i was talking to a few guys at the lakeland weekend
so as promised heres a bit of info on my new bike

im looking forward to it should have her by august ..should make those trails alittle easier

i do quite a few weekend meets like lakeland with trail riding thrown in ..so it looks perfect for making my way ...trailriding and coming back

i have plans to take it to portugal next may for its first med distance trip ..if it proves reliable ..the engine is based on a high strung g 450x but with auxilery oil tank and detuned engine ..they say 5000 miles service intervals .. im not convinced
i am under no illusion this will not be a low cost bike to maintain ...but as long as it does its job ..i dont care
if it proves itself in gb ill consider africa ..but for now the wilderbeast will take the strain ... the ccm will not be needed for 95 percent of the time and it may tempt me to ne silly for no good reason
+
its just so light and i guess the off road lads will understand why i want it ..im getting on a bit and the xt and klr wilderbeast are pretty heavy to throw around and pick up

i heard about it early last year and went to the factory to see the prototype ...its so slim

but the componants are top notch
the frame is cast alloy
machined billet headstock and yolks
renthal
talon
exel
brembo
stainless braided
enough ground clearance to clear a small bus but feet flat on the floor and a bit in reserve
tractive [white power] suspension preload .. full fast slow compression and rebound front and back
130 kgms 17ltrweight low under seat tank 250mile range

now ccm has been in the wilderness for a good while ..and i really think they have made a great bike here
nothing cheap ..its not knocked together with a mig welder in a weekend ..you can see by the broshure that they have pulled out all the stops
i really think it will be a succsess for them ..it really is a very high quality bike

ive seen a stripped down frame ..the battery sits in a cnc macined pod in the frame spine under the tank ..the wiring is so neat juntion boxes neat ..no rats nest ubder here


air box and battery are very high for water crossings ..now and again quite deep ..now and again too deep ..it higher than the kawasaki badge on the tank ..which at this moment in time would have been useful the bow wave would flood the xt and quack here ...
oops


..so its really very well constructed even pretty with the tank off

it feels like a xr250 to sit on but is still very comfy for my 6ft frame ..good fairing screen high enough to be effective
a real little mini adventure bike ...42hp 130 kgms should be fun ??


now im not one for taking risks usually but it looks perfect for me .. i really was so impressed i just put a deposit down on the spot
l
now you may get the feeling that im trying to convince meself im doing the right and you could be very right to a degree afterrall its newand unproven

but it looks so good there is nothing close to it in the marketplace i have to give it a chance ..i really hope it is what i think it will be

i mean a ktm 690 is the nearest ..i had me credit card ready
but then

..7300 ... then 750 for a adv tank 1250 for a fairing .. new seat is a must ...headlamp useless 250 quid ...
bash plate 200... rear rack 150 so its not a fair comparason ..i really near cried when i first saw it ....its a enduro with winkers ..i was hoping it would be a 640 advebture on a diet .....as is you need a van to lug it around


in any event its a brave step from ccm and may change the market if it proves a succsess making a bike lighter is a lot harder than making one heavier and to that degree it is setting a bnew standard by about 65 kgms .. a fully loaded top spec gs 1200 adv is 124 kgms heavier ...and near 7500 quid dearer .. now the question is what kind of bike do you really want ???
..i for one hope it does succeed in which case ill be a pioneer like a fat version of indiana jones ....ok maby not

ride safe ...steve



so here she is

pdf broshureand specs below
http://adventuremotorcyclinghandbook.../ccm-gp450.pdf

It's a sweet looking bike Steve, I reckon CCM will hit the sweet spot with lots of riders.

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>-------<

Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.

nice bike!!

That really is a nice bike both in terms of looks and spec/quality, and British too.

Not sure about Metal Mule panniers though? Kind of defeats the object of buying a light bike - they've probably doubled its weight!

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yes the pannier are ott ..i wont be having them
i am a softie ... there is a soft luggage option at 200 quid with support rails ..its not big but may be perfect for a band b run for a couple of nights
i may well just get it with the bike ...id have to see it in the flesh first though ..this is the only pictute of it on the bike




the tractive thingy is for 10 stage elecronic preload ..optional extra ..but not for me

nice..
I could see myself on one... minus the tin boxes...

__________________
Harley Davidson..
The easyest way to turn gasoline into noise with out the side efect of horse power...

it does look lovely, looks super light and slim.

Whats the "tracTive" thing on the tank?

i'm loving the Tenere, height doesnt put me off as im tall (actually want it a tad taller) but the weights pissing me off...... i want something lighter!

KTM 690 is top of my list, but price puts me off. and how long will they last? not as long as a tenere i bet.

Good luck for being a CCM guinea pig Hope fully it will be as good as it looks. keep us informed.

Enjoy

That's the exact same bike that I had out.

How did you find it this time with the T63s? You had the Dunlops on the last one if I remember right?

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I had a go on the new CCM recently. It's a nice little bike. Here are the thoughts of a motorbiking newbie who is riding 660 Tenere for some time:

Good:
- It's light for sure, you can do some silly things on gravel and the back end is very easy to bring back in line
- Wind protection with standard screen is good, no sign of buffeting at 70 (I'm 6'4'' and get a lot of buffeting on Tenere regardless of screen height, deflectors etc)
- Power delivery has a nice little peak
- Fueling is nice and smooth or perhaps lack of grunt is hiding jerkiness well
- Frame is a masterpiece

Not necessarily bad:
- Fork and suspension in general on my bike was very stiff. I had a go on FE570 recently and CCMs suspenders didn't feel anything like the magic carpet of the Husaberg. Can they be set up to feel similar???
- Even with high seat I felt my legs are bent beyond comfortable but I feel like that about most of the dirt bikes (I find 690 a bit more roomy)
- Power feel like a barely acceptable minimum to me but there is not much grunt there compared to the Tenere, I like when the back steps out with light twist of the throttle and CCM needs to be worked hard to do that and mine was on semi street tyres
- I was trying to get some detailed info on what actually needs servicing when but staff presenting the bike didn't know much which I find a bit disturbing. They mentioned a valve check at every oil change
- Found the front brake a bit spongy and vague but not a deal breaker
- Although bike feels ok at 70mph it is at the cost of first gear crawling ability, I would want to change sprockets on longer trips

So yeah it's a cool bike although feels like purposefully made for smaller people. I can't see it replacing Tenere in my case. And as a hardcore long distance trail bike I would probably start with sth like fe570.

surprised about the suspension comment mine was set too soft with excessive rider sag but ...i found it outstanding off road particularly good in rocks and rock steps ....no deflection no wrist jolt ..just skipped along on big riugbyball rocks and was very sure footed

the throtte has a stepped opening and what happened to me at first was i simply wasnt opening it enough ..ive had about thirty hours on the bike

..and the throttle deffinatly has a long action ..which is great on wet mud and rocks goiung slowly but opening it up in the right way i honestly reacon it could show my tenere tenere a clean pair of heels on a twisty road ..it pulls really hard at the top end and it steers with pinpoint accuracy ....??

i had no troble with leg comfort at all over the three days and didnt notice any problems at all the seat was generally good ....i wasnt noticing it or getting numb bum which is a good sign ...for longer trips ill just stick me airhawk on

the bike climbs steeply at walking pace and is near impossible to stall ..again i found its slow speed manners spot on

coming down very steep decents the front brake was one finger good and the suspension still did its job ith a fair amont of weight from the front brake l

..being able to use 3rd and fourth gear on pretty tough ground where the tenere would be in 2nd

the t63s were ok as the lakes are 90 percent rock based one or two muddy lanes were done but if i was doing wales id prbably use maxxis or kenda trackmaster s on it
all in all i found the bike comfy ..im 6ft 1in at 6ft 4 i would think it may be too small ..it will just do for me

.no problem on the motorway and as good or better than any dirt bike ive owned off road

my use is puley to travel and trail and i dont want to be restriceted to which trails i do ....so that really is its purpose ..its focus really is 50/50

the ktm 690 has a lot more power ...but when ive ridden them i found they were too radical for the road .....there is nothing at all that comes as standard that lends itself to long trips ....
the seat the vibration over 70 is bad ...but there is no weather protection at all and over 70mph the bike i rode feels kind of detached and vauge at the front

so its all well and good having the power ..but i dont like the ktm on the road at a ll ..by the time ive been to rally raid it would be hurtling toward 11k in ccm spec ..fairing tank racks subframe and all the rest of it ,,,,but then it would be around 20kg heavier too

all in all i find the ccm a good comprimise ...when i get it set up with the seat adjustable screen heated grips and all i honesstly see no problem riding to marroc and back

ive been riding round with a fouteen tooth on the tenere for four years as the gearspacings and overall ratio has been pushed far too high
..... the ccm is spaced for off roading and hooks up and pulls instantly
.....the difference between a 14t tenere on the road and the ccm is probably nothing in the real world ,,..and in fairness its only a 450 .. but the ccm s power to weight makes that 300cc effectivly dissapear .


the cummupance is the ccm will be 10mph slower 70 insead of 80 on the motorway than a standard tenere
....but as soon as you hit the trail ...the ccm is a much much better bike ..the other thing is managability ...70kgms lighter fully fueled ...


i guess its a balence we all have to make ....rob peter to pay paul

bearin mind this was full on tough trail weekend ..running in the company of some very good riders on 450 excs 690s freewinds drzs crfs yzfs and anything in between .so given that near all the rest came out of the back of a van ...the ccm did a very good job indeed

so whats bad
its a bit snatchy feuling wise at filtering speeds

the clocks are sparten mph trip thats it i think

theres a speedo pickup on the front hub begging to ripped out by a forward facing branch

the luggage i borrowed was to small in capacity and did leak water in fairness i was told to use dry liners ..i think it would be much better for access with roll top s as the zips prevent stuffability ...on the upside of that the saddle fitting system was brilliant and the luggage and contents stayed where they should and it ws bucked from piller to post

evryone said the rear light carrier was flapping like a excited puppy ..i have a fear it may come home strapped to the rear seat if caught in a fall or backed it into a wall or somthing daft it may need bracing or cutting down somway ....??

the rear seat can only accesses be realeasing a bolt under the petrol tank its resessed that should be fun after riding a muddy feild should you need to .....

the standard radiator guard isd plastic but the centre bit.. big squares clogged with mud badly ...so on a hot summers day it could cause the fan to work overtime or worse ..certainly dont want that clogged in merzuga ..ill upgrade to the stainless i think

so based on the 400 miles i did thats about it everything worked fine stayed in place