retro fades away as soon as you have the bike with you. Next most important thing at that age is the comfort in driving the bike, which includes managing the weight. A heavy bike, a fall and the phobia sets in easily at that age.

I strongly recommend the TVS Ronin, sort of a retro look (not exactly). Quite light weight, smooth engine for cruising upto 90 kmph. TVS so should be reliable. Fuel efficient. I think Ronin is the best fit here for the requirements.