From Italy to Kyrgyzstan in 2 months on a Cb400f

[Voxclamantisindeserto]

In July 2022 I would like to travel 2 months from Italy to Kyrgyzstan and then ship my bike back. My bike is a 1976 honda cb400f.

I would like to ask if a trip like this is doable with such a bike and what would be the best option: shipping the bike to Kyrgyzstan and travelling back to Italy or viceversa?

My plan would be to do Austria - Hungary - Romania - Moldavia - Ukraine / ferry to Georgia - Azerbaijan - Ferry to Kazakhstan - Uzbekistan - Kyrgyzstan.

I don't know if in two months it's too much driving and if my bike can make it, also don't know if it will be possible to travel in 2022.

Any tip is welcome, cheers!

[backofbeyond]

Strangely enough I have a CB400F2 - a 1977 version though, so a year younger than yours. I've not done anything like your planned distance on it but I have done a few short /medium distance trips in the 500-1500 mile range. I've also done just short of 600km on it in one day

It's quite a physically small bike so if you're anything much over 1.75m (5' 9" or so in imperial) tall it's going to be uncomfortable - especially the amount your knees will be bent. It's also very fussy to ride and the constant feeling that the engine is screaming and needs another gear (despite having six already) is very tiring over the course of a day. Back in the spring I rode mine back to back with my 1970's 250cc Yamaha two stroke and 125 Suzuki two stroke and the Honda was the least pleasant. When you'd prefer to take a 125 single over a 400 four you know the four is hard work.

Biggest downside for distance work is that some engine bits are not that dependable. The ignition side is weak and sensitive to rain, with plugs cutting in and out at random unless you protect them somehow. All the 70's sohc Hondas seem to suffer from the same problem - the 550/4 and 750/4 that I had back then both did the same, the 550 going back three times under warranty for it. The 400/4 cam chain adjuster is notoriously bad and it will almost certainly need adjusting on your trip. I won't even mention the carbs as they'll go out of adjustment, the engine will rattle like bolts in a dustbin at idle because of it and you'll just have to get used to it. Mine at least does not do altitude well either. Much above 1500m it runs so rich it feels like you have the choke on and above 2000m it's considerably down on power when hot. My advice would be to avoid mountains on your route.

On the up side, properly adjusted the brakes are ok and it's a Honda so it's unlikely to blow up on you. It's also an easy bike to fit luggage to. I have an old Craven rack on mine and had a set of period Craven panniers before one of them fell off and was run over by a following car. If I was equipping it again I'd keep the rack but use soft panniers. I get about 50-55mpg out of mine on a run (roughly 19km / litre)

Would I take mine on the trip you're planning? Maybe, but it's a high maintenance bike so I'd be taking more tools than I normally would. It's going to need a lot more tlc on the road than something more modern. If yours is in good condition, and you look after it, it will do the trip but I'd expect the odd glitch along the way.


Here's mine in the French Alps a few years ago:





As to whether it's going to be possible to do that trip next year, well, who knows with Covid and the political changes / restrictions that flow from it. I'm planning a trip to Morocco on the Yamaha in the picture below next summer but the trip was supposed to be last year, then this year and now next year, so it's all up in the air and waiting on circumstances. Despite being older and smaller the Yamaha is a much easier bike to ride any distance than the 400/4 (which you can just see behind it) and not that much slower.

[Voxclamantisindeserto]

Thanks for the detailed reply, your bike look amazing. I'm 170 cm tall (or short eheh), that's why I chose to buy this motorbike.

Yeah, tlc is needed with those bike, mine is almost 100% original, it's a targa oro in Italy, registered as a vehicle of historical value, so my doubt would be if to use it or not for this kind of trip and if it would ruin it

[Toyark]

if it has 4 carbs....I can't say I'd enjoy having to balance those on a long haul trip. Food for thought.
The trip is about the trip and the machine is just the tool to let me enjoy it- IMHO, reliability, simplicity of servicing and frugality are the 'must haves' but then that's just me! I'd say your CB400F belongs in your living room! it's a treasure and it would be a crying shame to chance ruining it. Simplicity really is a prerequisite of reliability.
Aside from practicalities, question for you: if your trip was to go wrong, (hoping it does not but these things do happen) how would you feel about torching or abandoning it?

p.s nice nostalgic pics B-O-B

[backofbeyond]

Originally Posted by Toyark

if it has 4 carbs....I can't say I'd enjoy having to balance those on a long haul trip. Food for thought.
The trip is about the trip and the machine is just the tool to let me enjoy it- IMHO, reliability, simplicity of servicing and frugality are the 'must haves' but then that's just me! I'd say your CB400F belongs in your living room! it's a treasure and it would be a crying shame to chance ruining it. Simplicity really is a prerequisite of reliability.
Aside from practicalities, question for you: if your trip was to go wrong, (hoping it does not but these things do happen) how would you feel about torching or abandoning it?

p.s nice nostalgic pics B-O-B

Those pictures were taken fairly recently - the second one only last year!

The issue of whether long trips ruin classic bikes (or even whether they're suitable at all for 'overlanding' is a tricky one - especially since the prices asked for classic stuff has gone way past their intrinsic value. I think you have to separate how much a bike is worth from how much it's worth to you - if there's a reason for using that particular bike for a trip and if so, are you willing to pay whatever the cost (it may end up needing a complete restoration afterwards or even written off). The 400F - in good condition - isn't that bad a bike for tarmac touring. It does have a very fussy engine which does tire you out and, like virtually all 70's stuff is high maintenance, but if you travelled by bike back then (which I did) they were all like that. It's only by comparison by what's available now that they look unsuitable. This is how we treated them when they were current bikes (late 70's so not the best of pictures) -



As I said earlier I probably would use my 400 for that trip but it wouldn't be my first choice as I have other stuff to choose from and I wouldn't have any reason to pick the 400. That's not always the case though. The Morocco trip I have planned on my 250 Yamaha won't work if I go on a modern bike. The whole point of it is to revisit, Dreaming of Jupiter style, a trip I did back in the 70's. The Yamaha is an essential part of it (and so far a damned expensive part). Its been overhauled, rebuilt (several times) and restored in an attempt to make it reliable enough. What I'm not doing is spending money on cosmetics - if it makes it back I'll look at that side then. That's likely to be the issue with the 400F; it'll come back scratched and scraped, maybe corroded and dented. If that isn't a concern then I'd say use it. If spoiling what many people see as a piece of 70's motorcycle art is an issue then go with something else.

This is what the Yamaha looks like now. Below is another 'fast appreciating old classic' that I toured round the Alps on about 7-8yrs ago.

[Toyark]

You're spot on B-O-B Good post sir :0)
It's all on how we each feel .
I was once advised: ' don't take anything you cannot afford to lose or be miserable if you lost/trashed/ abandonned it'. Bike/equipment etc.
I still believe that was good advice but we are all different! Vive la difference!
Love your pics- those were (some)of the days. Can't say I miss my Tiger Cub 200 which needed daily work so modern/more reliable motos are a treat.
And my Yam 400 which blew up due to my (read stupid) love of burning ricin R40 racing oil on cold mornings ... gets thick in winter, oil pump seized them engine went 'KabOOm'. My pride and joy game over. Being a dumbass can cost!!
Live and learn eh?!!!

[mark manley]

I am almost tempted to say go ahead and take it, I once did 960 miles in 20 hours on my 400F so know that they are capable of distance but will add to the voices of reason saying take something a little newer and less complicated.

[Tomkat]

OK, 1. Don't go touring on a classic or treasured bike. Not only do you risk unreliability on an older machine, but you'll almost certainly fall off it or break something at some point, even if you don't go off tarmac. There are so many more road bikes out there for modest money that you could take and have a better experience on.

2. As BoB says, what happens out there in the next year is anyone's guess right now. In 2020 I postponed my planned trip out to Magadan and back via the Stans due to covid. That uncertainty still exists unfortunately, but added to that the fallout from the Afghan upheaval that could spill out into adjacent states. I'll look again at the situation at the beginning of next year but as it stands I'm not very hopeful.

3. If you want to "ship and ride" I suggest shipping out and riding back. That way you can choose a shipper you trust and work with them in your own language and home country. At the other end you know every mile you do you're getting closer to home and easier to recover if something goes wrong late in the trip. For Kyrgyzstan the best place to ship to is probably Zorro Moto in Osh. Dave the owner is a Swiss guy and bike enthusiast, I'm sure he'd help you with receiving the bike and setting you up for your onward journey.

[Voxclamantisindeserto]

Originally Posted by Tomkat

OK, 1. Don't go touring on a classic or treasured bike. Not only do you risk unreliability on an older machine, but you'll almost certainly fall off it or break something at some point, even if you don't go off tarmac. There are so many more road bikes out there for modest money that you could take and have a better experience on.

2. As BoB says, what happens out there in the next year is anyone's guess right now. In 2020 I postponed my planned trip out to Magadan and back via the Stans due to covid. That uncertainty still exists unfortunately, but added to that the fallout from the Afghan upheaval that could spill out into adjacent states. I'll look again at the situation at the beginning of next year but as it stands I'm not very hopeful.

3. If you want to "ship and ride" I suggest shipping out and riding back. That way you can choose a shipper you trust and work with them in your own language and home country. At the other end you know every mile you do you're getting closer to home and easier to recover if something goes wrong late in the trip. For Kyrgyzstan the best place to ship to is probably Zorro Moto in Osh. Dave the owner is a Swiss guy and bike enthusiast, I'm sure he'd help you with receiving the bike and setting you up for your onward journey.

Ok, I'm thinking about buying a Royal Enfield Himalayan 2021 and ride with that instead!

[Tomkat]

Originally Posted by Voxclamantisindeserto

Ok, I'm thinking about buying a Royal Enfield Himalayan 2021 and ride with that instead!

From Osh virtually all your mileage will be on tarmac, you don't really need off road capability. I was thinking something cheap and cheerful like a SV650.

[backofbeyond]

Originally Posted by Voxclamantisindeserto

Ok, I'm thinking about buying a Royal Enfield Himalayan 2021 and ride with that instead!

Blimey, talk about chalk and cheese. I was tempted to say you've gone from the 70's to the 50's but as I know the Himmy is held in reasonable regard in some quarters I'll hold back on that.

If you're going to buy a bike rather than just use what you have (the 400/4?) then look at some of the budget stuff more suited to the trip - the SV650 as suggested by Tomkat for example. I'd suggest an XT660Z but as you're about my build you'd need a ladder to get on it.