Harley Rider now looking at a ST1300!

Hi All,

I want a bike that I can ride all day touring, my Dyna is not cut out for that.

There is a 2004 ST1300 (Blue) that I have my eye on and I am not sure what to look out for. It has done 87K miles, is that ok? Price is good, $3K (well, I think the price is good).

I have read about the Pan Weave thing, but not sure what to ask the seller about this.

Did this model have the adjustable seat height? I am short

Cheers

T

Hi

Get one!

With a couple changes (notably a different saddle) the ST is an all day, many days in a row platform for many people.

Assuming routine service has been kept up, you're looking at perhaps another 120,000 miles and maybe more before you wear it out.

Pan weave happens under very specific combinations of speed, total weight, and load distribution if I have understood correctly what I have read. Keep it under 120 and you should be good to go. Some on this and other ST forums have actually experienced the weave and are therefore much better qualified to comment.

The seat has three positions: too high, higher than that, and nosebleed.

Seriously, I have about a 31" inseam and a Sargent seat; in the middle position I cannot quite flat foot it but I don't have a mania about that. On the lowest setting I can get both feet flat.

Blue is known to be the fastest color, though the reds are prettier. Don't tell my bike- he's an '04 and convinced he's the most gorgeous thing on the planet.

Welcome aboard, from Fort Worth!

Welcome to ST Owners from Windsor Canada!

You'll find the ST to be big and fast with power to burn. They are complex, but very well built, reliable as a brick and quiet (sounds a bit like George Jetsons car). Personally, I don't mind the seat - but others hate it. I would give her a try before spending a ton-O'dough on an aftermarket seat. You might also want to look at handlebar risers (for a less forward leaning stance) and perhaps even a peg lowering kit (search the forums for posts on this - some peg kits are good, others NOT). The brakes on these bikes (particularly the linked ABS system) are superb. The asking price for the one you're looking at sound quite fair to me - and as others have said, the mileage is not a concern for a clean well-maintained bike.

NOTE: these bikes were fairly expensive when new so most HAVE been well-maintained.

As for the colour - well, the blue is indeed, very pretty but silver (that would be the 2007) is actually the classiest and fast colour. Don't tell the other folks that though as they may get cranky.

Depending on the amount of cush in your tush a change of seat is pretty much mandatory for all day touring. I'm not a long distance rider by any means but after about 300mi the ST seat starts to annoy me a little. For an afternoon of riding it's not problem.

The seat is 31" give or take .5". That's about the inseam of a lot of riders. An ST may be taller and had a higher center of gravity than you're used to. However it seems with technique and decent quads some shorter riders have been very happy with it.

My 04 has 178,000 miles & I want 3,500 for it. With miles posted I'd say it is a good price. My bike has never had the Pan weave? It is mostly how U mount the front wheel? There is more too this. But i'm not going to type it out.
Enjoy it's a Honda.

Welcome to the group from Tennessee. You can't go wrong with a ST1300. I've had mine for 5 years now, and still love it.

The blue is pretty, but you really need to find a black one since they're more dependable. Just don't mention it, cause the other folks will get cranky.

Ride Safe
John and Janis

You may want to consider one with ABS. Big increase in safety, and better resale value. Ebay is a good way to check values. You can program the search to look for completed auctions. They are worth what they have sold for. Don't be afraid to travel for a deal. I went from KY to Minneapolis for mine.

Welcome to the forums! Sounds like a good deal to me!

Welcome, from another '04 owner.

I've got a little over 123K on mine, and have never experienced the dreaded Pan weave.
I HAVE experienced a lot of great places on it, with my wife and riding partner.
I upgraded my seat, as others have suggested, and added Heli risers

Enjoy your ride,
Steve.

ibike2havefun said:

Assuming routine service has been kept up, you're looking at perhaps another 120,000 miles and maybe more before you wear it out.

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I have 160k on my 03 and its no where near wearing out these machines will easily do 200 or 300k if taken care of.

My 2003 ST1300 ABS is more comfortable, for me, over long distances than my 2015 Road Glide Special. However, passenger comfort is superior on the RGS.

The ST is much faster.

I have had the ST almost 13 years, 98K miles. No issues other than those I caused myself.

Buy one with ABS.

The ST1300 is a marvelous bike. I love it, I have passed 17000km (10563miles) since i bought it this year.

I have had "The weave" thing. But thats was with bad packaging on the bike at 190km/t (118miles/h). It stopped when i accelerated a litle more or slowed down a little. Then i took of my packaging (Tent and chair laying across on the back seat!) and the bike went smooth thru 190km/h again! So i think it is something with how the bike is loaded with cargo.
I have felt the exact same thing on other bikes (Yamaha 1300 for example) so it is enhanced by other bikeriders to talk "dirty" of one of the best bikes there is.
Everybody should have a :bow1: ST1300 but Imagine a world with only one bike model!

Red IS the fastest color! :biker:

Welcome to the family! Hope you get that ST... Lots of knowledgeable folks on the forum to help you with any questions you may have. The ST1300 for touring will beat the HD's hands down! Mikey says "Try it you will like it"!

They are great machines. I have an 05 with just over 100k and its been trouble free.. $3k is a good price...

Thank you everyone for the replies. I have been reading heaps on this forum, lot's of great info. I could be sitting here reading for weeks

The more I think about the ST1300, the more I want it.

Tiffany said:

Thank you everyone for the replies. I have been reading heaps on this forum, lot's of great info. I could be sitting here reading for weeks

The more I think about the ST1300, the more I want it.

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Good luck.

It will have a lot to do with your budget. Hope you can find a good one for you!

It's so good you may want more than one............

Welcome from WA STate!!

ToddC

I have a 2004 that I bought this spring. Coming off a couple Kawasaki Concours C10's the ST 1300 is relatively easy for me (5' 9") to reach the ground even with the seat set to the highest position. Price sounds decent as long as it's in good cosmetic condition w/o broken mirrors/plastics, luggage bags/latches, etc, as that stuff is sort of expensive to upgrade/replace. As long as it was maintained the miles aren't much of an issue. Check out the brakes for sticking (read up on SMC issues), windshield up/down operation and basic stuff.
Ride it for a while and see what you think of the seat. Jury is still out for me, but I'm ok with it for a 100 miles between breaks.
The "sound" (or lack of it) of the bike may take some getting used to but it does make a nice subdued growl on brisk acceleration. It's extremely quiet at cruising speeds and not tiring.
Love the power w/s!! The mirrors could be better.

Tiffany said:

Thank you everyone for the replies. I have been reading heaps on this forum, lot's of great info. I could be sitting here reading for weeks

The more I think about the ST1300, the more I want it.

Click to expand...

Something to consider that has not come up here yet. Servicing the bike. Most of the guys here do it themselves, and there is a wealth of info and tons of help for even the most basic questions. There are even tech events where owners get together and work on the bikes in a teacher-student or helper mode. I had (have) a thorny issue and I took it to my local Honda/BMW dealer. Short story is the 'super smart' lead mechanic misdiagnosed the problem and made things worse (my opinion). The bottom line is that there are not a whole lot of these bikes out there, they are VERY reliable with only a few mechanical issues, and as a result the mechanics see very few of them and don't know them well enough to deal with the occasional real problem. Add in the usual sloppy work (like improperly bleeding the brake system) and you should seriously consider servicing the bike yourself.

Having said that, there is no other bike like this one. Smooth, quiet, good handling, powerful. And Spencer will lower the stock seat about an inch for something like $75 (price may have changed).

Oh, and even though I have a black bike, the Red ones LOOK the fastest, even when parked. And they are soooooo pretty.