Long Ride, lots of observations

I decided to ride the SW up from South Carolina to NW Arkansas, to see how it would handle a hard, fast trip, and to check out the area for a possible relocation.

I had bought the Hepco Becker rear rack for the SW, and it went on very easily. I have a couple of Hepco Becker topcases, and decided on the Junior, instead of the aluminum one that looks like you're transporting donated organs.

So the good is that the motor is one solid workhorse. Hit the throttle, it goes. And it was surprisingly smooth at speed and over distance. I hit the rev limiter a couple of times, and was surprised at how far over on the dial that was.

The bike handles very well in the rain, and because I had my radar deflecting front shield on the scooter, I was able to maintain a fairly high average rate of speed.

Overall, I was also happy with the brakes, but I am in talks with a company that makes carbon fiber hoses for motorcycle brakes, and I might see if they have anything for the SW.

The bad
The rear shocks are abysmal. Once over 70 mph, every bump bottomed out the shocks. It got very annoying. This will probably be the first thing I fix.

The front forks don't seem like they were designed for a bike this big and fast to be ridden hard into corners. even big cracks between the concrete plates in the corners on the highway would cause the front end to jump around and shimmy, especially in the 80-90 mph range with the topbox loaded. That will be addressed at a later date.  I might try heavier handlebar weights.

The seat. Sloping forward, and at an angle so you can't get your knees quite right. I think if I get a Russell Daylong and have the front raised, and the entire seat raised a couple of inches, I think it would be okay for touring.

The clutch when it gets hot. Groaning and slipping got worse the harder I rode it. I will probably switch out the springs when I do the belt, which is getting closer. If the shoes are fine, I'll leave the stock plates in there, and just modernize the steel springs.

The gas tank/ fuel economy  It would be nice if I could go longer than 120 miles between tanks of gas.

All in all, I like the bike, and am still riding it every day, but it is now officially a work in progress. I want to see if theres a box that will give me a little more top end, because it feels like it's snipping off the top of the powerband.

Remember your are riding a scooter----now old and out of production. Ridden as scooter the SilverWing is fine.

Rear shocks work fine in new/serviceable condition-----check pre-load on springs, stick to Honda recommended weight limits.

I did near 100,000 miles on 2 new SilverWings with little trouble, adding Givi Adjustable windshield, Givi rack and E-46 box, NEP throttle stop and enjoyed riding them, Belts, OEM changed at 15,000 mile intervals-----only problem for me, now at 80....they are heavy, rear weight bias.

I tend to agree with John. You are pushing the envelope as to the purpose of the Silver Wing. It is NOT a Hayabusa nor a Goldwing. It is a maxi-scooter that can tour but the higher the speed the lower the quality of the ride. Try running at 70 MPH or less and you should be VERY happy. Mine is very comfortable, and gets nearly 60 MPG giving me a range of 200 miles.

You can run on the super slab at 80 MPH but the scooter is much better on secondary roads/highways at a more leisurely pace. My 2 cents.

Interesting observations mondodemundo. I've ridden my SW hard both solo and pillion and have observed some of the things you came across. The front end can be a bit shaky on bumpy roads but having no pre-load I would expect this although the front end has never given me cause for concern. I noticed the rear end bottoming out but then my old stock shocks were a bit knackered. I replaced them with some YSS Eco Shocks and it made a massive difference; much smoother and steadier on hard cornering and better at absorbing bumps.

All in all I am quite impressed with the SW handling. It wallows a bit on undulating corners at high speed but again, nothing scary. It's never felt like it's about to 'let go' of the tarmac. Just yesterday I took it up to 95mph on long open road and felt steady as a rock.

70 to 80mph is a nice speed for my SW even when loaded up and this is plenty for 600cc scooter. The mods which you mentioned should make a difference so give it a go and see what you think. Please post your findings

GHM-PM wrote:

I tend to agree with John. You are pushing the envelope as to the purpose of the Silver Wing. It is NOT a Hayabusa nor a Goldwing. It is a maxi-scooter that can tour but the higher the speed the lower the quality of the ride. Try running at 70 MPH or less and you should be VERY happy. Mine is very comfortable, and gets nearly 60 MPG giving me a range of 200 miles.

You can run on the super slab at 80 MPH but the scooter is much better on secondary roads/highways at a more leisurely pace. My 2 cents.

Fork is stiff on sharp edged bumps and really no way to change that. Springs and oil will will help but it's not a solution. Internal fork valving is fixed.
Nobody makes any kind of fork internals for SW. Shocks are a different story.
$ 250-$1000 ...........

8500 is the REV. limit 105 mph Pushing IT.

A Silverwing is great around town and a run to a nearby town. You can go on a long trip with one but it won't be as good as a Goldwing in that use. A Goldwing is great on an interstate or longer trip, but a PIA around town. Both aren't as good in the other's venue. Used for what they were designed for both are fine machines but pushing either of them into the other's design purpose shows neither one is as good.

I'd say the mindset or attitude of the rider is more important on long rides and tours than the size of the motorcycle or scooter he's riding. If he isn't up for it then he'll find an excuse not to go.

The go-to suspension upgrades on this side of the pond are Hyperpro front springs and Hagon rear shocks. YMMV

I just sprung (pun intended) for Ikon shocks.
Fully adjustable rebound and preload, and rebuildable.




Also, I'm considering going with Racetech cartridge emulators for the rebound dampening.

https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fracetech.com%2FProductSearch%2F12%2FHonda%2FFCS600%2F2001-12&data=02%7C01%7C%7C7e705a0f486144bdd48508d719ba635d%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637006160627562791&sdata=9t5irVqzX0AMvNgKDyFJ3DyQSuhxH1NuQmQoUZiLVf4%3D&reserved=0

120 miles on a tank of gas?? Do you weigh 300 or 400 lbs? I constantly get over 200 Miles on a tank no matter how I ride. Check if you have a gas leak. If I got less than 180 miles a tank either I fix it or get rid of it.

I've been interested in the Ikon shocks for awhile the only issue I had was the length. Just a little shorter than stock but if ride height is the same it will work.  Please keep us posted on results.  

Racetech cartridge sounds great also but does it also improve the compression of fork it's stiff on sharp edge bumps?   It's a scooter but suspension has a great deal that could be improved.

Never knew that there were any kind of fork cartridges for SW. or missed it.

Haha! I just read the OP, and have to say mpg falls dramatically above 70mph.
I'm a heavy rider that treats the SW more like an ST!
Below 65 mph I get 50 mpg no matter how hard I ride.
At 90+ mph you can expect to get 30-35 mpg.
Force vectoring and drag are exponential, at the last 10% of the operating envelope the suspension and engine has little chance of emulating a sport touring bike.
Do you really want to spin a 13" wheel that fast?
80 mph is a good limit, above that the ride is too busy to be comfortable for the long haul.
Of course, YMMV....