‘Inspired by custom, for custom’ is the lead blurb for the 2024 Royal Enfield Shotgun 650, and given the ability to swap between single seater ‘bobber’, two-up cruiser, and luggage-bearing runabout – as well as the potential to dive into the modifications and accessories to truly make this cruiser your own – this latest cruiser from the now Indian giants bearing with the is a tasty prospect.

We had the Shotgun 650 in for about 3 weeks, and had a superb time putting the latest incarnation of the parallel-twin 650 motor to work with touring rides using the built-in Tripper navigation unit, and countryside blasts enjoying the sharp throttle and eager handling – safe to say this bike seriously impressed.

Best of all, it’s an accessible motorcycle at a decent price. Calling it budget almost sounds a bit of a negative, as the assumption would be that budget is equal to ‘not very good’. This is certainly not the case here, the Shotgun 650 distinctly feels more like a premium motorcycle at a very good price.

In dealerships now, and available in a choice of four colours, the Shotgun 650 is priced starting at £6,699 in a sleek Sheet Metal Grey, up to £6,799 in Drill Green or Plasma Blue, or the premium Stencil White at £6,899 (as ridden).

I had the Stencil White edition in, and to be entirely transparent it’s personally my least favourite colour option of the four – the Grey option is far better in suiting the overall style, and it’s cheaper!

You also get a 3-year unlimited mileage warranty when bought from new, a testament to Enfield’s belief in the stellar build quality on offer. However it does seem service intervals are at a short 3000 miles.

I mentioned it’s based heavily on the Super Meteor 650, but how is it different? Using the Super Meteor as a base, a bike that is classed more of a touring cruiser, the Shotgun has a shorter wheelbase at 1465mm, so a steeper rake and smaller 18 inch front tyre, Showa Upside Down forks and twin rear shocks – all pointing towards a sharper road feel with a neutral handlebar.

Also different is the riding position, with a 795mm seat height and mid-mounted foot controls (as opposed to feet forward controls). The overall position is fairly netural, but certainly positioned well for some countryside blasts.

That doesn’t mean rider comfort is sacrificed in the touring department, though – despite a smaller 13.8 Litre tank instead of the 15.7 litres found on the Super Meteor, the comfort on offer here is still supremely comfortable for a long ride with some countryside portions thrown in along the route. Speaking of, the Tripper Navigation unit comes as standard for turn-by-turn route guidance, a modern feature on an otherwise classically analogue machine.

I’m a big fan of the air-oil cooled 648 cc parallel-twin motor, first seen on the immensely popular Interceptor and Continental GT twins. In this cruiser/bobber format, it’s just as impressive in providing a torquey and responsive ride with a sharp edge, and I found the throttle really sharp in replying to my inputs to the throttle. It doesn’t feel or sound ‘lazy’, and considering the 46.4 bhp at 7250 rpm and 52.3 Nm of torque, which is accessed nice and low down in the rev range to provide almost instant access when needed.

There are no rider modes, and no cruise control, and keeps the technology to a minimum – but in the best way. The engine and torque are put to the rear wheel smoothly and with plenty of character thanks to a 270-degree firing order, and on the first full day with the Shotgun I set off on a circa 200-mile ride that encompassed all manner of riding. Long stints on the motorway, fast A roads with sweeping corners, and tight B-roads with countryside hairpins.

Some may say the power isn't enough, but I'd argue it's well worth giving a go before you base your assumptions on the spec sheet stats - it's more than enough for getting a smile out of you on the road.

Despite no rev indicator, shift points are obvious when keeping an ear on the motor before you hit the red line, and cruising at 70 mph in 6^th gear is smooth with little to no vibrations – though you do feel some vibrations if hanging on to gears and sitting high in the revs.

A note on the gearbox too, the overall feel is super slick and assisted by an assist/slipper clutch to very good effect – giving even more fun to countryside blasts. It helps that the exhaust note is a little bit raucous as well, a perfect soundtrack to any Sunday afternoon ride as the torque pulls you out of corners.

Given the horsepower is rated at 46.4 bhp, it’s also A2 friendly out of the box. I’d easily recommend this bike to any beginner rider after classic style, though that’s not to turn away any veteran riders after a well-priced machine – this Shotgun provides a supreme platform for riders of all experience levels to have a top time.

Moving to the handling, the Shotgun does a stellar job of providing endless fun on all roads, and a key to that is the suspension, brakes, wheels and frame used in this package. As mentioned I spent a good 100 or so motorway miles in the saddle on the first full day, and though rider comfort isn’t a perfect 10/10 (no screen, no cruise control), I found it very comfortable for my 6’3” frame.

Fitted to the Shotgun steel tubular spine frame is Showa suspension, front USD forks with 120mm travel and rear twin shocks with 90mm travel. Despite being a tad obvious, on smooth well-paved roads the suspension is seriously good and only comes undone when faced with particularly bumpy and poor road surfaces, the rear shock in particular getting a bit out-of-sorts when met with successive bumps, though you can adjust the preload by 5-steps if you feel the need to soften or firm up the ride. Keep in mind that it’s an entry level cruiser.

Over to the brakes, you’ll find ByBre twin piston floating calipers on both the front 320mm and rear 300mm disc, paired with dual-channel ABS. Braking power is adequate, nothing too sharp and by no means soft – it’s perfect for easy going riding and nothing to scare beginner riders, and doesn’t easily come undone on faster rides.

Wheels are tubeless, with an 18-inch front and 17-inch rear, trod with CEAT tyres. They do a good job in all weather, as a majority of my rides over the 3 weeks were met with a classic sputtering of English summertime rain. You may opt for alternative tyres once these wear down, but they do a good enough job to get you going for a few thousand miles.

So, handling is top-notch here – the mid-mount foot controls and sharp frame really allow for some brilliant riding action on twisty roads. It’s a properly engaging ride that can impress on twistier roads, but is just as happy cruising on motorways and cutting through town traffic.

You may scrape the hero blobs on the footpegs quite often, with 140mm of ground clearance, but the 240 kg machine is entirely smooth and comfortably in your control when riding. To that point, even walking the bike around is comfortable, with a decent turning circle lock-to-lock.

Perhaps a headline feature for many riders here is the Tripper Navigation system built with Google maps, used by pairing your smartphone to the bike via Bluetooth and setting your route on the dedicated Royal Enfield app. Pairing was super easy, and continued to work each and every subsequent time within seconds – something that can often be the undoing of some tech on bikes.

Giving simple visual guidance to your next turn, the tripper system isn’t without some minor flaws – the guidance is very simplistic (no road names or specific directions, and you’ll have to check for which number exit at roundabouts as opposed to referring to the picture), when paired to an intercom you get some more detailed information. On that note, you don’t need an intercom for it to work (like on the Honda Africa Twin CarPlay/Android Auto interface).

Elsewhere on the Shotgun 650 you’ll find a USB charger, LED headlamps, analogue dial with digital centre display, and vintage-style switchgear. Everything is built very well, and the analogue dial (despite lacking a rev counter) matches the style of the bike perfectly well. The mirrors, for me, weren’t quite as effective, so I’d probably opt for the bar-end mirrors to avoid staring at my shoulders when looking for a quick glance behind me.

Moving to the tank, the 13.8 litres seems to get a solid 120 miles between fill-ups, which can no doubt be extended if ridden smoothly and carefully in higher gears where possible. Unfortunately for me, the torque delivery is far too tempting in the lower gears, so I averaged just under 120 miles per fill-up. You’d hope for quite a bit more from the motor, but in my experience this 648cc twin can be quite thirsty.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Good price point.
• Lovely style.
• Overall ride quality (motor and handling) is top.

Cons

• Fuel economy.
• Not a fan of this particular colour.
• Service intervals seem quite short.

Royal Enfield’s Shotgun 650 is yet another brilliant incarnation of the air-oil cooled motor from the now Indian-led marque, and given the base for customisation potential and overall road prowess, this Shotgun does a seriously good job of matching style with pure riding pleasure.

The fairly budget price has no bearing on the seriously sharp handling and stellar finish to this package, and given it’s an A2-friendly machine I’d expect it to do seriously well in a popular cruiser and bobber category – check the top 10 if you want some of the rivals out there.

Check out our video review of the Shotgun 650 from the BikeMatters YouTube channel if you want to see it in action – and a big thanks to Royal Enfield for the loan, head to the UK website for more specs and information.