M1100 in Arizona

[Desertbilly]

New M1100Abs in Scottsdale. As you can see, I got the IoM 78 skins. After one ride home, I love it. Time to start thinking about changing the exhaust, and maybe adding a tooth to the rear sprocket. I bought from GoAZ, and feel like I got a fine deal. My other ride is a R1200GS Adv.

[somegirl]

Welcome and congrats on the M1100, looks great!

Glad to hear you are loving it, keep us posted on your updates.

When you get a chance, also stop by and introduce yourself to your local board, AZDRA.

Have fun! [moto]

[Desertbilly]

I've snuck in a couple of hundred miles in the past 10 days, late at night and in the mornings to avoid the July heat. After that brief taste, I thought I'd share a few initial thoughts.

This bike is a lot of fun.

I really like that it's small and light. I'm not small, 6'2"/185/34IS, and haven't done any twisties yet, but this feels like a think-and-turn bike. Almost any serious committment of my back and shoulders, and this bike is lunging into a turn. I think it's going to be more nimble and surgical than I was expecting.

I zeroed the susension in to the owner's manual settings plus a hair of compression, and it's very good. I might ease off the front compression a bit, but it's a great balance between comfortable and controllable so far.

I like the skins, and they're getting great feedback from others (although they may just being polite.)

I need to find a more comfortable seating position. It's not bad, but after 45 minutes, certain parts need relief from tankslide. It's not that bad, so I'm confident I'll work something out.

My intuition is that I need knee pads on the tank for grip, but I don't want to put anything over the beautiful retro paint.

The riding ergonomics are good, even though I'm a bit tall for the bike.

I can't decide about pipes.

I'm inclined to gear it down a tooth, so I can get out of third gear, but I'm reluctant to lose the speedometer accuracy, whatever that may be.

I love the feel of the engine. It's a great balance between lumpy and lusty, and smooth and modern. I'm surprised how much I like the feel of the engine.

[Raux]

ok a couple of comments for you help

if you gear down, ie go to a 14 tooth sprocket or up in the rear, you won't change the speedo. it runs off the brake bolts on the rear. and most of the ducati speedos measure 8-9% lower as per the manual.

there is some clear tank grip rubbers out there if you look. but try sliding your butt back more on the seat and grabbing the tank with your knees more. ie don't ride it like a dirt bike.

the skins you have are the first i've seen that make the red/black frame look good.

oh.. and welcome