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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126527
tbe instruments. Witb a cold motor,
pull tbe cboke up all tbe way, pusb tbe
button and the CeeBee fires right up.
After a few seconds, push. the choke
back to the halfway point. After a
little bit of time to .get everything circulating, go riding.
.
The clutch bas a fairly light feel to
it. With the strong torque the motor
puts out, one only needs a couple of
rpms or so to keep from stalling.
Riding it ar6und town, most riders will
sbort shift between !1000 and 4000
.rpm, and the bike runs cleani y down
around tbe 2000 rpm region.
Though it's not an 1100, crank on
tbe throttle and you go. Crank it on
from low rpms in second gear and
you'll be past tbe double nickel before
you know it. It doesn't bave tbe afterburner-like kick midway through the
powerband that a GSII00 has, the
900F pulls strongly all the way through
the powerband, with the adrenalin factor strongest between 6000 and 8000
on tbe tach needle.
This motorcycle will cruise easily at
75-80, all day long. And you can ride
it all day long. Rubber is utilized at
the engine mountings to isolate vibration and keep it away from the frame.
It's tbe first bike we can remember
where the mirrors vibrated at idle, yet
you could read license plate numbers
off them at 80 + .
While the engine is a definite plus,
not so the transmission. Shifting, especially in tbe lower three gears, is
often stiff and difficult, usually with a
clunk betweell: gears. Hitting neutral
was common when we first got the
bike, and tbe shift from second to
third under hard acceleration was also
very difficult. It seemed to loosen up
around the 4000 mile mark, but it was
possible that the tester's left toe reglessed
to its old CZ days.
The five-speed transmission is a close
ratio unit, possibly closer than optimum,
considering the wide powerband.
Final drive is by sealed chain. We
had np troubles witb it during our test.
"Since much of the potential appeal
of the bike comes from the fact that it
looks like what Freddie anq Mike
Spencer ride in the AMA Superbike
series"we bumbly assume tbe machine
.will wind up in the hands of more than
a few riders who will want to go places
ratber rapidly, preferably on an unstraight road.
In our experience, the 900 bandled
very nicely, especially considering its
weight. With a full tank of gas, weight
is up around the 570 pound mark,
comparable to others in the 1000cc
class, but more than the agile middleweight canyon cats. 'Nothing shook,
wobbled or did anything frigbtening
during our test. Thanks to good feel
and steering at the front end, the bike
showed a willingness to change lines at
the rider's discretion.
.
The front end performed as well as
anything we've ever ridden. The fork
tubes are 59mm, as opposed to 57mm
on the CB750F. They're air-assisted,
with a single air inlet and an equalizer
simplifying air pressure changes. Stock
air pressure suited us just fine, and the
forks showed good damping and quick
reaction.
. The rear shocks - looking strangley
like the "Thermal-Flow" shocks.featured
on
Yamaha motocrossers of yesteryear - are 50 position adjustable
VHDTM shocks with external reservoirs.
There's two compression settings, five
spring preload settings, and a
multitude of rebound settings. On the
freeway, the ride was the most ~on
'able with compression and rebound
setting on soft and preload in the
middle. You'll probably want to stiffen
that up SQme before attacking a challenging road.
One of the truJy outstanding features
of the CB900F is the brakes. Instead of
using one caliper piston. Honda opted
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Coming ThIS July 10)bur So. Cal Bud'N8isef and I