Is The CB125F REALLY A Good Learner Bike | 12 Month, 10,000km Owner's Review
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 มี.ค. 2024
- Is the CB125F a good learner bike for Regional Victorian roads?
I've been riding for 12 months as of today and done as close as 10,000 km as makes no difference and I'm going to share my opinions as to whether or not the 2023 Honda CB125F is a suitable choice as a first bike for riders in country Victoria.
TL;DR - the short answer is NO. - ยานยนต์และพาหนะ
Yes it´s more or less an compltete CB125F Roundup. Topspeed can really hard depend on the Road +Driver Weight and height but you can negate the last points to some degree with an bigger aftermarket Windshield like the Puig BAT wich alows you to hit your 95 on regular bases exept at steep climbs or strong headwind. But what it´s absolute untrue is that the CBS blocks your Frontbrake because to get the full 50% braking on the front you have to stay on it with your full body weight and create dozens of other Problems before that point anyways because the rear brake would be blocked at that point. You can even smash the Frontbrake alone and there is no fucking way that it complete Blockades exept you are pushing the bike by hand. It lifts you up into an stoppie but it will not close the brake full. The real Problems Offroad are the Stiff Footpeg Bar, the Footbrake Offset (both decisions i will never understand on a Beginner Bike Honda) and that the Handlebar is low because it´s official an naked bike after all. Otherwise it´s fine and handles even there like a dream. Even the Groundclearance is with 180mm fine. Could be more for sure but even most fullfledged Scrambler doesn´t even come close to that height,
I have to say you are right if you say it´s not an good Learner Bike. Not for the Topspeed but mostly for the stiff Footpeg and Footbrake offset decision Honda made wich can´t be an Cost decision the Grom has it all and even ABS on Top and was a long time not much more expensive and Drum brake can´t be the reason either the Cub hasn´t the offset in the Frontbrake Pedal.
It´s an dirt cheap to drive Comuter if you don´t need to drive Freeways or our good German Autobahn Daily and it´s an even better base for an Dirt Cheap Travelbike if you Travel on Backroads anyway. And for the clowns that will come out not buying full 15 HP the CBR isn´t much faster and has the same struggles to reach Topspeed. She brings her slightly more Power not before 70 kp/H. The slighlty older 13 HP Variant is btw slighlty faster than the 15 HP Variant . There are not the good old Cagiva Mitos, NSR or Aprillia RS 2 Stroke from the Past anymore there are all the same boring 4 stroke that struggle to bring 11 nM on the Road or driving more than real 110. Real 120 is even worse than you only have the choice between the YZF/R 125 and both Suzuki. The MT comes at least close and anything else struggles even to reach 110-115 no matter wich brand you take.
It's not a problem specific to this bike - any 125 is not really suitable for learners on the freeway. Then again freeways are not really suitable for learner riders on any bike, stick to single lane country roads.
Keep making the videos. The viewer base will grow as this new bike gains a following.
I agree, perhaps it's not *specific* to this bike, but it's the one I have and so the one I can offer my experience on.
As for the linked brakes, imagine going down a steep wet clay hill on a bicycle. Being an experienced bicyclist u will know that the front brake is ur enemy in this situation, even a hint of front brake can bring u down. Yes, a CB125f rider is unlikely to encounter this condition but learners should do some low speed dry dirt to sharpen their use of the controls in a low risk setting.
I'm not saying using u used the brake I'm just saying.
The super skinny tyres mean the bikes nemesis is sand, especially if u are running road pressures.
It's great that u are analyzing ur mishaps, that's how u prevent it happening again. I've been riding for almost 50 years which included a lot of dirt riding/motocross and I also practice this.
Well you know I'm not shy of low speed dirt conditions 😁
I do worry that the CB125F is going to lull me into a false sense of skill, as it is an absurdly easy bike to handle
I love the gear ratio in first gear, If it could handle a constant 110km in top gear I would be over the moon. But none the less all the other factors give me the option to score this 9.25/10 overall.
Thanks Nicky, that was a great review. It's hard to come up with new content when the bikes are unmodifiable. My cb125f is magic around town, where it is probably more enjoyable than my RE 350 Classic.
You've sure give yours a good chance to show its strong points. Many bike channels piss me off because after doing all these aftermarket alterations, they never line it up beside a stock bike to compare.
You're a great character, we need more Nick's. 👍
I think you know you've got a great bike when the biggest complaint is that it's a little bit slow in certain conditions ☺️ It is getting hard to come up with new ideas to talk about this bike after ~10,000k's though
It’s a commuter bike. Commuting tends to suggest suburbia.
As a beginner rider, know that above 80 km/h you’re really putting your head in the sack. Wait till you get that roo and you’ll understand.
It’s not designed for use on autobahns in Germany either. Drive a car if you need high speed freeway transport 🤷♂️
I have a Focus XR5 sitting in the driveway 😜
Many people have gone round the world on CB125fs with no issues. Only one car caught or overtook you for the entire video. Your motorcycle is no slower in practise than coaches, buses, trucks and most small cars. Even on a large freeway, the inner lane is perfectly ok. Of course it would be nice to have 10 mph more top speed but your machine is perfectly ok on the vast majority of roads. Yours will cruise at 55 mph and achieve 60 mph in most situations. You certainly do not need 250cc+. I toured Europe several times on a 200cc scooter and was faster than 85% of cars on most roads. There is nothing "dangerous" about the little Honda. You could argue that excessively powerful bikes are FAR more dangerous.
I do agree with you about the excessively powerful bikes. As such I never really see myself on anything bigger than 500cc and I've got no real interest in racing on the track.
The problem, of course, as you say, is not the bike at all, but the danger exists in the attitudes of other road users
Very true, We are speed limited to 90km in nsw anyway and the roads I travel on is max 80km. Very fair review
Regional Vic is great for dual sport bikes. My XT 250 can go the 110, (it becomes unstable if you push it faster) and if you see a nice and rugged trail, it can also do that.
I'll get myself a dual sport one day. The CB is fine for hard packed gravel roads but I'd love to be hitting actual trails too. But with only 160mm ground clearance, I'm just not game to take it on anything actually uneven 😅 And I've taken this bike down some sketchy tracks already
You are now famous on Moto Stars TH-cam " bikers having WORSE Day than you" well done
I got my 5 seconds of fame 🙊🙊🙊
Try a 250 Nick, the new Suzukis are about $2500 dearer than the CB125. That said you have learnt a lot of road skills spinning the 125 along Gippsland roads. Another poster mentioned that learners are better off not using busy freeways and the rural ones are 110kmh which is an even bigger stretch for the CB. That said there are 125s that are 5hp more than the CB125. The 15hp bikes can run noticeably faster.
Fingers' crossed I've got something just a little bigger than a 250 on the way 🤫
i may agree with everything you said, but the part about CBS and ABS. i think thr lack of comparison and experience make you say that, but what you said is untrue.
i have had a ABS and a CBS bike. the abs one was a honda cb 250 Twister ABS (here in Brazil, i dont know about other markets) and the CBS was a Yamaha Factor 150 CBS.
I had the ABS saving me more times than i can count on the Twister. and only two months after getting the Factor i had the front wheel locking up after brakinh hard on the rear brake (it was a pavement road with bits of sand on ot). i had to break to not kill a cat that jumped right in front of me out of nowhere. knowing the road was sandy, i tried braking with rear brake only and i fall because of the front wheel lock up.
so yes. CBS does lock rear and front wheels even if you only press the rear brake. you can check it yourself going into compact sand terrain and forcing the rear brake down.
of course it wont happen on asphalt because there is way more grip in it.
but it does on sandy/dirty areas
I hear what you're saying, but this video is specifically about the 2023 CB125F, I never said anything about any other bike
Well explained, so what would fit the bill ? A Royal Enfield 350 perhaps ? Big leap in cost though, around $7800 I expext it to be. Honda has a 350 cc single as well, it's big & looks heavy. Small change out of $8000.
I enjoy my Honda CB125F - and no I don't ride on Highways or Freeways, for the reason you explained. Yes it's happy doing 80 km/hr. In life like everthing I guess, you get what you paid for.
Quite right it is designed for suburbia.
It was the price that won the CB125F for me in the end. I had 5 grand to spend and I could have acquired a bigger and faster 2nd hand bike for that but I needed gear and security for the bike, too. I'm actually a big fan of the Royal Enfield Classic 350, I'd love to get my hands on one one day.
Thank you for your opinion. I’m going to buy it for my daily commuting especially during the days when I don’t cover long distances. Here in Italy the CB 125 F is common in big cities or in the outskirt. Can I have information about fuel consumption?
Here is the video I did about the fuel average over 5,700 kilometres. My fuel average has never been over 2.9L/100km. The best economy I've managed is 1.8L/100km around town and not exceeding 60km/h
th-cam.com/video/0i76FhpX7hk/w-d-xo.html
@@NicksBikesThank you very much. I’m going to order it next month, in Italy the CB 125 F costs 2990 euros, but finally I will pay it 3150 for the burocracy that in Italy it’s terrible and expensive.
Could you please make a video on its headlight performance because i find it very difficult to ride at night, in the rainy season on wet dark roads it's visibility is zero.
I would love to, the headlight on this bike is absolutely fantastic, but it's difficult to demonstrate on video as my GoPro does not do low light particularly well.
I have a very long video of a ride I did into the night where I try and discuss this, this link should be timestamped at an hour and seven minutes in, just as it's starting to get dark. You can check it out if you'd like
th-cam.com/video/lBw8w1gRq2M/w-d-xo.htmlsi=nlFHQD7QoxBPZzsx&t=4025
Dipesh Bhai I have sp may be Honda is using poor quality led here I am planning to install fog lights but don't cut the wiring harnesses it may void ur warranty
Use fuse 4 safety and make connections from the battery
@@Handsome_Dev.A Thanks bro😊
it's a bit of a non-argument imho. you give pretty much all the pro's and con's that anyone with a brain pretty much understands anyway pre-purchase. Anyone can jump on a big bike and ride it at speed on a clear open road like you have easy opportunity in your part of the world, that aint 'learning' much. but you need to be comfortable on a mixture of roads and conditions, especially developing awareness in traffic, and this bike makes the mechanics of controlling the bike easy to develop that. most people who buy this bike in the uk use it for commuting, don't have the opportunity to get upto max speed limits too often, and are limited to 125cc until they pass a test, and for that reason, all things considered, id say it's a great learner bike for the market it's designed for myself, but no bike is a perfect fit for all people and all situations anyway. GL
What can I say, my clickbaity title has worked 🤷🏼♀️
@@NicksBikesawww say it aint so joe
They're a great little bike
When you can take scenic routes
We do love to take the scenic routes ☺️
@@NicksBikes
The bike in my profile photo is a 1972 Hodaka "Wombat" 125
I found it rotting away in the jungle in far North Queensland in 1987 with less than 4000 miles on it
The fella reckoned he wanted $30 for it, I told him he was dreaming and talked him down to a more realistic $25
I registered it in Queensland in 1987 and according to trusted expert Ray Ryan, who's dead now of course it was believed to be the only road registered Hodaka in Australia at the time
Fun facts : In the late 1960's three fellas riding Hodaka "Ace" 100's were the first bikes to reach Cape York (Google : "Cape Crusaders, Australian Motorcycle News") ; and, in 1972 a yank called Frank Wheeler set an around Australia endurance record of 21 days on a Wombat 125
I've done lots of long rides on my Wombat from central Queensland to Sydney and back and forth between Sydney and Brisbane, it's now on it's fifth speedometer and could be the world's highest milage or most flogged out Hodaka
Anyway I was returning from Brisbane in about 2013 and was near Lawrence in the Northern Rivers when I met a young fella from Brazil who was traveling around on a really nice black CB125, he was packing up camp when I stopped and spoke to him and I've then carried on and about ten miles away I cooked the old girl burning out a piston and was on the side of the road outside a farmhouse when this young fella on his CB125 caught up
I was leaving the Wombat with this kind farmer and was about to hitchhike to Grafton to organise with a mate to pick up the bike when the young fella on the CB offered to take me to town, this ment him having to unload half his luggage and leave it at the farmhouse and then come back to pick it up
On that ride to Grafton I was amazed at just how well that little CB125 performed it was ripping along effortlessly for about 15 miles two up and half loaded with gear and ever since I've loved those little Honda you can't knock em
As for my Wombat unlike the story the neighbours told their kid about their dead cat I actually did send it away to live on a farm when I semi retired it to young mates property at Londonderry west of Sydney in about 2015, I ride it most school holidays when I'm down there and would still trust it to go anywhere
Check out the Honda CRF 300L. I think it's a perfect beginner or veteran bike rider.
Yeah I've seen them, I reckon that'd be a great bike, especially for the way I like to ride
Nah, with the 300L went a step backwards, I would prefer to buy a 250L instead. The rear subframe on the 300 is permanently welded on the frame which is not a good idea on a dualsport bike and the footpegs mounts tend to bend in, the frame is very weak in that area in an event of a fall.
@@ripmax333 you'd rather have a 250 L cuz that's all you got 🤣
@@JamesPiccone I had a CRF250L so I know what I got, the frame is weak especially the subframe, 5kg it's the maximum permissible load the bike could handle, ground clearance is a bit lower too and apart from that it's also heavy, no wonder they call it the LRP ( little Red Pig) I would prefer Yamaha TW200 or a DR200 if they are still available. Now I have a BETA Alp 200, 20kg less than the CRF and it makes a world of difference on offroad.
@@ripmax333 Bro you got no idea what you're talking about the subframe is very strong. I put hundreds of pounds on subframe to compress wheel with ratchet strap to get correct chain tightness. "It's not the arrow it's the Indian"
i have a 200cc and i been thinking that i would love a 250
I have a soft spot for small bikes, I doubt I'll ever get anything over 500cc. Maybe a Ninja 650 if I can ever get my hands on one, but no bigger
Hello nick do you know what is recommended fork oil grade/weight and ml for front fork of cb125f
No I have no clue. As far as I'm aware there's still no service manual out for this model. Might be a question for your local bike mechanic
@@NicksBikes I purchased shop manual for this bike
@@Handsome_Dev.A Great news, it was bound to be released eventually
@@Handsome_Dev.A do you have a link to order it online by any chance?
drive.google.com/file/d/11tn2EqT_pEby5Hd5oSNulkH3SeOgm5u7/view?usp=drivesdk
My sp125(cb125f) have very shitty stock headlight not usable only 2 months old bike 2024 variant
What brand is your tire and what size I have MRF tire
Tyres are Nylogrip Zapper. MRF. I doubt the stock tyres vary much from region to region
I'm surprised about the headlight. Maybe there's an issue with it? I'd be surprised if Honda went backwards from the LED headlights in one year?
@@NicksBikes both MRF front 80/100-18 rear 100/80-18 MRF is a Indian brand that means you bike made in India and shipped from here
@@NicksBikes my is led, may be Honda is using poor quality led here I am planning to install fog lights .
Mine is front disk variant 118kg
Purchased on road 1 lakh INR (approx 1200 dollar usd)
@@Handsome_Dev.A yes, I recently confirmed the VIN code as made in India, yet my owner's manual says the country of Origin is China 🤦🏼♀️
Inside the clutch cover it is also stamped "India" in case there was any other doubt
CB125 R . It is just 2300 euros more than the F and solve the problem.....
Here, the CB125R is almost exactly twice the price of the CB125F and I'd honestly rather completely burn through two 125F's than one 125R for the sake of 5HP 🤷🏼♀️
The CB125r is also heavier and with a taller seat height, and by looking at it you see that it's mainly an on-road machine, IMO I don't see my self having a blast in the backroads or in light trails. The CB125F can be an all rounder, Yes it's not an off-roader but it's still can go places where the CB125r is much more limited.