2005 Honda ST1300
This was all my brother's fault. One day in October
2005 I was minding my own business and I get a call from Dave.
The conversation went something like this:
He says; "Guess what I'm looking at right now?"
I said, "I don't know, surprise me."
He says; "I'm looking at a 2005 Honda ST1300."
I said, "That's nice."
He says, "No, you don't understand, it's sitting in my driveway!"
Well, my wife, Chris is hearing my conversation with him and then says, "Gee thanks
Dave!" After I hung up, she told me that she is sure I was going to buy one now. I
told her "...nah, I couldn't justify it." Well, after thinking
about it for a few days, I started looking at TraderOnline and eBay. After a few more
days, I started calling on the ads from TraderOnline that advertised 2004 ST1300s (I
really liked the 2004 Blue) and they didn't have any. Then I found that most of the
dealers didn't have any 2005 ST1300s either. I decided to check with a few of the local
Honda dealers, and they didn't have any and told me they couldn't get any 2006s until some
time in January or February. This got me thinking, so I called LA Cycle in Inglewood, and
they said they could get me one for $13,299 out the door. I told them fine I would be
there the day after Thanksgiving to pick it up. When picking it up, I also bought the
extended warranty and total out the door was $13,824.
For that price I couldn't resist! This was $3,100 cheaper then what my brother paid.
So I started counting how much this bike was going to cost me if I was to sell my other
bikes. (I had to promise Chris I would sell them to buy the ST.) So, I figured the $3,100,
then I could get maybe $4,000 for the sell of the bikes, then I was going to save $2,000
because I wouldn't be putting that into the V65 Sabre like I was planning, and believe me
I had a list of stuff! ;-) So, after deducting it all, I would only pay just
over $8,000 for it. That gave me the "justification" for buying it.
It's now the end of October 2006, in one month, it will be one year since I bought it. I
have just enjoyed this bike a lot more than I ever thought I could. When Dave first
started talking about a ST1300, I always looked at them as a SPORTtouring bike instead of
a sportTOURING bike. The bars were too low for me and I just felt like I was on a crotch
rocket since I like to sit upright more then it could offer. After Dave bought his, I
really had to think if I really wanted one or if I wanted to dump $2,000 into my V65
Sabre.
I'm glad I bought the ST. I now have almost 16,000 miles on it and last month (September
2006) Dave and I went on a week long ride. After 2,600 miles in 8 days, and I was ready
for more. That's just something I couldn't have done on my V65 Sabre.
Farkles that I have added so far:
|
Heli Bar Extenders, which help so I'm not bending over the tank so much - | Cost: $180 |
|
Vista Cruise Control & Drag Specialties Foam Grips The grips were fun getting on. |
$25 $20 |
 |
Hondaline Top Case/Trunk - Chris let me get this for my Christmas present...(-: I got it from: http://cruiserbackrest.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=204 | $499 |
 |
Convex Mirrors | $5 |
 |
Center Tank Pad | $40 |
 |
Frame Protectors - I had to order these from a guy in the UK! The link to where I got it: | ~$30 |
 |
Russell Day Long Saddle | $800 |
| V12 Power Outlet | $55 | |
| Quarter Harness | $30? | |
| Side Marker Lights | $20 | |
| Rear Reflectors | $21 | |
| MotorCycle Larry Highway Wings | $220 | |
| Driving Lights | $20 | |
| Tankbag with Autocom and CD player | $300 | |
 |
Helmet Holder/Lock under the TopCase/Rack | $35 |
| Trunk Light | $10 | |
| Saddlebag Liners | $35 | |
| Headlight Protector | $25 | |
Farkles That I may add on at sometime
|
Mirror Air Deflectors, now that I added the Heli Bar extendors, I'll need these to direct the air up a little more. | Cost: $120 |
|
Fairing Air Deflectors | $130
|
 |
Saddelebag Scuff Pads | $50 |
 |
Knee Pads | $50 |
