Guns Blazing

The Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 is a bobber based on the Super Meteor 650. We had an opportunity to spend some time astride it to explore its capabilities

-  Azaman Chothia

THE NEW SHOTGUN 650 IS THE FOURTH motorcycle to emerge from the tried and tested Royal Enfield 650-cc platform. This bobber shares its chassis with the Super Meteor 650 and, while at first glance it looks like a stripped-down version of that motorcycle, there is a lot more than meets the eye. Royal Enfield say that this design language pays homage to the SG650 Concept which was showcased at EICMA 2021. 

The styling of the motorcycle is handsome for a bobber and, just like the SM 650, the quality and fit-and-finish are premium. It gets a slightly re-designed tank that can hold 13.8 litres of fuel, compared to the 15.7-litre fuel-tank on the Super Meteor 650. At the front, the round LED headlight is covered by a cowl that gives the Shotgun its character and makes it stand apart. At the rear, we see a single-seat configuration just as bobbers are meant to be. Unlike the exhaust units on the Super Meteor 650, which run parallel to the ground, the Shotgun gets slightly upswept units. Like the Super Meteor 650, the Shotgun gets aluminium cubes on either side of the handlebar that house the switchgear as well as knob-adjustable clutch and brake levers.

What we have for this review is the Stencil White colour scheme which surely gained a lot of attention while cruising around in the city. Plasma Blue, Green Drill, and Sheetmetal Grey are the three other colour options on offer. We received this version with a single seat although the Shotgun is able to switch from a single seater to a double seater to a luggage-carrying tourer. With the twist of a key, the pillion seat is said to pop off. The bike makes use of a digi-analogue instrument cluster that comes equipped with the Tripper navigation pod as well. The only addition that we would have loved to see here was a tachometer.