Faults:

No real faults so far. Totally reliable.

Seat split at the front shortly after ownership.

If the bike is stored for a time, then carbs need stripping and cleaning. A relatively easy task on Bandits.

General Comments:

Dyno tuned with other mods, 134 BHP.

Twin shotgun race exhaust fitted (totally illegal!!). Sounds awesome.

Renthal bars, twin headlamps, braided hose, wavy discs, white instrument faces.

Braking is excellent, but forks can dive under harsh braking.

Handles well, good ground clearance, but worn tyres can skip on white lines.

Easy to wheelie in the first three gears if the throttle is snapped open.

Easy bike to work on.

Faults:

Blow-back through the carburettors flooded the engine. Poor fuel, I think, rather than a design fault.

General Comments:

The Bandit 1200 does everything well without being inspiring in any one area.

I have the S version (faired), which makes high speeds and long distances comfortable.

It is fast in a straight line and the brakes are powerful and linear. Two-finger stops are the norm. It has very smooth acceleration (carbs, not injectors).

However, the suspension, both front and rear, is soft: comfortable, but vague in the twisty stuff.

It is totally reliable, easy to handle, cheap to buy, run, insure and maintain.

It is built to a budget and salty roads don't do the fasteners any favours. But, all in all, a truly competent and enjoyable machine.

Faults:

Water in electrics under seat, not used in rain.

Standard handle bars poor bend.

Corrosion on rear footrest hangers already.

General Comments:

Very rapid when unrestricted and jetted.

Replacement bars cures the original bend.

Takes some holding on at full bore.

Faults:

Nothing

General Comments:

This bike is all about 1 thing - grunt - and it's got carrier bags full of the stuff. Any gear, any revs, just wind on the throttle and it shifts. That reason alone was enough to temp me to the Bandit 1200.

What about the other areas? Well, it goes round corners reasonably well as you would expect a motorcycle to do, but it is heavy, and the suspension wears quickly with age.

The single best modification I did on this bike was to change the rear shock with a quality TechnoFlex one. Yes it was expensive, but it improved the handling 200%.

As for the brakes, well actually they're very good as standard, but with better pads and braided lines, they're even better. Good bite, feel, and power.

What I loved also was the fact that if you put just a race can on, you can liberate up to 15BHP instantly - without re-jetting or the like, and lighten the bike by about 5kgs in the process as the standard silencer is RESTRICTIVE and HEAVY.

Complete the above and you have a fairly fine specimen of a bike, which will do just about anything you ask of it.