Z1000

[650]

Massively different riding position, apples & pears that comparison. It's not about the engine, it's about the absolutely woeful out-the-box suspension, it's amongst some of the cheapest tat I've ever seen.

[NTECUK]

Yes but the world and his wife moan about sports bikes comfort.
Just re inforces the different strokes theory and why you need to test ride lots

[650]

Couldn't agree more, but the STR is universally slated by real world owners for it's huge lack of comfort.

Personally prefer sports bike positioning, the confidence of having your weight over the bars is, in my opinion, better. I have tendon issues in my left wrist though (8 hour wankathons, etc) which means I'm on nakeds for the foreseeable future. People with issues purely based on positioning on sports bikes need to question their physical health over the bike itself. Deadlifts, squats and bench press combined with a diet rich in healthy fish oils will sort just about all aches and pains out.

[NTECUK]

And stem cells.

[JulesW]

650, I rode two Street Triple R s this year and found them to have good suspension and reasonably decent comfort. I really liked the ergos, especially compared to my SV. Of course as a long term owner I might change my mind. I'll have to dig deeper on the forums and take a much longer ride on one after reading your posts. Thanks for the heads up.

[kaivalagi]

Its all subjective Jules, just make sure you try a few different bikes to get a feel for what each offers. Only once you've ridden a variety of bikes will you know what good suspension, brakes and engine is for you. All the bikes you are likely to try will have better suspension and brakes than a stock SV, but it's from those bikes you need to get a feel for what's best and not from an comparison to the SV!

[JulesW]

Kaiv, couldn't agree more. The first test ride was a reaction to discomfort on the SV after several days of big miles on difficult roads, bit of a knee jerk. The SV is actually a brilliant bike but sadly she's gotta go (hopefully to my brother). So going to follow your advice and ride and compare loads of bikes before deciding, I'm hoping to choose something I'll be happy with for many years rather than constantly swapping.

Watched a bunch of youtubes on the KTM SM-T, oh boy they look great! Bit tall for me perhaps as I'm a shorty but I'll have to ride one sometime.

[kaivalagi]

I'm 5'8" and 31" inside leg and it's fine if that helps A little bit of tip toes takes some getting used to but it's perfectly okay to handle...it weighs nothing for the engine size and if very controllable. One other thing to mention is on the SM-T as you sit so high up the vantage point you have is excellent, makes for an easy time on the B roads and overtaking etc

I have been spoilt with long travel suspension and brakes and an ABS system that kicks ar$e on the SM-T, hard to find something to replace it with to be honest, the Triumph Explorer 1200 is a good fit surprisingly but just not the same raw and engaging feel as a KTM...if KTM come out with a new SM-T using the 1190/1290 setup I might be interested but that's likely a few years off.

I lasted 8 months on the SV until I decided it was either upgrade the front suspension and brakes or switch, and I switched...I did about 5K miles on the SV over that time and it was a great big bike to learn on, just needed to "go large" really after sampling some of the rides. I did make a conscious decision to stick with a V-twin though, something very addictive about them

[JulesW]

Had some brilliant rides on the SV over the last month. Over a thousand miles in Scotland and nearly a thousand in Wales. Just returned home after 270 miles of twisties in north and mid wales, on the last few miles home I noticed myself thinking "what a fantastic all rounder the SV is" and next moment I'm thinking "why don't I keep her another year?" I'm getting really used to the old girl and my body has more or less adjusted to the slightly weird ergos. Hmmm, what to do ????

[kaivalagi]

Don't rush it, keep demoing and make the move if you REALLY want to

The engine in the Sv makes it an enjoyable thing for sure