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konastab01
BTW anyone fancy SE Asia, very much recommend Vietnam. Covered approx 14,000 km of Hanoi, north west, central and south regions, plus a healthy loop of Cambodia into the actual arse belonging to nowhere.
Some of the best riding roads anywhere in the world, surfaces when they are good, are best of european quality good. Sure other drivers are lunatics, but your all riders, you get used to everyone around you being a problem so not too much of an adjustment TBH. Some of the good bits require hours of slogging through about the worst "roads" you've ever seen, forests, jungles, truck roads to nowhere, with nothing on them because road is so totally obliterated (new one will route around the bad bits, but then miss out the absolute gems) and then, you have 20 - 40 km worth of just unreal riding with absolutely nothing else on it. Too hot for half the year in the north, and 10/12 of the year in south central and south south.
Cambodia for me was 39-44c for 10 days straight, minimum night time temp was around 32-36 if you were lucky, big heat wave unfortunately killed and hospitalized a lot of folk out here the last month or so.
No need for big bikes TBH, tried a few and for the few times when having more than 30 hp is nice, outweighed by the rest of the time it feeling like your trying to thread a HGV through a bustling market street. And when police clock its a heavy motorcycle, the potential for fines go up as most heavy motorcycles are large % more than they are in the UK, so you must be loaded = more coffee money for them.
Ideal bikes? Get a maxi scooter and put some decent tyres and screen on it. PCX + many mods = fastest thing on most roads most of the time and all day comfort, 350-400km on 5 quid of fuel. Needs double the power to be perfect scooter IMO. Nmax, Tmax, NVX, Forza 300 are all also ideal. Suzuki were never popular here so no big burgmans to be found.
Honda Winner/Winner X 150 or 160cc, or Yamaha Exciter 155/ 155GP are the daddies here. 16 hp water cooled, 6 speed, nissin brakes, decent tyres like michelin pilot 2 or pirelli diablo rosso fit, again some suspension mods, air box mod, exhaust and remap and you've got maybe 18 hp, but way more torque. Lightweight, frame is stiff enough if you weigh under 80 kg, skinny and fits through traffic easily, handling is pretty neutral on both and because they weigh so little you can get away with so much on them.
Heavy motorcycles if your on a line, close to limit of grip or ability and you have oncoming wanker in an SUV or truck, your done. The small skinny bikes on decent tyres, always got the option of just dipping right in and hoping for the best.