My Mom's neighbor got a Scrambler a few months back. This is the first time I've been there since then, so took some time to go visit and check it out.
Appearance: WOW! A real blast from the past. That puppy looks like something from the 50's and 60's. He has a photo of an original he had when over in Italy back in the 50's while on deployment with the military. They look an awful lot alike. The paint on the tank is premo. The person who paints it in the factory, signs it up under the seat area (out of sight normally).
Sound: Dual "balonee" pipes have a real BLAP to them at lower RPMs which changes to a wonderful growl as the motor spins up to speed.
Ergonomics: Well, it's an awfully square saddle. At 5' 10" with a 31" inseam, I could flat foot it completely as I compressed the squared edges of the saddle and my right thigh pressed hard on the heat shields of the exhaust pipes. Once rolling, the saddle was a little better with thick padding on it's plank-like shape. Seems it'd be okay for a casual ride of an hour. If you were "scrambling" you'd be standing on the pegs and not using the seat anyway. The bars are wide and flat. It's a nekkid bike, so there's no wind protection. All well within the design of what you'd expect. The rider's position is very upright.
Ride: Starting the dual-carbed motor required full choke on that cool Christmas day. Once warmed up, I did a quick ride around the area (due to not having proper gear for a long ride). It's agressively-lugged tread and my lack of gear kept me on the side of caution through the curves. It responded well to steering inputs (helped by the wide/flat bars). What surprised me was the throttle response (or lack of it). If you've ridden the Daytona 675, you'd expect more from the extra 225cc's in the motor. Heck, if you've ridden the Daytona 600 you'd expect something from the extra 300cc's. You'd be dissapointed. I was able to fully crank open the throttle in the first 2 gears while still in the neighborhood and not feel threatened by any rush of speed or attack of torque. In fact, neighbors probably wouldn't have given me a second glance as I passed. No wheel-in-the-air when going to WFO from a walking speed. No NOTHING, really. It actually reminded me of my test ride of a Honda Shadow Ace 1100 a couple of years back (but the Scrambler's acceleration was better). it'd be a great beginners bike for even larger people. Shorter people might have a reach problem. The neighbor is shorter than me and can only flat foot one foot.
Conclusion: It would be a fun bike to have for casual riding. Perhaps the "Scramble" part means you don't want it all "nasty" on the torque when on loose ground? But I seem to remember watching scrambles where people shot off the line and climbed hills. This bike might do fire roads and loose gravel well thanks to it's predictability. I don't suspect it will be doing much hill climbing or wheelie popping though. I just can't imagine Steve McQueen on it for anything more than a photo shoot.
Appearance: WOW! A real blast from the past. That puppy looks like something from the 50's and 60's. He has a photo of an original he had when over in Italy back in the 50's while on deployment with the military. They look an awful lot alike. The paint on the tank is premo. The person who paints it in the factory, signs it up under the seat area (out of sight normally).
Sound: Dual "balonee" pipes have a real BLAP to them at lower RPMs which changes to a wonderful growl as the motor spins up to speed.
Ergonomics: Well, it's an awfully square saddle. At 5' 10" with a 31" inseam, I could flat foot it completely as I compressed the squared edges of the saddle and my right thigh pressed hard on the heat shields of the exhaust pipes. Once rolling, the saddle was a little better with thick padding on it's plank-like shape. Seems it'd be okay for a casual ride of an hour. If you were "scrambling" you'd be standing on the pegs and not using the seat anyway. The bars are wide and flat. It's a nekkid bike, so there's no wind protection. All well within the design of what you'd expect. The rider's position is very upright.
Ride: Starting the dual-carbed motor required full choke on that cool Christmas day. Once warmed up, I did a quick ride around the area (due to not having proper gear for a long ride). It's agressively-lugged tread and my lack of gear kept me on the side of caution through the curves. It responded well to steering inputs (helped by the wide/flat bars). What surprised me was the throttle response (or lack of it). If you've ridden the Daytona 675, you'd expect more from the extra 225cc's in the motor. Heck, if you've ridden the Daytona 600 you'd expect something from the extra 300cc's. You'd be dissapointed. I was able to fully crank open the throttle in the first 2 gears while still in the neighborhood and not feel threatened by any rush of speed or attack of torque. In fact, neighbors probably wouldn't have given me a second glance as I passed. No wheel-in-the-air when going to WFO from a walking speed. No NOTHING, really. It actually reminded me of my test ride of a Honda Shadow Ace 1100 a couple of years back (but the Scrambler's acceleration was better). it'd be a great beginners bike for even larger people. Shorter people might have a reach problem. The neighbor is shorter than me and can only flat foot one foot.
Conclusion: It would be a fun bike to have for casual riding. Perhaps the "Scramble" part means you don't want it all "nasty" on the torque when on loose ground? But I seem to remember watching scrambles where people shot off the line and climbed hills. This bike might do fire roads and loose gravel well thanks to it's predictability. I don't suspect it will be doing much hill climbing or wheelie popping though. I just can't imagine Steve McQueen on it for anything more than a photo shoot.
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