I got my M696 around 3 weeks ago, but wasn't able to ride it because I'm still recovering from a broken left wrist and broken right leg. But over the last few days, I finally took her out. I also need to state this is my first motorcyle. I've only ridden Vespas up till I bought this. My only experience with a MC was at MSF.
How did my first 100 miles go? I stalled many times as expected. :-[ If any of you live in SF, you may have seen me holding up traffic a couple of times. I initially went to an empty parking lot and just practiced stop and go. After building some confidence, I hit the streets of San Francisco. Man, is this a fun bike to ride! Sunday, I stalled a few times and today, I did once because I was just being dumb. But luckily, I didn't cause any accidents and pulled off with only some warmth flushing over my face.
There was a thread about if this bike is too much for a newbie and I can only reflect upon my own experience. I think the power can be a bit intimidating, but once I got used to controlling the throttle it isn't really that bad. I'm sure some of my riding experience with scooters may have helped, but I think anyone can select a M696 as their first bike IF they have good control.
Overall, I am having a blast and I'm glad the weather's holding up for me to take my new ride out to chalk up some experience before Spring. On a scale of 1 - 10, I'm just geeking out too much to be on this small scale. ;D
That's great shit, man, new puppies and new motorcycles, to me nothing else comes close. Ride safe[moto]
Glad to hear it's going well! [thumbsup]
Congrats. Riding the SF streets are definitely jumping directly into the fire, but glad it went well. It's nice not have to keep as much an eye on wet Muni tracks as you do with your scooter. Head to the Presidio or the parking lot by the ballpark to practice emergency braking and swerving. You'll need it to avoid the crackheads. ;)
We'll see you at a meet-up soon or on a ride. [thumbsup]
Thanks! I'd love to ride with all of ya soon! [thumbsup] I'll keep practicing in the meantime to hone my skills and not hold everyone up.
It won't be long before you are cursing cars and flippin' people off, just like the rest of us. Just be safe and keep a level head.
Congrats... I switched from a JAP bike and find the Monster 696 to be an easier and a better bike to learn riding on. I had my Yamaha for a few months and got the M696... the clutch is a million times better (IMHO).
Enjoy and be safe...
Sounds very familiar. I got my 696 about 2 weeks ago, and I had a HUGE problem with stalling when I first got the bike. Then the friendly and helpful people here told me to give it more throttle as I let out the clutch. That made such a difference!! ;D
Enjoy [thumbsup]
Quote from: Rambler1982 on November 12, 2008, 05:58:32 AM
Sounds very familiar. I got my 696 about 2 weeks ago, and I had a HUGE problem with stalling when I first got the bike. Then the friendly and helpful people here told me to give it more throttle as I let out the clutch. That made such a difference!! ;D
Enjoy [thumbsup]
Yup! I also read that here, too! Once I got over the fear factor of gunning it too hard, I began to juice it a bit more to avoid the stalls. My last was just more of a mental lapse error.
Funny, Spidey. You mentioned practicing at the parking lot by the ballpark (within blocks of where I live) and the big Presidio lot. Those are the 2 areas I was practicing at. ;D
Quote from: psycledelic on November 11, 2008, 07:27:10 PM
It won't be long before you are cursing cars and flippin' people off, just like the rest of us. Just be safe and keep a level head.
lol, that's awesome. I had to do that last night as this wonderful person decided that right in front of me, on a completely empty road, was the time to turn out [bang] ! Be careful, have fun and keep an eye out on everyone else...........................all the time.
don't worry about stalling. we all do it once in a while. you get used to just restarting.
hell, i stalled out yest in the parking lot at work and fell over.
Quote from: KnightofNi on November 12, 2008, 09:12:08 AM
don't worry about stalling. we all do it once in a while. you get used to just restarting.
hell, i stalled out yest in the parking lot at work and fell over.
Thanks, I feel better now. I was starting to wonder when/if I would ever go without a stall. Sorry about your falling over. Hope there wasn't too much damage.
[thumbsup] You'll get the hang of it. I'm doing my first 20+ mile ride on Friday with a buddy of mine. I take my bike around but only do short trips to run errands, etc. This should be interesting.
I've stalled out a few times when I first got my 696 as well. I'm over it now.
I stalled three times on the way to work today. Damn, my bike's been cold blooded lately. :-\
If they honk at you for stalling, split up next to them at the next light and get their attention. Then rub your nipples and gyrate like you're bonkers. That'll learn 'em real good. [evil]
Quote from: Spidey on November 12, 2008, 12:20:41 PM
I stalled three times on the way to work today. Damn, my bike's been cold blooded lately. :-\
If they honk at you for stalling, split up next to them at the next light and get their attention. Then rub your nipples and gyrate like you're bonkers. That'll learn 'em real good. [evil]
[laugh] Thanks for the tip! I usually just look down at my bike like what happened? :-[ Okay, I thought stalling was a newb thing so I'm kinda glad to hear it still happens occasionally to seasoned riders.
Happens to everyone once in a while. Be careful about giving it too much gas, she will surprise you off the line if you do!
And it doesn't help at all that your friction zone is way the hell out there at the very end of the lever and only a millimeter thick!
Adjustable levers are the ticket. I was messing around with my Pazzo's. Obviously depending on where you have it set to, the friction zone changes.
You guys raise a good point about the levers. I contemplated getting adjustable levers, but thought maybe I just wasn't used to the clutch yet.
On another note, I don't know if this is the norm. My low fuel light came on so I fueled up. Took a little over 2 gals. After 60+ miles, it came on again. Does that sound about right? My riding has been a mix of city and freeway riding. I'm not revving it hard since I'm still in the break in period.
30mpg is a little low compared to most Monsters, but not impossible. The question is, why does your light come on after only 2 gallons? Is the tank really that small? I thought the range on my 695 sucked.....
Adjustable levers are the best!.....especially if you have small hands.
Once I got adjustable levers, I never stalled my bike.....or maybe it's just cause I got a little more experience on the bike.
I really only stalled 4 times in over 2 years.
Quote from: mmakay on November 12, 2008, 01:56:04 PM
30mpg is a little low compared to most Monsters, but not impossible. The question is, why does your light come on after only 2 gallons? Is the tank really that small? I thought the range on my 695 sucked.....
I get 45-50mpg on my S2R-1000
I manage about 35-40 MPG on my S2R1000 (mostly city). Even if you were really thrashing the 696, 30MPG seems pretty low.
Quote from: sfarchie on November 12, 2008, 12:26:38 PM
[laugh] Thanks for the tip! I usually just look down at my bike like what happened? :-[ Okay, I thought stalling was a newb thing so I'm kinda glad to hear it still happens occasionally to seasoned riders.
Makes me feel better too. People behind you expect you to take off 0.0001 sec after light turns green.
I'm gonna call the dealer and ask about the mileage. It surprised me as well to see the light come on so quickly.
I'm fairly sure I'll get the adjustable levers. I'll give myself a little more time with the stock levers and gaining more experience. I'm sure the latter is more the culprit than the levers.
Maybe the low mileage is due to the extra throttle you've been using to keep from stalling? [cheeky]
^^sounds like a good plan.
You need to put more miles on to get a more accurate idea about fuel mileage. Average out a few tanks.
Quote from: msincredible on November 13, 2008, 02:28:13 AM
Maybe the low mileage is due to the extra throttle you've been using to keep from stalling? [cheeky]
^^sounds like a good plan.
You're probably right! [laugh] And the fact I love the sound may contribute to some subliminal messages telling my right hand to twist more. [thumbsup]
Quote from: sfarchie on November 12, 2008, 01:47:25 PM
You guys raise a good point about the levers. I contemplated getting adjustable levers, but thought maybe I just wasn't used to the clutch yet.
On another note, I don't know if this is the norm. My low fuel light came on so I fueled up. Took a little over 2 gals. After 60+ miles, it came on again. Does that sound about right? My riding has been a mix of city and freeway riding. I'm not revving it hard since I'm still in the break in period.
I got the Pazzos, and I love them... helps with both clutch and brake control. It's great to have the friction zone right where you want it. It helped immensely on slow-speed maneuvering.
On my 696, I usually get about 130 miles from a full tank to where my fuel light comes on. When I fill it, It takes a hair less than 3 gallons. Are you filling up right to the collar, or are you jamming the filler nozzle down as far as it'll go? In any case, 30mpg seems really low.
I'm getting about 150 mpg on my M696. I usually fill 2.8 gallons back in. This has been consistent for the last 4 fills. I'm usually riding at 5 to 6 K rpm.
Quote from: Binary on November 13, 2008, 08:55:29 AM
I'm getting about 150 mpg on my M696.
Ah . . . I don't think so. ;) [laugh]
Quote from: Binary on November 13, 2008, 08:55:29 AM
I'm getting about 150 mpg on my M696.
I wish I got half that. ;)
Quote from: Spidey on November 13, 2008, 08:58:59 AM
Ah . . . I don't think so. ;) [laugh]
I think he's getting off and pushing. not fair.
Quote from: Takster on November 13, 2008, 08:41:16 AM
I got the Pazzos, and I love them... helps with both clutch and brake control. It's great to have the friction zone right where you want it. It helped immensely on slow-speed maneuvering.
On my 696, I usually get about 130 miles from a full tank to where my fuel light comes on. When I fill it, It takes a hair less than 3 gallons. Are you filling up right to the collar, or are you jamming the filler nozzle down as far as it'll go? In any case, 30mpg seems really low.
I checked and saw it fill up to the collar. I went to see the dealer and he said 30 mpg doesn't sound right. Well, I put on another 50 miles today and so far no light. I'm a little more careful about my throttling to see if it makes a diff. He thinks I should easily get around 120, so it's around the ballpark of what you're getting. I am riding through a lot of hills, so I'm sure that'll drop it a bit but not to 30 mpg.
I'll keep an eye on it and will let everyone how many miles I get on this tank.
Keep in mind the motor is still breaking in, which is not ideal for mileage.
Quote from: somebastid on November 13, 2008, 02:19:43 PM
Keep in mind the motor is still breaking in, which is not ideal for mileage.
This makes sense. My mileage did improve a bit, albeit a little. I was able to squeeze out 84 miles this time around. I attribute the improvement to the motor breaking in, me getting used to it, and avoiding the jack rabbit starts (when I didn't stall). :P
Quote from: sfarchie on November 14, 2008, 02:56:43 PM
This makes sense. My mileage did improve a bit, albeit a little. I was able to squeeze out 84 miles this time around. I attribute the improvement to the motor breaking in, me getting used to it, and avoiding the jack rabbit starts (when I didn't stall). :P
That still sounds waaaay off. I have put about 3000 miles on my 696 and on average, I am looking at about 130-145 miles between fill ups. And that's with a consistent mix of highway and around town riding. You should be getting anywhere around 40-50 miles per gallon depending on where and how you are riding. If you said you squeezed out 84 miles between fill-ups, you're getting around 28 mpg...not good.
Quote from: dutchy73 on November 14, 2008, 04:26:53 PM
That still sounds waaaay off. I have put about 3000 miles on my 696 and on average, I am looking at about 130-145 miles between fill ups. And that's with a consistent mix of highway and around town riding. You should be getting anywhere around 40-50 miles per gallon depending on where and how you are riding. If you said you squeezed out 84 miles between fill-ups, you're getting around 28 mpg...not good.
Sorry, I wasn't clear. The 84 miles is based off around 2 gals, so it's around average.
Not to continue boring everyone, but I didn't stall once tonight! Okay, I know this is only a big deal to me, but now I feel ready to take my training wheels off! [thumbsup]