Looks like something you would find in a field or farmyard —
but works very well on the road —
and plus the fact that Pirelli do a 15inch x 150 rear especially for the X-ADV750 —
makes fitment a no-brainer —
on my Big Scoot!
Category Archives: Honda X-ADV 750
A Lap from the Gods on the X-ADV750
Any day is a motorcyling day but Sundays always have that extra buzz. Yesterday was no exception. I set out mid-morning and as the polis would say ‘I proceeded in a westerly direction’ – by St Fillans and the north bank of Loch Earn.
With wet roads and temperatures between three and six degrees – feeling like minus 3 – 6 – but nae mind as the watery sun was reflecting off a few of the snow capped mountains to brighten up the day..
When I reached Lochearnhead – north looked the most favourable – so off I popped up Glen Ogle where the snow-melt waters were rushing down the hillsides in foaming white torrents. One in particular dropping hundreds of feet down the hillside and through the arches of the old railway viaduct was really spectacular.
A glimpse of Ben Lawers poking into the clouds caught my eye from the top of Glen Ogle so there was nothing else for it other than to swing right at Lix-toll and head due east for Loch Tay and Aberfeldy.
First there were the tumultuous Falls of Dochert thundering under the bridge by the hotel of the same name on the outskirts of Killin. I have never seen the waters looking so dangerous and I actually had thoughts about the wisdom of crossing the bridge with the river in the state it was.
Through Killin and down the side of Loch Tay with glimpses of a snow covered Ben Lawers in the clouds above and to the left were next on the menu. This section was made more interesting when a hot-hatch appeared from somewhere behind with the driver seeming intent on taking my rear number plate home with him. No worries – the Big Scoot has an equally big twin motor from the Honda NC750 and can show a clean pair of heels when it needs to.
Kenmore was next with hardly a soul in sight and by the time I reached Aberfeldy I was ready for food. There wasn’t much choice of cafe’s so I plumped for one in the main square.
The complicated menu didn’t endear itself to me and the prices at £4.50 for a bacon roll seemed over the top – but I WAS hungry and ready to order. That was when a group of young wimmen all screeching in what seemed to be more than animated conversation at the top of their voices wedged themselves in the open doorway and didn’t look like moving. The polis who come down on motor-cyclists with noisy after-market exhausts would have had a field day with that lot with their noise meters going off the scale!
Time to beat a hasty retreat! I grabbed my heavy jaikit n crash helmet n squeezed out past the still shrieking females into the street while I still had my hearing.
With clobber on I selected ‘Home’ setting and high-tailed it out of town on the road south by the Birks of Aberfeldy. Maybe I should have put my earplugs in and shovelled something hot into my tank for the weather turned nasty after that – but at least there was a sort of black strip of tarmac between the roadside snowbanks.
Onwards and upwards into more weather – then down through the Sma’ Glen to Gilmerton where I hung a right for Crieff. It seemed like no time at all and I was home in Comrie – roughly on the hundred mile mark – for my first cup of tea and sarnie of the day,
Okay – so there are no photos due to the battery in my phone playing up but it does take me back to the days when I actually wrote about something instead of taking the easy way out and succumbing to the senseless modern saying – ‘One photograph is worth a thousand words.’
A Lap of Loch Earn on the X-ADV750
It’s been a pretty full on day but I did manage to swing the leg over the Big Scoot in the late afternoon. With light fading pictures weren’t going to be that great but I did think that top of a snow-covered Ben Vorlich glistening in the setting sun would have come out better than it did.
Ben Vorlich – at over 3000ft qualifies as a Monroe and I have been to the top quite a few times in all weathers in the past – little wonder my knees are worn out. The walk in starts more or less from where the Scoot is parked and gets steeper by the time you hit the snowline but it is still regarded as one of the easier Monroes to climb.
Out of shot to the west is Stuc a Croin another Monroe and I’ve bagged them both in a day with my daughter and my elder brother along for company. In the patchy snow near the summit of Stuc a Croin is where I saw my first ptarmigan. Slightly bigger than a grouse the ptarmigan changes the colour of it’s plumage to merge with snow or vegetation as the seasons progress and must be one of the hardiest birds in the country to survive on the mountain tops in winter. I had a photograph of it somewhere but that was a long time ago and there has been a lot of water under the bridge since then.
Still on the subject of wildlife I keep bumping into wild goats on the south side of the River Earn and Loch Earn. I had never heard of them being there and can only imagine they are part of an Estate herd that have been allowed to run feral. There is a big Billy Goat with enormous horns and the sight of him makes me wish I still carried a decent camera. M-mmm — just a thought — I have a birthday coming up this month – who knows – I might be lucky.
A Ride in the Sunshine on the X-ADV750
Still building confidence with the Honda X-ADV750 – what is the clutch lever on a normal bike actually operates the rear brake on this odd fella.
After a lifetime of doing it one way – my head – limbs n digits have to reaquaint themselves with something different. Doing a ‘U’ turn from a standing start from where she is parked in the pic with the wheels sliding on assorted gravel proved tricky but do-able.
Knockhill Race Circuit was my destination as I haven’t been there for years. I was very impressed with the changes they have made around there since my last visit and a pair of Honda race cars doing laps added a soundtrack on an otherwise quiet day.
With the mountains behind Crieff white with snow and the road surface barely above freezing despite the brilliant sunshine – the Big Scoot and I were in Touring mode as we picked our way over the hills and through the valleys.
Tractors have come on a pace since I last drove one. I started on a petrol start – then switch to cheaper paraffin once she had warmed up – Fordson tractor towing a single or double furrow plow at the age of sixteen. This fella has a reversible five furrow job behind his 4 wheel drive beauty.
I reckon this must be Kinkell Bridge – north of Auchterarder —
I once did a series on old bridges down in Wales – couldn’t get enough of them and there were never two the same. This time it appears to be deserted churches that catch my eye. The ruins of this one are spread far and wide with this being the only section with a roof —
Looks like Burke & Hare have been busy around here —
They have made room for a few more bodies though —
I think I would rather have a solid stone roof over my head than draughty ornate windows in my tomb —
A great day out on the X-ADV and all being well —
the first of many.
First ride of the Year for X-ADV750
First ride this year for the Big Scoot and I’m pleased to say everything went well. The weather threw everything it could at us – rain – hail n sleet plus the usual shit n snotters that come with flooded roads. Yep she just lapped everything up and if she’d had a full tank of juice I’m pretty sure we would still be out there yet.
No worries – she has earned her ‘Streetfighter’ badge this morning and I’m looking forward to Wednesday when we have been promised some better weather.- yes the old bones prefer a bit of sunshine instead of this crap that we are getting at the mo’.
CRF 250 Rally Still Rolling
The robust Rally seems non-the-worse for it’s tumble during a snow storm on top of Glen Ogle a couple of weeks back – pity we can’t say the same for it’s rider.
No worries – so long as I don’t have to raise my arms above my aching shoulders I can still make something of the odd bit of sunshine with the Rally —
The X-ADV750 is also back on the road complete with the new sidestand which arrived by post this morning and was fitted in a jiff —
Lying under the bike between snow showers out on the patio behind the house – lining the new leg up and bolting it tight proved to be easier than I expected. The tiny spigot that locates in a hole in the leg pivot boss to operate the engine cut-out switch isn’t the easiest thing in the world to match up – but where there’s a will there’s a way.
The original sidestand became banana shaped a little too easy for my liking so that’s something I will need to keep an eye on in the future. Hopefully we will get a few decent days soon and perhaps have the opportunity to ‘gel’ with the big Scoot for it has been a bit of a hit and miss of a relationship since it first arrived back in September 2019.
Honda ADV750 Comes Home
With Zero degrees registering on the dash and visibility down to not-a-lot due to a stubborn Scotch Mist up here in the hills the Yeti with trailer was the weapon of choice and I hi-ho’d into Glasgow to pick our ADV750 from the supplying main dealer where it has been for it’s first service. The Service didn’t take long but our decision to fit Helen’s 45/46 litre Givi topbox to the scoot put the Givi people on the spot as it seems they didn’t have the neccessary ironmongery to allow the job to procceed.
No worries – a neat fitment eventually turned up and we are pleased to confirm our joint concerns that the slim rear of the ADV might be overwhelmed by the biggish box have come to nought. No pics as yet of the box fitted but I’m sure the sun will shine sometime soon. In the meantime here’s one of the front end sporting a beat-up pair of Acerbis handguards which graced the bars of my XT600E on many a mad exploit over hill and dale from Shropshire to the Cardigan Bay coast back in the Noughty Nineties —
And – I’m afraid you will have to watch this spot for a photo of the ADV with box on the back. With the high pillion footpegs it was always going to be a lottery whether H stayed on board when I gave the 750 the berries but hopefully there’s no chance of her disappearing over the back now we have the Givi topbox bolted in there tight.
Having the bikes by the back door gives me that eager feeling again that Spring is just around the corner.
Toberonochy sur Mer
Toberonochy sur Mer – taking liberties with the name I know but we are still in the European Union at least till the end of the month so let’s givit a shout.
There are two villages on the Isle of Luing – Cullipool on the west coast which – like ourselves here at Bardrishaig – is exposed to all the ‘weather’ you could imagine and Toberonochy on the east which provides a sheltered anchorage.
I had planned to make the most of a sunny afternoon and take a few photos of picturesque Toberonochy which – along with a few other useful things – houses our small cinema in it’s village hall – but – as the bold Rabbie was fond of saying – ‘the best laid plans of mice and men gan aft aglae’ – or sum such like.
On this occasion it was the battery in my phone that gave up the ghost after two pics! We may just have had the last sunny day of the year but with a lump of the Isle of Shuna in the background at least the ADV750 got into shot.
Sun shines on the X-ADV750
A good thing about having a Maritime climate – weather comes in bursts – one minute it’s raining as if trying to drown you – next it’s sunshine! It does mean you need to be ready for every occasion so a brief burst of sunshine between downpours had me out in the yard with the camera trying to make the most of it.
They say that ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder’ and this lil beauty works for me. All that was needed was a touch of watery sunlight —
Not for a moment did I think I would go down the Automatic route in motorcycling but that’s what we have here. A dual clutch system means that gears can be selected automatically and she does it quite well. A choice of ‘Drive’ or ‘Sport’ modes alters the rev-band that the gear changes are made at. All I can say is that it does it well .. any momentary lapse can be easily overcome by a finger or thumb brush of the handlebar mounted manual switches giving further control of the up/down gear ratios. Changing down with the thumb or up with the fore-finger becomes second-nature in jig time.
Did I mention the handbrake? There she is on the side of the headlight nacelle – easy to miss but very neccessary. Unlike ‘normal’ geared bikes which can be left in gear to lock the rear wheel when on the sidestand on a downslope such as the waiting ramp for our ferry – this automatic scoot clicks into neutral when switched off.
The handbrake has it’s own caliper hung from the swingarm and acts on the rear disc. I did say it was easy to miss and I confess I have tried to ride off on a couple of occasions with the brake still engaged!
The Honda X-ADV750 is a far cry from the pre-war 1937 Ariel Colt my grandfather sent down to our farm cottage home in the Scottish Border as a first bike for my big brother to ride when I was still at school.
I may have been well under legal age but it wasn’t long before I nicked a ride when bro’ Jim was at work and I was soon wrestling with a three-speed hand operated gearchange fitted up on the side of the petrol tank. There were also inverted handlebar mounted clutch and brake levers plus additional levers for throttle – choke and magneto advance/retard all to be mastered. Riding safely didn’t figure high on that list.
Granpa Wright – little did you know that you had kicked off a love for two wheels that has been with me ever since.
Honda X-ADV 750
The new Scoot on our block.
She may look a bit like an electric milk float from head on – but – those angry-eye type headlights tell a different story.
Underneath the plastic she is all motorbike – until you get to the rear wheel which for sum sad reason is a 15 incher! The ADV is generally based on Honda’s NC750 motorcycle which also carries it’s fuel under the seat and what looks like a fuel tank twixt rider’s knees is in fact a luggage compartment. The swingarm has been lengthened on the ADV in comparison and coupled with the smallish diameter rear wheel thus allows for provision of a reasonable sized luggage compartment under the seat without restricting suspension travel.
To be honest I don’t even think about the size of the rear wheel when I’m riding – until of course it’s diminutive diameter exaggerates the surface ripples and minor potholes that a bigger diameter wheel would ride over. For the un-initiated a roadgoing motorcycle rear tyre is usually 17 inch and experienced off-roaders will have an 18 inch dia wheel in there wherever possible..
But that is the only ‘scooter’ type aspect of the bike – the way she spins up on the gravel in the yard and picks her way up our rough old farm track that is more suited to the local farmer’s four-wheel drive tractors is a revelation!
I did have my concerns about the amount of electrics at play with this machine – that dash for instance can do everything except cook my breakfast but then I can be quite fussy when it comes to the main meal of the day.
My morning ride into Oban for coffee and newspaper was carried out in torrential – and I mean TORRENTIAL rain showers and she never missed a beat. Looks like Mr Honda has got things right in that department.
Despite flooded roads I was a few minutes early for the ferry on my return leg – this lil scoot can be deceptive over a distance and what feels like a steady ride tells a different story on the clock. Yes she covers the ground without fuss much quicker than expected.
While the bike was getting most of my attention on the ramp it was a different story once aboard the good ship Belnahua on the crossing. The Cuan Sound appeared to be full of dolphins with two separate schools making their way through! It was quite a sight but the rain ensured my phone/camera stayed safely in the dry in my ‘man-bag’ under the seat.
So the morning two-hour dry spell promised by the weather forecasters didn’t happen – but – I’m not made of sugar and didn’t melt in the wet.
If I had been really worried about getting wet I would have taken a tip from our Seamus and spent the morning curled up on the couch in the dry.
from-a-distance 