something to aim at

[oldbmw]

I have traded in my old 1985 R80rt for a 2005 Enfield. Having fitted a right side shift kit to it. I made a trip last week back to the UK to visit. In all I did 894 miles and used 43.1 litres of fuel, which works out at about 94mpg (Imperial). I found its natural cruising speed to be a tad less than the BMW, but not enough to change transit times over the ground. For half the miles I had pouring rain, and this is my first experience of road biking without a full fairing since 1961. I am currently trying to locate a full touring fairing for it. I had the pizza box on the back, plus throw over saddlebags from crampster ( good but not waterproof) plus two large holdalls strapped across the pillion. It ran without missing a beat, or leaking any oil.
The handling is a delight, very quick response and will run on any surface from wet grassy fields to tarmac without any problems. When I got it it had 6,800 miles on the clock, and I had to replace the rear tyre. I fitted an avon sm in place of the am26 original. The front tyre still has plenty of tread and is not cupping or favouring either side for wear. My BMW wore front tyres significantly faster than rear tyres. I think the odd tyre wear is due to modern bikes being heavier and different steering geometry to the older bikes, as I never had uneven wear on any old bike. The trials heritage of the Enfield frame showed itself when it came to disembark from the ferry. I was able to exit the bike lane and turn 180 degrees back down in the width of one car. None of the dozen or so modern bikes could do this, and had to wait for the row of cars to exit before they could leave the ferry.
I have now realised that not all of my problems with the bmw were due to the left hand shift, although I blamed that for the general feeling of awkwardness with the bike. In fact I got on well with the Enfield even when it was left shift, but it is more natural to me now I have converted it to right shift. Gearchanges just happen and I dont know I have done them, and the bike slows seemingly by itself as I instinctively use the left hand brake lever. The brakes on the bike are very good. I would not like to say which had the best front brake, but the Enfield rear brake is an order of magnitude better than the BMW's.