Frugal but effective chassis, suspension and brakes
Frugal in the sense that Honda has developed a simple, almost invisible, one that remains stylish when appropriate, like on the Fury, but always understated, especially when it come to the well integrated, dare I say camouflaged water radiator, always a sore point with people who want the clean front of a radiator less (I.e. air cooled) motor.

Floorboards, comfortable seating, easy reach to the bar and protection from the wind. Key West, here I come on my Interstate! (Photo: Rob O'Brien)

The brake discs, one at each end, provide more than adequate braking, especially so as they are linked, so that braking at one end only (Front for sport oriented riders, and rear for the more conservative) does send some work to the other wheel, and always under the governance of the efficient ABS.

This feature addresses an important weakness on long and low bike – the lack of weight transfer to the front under braking. This leads to early lock-up at the front, or reduced braking with an ABS, a nasty situation that is corrected in good part by the linking of the front and rear systems. I know that you can learn to brake at both ends, but squeezing the front brake in a crisis when you never do it normally is too iffy for my taste. Long live shared braking and advanced ABS systems!

The generous 100mm of suspension travel at the rear deserves praise and the thanks of everyone who rides on rough roads, i.e. the majority of riders in North America. The Fury has its own slammed look and small fuel tank, but the other models let you keep a slammed look, as well as a healthy back, enough so to allow you to burn a fuel load without having to stop to give you spine a break every 50 clicks.

Pick the ergonomics you want
As you could see from the Ergonomic Triangles, you can pick and choose the configuration that best fits your needs. In passing, all the saddles are well cushioned.

I found the Interstate - Stateline to be my cat’s meow, given my 110kg, with the Sabre coming in right behind on my Hit Parade for urban rides, and the Fury a bit too extreme for my creaky body. And this is exactly what Honda was looking for, to produce a set of different 1300 cruisers that would please virtually every rider, from chopper fans, with suitable bars of course, to relaxed touring and urban riders who like their bike light, rapid and comfortable, just like the LRC train between Montreal and Toronto.

Interstate vs Fury. Brothers but not identical twins! (Photo: Rob O'Brien)