Life on a Honda 2008 CBF1000A purhcased on Facebook Marketplace. A Flog's Blog

[Jerry_Atrick]

On 31/08/2026 at 5:46 AM, facthunter said:

The bigger Motor is already not well balanced. Increasing it's capacity and revving higher won't make it nice. Nev

Is this in reference to the Honda or Beemer? 

 

The engine on the Honda is a pleasure.. No more discernable vibration than any other bike I rode (I found the little single to be the worst) and smooth through the power range. I may be being biased, but the twins I rode don't seem to have been any better. 

 

If it didn't make a noise, I would have thought it was electrically powered 😉 (for avoidance of doubt, that was a joke). 

 

I have never ridden a Beemer, so can't comment on it. 

 

Will be test riding a Tenere GT9 soon, which is a three cylinder (following Triumph's ideas). Will compare the difference, although to be fair, a new motor against a well ridden in one will be a bit springier. 

[facthunter]

Referenced to the Royal Enfield Twin.. Nev

[Jerry_Atrick]

On 30/08/2026 at 6:53 AM, Litespeed said:

Buy a BMW, which is engineered for a very long service life, not obselete due to fashion or technology fads.

I wouldn't call a CBF1000 a fashion piece and about the only tech it has is ABS. Honda bikes have a good reputation for longevity - buying an old used bike is a bit of a gamble and depends on its history no matter which manufacturer made it. 

 

 But what reminded my of this post was this vid; I can't recall the nike you have, but if it is one of those in the vid, hope it is helpful:

 

 

Edited Saturday at 03:36 PM by Jerry_Atrick

[Jerry_Atrick]

Correction: 

2 hours ago, Jerry_Atrick said:

I can't recall the bike nike you have

 

[Jerry_Atrick]

Back to the CBF. It is running like a dream at the moment. The electrical system seems to be working well, but given the corrosion with the connectors, that they found, I think it may be prudent to one weekend spend time going through all the wiring and connectors to make sure it is OK. But that will be on the back burner (pardon the pun) for now. 

 

Thankfully, the weather is still very mild - especially for this time of year. The El Nino is expected to cause a pretty shippy winter, and I can foresee many weeks of working from home, which will help the hip pocket, but not make life terribly easy. 

 

This week's commute was interesting, and I think I managed to pick myself up a speeding ticket. 

 

The ride in was, well, in first world terms, well, not terrible, I guess. In relative terms, it was a bit of a pain. I caught almost every red light through town towards the motorway. I wasn't able to fill up before I left, but decided I would take the price hit and fill up at a motorway services when I stop for a comfort break. I usually stop at Leigh Delamare, which is about 1/2 way there. But, alas, not to be. There was a big traffic jam on the entry road as a truck had broken down. No worries - have enough to get to Membury - I would say about 40 miles east. Stopped at the servo there, and no unleaded at all - high octane or normal. So, next intended was Reading.. about about 40 miles or so. There is Chievely, but it is off the motorway and a pain to get to and return to the motorway from. As it was, I had enough fuel to comfortably get to reading, had utilised almost every micron of bladder capacity. Though, I decided to fill the bike up and raced to the loo before going back and paying. (Look up the place names in google maps if you are in the least bit interested ;-))

 

The traffic on London was manic - quite a lot heaver than it normally is. Very close to Parliament, the traffic thinned, and unfortunately, I wasn't quite concentrating in a 20mph zone for which most motorbikes are not built, and I noticed a couple of flashes coming from the fixed speed camera.. I looked down and was doing a whole 24mph... without a car, bike, bicycle, scooter, pedestrian or even a fox or cat around me on a ruddy wide road. If the police operated the cameras, then they would probably just think it was minor and look at the next photo. But the camera system is run by civil (public) servants, who know His Maj's Revenue and Collection could use a bit more these days than in the past.  As it is a minor infraction and I haven't been caught for quite some time (12 years??). they will offer me a speed awareness course, which will cost be the same as a fine, but you don;t have to inform your insurance in this case and mine is up for renewal. Having said that, I have yet to receive the tax, er bill, er fine in the post. 

 

Got to the parking area easy enough from there.. but when riding back to the pub in Richmond for lodgings, there was no parking. One of the great things about Richmond council is they are motorcycle friendly. As long as we park on metered parking space boundaries perpendicular to the kerb, we don't have to pay.. As long as we park in residential permit areas perpendicular to the kerb, no problems. No charges either way. Do you think either were available within the normal radius of the pub? FFS! I finally found somewhere about 10 mins walk from the pub.. which with a heavy backpack and in full kit, is a slog (at my age, anyway). 

 

That was Wednesday. Thursday, the traffic in was heavy, but when it thinned out around Parliament, I made sure I went through the camera zone under 20mph. The ride home was excellent. The traffic out of London was lighter than normal, and there were no road closures or works I had to slow down for. 

 

The ride is c. 3.5 hours each what. I dort of groan at the start - especially the ride in as it was 3:14am this week.. But once I get going, I find it relaxing and because I concentrate on the ride, cleansing of the soul. 

[nomadpete]

3 hours ago, Jerry_Atrick said:

Back to the CBF. It is running like a dream at the moment

Now that you are back in lerv with it, will you stay in Blighty?

Edited Saturday at 10:36 PM by nomadpete
I'm having trouble keeping up.

[nomadpete]

3 hours ago, Jerry_Atrick said:

I find it relaxing and because I concentrate on the ride, cleansing of the soul. 

And that's why we do it.

 

Like flying.

[facthunter]

Why do you think Honda's have a name for Longevity?.  Not really true. A lot of models have Known Problems, well known in the trade. They are built to a Price. A lot have Camshafts that run straight in the(as cast) Head Metal and camshaft cam edge crumbling. An  Aprillia is a far better crafted bike.. They are Just consumables and don't justify  Much Work being done on the Motors etc. Just Look after them, Use them and Know when to sell them. That's the sort of thing they are and don't clean them with a pressure hose. Nev

[Jerry_Atrick]

5 hours ago, nomadpete said:

Now that you are back in lerv with it, will you stay in Blighty?

Nope

[Litespeed]

12 hours ago, Jerry_Atrick said:

I wouldn't call a CBF1000 a fashion piece and about the only tech it has is ABS. Honda bikes have a good reputation for longevity - buying an old used bike is a bit of a gamble and depends on its history no matter which manufacturer made it. 

 

 But what reminded my of this post was this vid; I can't recall the nike you have, but if it is one of those in the vid, hope it is helpful:

 

 

 

My bike is a K1200R 2006 and has a very similar shaft setup and drive unit- basically all big models in K and R from 2005 do.

 

I am aware that this can be a issue, more so on the GS models than any other. Note it is by no means unversal and I know lots with 300,000km plus and never had a issue.

Like any bike that has a jointed drive line it has two drive shaft boots- front and back. 

They are meant to be service regulary approx 50.000kms, rear diff oil is best done every 10.000km as best practice and engine oil 5,000km. 

The uni joint boots can split due to age- mine are 20 years old. My rear boot has a very small crack- found when I rebuilt the diff. It needs replacement when I do the next service- which I will do when the oil is replaced at 1500km after a  rebuild.  Like any shaft- if the joint goes dry and water\dust gets in, which is highly likely for a hard riden adventure bike- ie a GS model, then rust and grit can wear it to failure.

 

My diff required a rebuild because the main oil O ring seal for the diff outer case developed a small leak and the previous owner did nothing about it- until it wrecked the main crown wheel bearing, even though the bearing was stuffed the internals had zero damage.  A simple repair made expensive from a dumb owner.  Even then it cost under $1000 including all parts, bearings (which are huge) and labour. This is a mere fraction of the cost chains and sprockets would have cost on a 170hp chain driven bike over its 121,000km, additionally, it should be good for several hundred thousand kms with just oil changes and lubing the shaft.

 

It is vital the boots are perfect and the shaft splines and unijoints are lubricated in a special white grease. This is standard practice in major services, and should be the same for any shaft driven bike, regardless of the maker. IF the grease is used, even a cracked boot will not kill the shaft if you replace it as soon as possible.

 

If the boot is not failed and the shaft is lubed- then it is extremely rare for this to be a issue. If blokes just ride it in dirt, water etc and dont maintain it or even inspect it- then it really is down to them. Note the rusted shaft in the video- it can't happen by itself.

 

Inspection of the boots is easy and removal of the shaft is actually a fast 15 minute job, only if the front boot is split does it require much work to replace it. In that case you remove the swing arm and do a full service on the swing arm bearings to chech the bearings and regrease.

 

I have heard of some of the shafts been not perfect for the entire life of the bike- but they will be replaced free of charge including labour at BMW dealers. BMW are renown for their integrity with warranty claims and if a part proves not suitable they will replace it free for the life of the bike- that is not the economic life ( like the vid stated- I suspect the dealer just did not want the extra work? ) It is full life time- if the bike is still ridable- they will do the free replacement.

 

A 500,000km GS will get a free one if needed. My mechanic is the service manager for a big dealer and is fully BMW trained, he has worked as service manager for mega dealers of other brands eg |Harley, Indian, Ducati and all the jap brands. He said they are all penny pinchers with no incentive to help you after warranty expires and even in warranty they are slow to help. Some of these dealers are very big names- he is so glad to have moved back a BMW based dealer. His shop also sells Royal Enfield, Tirumph and Moto Guzzi and a few others. No Jap Bikes, but it gets huge amount of customers from all the other brands that do not trust the factory dealer.

 

BMW Motorad are the best in the world for looking after the customer, even a 30 year old bike or 60 years- parts are available for even ancient models. If the dealer doesn't meet their standards, they lose the right to sell BMW, it happens rarely but the will do it if standards are not meet. Given all BMW bike dealers are very big operations worth many millions, it pays for them to do the right thing.

 

In contrast, The HONDA you have has well known issues from new design wise, esp the electrics with the oil bathed alternator. They often fail and its a clear design fault- but they will not give you a free one and fit it. That says a lot about their culture, the opposite to BMW.

 

Yes, in rare cases a BMW may have a fault- but BMW constantly unpdate and refine their parts to ensure its fixed and a better part will be supplied and fitted free.

 

I am aware of some driveline failures but often its maintenance related or from pure abuse, esp overloading the bike with gear and passenger  (250kg plus) then thinking its a motorcrosser, drowning the bike in rivers is also a issue, when you dont clean and check it properly.

 

No Bike is perfect, but the BMW is on a level above others and you pay for that when buying new, after that service costs and parts are reasonable compared to lessor brands and longevity is legendary.

 

Even for  a old bike, just ring BMW and quote you vin number and they will tell you what has and hasn't been done re any parts with a service bulletin, if it hasn't, book it in and its all done free. A good example is the rear disc carrier, Early K1200 models 2005 -2006 had a alloy carrier- which is also part of the inner diff housing, some developed small cracks. BMW replaced them free of charge with a updated forged carrier when serviced and even today can tell if yours has been done and if not- book it in and its all done free- 21 years after the bike left the factory.

 

Would any other bike maker do that?

 

It should be noted the guy in the Video not only got a new shaft but also a new swing arm due to damage caused by the failure. All for free.

 

I will back a BMW over others anyday.

 

 

[Jerry_Atrick]

Thanks for the detailed explanation.. it is really appreciated and clarified things. And I picked up from Mongrel Dog Productions' video that what BMW do in these cases is quite exemplary - life of the bike and no cost to owner for fixing issues  from design flaws is a pretty good thing. 

[facthunter]

It depends on what sort of bike you WANT. All shaft drives have a torque reaction, spline and seals problem, and they are costly and not light weight. Also engine speed clutches aren't as nice as when the clutch runs slower. No bike gearboxes are synchro meshed so the changes can be clunky. Fore to aft crank axis has a Bike reaction  leaning effect and if the engine Locked up you wouldn't be able to stay on it. That illustrates the effect. I'm not saying engine lock ups are common, but they are NOT unknown. Nev

[Litespeed]

Nev,

 

I think you are thinking of the older models of R and K Series bikes.

Since the Paralever models came out in the 90s, the attitude changes are minimal.. successive models have further improved to the point the rear rockin action is no different to a chain bike.

 

From the R1100  and K 1200 model intro they introduced a new telelever front end that almost completely removed the fork dive under brakes and extention under acceleration, combined with the Paralever - dive under brakes or squat is almost nonexistent.

 

Yes I have ridden them and stability with sharp steering are excellent.

 

Come 2005 when my model the K1200R with it's across the frame 4 arrived the front change to a Hossack duolever, which is fork less and has a double wishbone front suspension. It weighs no more than standard forks.

 

With mine it does no dive or have and balance changes under acceleration or braking - just perfect stability- the dive and rise of normal bikes that reduces feel, braking and traction, do not happen at all.

 

Big potholes even midcorner, will not upset my bike, it wont tankslap or high side like a normal chain bike, nor will it run wide. In fact you can be cranked down in a corner, brake hard and avoid obstacles and still stay in your lane.

 

I have ABS and it's like hitting a brick wall when braking hard but perfectly stable. Never ridden anything else that can do that. No dive front or rear happens either accelerating or braking.

 

Unless your on a track , it's renowned as the best suspension for road use in the world- even though it's shaft.

 

They do not have a big weight penalty at all. Compared to any competition with chain for the same market- they are similar.

Mine in fact is very light- only 213 kg for a 1200cc and 170hp and it's a sport tourer.

 

As far as gears go- they are smooth  and the clutch separates the box from engine- so a engine failure locking the box will not happen.

Actually more of a chain bike problem. Only first can be a little clunky to engaged. Worse if you slamm it. I find. my and others easy and smooth.

 

As I have stated, if serviced and shaft is correctly lubed and boots are good then problems are extremely rare.

 

Yes they are shaft but the best system in the world. 

 

So good that many new premium tourers are now copying the front and rear end design.

 

Additional it's far cheaper to own a shaft BMW as mine would have eaten at least $1500 in sprockets and chains by now. Big power bikes eat chains and sprockets like tyres.

 

I hope this helps.

[facthunter]

If the engine Locks up the Momentum of the rotating parts will try to rotate the bike the way the engine was going. You didn't address the engine speed clutch effects. Most bikes have a big reduction from engine speed to  clutch speed. The clutch is on the input shaft to the Gearbox.  Every Modern race bike I know of has the engine rotation at right angles to the Way you are going..  Hard sprockets and "O" or "Z" ring chains last quite a while. Chains absorb much less power than Gears do especially Angle ones and are reliable under race conditions.  No one runs industrial grade  chains on a Motorcycle. You need the best. Nev

[Litespeed]

Nev,

 

Firstly as far as chains go, never did I say use industrial chains.

I am talking top of the line o-ring or Z-ring  chains at $350-450 dollars plus hardened sprockets at $300.

A chain failure can destroy a bike and rider depending on what it hits- seen it heaps of times.

 

Also chains require constant checking and lubing, attract dirt and are very dangerous in a crash. 

I have met several people minus toes and one poor bugger that lost his fingers from crashing a chain drive bike. 

Ask Darryl Beatie how he feels about chains and sprockets- his career was finished.

 

I specifically said for road not track use. Horses of a different breed.

 

Engine rotation torque effects are not a big issue for the twins, which yes are inline drive and run at engine speed for the clutch then through the box, just like every rear drive car does.

 

All the modern  BMW pfour and six models are across the frame, same as jap bikes. I don't see the big issue- it's never been a worry for all those BMW bikes nor the earlier style ones. The slight rockin coupling it a nice character touch not a flaw in the twins.

 

Engine speed reduction is not really a issue as the twins don't rev to the stars. 

 

Lots of older jap bikes had zero clutch reduction.

 

We are talking road not race bikes.

 

As far as engine failures, by far the biggest risk is bikes with combined box and engine that share oil. A motor failure sends metal bits into the box and locks it, given most designs , that means no clutch can be used to unlock the drive.

 

I had this happen on a Ducati mid corner and it certainly tried to kill me.

[facthunter]

Don't worry. But not all bikers see it as you do .The Industrial chains is a common mistake. Lots more Power is lost through gears. That produces HEAT.  Name a jap bike with zero clutch reduction. I don't KNOWof one. It's a  DESIRED feature. Divides the reduction between 2 chains. Keeps the gears (and clutch) operating at lower RsPM.. . Nev

[Jerry_Atrick]

35 minutes ago, Litespeed said:

am talking top of the line o-ring or Z-ring  chains at $350-450 dollars plus hardened sprockets at $300.

far-k!. I had a new chain on the CBF and has done 10,000 miles with twice being tightened.. Yes, I clean it weekly.. And it cost be £90 (about $180). Yes, most of my riding is constant - not much stop start, motorways are fairly "clean", but I have a feeling getting a chain motorcycle in Aus is going to be an expensive habit.

 

I can't remember what the sprockets cost, I think they were closer to the £120 mark. 

Edited 5 hours ago by Jerry_Atrick