Completely torn now!!! What have I done?

So I currently own a 2008 F800ST with 6600 miles, which I love riding around town, but is just okay for longer trips (long days up to 3 day trips).It's supposed to be a sport touring bike but seems to be 90% sport, 10% touring. I have been eyeing the R1150RTs for a while now and finally went to test ride one at a local shop. I was worried about the height and weight of it considering I'm only 5'7". Of course I totally fell in love with it! It's handled great, had great protection and was awesomely comfortable. After haggling with the dealer though, the numbers just didn't work out right (the bike was 04 with 61,000). Anyways, so now I'm looking at a more touring setup and looking for pros and cons of different bikes.

My list includes:

BMW R1150RT (or 1200)

Honda ST1100 or 1300

Concourse 1000 (know the 14 but not the 1000)

FJR 1300- (see a lot for sale and not sure if that's a good thing or bad thing and not sure if I like the front look)

Triumph Sprint (older version pre-05)

Like I said, all advice welcome. Just trying to make the best decision Thanks in advance!

You will love the Triple.

You should check out the Moto Guzzi Norge as well. Very similar to the RT, but with a more engaging/fun (IMO) motor.

OH great! Thanks for the addition. I dont know much about that one so it will be an interesting research session. Thanks for the help.

Was that the 1100 or 1300?

I have owned a Triumph Sprint ST955i, and i loved the bike. But if you think the F800ST is to sporty, dont bother with the Sprint.
Maybe Suzuki Bandit 1200/1250 is more your cup of tee?

Tom, I actually test rode a brand new Sprint ST when I was debating the BMW. Dealer had both and was going to give me a really good deal on the Triumph but it was a wee bit too tall and the stock position was too much weight on my wrists. I had to do so many things to the Wee that I was trading in, that I didn't want to have to do a lot. I really like the 955 over the 1050 in looks and feel. I love the Sprint also but I think you're right, not much different between the two.

Doc, I don't think you can go wrong with a Conny, they are great bikes.

I also think you could find an older K bike that would be cheaper and run like the wind, 91 - 95, I have an 89 RS, like you said great for sport, not so much for touring, although there are lots that do tour on them. RT is good, price is good. I have a 100, but they claim the 75 is smoother and produces less heat.

Great more bikes. But I like older ones better and BMW has great parts inventory.

I realy like those Bandit 1250, very good alrounder upraised bars and a very good engin.
It may not look impressiv on paper with 1250cc with only 98HP and 105NM, but it delivers the power wher its most needed for normal riding between 1500 and 7000RPM.

Thats a sharp looking bike! I had really thought about them but will definitely look into it! Thanks Tom!

You may want to look at the R1150RS and maybe the Triumph Trophy 900/1200's as well. The Bandit 1250 isn't a bad suggestion either. I agree the Sprint RS is quite sporty like your current ride, slots in there with the VFR's as well.

The 1200RT is supposed to be better in almost every way than the 1100/1150RT's but I haven't ridden a 1200 at all. I've only done one short test ride on an 1150 and it wasn't for me, was more than happy to get back on my RS.

Is is the wind protection or ergo's bother you, seat...?

ST1100 is a good bike, a very known quantity and one I nearly bought myself. It's heavy and generates enough heat to bother some, but not others. Old tech in a sense being carb'd. Basically bullet proof as long as you get one with the upgraded charging system, some had swing arm rust issues.

ST1300, offers EFI, IMO much better looks. Definately a big bike but not tons more bike than some of the others you are considering.

R1150RT, lighter than most the ST rigs, with less power(but being you rode one, you know it's not a pooch, and it's good grunty useable power). Valve train is easy to get to, clutch and final drive work could be in ones future, just make sure if you get one it's got records and isn't leaking anything anywhere, no play in the rear wheel.

FJR1300, some had valve train issues(I forget specifics) "tickers" I believe they were called, something with the guides maybe....Just the same, a good bike with EFI, not crazy heavy and easy to maneuver. Another I've nearly owned several times. Just never had the finances line up with the right bike.

You said you know the C14 but not the C10? The 10 is carb'd and not much more expensive than a loaf of bread. It's one you could likely buy and keep the bmw too in all honesty. Some complain about vibes, it's supposed to get valve adjustments more frequently than some, but I've got a feeling alot of people stretch them out as it's not talked about a whole lot. Very old design, also a very big following as it does check alot fo boxes for some. Cheap, powerful, shaft drive, good amount of storage and wind protection.

I ended up with a Trophy 1200 it's lighter than many of the ST rigs at the expense of not having shaft drive, or a stereo or anything of that nature. No extra electronics to speak of, and it's carb'd as well. For me it's plenty powerful and it's smooth with pretty good ergo's with my risers and aftermarket seat. Biggest selling point for me was I picked it up dirt cheap and I'm a stingy bastard with a wife who doesn't appreciate what I spend one bikes all that much.

This is all kind of anectodal as I don't have first hand experience with all of them, some not enough to be a fair judge I guess. But I have done alot of research on this segment and thought maybe some of the info would help.

The list you have looks like it will put you solidly into Touring class, but what about the around town and afternoon joy rides? A faired 700 lb bike wouldn't be my 1st choice for everyday riding. Just wondering if you are going too far to the touring side. Guess it depends on how many tours you do every year.

If you're limited to one bike, perhaps something between the F800ST and a full-blown touring bike would be closer to an all-rounder.

R1200R
R1200GS
Tiger 800
990 SMT
DL1000

CBF1000.....

The fj's have been one hell of a reliable bike. they do there job extremely well and smooth..
I have seen some for a ridiculous low price with under 15k miles.
I would buy the RT but thats just because i love a twin for the area i ride in and i just love TWINS.

If you want a new bike, that's great and I understand. But you rode 6600 miles in 5 years so it doesn't seem like you do very many long weekend trips....just saying.

New bike lust can be a powerful thing just be sure to be honest to yourself. Been there, done that.

Good luck.

Actually I bought the bike in 2010 with 600 miles on it so I put 6k in it in 2.5 years. May not be much to some but considering I live 4 miles from work, its enough!

The Aprilia Futura is a great sport touring bike. After my long-term ownership of a BMW R1100RS, the Futura felt like a sports car. It does everything better than the beemer, and it is much lighter than many of the ST bikes people suggest - Honda STs, FJRs, C14s, RTs, etc. Futuras are available inexpensively and have a bulletproof engine. There are some problems, as with anything, and the great AF1 Racing Aprilia forum can answer all questions. I love this bike!

Interestingly, I find my F800ST only OK to ride around town, but I love it on long trips. If you have a 4 mile commute, then you may want to optimize for the ease of parking (i.e., stick with a light, low bike). As some others have mentioned, the Sprint is probably more sporty than what you want, and the big sport touring rigs may be too heavy for a 4 mile commute. How does the F800ST fail you on long trips? Perhaps this can be fixed.

The Aprilia is A good looking and probebly a great bike to ride, but if he thinks the BMW800ST is to sporty riding posistion, then the Aprilia will fail for him to.
It sounds like he whants a more upraised posisition.
If he whants somthing smalish sport touring, i think he has to look at kawa Z1000sx,yama FZ1,SUZ 1200 or honda CBF1000 . But if he whants a sport touring with 70% touring and 30% sport then the C14,FJR13,ST and RT is the direction to look.

Please don't get me wrong, I love the bike but I find that the angle of my knees really starts to bother me after about 4 hours. Its probably due to the surgeries, but I don't remember them hurting that bad on my Weestrom even after 3 days. I'm actually starting to consider just keeping the ST for town and in a year or two just getting a different one for longer trips. With my career, it just depends on where I get stationed next.