Newby Saying hello

[briantheb]

Live just outside Stirling and owned my M/S 950 Touring since March,  with over 5000 miles done so far. It is a great bike, very easy to live with but does have a few little things that could be better.  All in all though I really enjoy my 950.

[thenozzle]

Hi and  to the forum

[neilb]

  Hi and welcome to the forum. You've had your bike for some months longer than me; what, in your opinion, could be better?

[Darsey]

Congratulations on clocking up the first 5k. Certainly a great bike and I would be interested to hear what you would like to improve on your multi

[briantheb]

Must first say I  love the bike and just had a great afternoon out on back roads north of Glasgow, around the Trossachs and over Sherrifmuir.
What would I like to see changed/improved.
Suspension:-
the bike is surefooted and inspires confidence but the suspension is a bit harsh over rough surfaces but dives under breaking !
Ergonomics:-
the seat isn't the most comfortable and once you get beyond say 70 miles it's a pain.  Riders foot pegs could do with being a little further forward for comfortable day long riding and for riding off 'finished' surfaces. The screen causes buffeting and noise (I've replaced it with a MRA which is much better).
Engine:-
is a peach but the vibration at certain revs or speeds e.g. 70 ish in top, is annoying, coming through bars, pegs and seat, and, blurs the mirrors.
Gearbox:-
the false neutrals are annoying but become less frequent over time, as does the difficulty finding neutral between 1st n 2nd.
Now and again certain functions on the dash have played up.
Panniers can be difficult to get off and on .
Still waiting (5 months) for Ducati to issue the heated grips.

All that needs to be addressed in my opinion to make this a great long distance tourer. I have an old R1100GS which now has 106,000 miles on it
(MRA screen and Corbin Seat - and of course telelever and shaft) which has been my big distance bike for some years and a 'very' tough act to follow.
At time of purchasing the M/S I also had the electronic Scotoiler fitted and am contemplating having the 'enduro' pack fitted when the grips eventually turn up !
I also took out the extended warranty  just in case 🤔 (Heard a lot about Ducati electric etc).
So you pay around £12k and the bike is good but not perfect. I started biking in the 70's when mudguards kept you and your bike clean (without having to invest in extenders) when seats were comfortable (without having to buy the 'comfort seat) Is there someone sitting in an Wee room who's sole task is to design a) the uncomfortable seat and b) the comfortable seat ?
Considering the price we are expected to pay the seat at least should be comfortable.

I would appreciate hearing what others think - agree/disagree - additional issues etc.

To conclude - this bike gives me a lot of pleasure, puts a smile on my face when I open the garage and a bigger grin when I'm blatting along being rewarded with all the joys of biking.
Cheers
Brian

[Darsey]

I agree with what your conclusions are. As for me I have the standard screen with a 25mm spacer at the bottom bolt and for me this has made the standard screen superb to the extent that I have not notion of changing it. (a first for me as every other bike that I have had since sports bikes the screen was changed). On long journeys I have the air hawk. A great all round bike. Whenever I can get on a bike and enjoy it so much after 36years of biking and 17 bikes it says a lot. First base 50, Honda mb5, Honda cb100n, cbr600, cbr600, Honda hornet, cbr600, Honda firestorm, gsx 1000r, fire blade, Hypermotard 100, Monster, triumph tiger 800 Hyermotard sp 1100, tiger sport 1050, Kawasaki sx 1000 Multistrada 950

[DonStrada]

Your observations more or less match up with mine although I only have about 800km on the bike. One exception - I'm not sure that I find the seat uncomfortable though. It's firm for sure, but I find the support welcome on longer rides. I had a V Strom 650 previous to this and the seat on that was really soft and was painful on longer rides, so I'm liking a firmer seat.  I'm about 190lbs.