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Posted: 7/8/2002 1:56:35 PM EDT
I ain't getting any younger, and I've been wanting a Harley-Davidson for a long time. But kids and other things take priority, plus I just bought a truck a few months ago. My favorite Harley is the Fat Boy, but $18K - $20K is more than I can afford right now. I could get a Sportster, but to be honest I think the Sportster sits too high. A buddy of mine at work had a Sportster and sold it and bought a Honda Valkyrie. He said the Valkyrie rides better, has more power, and is less maintenance.
Some guys at work got together for a ride last Sunday and hearing them talk about it put me back on my "I want a bike" kick again. I go through this every year or so... but I don't get a bike and then I don't think about it for awhile. I've ridden friends' bikes but the last bike I owned was a dirt bike. So I'm looking for an starter cruiser. I really like the looks of the Honda Shadow Sabre - 1100cc engine, water cooled, shaft drive. I have a buddy with a 750cc Shadow and he says he wished he'd got a bigger engine. Here's a pic of a 2000 Shadow Sabre selling locally for $5988... [img]http://images.traderonline.com/EMedia/tarchive2/144/1129/00256616906.jpg[/img] I was looking at the Suzuki Intruder and the Kawasaki Vulcan too. Anything I should look for or stay away from? Were there some bad years for certain models? You guys are a wealth of knowledge and experience and I'd appreciate your opinions. TIA (BTW, my better half is all for it, but her company is on the verge of bankruptcy so her job is iffy right now. She would prefer I get a Harley too... her Dad has a Electra Glide... but too much money. I may have to wait a year or two, but I still need some idea of what to look for in case a deal comes along that I can't pass up. [8D]) [i]Edited to change the topic title.[/i] [whacko] |
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My brother-in-law just got a Shadow 1100. He had a Harley ordered for over a year, but when the 1100 came out under $6K, he figured the money was better spent.
I have put about 500 miles on that Shadow. I can honestly say that it was money well spent considering the finances and priorities. |
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used bmw. used ducati. new triumph. a buell. parilla.
anything but vanilla, please. |
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You mean like this one? [img]http://octoberskies.com/corner/bikes/graphics/fatboy.jpg[/img] Get yourself a Yamaha V Max.. thier a lot faster and cheaper.. but my first choice would be a fat boy too..[rolleyes] |
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I'd love to have a Harley FXDL, but like you, the price is a little out of my league.
I've owned mc's for almost 30 years, I presently ride a '92 Shadow 1100. I have a little over 64K miles on it now, not one iota of trouble and still running strong. Before that I had a Suzuki, could have just been my luck, but it gave me nothing but trouble. Terry |
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Got a 94 sporty 1200 hotrod, that is mostly a garage ornament, for this old dude. She is a nice ride and sounds great ! HD's are the way to go, unless you want to be a Wanabe.
I like all bikes man, I dont want a pickle I just want ride my moter cikle.....[:D] |
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Try a yamaha V Star. Great lloking bike without the Harley sticker shock.
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I aint touching the mid-life thing but look hard at the vulcan 800 ......if it is for you and one up riding,it is comfortable and hauls major ass I put about 10,000 miles a year on mine. nothing outragous on maintenance tires,battery (my fault),1 chain and a speedo cable,just gas it up,lube the chain every 3 or 4 tanks of gas,
As for the Sporty you can drop the backend with shocks or just relocate the tabs,the front can be dropped ....no biggie....the Sporty will hold or gain value....the Kawa won't....the thing to do is get something and ride the hell out of it......trailers are for boat's |
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Man you need an ATV,Yea street bikes are cool but ATV's are really "in" right now....You can take them trough Mud, Sand, Water and over logs. You can buy ALOT of add on's and make them your own.
Heres a pic of Mine.... [img]http://us.f1.yahoofs.com/users/a391936d/bc/OUTLAWS/__hr_Front+Right.jpg?bcQpiK9Ag7faFOyd[/img] Not to change the subject but you were talking about price and so far this has only cost me alittle over $7000 |
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Ha, you're not middle aged. I have a Harley that sits in the garage. I ride a Trek 7700 bicycle all summer to keep my blood pressure down [BD] |
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Look at the Kawasaki WC650. It's cool as hell and you can just about STEAL one!
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B_B
Went through the same thing last winter. I had to do the bike thing...it was on the list, and time keeps marching on ! First choice was a Fat Boy as well, but the $$, and quite honestly the attitude at the dealers was enough to make me reconsider. Next choice was the Honda Sabre, good price, decent looks, etc. That was until I walked into one of my local dealers and saw the Yamaha V-Star 1100. There was no hope for me at that point, even the loving-bride-of-over-twenty-years saw the look in my eye and didn't even try to talk me out of it. Check out the Yamaha motors website, as well as the Star Rider forums ... (The "Build it yourself" thing on the Yamaha site is getting me into serious trouble...ya can't never get enough "trinkets") [url]http://www.yamaha-motor.com/products/unitinfo.asp?lid=2&lc=mcy&cid=4&mid=19[/url] [url]http://www.star-riders.org/[/url] -Hope the links thing works.... |
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My moto is: The bigger, the better.
My Suzuki Intruder [img]http://home.austin.rr.com/patwarren/moozuki.jpg[/img] I also like the Yamaha RoadStar Warrior [img]http://www.yamaha-motor.com/products/mcy/500/warrior_smoke.jpg[/img] |
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Thanks for your replies. I appreciate it. Keep 'em coming.
realist, nice HOG man! Is that yours? Can I ride it? [;)] TonyMontana, that's a neato ATV but I don't think I could take that thing on the freeway. [BD] CAMPYBOB, "anything but vanilla"??? Que? [>:/] mleaky & MissedAgain, thanks for the suggestion on the V-Star. That's a great looking bike, almost like a Fat Boy copy. I'll ride one before I decide to buy. Looks like it might come down to either the V-Star Classic or the Shadow Sabre. varmitgun, I'll look at a Vulcan but I think I'd prefer a shaft drive. If I got a Vulcan I think I'd rather get the 1500cc too. ARChoo, nice Intruder. Is that paint scheme Guernsey or Hereford? [:D] Also, what is the advantage of water cooled vs. air cooled? Or disadvantage? Thanks again. |
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A lot of guys spend so much customizing their Harleys that they would have spent less on a custom to begin with. You could put one together yourself with not too much trouble. Complete engines, trannys and rolling chassis kits are available nowadays for less monry than I have spent on parts. The bike I ride now is a home built chopper, 96" S&S stroker, 4 speed revtec 3" open drive rigid. I have never posted a picture, so have no host but I can e-mail a pic to you if you want.
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Here's a 2000 V-Star 1100 located only 40 miles from me. Only 900 original miles on the odo and he wants $6400 for it. Whatcha think?
[img]http://images.traderonline.com/EMedia/tarchive2/213/236671/00213445908.jpg[/img] Is there a blue book for motorcycle wholesale, retail, and trade-in values? Leadbutt, there are ALOT of custom bike builders in this area, and alot of sources for parts too. I've seen some of the custom bikes upwards of $35K or more, and they are some beautiful machines. I may want to put together something one of these days, but not at this time. I do like tinkering in the garage though. [:D] I'd like to see your chopper, so go ahead and email me pics if you don't mind. [email][email protected][/email] |
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Quoted: I'd love to have a Harley FXDL, but like you, the price is a little out of my league. I've owned mc's for almost 30 years, I presently ride a '92 Shadow 1100. I have a little over 64K miles on it now, not one iota of trouble and still running strong. Before that I had a Suzuki, could have just been my luck, but it gave me nothing but trouble. Terry View Quote I have a '92 Shadow 1100 also. No trouble at all and about the same milage. You may not know - but all '92s were set up for Californistan emmissions and you can take them off pretty easily. Let me know if you want details. Not sure about a noticable power gain because I changed some other things at the same time, but you at least get rid of that ugly cannister on the front. [img]www.ar15.com/members/albums/Shadowblade%2FShadow1%2Ejpg[/img] |
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Here's two of my favorites:
Honda VTX, 1800cc V-Twin [img]www.thundertoys.com/testrides/vtx/Image001.jpg[/img] And the Honda Valkyrie, 1600cc horizontally opposed 6 [img]users.net1plus.com/srl/images/Fatlady-Apr-01.jpg[/img] |
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Quoted: Got a 94 sporty 1200 hotrod, that is mostly a garage ornament, for this old dude. She is a nice ride and sounds great ! HD's are the way to go, unless you want to be a Wanabe. I like all bikes man, I dont want a pickle I just want ride my moter cikle.....[:D] View Quote Arlo Guthrie! I haven't heard that song in ages! BallisticTip, this one's for you man. [8D] The Motorcycle Song words and music by Arlo Guthrie CHORUS: I don't want a pickle Just want to ride on my motorsickle And I don't want a tickle 'Cause I'd rather ride on my motorsickle And I don't want to die Just want to ride on my motorcy...cle It was late last night the other day I thought I'd go up and see Ray So l went up and I saw Ray There was only one thing Ray could say, was: CHORUS This song is about the time that I was ridin' my motorcycle. Going down a mountain road, at 150 miles an hour, playin' my guitar. On one side of the mountain road there was a mountain, and on the other side there was nothin' - there was a cliff in the air. Now, when you're going down a mountain road at I50 miles an hour you gotta be very careful, especially if you're playin' a guitar. Especially if that guitar is an acoustic guitar. Because if it's an acoustic guitar, the wind pressure is greater on the box side than on the neck side, because there's more guitar on the box side. I wasn't payin' attention .. Luckily I didn't go into the mountain - I went over the cliff. I was goin' at 150 miles an hour sideways and 500 feet down at the same time. I knew it was the end. I looked down, I said ''Wow! Some trip". I thought it...well I knew it was...I knew it was my last trip, and in my last remaining seconds in world,I decided to write one last farewell song to the world. Put a new ink cartridge in my pen. Took out a piece of paper. I sat back and I thought awhile. Then I started writin': I don't want a pickle Just want to ride on my motorsickle And I don't want a tickle 'Cause I'd rather ride on my motorsickle And I don't want to die Just want to ride on my motorcy ...cle." I knew that, it wasn't the best song l ever wrote, but I didn't have time to change it. I was comin' down mighty fast. But as you all know, and as fate would have it, I didn't die. I landed on the top of a police car. And he died. I drove away on the road that he was on. I came into town at a screamin' 175 miles an hour, playin' the motorcycle song. I came into town, I jumped off my bike, the bike went around the corner by itself, went up on the stand by itself, turned itself off. I walked over to my friend. He was standin' there eatin' pickles. I said "Hi, what's happenin'?" He looked at me in the eye and said "Nothin'". You gotta sing it with that kind of enthusiasm. Like you just squashed a cop... CHORUS ©1968,1969 Appleseed Music Inc. (ASCAP) |
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Get the v-star. Nice bike at a good price. Looks good dressed up.
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for my midlife crisis i was going to bring home a cute babe, but lady lurker said no [:(]
so i'm working on rebuilding a little 2-seater car instead. [;)]. i did the bike thing in my 20s and 30s, and after picking gravel out of my hide for a while i gave them up. |
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[img]kurtskustomfirearms.citymax.com/i/section_8936/49Pan.jpg[/img]
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Big Bear, I am going throught the same thing. Been out of biking for 25 years or so and decided I have to get back into it. Looked very hard at HDs, but can't justify the cost when there are so many good motorcycles out there for less money.
Finally decided on a Valkyrie. It is the only cruiser that is not a V-twin or HD wannabee and it will kick any HDs butt (ok, well maybe not a V-Rod). I found a slightly used 98 tourer model (owner bought it new in Feb 2002) with only 2500 miles on it for $8,500 and it still has 3 years on the warranty (try to find a HD with a 3 year warranty) It is an awesome bike, and even HD guys look at it with respect. |
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Save your money, (as owner of 3 HDs before, the older I get the less I like working on 'em & the more I like ride'em) here's my current ride, Kaw. Nomad 1500 cc, $12K new, 3.6 years old 34K+ miles, nuthin but oil/filters, gas and tires. She'll cruise 80 all day long and get ya 30+ mpg.
[img]www.ar15.com/members/albums/mr%5Fwilson%2FNomad%2Ejpg[/img] And everyone will think your ridin' a Hog to boot. Mike |
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Quoted: Is there a blue book for motorcycle wholesale, retail, and trade-in values? View Quote Only one I know if is [url]www.kbb.com[/url] |
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Quoted: My moto is: The bigger, the better. My Suzuki Intruder [img]http://home.austin.rr.com/patwarren/moozuki.jpg[/img] I also like the Yamaha RoadStar Warrior [img]http://www.yamaha-motor.com/products/mcy/500/warrior_smoke.jpg[/img] View Quote I saw one of these Yamaha's last weekend. They are nice! Saw a custom exhaust on one of them, looked similar to the exhaust in the top picture. Sounds great. |
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Dammit Bear...I wish you hadn't brought this subject up! I've owned two bikes before but I sold my last one in '85. Lately I've had the itch something awful for a big touring scoot and the missus is giving me a huge load of crap about it. It goes something like this:
-"You're too damn OLD!" -"You can't see worth a damn!" -"You're reactions are terrible." -"You'd just fall off again and end up in the hospital...like you did before!" I can't really argue those points...but it don't dampen my desire to get out on the road again. On the other hand...as I sit here and remember the last time me and Mr. Macadam got real close...ooooooohhhh...that did hurt. I seem to remember that Navy corpsman in 1984 having a real good time with that scrub brush and the brown liquid (betadine?) soap scrubbing the rocks and dirt out of my rather extensive road rash. ("Gee...I sure hope I'm not hurting you too much, Sir!" Right...the little prick was smiling...and my wife was sitting there in the ER with this wry "I TOLD you do" smirk on her face.) Now she says OK...but I gotta take out a lot more life insurance first. (Background on how my missus views cycles: When my scoot and I limped back home after going down early one morning on my way to my ship, I made it to the front door, rang the bell and the ten year old answers...still rubbing the sleep from his eyes. When he sees me he freaks out [shock] and his screams bring Momma runnin'. The first words out of her mouth are, "Get back outside...and STOP bleeding on my floor!" [stick] I stood there stunned for a minute...then said, "Please get me a couple of towels and take me to the ER and I'll stop beeding on your damn floor!" [pissed] True story...and I've been married to her for 29 years now. Sassy womanz. Anyway...I say go for it. Try out the bikes recommended here and pick out the one that you like best and can afford. I happen to be gazing fondly at a couple of Yamahas and Hondas. I just can't swing the cost of a big Harley...but now that a neighbor lady (The wife of a Marine colonel no less!) just bought herself a big softail hog,...who can say? I am SO jealous when she chugs up the street. [beer] |
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Wait a minute here...
How could I forget the [b]BOSS HOSS?![/b] [img]www.bosshossdirect.com/bhgallerylg/bh2.jpg[/img] [img]www.bosshossdirect.com/bhgallerylg/bh7.jpg[/img] Yes, that's a Chevy 350 on there. [img]www.bosshossdirect.com/bhgallerylg/blackbh3.jpg[/img] |
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I can't look at this thread any longer. I swore off murdercycles years ago.
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Quoted: Quoted: Got a 94 sporty 1200 hotrod, that is mostly a garage ornament, for this old dude. She is a nice ride and sounds great ! HD's are the way to go, unless you want to be a Wanabe. I like all bikes man, I dont want a pickle I just want ride my moter cikle.....[:D] View Quote Arlo Guthrie! I haven't heard that song in ages! BallisticTip, this one's for you man. [8D] The Motorcycle Song words and music by Arlo Guthrie CHORUS: I don't want a pickle Just want to ride on my motorsickle And I don't want a tickle 'Cause I'd rather ride on my motorsickle And I don't want to die Just want to ride on my motorcy...cle It was late last night the other day I thought I'd go up and see Ray So l went up and I saw Ray There was only one thing Ray could say, was: CHORUS This song is about the time that I was ridin' my motorcycle. Going down a mountain road, at 150 miles an hour, playin' my guitar. On one side of the mountain road there was a mountain, and on the other side there was nothin' - there was a cliff in the air. Now, when you're going down a mountain road at I50 miles an hour you gotta be very careful, especially if you're playin' a guitar. Especially if that guitar is an acoustic guitar. Because if it's an acoustic guitar, the wind pressure is greater on the box side than on the neck side, because there's more guitar on the box side. I wasn't payin' attention .. Luckily I didn't go into the mountain - I went over the cliff. I was goin' at 150 miles an hour sideways and 500 feet down at the same time. I knew it was the end. I looked down, I said ''Wow! Some trip". I thought it...well I knew it was...I knew it was my last trip, and in my last remaining seconds in world,I decided to write one last farewell song to the world. Put a new ink cartridge in my pen. Took out a piece of paper. I sat back and I thought awhile. Then I started writin': I don't want a pickle Just want to ride on my motorsickle And I don't want a tickle 'Cause I'd rather ride on my motorsickle And I don't want to die Just want to ride on my motorcy ...cle." I knew that, it wasn't the best song l ever wrote, but I didn't have time to change it. I was comin' down mighty fast. But as you all know, and as fate would have it, I didn't die. I landed on the top of a police car. And he died. I drove away on the road that he was on. I came into town at a screamin' 175 miles an hour, playin' the motorcycle song. I came into town, I jumped off my bike, the bike went around the corner by itself, went up on the stand by itself, turned itself off. I walked over to my friend. He was standin' there eatin' pickles. I said "Hi, what's happenin'?" He looked at me in the eye and said "Nothin'". You gotta sing it with that kind of enthusiasm. Like you just squashed a cop... CHORUS ©1968,1969 Appleseed Music Inc. (ASCAP) View Quote Thanks Big Bear, has been a long time since I heard that song too, it just poped into my head when posting. It brings back some of the good times that I have had on bikes ! [8D] Hey a new sig line ! |
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"CAMPYBOB, "anything but vanilla"??? Que?"
jap cruisers have that "ujm" (universal japanese motorcycle" syndrome...they all look alike (when not imitating a harley). i equate them with vanilla ice cream and ford taurus cars. bland. yes, they are easy to maintain...very reliable. i prefer either the original triple chocolate with a cherry...the harley, or a ground pounding triple scoop of butterscotch-strawberry...something like a ducati desmodromic 906 or triumph daytona. to each, their own. whatever you end up with, ride safely. |
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BB,my friend,can I call you my friend?......2 decades ago, an important thing to look for on many a used bike was fork/frame bearings damage.To do this we put it on the centerstand, weighted the backend down,lifting the frontend as high as the leverage permitted,and made sure the forks did not fallto/favor one side repeatedly=frontend damage=$$$ to repair.Thats all I got,I laid a few bikes down in my day.
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Go check out [url=http://www.cycletrader.com]CYCLETRADER[/url] and pick one out!
I'm currently looking for a nice, big cruiser and I'm leaning toward a Victory. |
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[url]www.westcoastchoppers.com[/url]
(....when I win the lotto...watch out!) edited to add.. [img]http://www.westcoastchoppers.com/images/bikes/sturgis_el_diablo/j.gif[/img] [img]http://www.westcoastchoppers.com/images/bikes/smoothmama_dragon/a.gif[/img] |
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Santyth, you and Polyak aren't helping by posting pics like that. My old lady (biker lingo.. hehehe) would kill me if I dropped $20-30 grand and pulled into the driveway on something like that. She would at least beat my ass for not getting a seat for her to ride on. [;D]
dnra, yeah, you can call me a friend, and thanks for the tip. I'll be sure and check for drop damage. LWilde, thanks for the story... I think. Now I have something to look forward to... I think... hehehe [shock] Kurt! Nice HOG! I'm jealous! CAMPY, like I said, I wanted a Harley but that's out of my budget right now. Maybe when I kick my youngest out the front door when he turns 18. LOL! I don't want a pickle Just want to ride my motorsickle... [8D] |
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Bikes are kind of funny-you can have the coolest best handling sport bike, but if your buddies all tiddle around on Harleys you won't have any fun riding with them. By the same token a Harley is no fun if your riding buddy is Campybob who wants you to spend the weekend with him mastering the strange foibles of that weird desmodronic valve system that Ducatis have.
I haven't ridden any of the real recent japanese cruisers-but you might want to look at one that is a few years old. Japanese bikes depreciate quickly so a year or two old bike is a good range to look at. Ask to see maintenance records, look for marks or repainting indicating that the bike has been down, but most importantly, judge the bike by the owner-just like guns, how a guy keeps up his house, truck etc usually give some indications as to whether he takes care of his toys. I've had air cooled and liquid cooled bikes. Most modern bikes are fine with air cooling for more miles than you will probably put on it. You are probably going to get a faster nicer bike for the same money if you get a japanese bike over a Harley. I don't really have any interest in any of the cruiser style bikes, but that 1800 cc V-Twin Honda and the Honda with the goldwing engine-I think the Valkyrie is what it's called- are cool. I was suprised that you thought the seat height on the Harleys was too tall. There is a sportster with a lower seat height, I think it's the Hugger. Probably a cruder/simpler, slower bike that shakes more and has a teeny gas tank, but it does have the "name" and you can modify it to your heart's content. |
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Quoted: Santyth, you and Polyak aren't helping by posting pics like that. My old lady (biker lingo.. hehehe) would kill me if I dropped $20-30 grand ... View Quote $20-30 grand would be nice down payment on one of Jesse's bikes. They are in the $60k range. Quoted: CAMPY, like I said, I wanted a Harley but that's out of my budget ... View Quote What you should do if you don't want to wait until you can afford the Harley you seem to want, is to find a Honda/Suzuki/Yamaha cruiser with 1000 cc displacement or bigger. If you get a smaller cruiser, you will get bored with it quickly. Try to find one that's 3-4 years old, with low mileage and in good shape. In that time, it will have taken most of the depreciation and you can ride for a year or two and maybe recoup 90% of what you put in it. When you've saved some more and decided you want that Hog you'll not find out you've lost $2k to depreciation like if you bough the same bike new. |
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Quoted: Wait a minute here... How could I forget the [b]BOSS HOSS?![/b] [img]www.bosshossdirect.com/bhgallerylg/bh2.jpg[/img] [img]www.bosshossdirect.com/bhgallerylg/bh7.jpg[/img] Yes, that's a Chevy 350 on there. [img]www.bosshossdirect.com/bhgallerylg/blackbh3.jpg[/img] View Quote I got to ride one of these once. A dude I met insisted that I take his "hoss" out for a spin, so I obliged him. The have so much power they have no gears. You flip a little switch on the bars that disengages the engine from the drive train and when you want to go, you flip it back on and twist the throttle. The thing sounds AWESOME, but I kept looking for the "Vette" that I knew was riding my a$$. Then, I'd remember that was the sound I was making, and it would make me grin like an idiot. Everybody points at you when you ride a Boss Hoss. You're like a cleberity. That furthers the grinning like an idiot syndrome. After a while, the grining like an idiot takes effect, and you'll crank on the throttle real hard (like an idiot) and then, you'll get a physics lesson in torque. The lesson is this. The torque from a 350 cubic inch engine will damn near lay a Boss Hoss, and it's grinning like an idiot rider, on their right side. Still, I didn't quite toss myself so I ended the ride as I began, grinning like an idiot. |
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If you are going to be doing highway riding and go the Suzuki Intruder route I'd suggest you get the 1400. I got the 800 2 yrs ago/10K miles ago and do wish I'd gotten the 1400. The 800 does have enough pep off the line to keep up with the other cruisers (except the hotrods) but lacks the power at higher speeds. Does do 1 up just fine and can do 2 up but isn't well suited for it.
Was going to upgrade to a Heritage softail classic this spring but the wife wanted a new house. Guess who won that one..... |
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Quoted: Santyth, you and Polyak aren't helping by posting pics like that. My old lady (biker lingo.. hehehe) would kill me if I dropped $20-30 grand and pulled into the driveway on something like that. She would at least beat my ass for not getting a seat for her to ride on. View Quote The Valkyrie and the VTX that I posted on the previous page go for around $12k new. The VTX is a new model, but it shouldn't be hard to find a Valkyrie that's a couple years old. |
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Quoted: Here's two of my favorites: Honda VTX, 1800cc V-Twin [img]www.thundertoys.com/testrides/vtx/Image001.jpg[/img] This is the one you want - lots of power, nice handling, & lower maintenance & lower-priced than a HD. Some of the Japanese rice-burner cruisers (like the VTX here) are really underrated. |
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Well, me and the missus had another little talk about me getting a motorsickle, and this time wasn't so positive. [V] I said I would put two goals out there and if I reached them I wanted to get a motorsickle.
First goal was for me to get my weight under 250 lbs. I'm getting there, slowly but surely. Second goal was for me to get promoted to supervisor. I was offered the job two years ago but I wasn't fully vested yet so I turned it down. No way was I going to throw out 9 years of service towards my pension. My manager and supervisors have been encouraging me to go for it when it comes up again and I have been told I was pretty much a shoo-in for the job. The extra take home pay would be about $500/mo., more than enough for a motorsickle payment. Well, reality hit me with a sucker punch. The old lady wants to move to Vermont real bad and she thinks that extra money should go towards moving and house. She has a point. I want to move out of California too... maybe not Vermont but someplace east of here that's gun friendly. Hey, that's life. We all have to set priorities, right? So it looks like my little midlife crisis thingy is going on the back burner for awhile... again. [V] On a more positive note, my buddy at work let me take his 750 Shadow for a spin yesterday. It rides smooth and it's comfortable, but as I said before, I would prefer a little more power, like a 1100. Aimless - FWIW, the guys at my work frequently ride together on Sundays, and two of them have Harleys, and the others are Hondas, a Valkyrie and a couple of Shadows. To hear them tell it, they all had a good time and they didn't care what the others were riding. BTW, West Coast Choppers is not far from me, in Long Beach. Coincidentally, the LA Times did a story on Jesse James in yesterday's paper. He's supposed to be in some special coming up on the Discovery Channel. One of these days I'll have to get down there and check out his shop. Apparently he gets visitors and tourists from all over the country. |
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Quoted: Aimless - FWIW, the guys at my work frequently ride together on Sundays, and two of them have Harleys, and the others are Hondas, a Valkyrie and a couple of Shadows. To hear them tell it, they all had a good time and they didn't care what the others were riding. View Quote I have heard rumors about these things you guys call wives, they sound demanding-oh well I'm running home for a lunch of hot dogs & Captain Crunch the joys of being a bachelor [8D] |
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Alright guys, this may just be a possibility here in the near future.
My buddy at work wants to move up to a Valkyrie or a VTX, and if he does he would sell me his '99 Shadow ACE Dlx. 750cc. He said he was going to test ride new bikes this weekend. His Shadow looks almost exactly like this one... [img]http://images.traderonline.com/img/5/plcnad/1310758/29118466_1.jpg[/img] ... except his has The Iron Horse saddle bags, the windshield is a little shorter and has a green tint on the bottom, he added chrome tips to the fenders, and it has a sissy bar, but not a Cobra light bar. 10K miles and he's going to ask $4400 for it. Of course this is all contingent on if he gets a bigger bike or not. This wouldn't be my first choice, but it looks like the price is right and good enough for commuting to work and weekend rides until I can get into something bigger. So whatcha think? [i]Edit: Sorry for the big pic. I edited to make it easier to read.[/i] |
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If you want a sport bike buy one. The Honda 600's seem to be the best bang for the buck. If you want a cruiser, buy a Harley, period. My 1987 FXST looks/sounds great. It has the low maint belt drive, and all the evo motor requires is an oil/filter change periodically. I mentioned earlier the upgrades I've done to it. As long as you don't go nuts with too much after market stuff and paint, you will always get your money out of it when(and if) you sell...
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A year or two ago, I felt exactly the same way you do now. Not only did I yearn for this, I had convinced myself, with all manner of 'logical' reasons that it was a really "good idea". When I told my wife, she said "Yes luv, that's sounds very nice." I knew right then, I would never get one.
She knows me better than I know myself – Goddammit! To argue against the idea that an old fart of 54 should be haulin' a bike around town (I always drive fast), would be counter-productive. She just let the idea grow and die within its own appointed (short) lifespan. The first day the rains started, I killed-off the idea for good. However, I did experience the "bike thing" in my teens and early twenties. If you have never tried it, go for it. Just be sure whatever you buy (I like Yamaha) holds its resale price well. Good luck and take care. |
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Why mess around?
[img]http://www.marineturbine.com/superbike/yellow.jpg[/img] Specifications-Y2K Turbine Superbike Frame: Aluminum alloy Rake: 27 degrees Weight: 500 pounds Seat Height: 31.5 inches Wheel Base: 68 inches Wheels: Dymag Carbon Fiber 17" Tires: Front: 120 60ZR17 (Pirelli) Rear: 200 50ZR17 (Pirelli) Front forks: 55 mm inverted Shocks: Mono-shock adjustable oleopneumatic (Ohlins) Brakes: Front: 2 x 320 mm floating system - 4 piston calipers (Brembo) Rear: 2 x 320 mm floating system - 4 piston calipers (Brembo) Engine: Allison Rolls Royce 250 Gas Turbine Power: 320 hp @ 52,000 rpm (286 hp @ rear wheel) Output RPM: 6,000 rpm Torque: 425 ft lbs @ 2,000 rpm Compressor speed: 54,000 rpm Fuel: Diesel, Kerosene, Jet A Lubrication: Dry-sump/ 3.5 quarts turbine oil Transmission: Two-speed automatic or manual Rear Mirrors: Concealed color display (LCD) for rear mounted camera Fuel Capacity: 8.5 gallons (34 liters) Ride: Indescribable!! Performance Estimated Top Speed: 250 mph 1/4 Mile: 9.80 @ 160 mph 0-200 mph in 15.0 sec. |
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Quoted: Save your money, (as owner of 3 HDs before, the older I get the less I like working on 'em & the more I like ride'em) here's my current ride, Kaw. Nomad 1500 cc, $12K new, 3.6 years old 34K+ miles, nuthin but oil/filters, gas and tires. She'll cruise 80 all day long and get ya 30+ mpg. [img]www.ar15.com/members/albums/mr%5Fwilson%2FNomad%2Ejpg[/img] YES what HE said!!! And everyone will think your ridin' a Hog to boot. Mike View Quote |
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I like this one:
[img]www.ar15.com/members/albums/Hoplophile%2F2000FatBoy%2D10of125%2Ejpg[/img] |
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