I realised after a few 4-5 hour rides that this motorcycle was nowhere near the touring comfort of my Yamaha FZ-S.
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Having bought the CB300R in a sudden spike of impulse and rage over Yamaha’s nightmarish service, I realised months later that I had totally overlooked/was ignorant of some of the absolute basics. To cut down on long sentences and make it an easy read, I will discuss all the points in the bulleted form below. It is important to include some points to have better context on what I look for and how I am as a rider.
- I was mostly ignorant of the types of motorcycles at the time of purchase, and what they are supposed to do. Adventure Tourer is a genre that I had heard and seen, but didn’t know much in detail. Again. I’m not overly bothered about on-paper specifications. If it makes me happy on a daily basis, it’s a good bike.
- Having had the opportunity to be on the road for considerable periods owing to my work (Doesn’t REQUIRE me to travel by motorcycle, but I chose to do it anyway), it was paramount for my motorcycle to have decent touring capabilities.
- I am quite skinny by build, so big, heavy bikes never really appealed to me. Neither does track performance. Considering 90% of the rides are about nimbly manoeuvring through daily city traffic, stray animals and an overwhelming number of idiots on the road, getting out of tricky parking spots, etc., I am more inclined to a practical daily bike which gives me a fair number of options and flexibility. I was greatly swayed by the weight of the CB. From the FZ-S v3.0, it was like upgrading to a doubly powerful bike with the same weight. The little test ride just blew me away in those 10-15 minutes honestly.
- I thought with a 300cc, my touring ability would be upgraded greatly, especially with a light, nimble-footed frame and such beautiful refinement. I didn’t know much about riding characteristics, other than three basic postures, and I didn’t at all find any committedness on the seating posture at the CB during the test ride.
- Touring ability, lightweight and slick manoeuvrability being paramount, I bought the CB assuming it was a perfect upgrade to the FZ-S (and I re-iterate, being absolutely fed up with the Yamaha service experience).
- While the above may sound a little doomed in its conclusion, it is quite the opposite, and this is why I chose to finally write this post. The CB300R is indeed a beautiful machine and I can guarantee this is going to be a one-of-a-kind view regarding its touring abilities, with a few little tweaks I have personally tried. So far, it has worked miraculously, touchwood, and it has cost me a nominal sum, but the difference in experience is quite frankly, beyond surprising.
- Realising after a few 4-5 hour rides that the CB was nowhere near the touring comfort of the FZ-S, I just went gung-ho on the internet searching for solutions. Tragically, there was not a single solution in sight, except the $650 (>₹50,000! ) Corbin seats, which are not available in India (add to that customs, taxes etc. if you are willing to import). Moreover, the long-distance comfort review on the Corbin seats is bad!
- The Zana handlebar risers had done a bit to ease the overall shoulder and palm fatigue over long distances (which wasn’t overly concerning but was useful nonetheless), but the bum and back fatigue was proving to be the Achilles’ heel. Air seats weren’t doing the trick.
- Two fortuitous conversations, one with one of the BigWing (Dehradun) mechanics and another with my regular customizer, gave me the idea that I could perhaps ask some ‘seatwala’ to have a look. A Google search convinced me that if there was one place that could have a solution, it was a shop called Munna Lal and Sons in Chakrata Road, Dehradun. The limited reviews were all excellent, and motorcyclists raved about how good a job they had done. The reviews seemed genuine and I paid a visit.
- Initially they thought I just needed a soft foam, but on hearing the touring aspect, suggested a hard adv style base foam with another layer of soft foam on top. I told them as clearly as I could what I wanted exactly, i.e., the shape, seat height (which I did not want to change much as it was quite comfy anyway, especially with the risers installed).
- The guys at Munna Lal were amazing not only with their expertise and work but also were willing to give useful suggestions. Once the framework of the hard foam was ready, it was pasted on to the nearly non-existent stock seat padding. They were more than happy to insist on me taking repeated test rides until the optimum ergonomics were established to my liking. It took around 4-5 rounds of test rides and consequent shaving off of the foam to get to what felt like a decent enough sweet spot, albeit with a little rise in the seat height, which is, of course, inevitable with the addition of all the foam. It was to a point where I could nearly flat foot. Their cooperation during the entire process was just exemplary.
- This was finished off with a half-inch layer of soft foam pasted on top of the hard foam.
- The final layer consists of the seat cover which was hand-stitched with great dexterity in a few minutes, which they claimed came with “guaranteed waterproofing”. They worked even beyond their regular shop hours and never pressurized me to hurry on my decision.
- The pillion seat was also modified the same way, in addition to removing the incline of the seat and making it flat, the overall dimensions of the seat were also increased. It was fine for my wife for the short ride back home, but is to be tested over long hours.
- Completed a ~280 km ride through mostly twisties, and I can finally say, at least for solo touring, the issue is superbly sorted. 280 km in this terrain can be translated to roughly around 450-500 km through highways in the plains. Total ride duration was around 7 hours, and all I had was what I consider very normal soreness.
- On the way back, completed 125 km (around 2.5 hours) at a stretch with no breaks before finally stopping over for a well-deserved tea. For more context, these 125 km were post the initial 140 km, after which I had a few hours break to get some maintenance work done, meaning the stretch between 141-265 km of the ride approximately. Wearing a riding pant (Rynox Advento) also helped a great deal with the anti-skid factor really impressing me in terms of its fatigue-reducing qualities.
- During my search on the internet for touring solutions, I did not see a single opinion in either Indian or International forums which said it could be used for touring. The overall reviews for the post $600 Corbin seats are quite negative other than for short urban commutes, which is funny because short rides on even the stock cushion are totally fine and immensely enjoyable. Most reviews say it is impossible to ride more than 40-45 minutes without feeling discomfort. Hmm…
- THE PRICE: The entire seat customization process cost me ₹1,200/- (Rupees Twelve hundred, I haven’t missed any zeroes) in total. This includes (for both rider and pillion seats) hard foams, soft foams, seat covers and the labour cost. I am quite in disbelief as to what a miraculously good job this small, innocuous shop has done.
- Additional points: The service quality at Honda BigWing Dehradun is decent. At least basic parts are available, hospitality is more than decent, the mechanics are all quite friendly, and service experience has been good over these 1.5 years and a tad over 18,500 km. For context, at the time of letting go of the FZ-S, I had covered an identical number of kilometres in around 23 months.
- This is a welcome change after the Yamaha service, which completely ruined the experience of a wonderful motorcycle, no matter how much I wanted to take care of it. At the time of exchange, the Yamaha had also run just over 18,500 km (between August, 2020 and July, 2022). I had done plenty of 12-13 hour rides on the FZ all over Uttarakhand, through good and terrible roads, and don’t ever remember having any major issues whatsoever.
- No bike is and none will ever be perfect. While ADVs are a no-brainer as an all-rounder, it is good to know that there are ways to work around apparent handicaps. Motorcycles are not meant to be one size fits all, and everything I discussed is dependent on factors like the rider’s height, weight, length of arms, feet, etc. But the experience is an eye opener on how there may be relatively easy solutions for one to explore instead of having to look for a new motorcycle entirely.
- The seats are yet to be tested for pillion comfort over long hours, behaviour with time, etc. Notwithstanding the aches produced by the stock seat, I’ve done plenty of post 100 km rides with my wife, the longest being from Dehradun to Shimla, a distance of around 240 km. Luggage troubles in the latter (not going into details for now) caused great bother and discomfort on the way to Shimla, which was down to my ignorance about packing soft luggage on a top rack, wrong mounting, coupled with using the luggage for the very first time. The return journey was slightly better. Luggage mounting is an issue I’ll be looking to solve next.
I have invested quite a bit into accessorizing the bike, and here’s a list of the accessories installed:
- Zana Top rack with plate and back rest. I don’t use the back rest though.
- Zana Handlebar Risers
- Brake reservoir covers (front and rear)
- Pillion footrest add on
- Givi Windscreen
- SW Motech Crash Guard
- Grip Puppies handlebar cover, which I am about to change as it is starting to come apart.
- Barkbusters (first/second copy?) Handguards
I have attached a few images for reference.
Thanks for reaching the end, in case you are one of those rare beings who has made it this far from the start.
Cheers and Peace Out.
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