(with apologies to Mr. Hayes...)
What's the M/C drive system that seems to put-off some potential buyers?
SHAFT!!!(right on!)
Okay. Figuring I'd get more of a response here in The Lounge(everybody comes here first to belly up to the bar, you know), I wondered after reading a few of the respones in the Other Bike Forum about the coming new 1500cc "Super Bonnie" probably having shaft-drive, why it seems a few of the guys around here would automatically discount purchasing one of them if it came equiped with this sort of drive system.
My take on it in that forum was the following...
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I've noticed a lot of "anti-shaft-drive" sentiment here. Can one of you guys who feels this way explain what your objections are.
Having owned a 1980 Yamaha XS1100(bought new and owned for 15 years), I understand that one objection could be the rear suspension "rise" that some of the older shaft-driven designs had(usually attributed to the swingarm being too short), but most of the newer designs have either a parallelogram-type system(BMW & Motor Guzzi) which cancels this effect, or have longer swingarm/shaft designs which cancels most of this effect.
Shafts are basically very low-maintenance and a very clean way to drive the rear wheel, so I don't quite understand the reluctance here.
I also understand that it's the least "efficient" method of driving the rear wheel, as it takes more of the engine's power to turn it mechanism 90degrees(twice, if the M/C's crank is "across the frame" and not "inline") in order to function(as compared to the more direct chain or belt system), but I would think that the ease of maintenance and the "cleaner" aspect of this type of system would counteract any liability that one could argue against it.
And this new machine IS(evidently) going to be 1500cc in displacement, so I'm thinking any power-loss in a machine this size would be negligibly felt anyway.
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Thoughts anyone???
