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Thinking about what you enjoy before you buy

Started by VFan, October 29, 2010, 08:59:13 PM

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VFan

Several weeks ago I went riding with a couple of old friends with cruisers through some local canyons. One had a Honda VTX 1800 and the other a Kawasaki Vulcan 800. I had my RJ. Throughout the day we would swap bikes every so often. On the straights the VTX provided an amazing launch and never seemed to run out of power – at least not that I was man enough to consume.

The big lesson of the day for me was that these cruisers don't handle very well in the twisties. For curvy canyon riding, you're really are forced into a leisurely ride. Neither of these bike could carve through curvy roads anywhere near pace of my RJ. On the RJ, these cruisers were long gone out of my rear-view mirror in a matter of seconds. And the handling of both these cruisers (especially the VTX) was so monolithic it just wasn't very fun for me; "are you done riding my RJ yet?"

Some of these cruisers are true eye candy and I've had my eye on a few especially nice looking ones with some cool paint schemes, but they're not longer on my list of potential next bikes. Like my buddy who owns the VTX mentioned "there's a lot to be said for a light mid sized V-twin for zipping through the canyons."

So buyer beware, before investing in a new or additional ride, do more than just ride it down the street and back. If at all possible take it out for a few hours. My buddy spent $14k on his VTX and if it were me, I'd be totally depressed. Aside from being able to launch it down a straight road at amazing speed, for me these cruisers are missing the fun factor of quick handling in addition to comfort (both of which the RJ does a competent job). And if you're like me and refuse to own another street bike with a chain it's either a sport tourer, adventure bike, or a Vision. I live close to several canyons (one just 5 minutes away) and there's no funner way to unwind than to take a couple of hours to experience - especially if you have the right bike.

QBS

MC designs are mission specific.  Crop dusters don't make good fighter interceptors and P51 Mustangs are terrible crop dusters.

Each rider should define his or her mission and ride the bike that they feel best accomplishes that mission.  My MC mission is sport touring.  One of the best bikes available (new or used) to accomplish that mission is my xz550 RK.

Re-Vision

My AC mission is sport flying but I can't afford a P51.    BDC

Hartless

Ride Hartless or stay home


"strive for perfection , settle for excellence"

Re-Vision

A10 is so ugly it's more like a nightmare.    BDC

Hartless

you know , a lot of people (most) say that.. i think that its a very pretty jet. the way its not like the rest. it stands out , and not to mention its performance and reliability
Ride Hartless or stay home


"strive for perfection , settle for excellence"

h2olawyer

I'm a big fan of the Warthog!

One of our former ROV contributors is Jet av8r.  He logged a lot of A-10 hours.  His Vision electrics web site is fantastic!

H2O
If you have an accident on a motorcycle, it's always your fault. Tough call, but it has to be that way. You're in the right, and dead -on a bike. The principle is not to have any accident. If you're involved in an an accident, it's because you did not anticipate. Then, by default, you failed.

YellowJacket!

Quote from: Re-Vision on October 30, 2010, 03:07:51 AM
A10 is so ugly it's more like a nightmare.    BDC

A-10 is a nightmare for those on the receiving end of it.  :-)  8)


Living the dream - I am now a Physician Assistant!!   :-)

Rikugun

#8
QuoteA-10 is a nightmare for those on the receiving end of it

And this is why:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sALiuWg_I1k
It is far better to grasp the universe as it really is then to persist in delusion, however satisfying or reassuring.  Carl Sagan

Hartless

if only i could fly one..............................
Ride Hartless or stay home


"strive for perfection , settle for excellence"

Hartless

Ride Hartless or stay home


"strive for perfection , settle for excellence"

don_vanecek

I've said it before and I'll say it again, assumming your V is fixed up to where you feel can depend on it (these are 28 year old bikes) the Vision is just a great "do it all" mid size bike. I know if I was able to blow 7-10,000 bucks the new bike would, it more extreme situations, brake a bit better, probably go faster as it probably would have a 600-900cc engine-gee it better be faster, etc,etc. BUT since I don't ride to the very edge, and I don't plan to take the V on a cross country two up trip, there really isn't any great advantage to putting out all that money for a new or newer bike-The Vision more then does what I need it to do-as least that's the way I see it.

My son-in-law recently bought a used 2008 900 Vulcan, very nice, only 2000 miles on it, appears he got a nice deal. We had a nice fall ride up in Northeast NE about two weeks ago, didn't appear he had any particular great edge in power and on about the only mile of twisty we even went on that afternoon (these roads don't exist in too many places here in the mid lands), he was scaping his pegs on turns that I'm sure a better rider on the V could have gone even faster on then I went as my "survivial reactions" are pretty high (that's an expression from "A twist of the Wrist" book 2) .

Best mid size sport touring bike that BMW did not make!     

treedragon

I just have to agree re: the versatility of the XZ550 as a sports tourer although my emphasis is more on the sport side of things.

I am in the position where I get to ride all the latest and greatest Ducati on a regular basis and to a lesser extend many of the other breeds as well as part of work. I've been riding continuously for a bit over forty years generally on the biggest and fastest, had an 83 XZ in 1984 for a year (until I got my hands on a new 650 Turbo), however it made an impression and now........... well what's that winking at you in the sidebar, no don't answer that......

With a few changes, additions, and removal of excess here and there the XZ550 handles extremely well, no power as such but agility by the bucketful as we all know!

Yesterday I got to do a comparison run on a new Ducati 848 and a 1198 over the local hills, wonderful bikes, tons of power and excellent handling...... so with you all being psychic you can guess which bike I prefer................ the XZ.  For two reasons really, relaxed riding even under extreme pressure and not too much power, true a little more would be nice but it means you can keep it tapped out to the limit if so inclined and play the gears for the most part, no concerns about snapping the throttle open and losing the rear, just pure controllable drive. In my opinion the larger wheels and skinny tires are way more preferable than today's fat race tires. This is a country of corners and bulk horsepower tends to hinder rather than help, so the ability to just get up and go shows the tail pipe to many a bike and that accounts for much here and yet the XZ's can keep up a respectable pace all day where there is the room to do that.

Cheap to run too, on a modern big bore bike I get around 2-3000k out of a rear tire, for the same money I get 3 rear tires on the XZ and 14-18,000K for the same fun factor. You could say I'm a fan  ;D




QBS

Treedragon, thank you very much for comparative report.  Most interesting, and you'll never see it in any MC magazine.

Tiger

Quote from: don_vanecek on November 01, 2010, 09:58:17 AM
I've said it before and I'll say it again, assuming your V is fixed up to where you feel can depend on it (these are 28 year old bikes) the Vision is just a great "do it all" mid size bike...Best mid size sport touring bike that BMW did not make!     

:) I agree 100%. I've owned 'The Mistress' for 5, coming on 6 years now...and its a continuing love story  8) I really don't need anything else in my stable...

              8) .......TIGER....... 8)
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming HOOOOYA lets go again baby !!!!!!

'82 Vision, Pearl Orange finish, lots of up-grades!!!

Mike Jacobs

Quote from: don_vanecek on November 01, 2010, 09:58:17 AM
I've said it before and I'll say it again, assumming your V is fixed up to where you feel can depend on it (these are 28 year old bikes) the Vision is just a great "do it all" mid size bike.
* * *
Best mid size sport touring bike that BMW did not make!     

You got that right.  ;D ;D

Perhaps the finest tribute to the design philosophy of the Vision is Honda's new (to the US) NT700.   Take a look at its specs at http://powersports.honda.com/2010/nt700v.aspx

Like the Deauville version available in the rest of the world for the last decade, and like the Vision, this is a narrow-angle V-twin, shaft-drive, mid-size sport tourer with a half fairing.  Other than the fuel injection and radial tires, there is virtually nothing on the 2010 bike (for which the acquisition cost would drain your pocketbook to the tune of $10 g's minimum, list) that the Vision didn't have back in '82-'83.  The Vision was, well, visionary, 2 decades ahead of everybody else.  And in many ways, the Vision, despite its lower displacement, is a superior sport-touring bike, lighter, more agile, and more kick-in-the-pants, torquey _fun_ at typical canyon-carving speeds.
Mike Jacobs
Columbia, MD
1985 Honda VF700S Sabre
1984 Moto Guzzi V65SP
1982 Yamaha XZ550 Vision US
1978 Suzuki GS550 standard
1996 Kawasaki EX250 Ninja

Re-Vision

That's a nice bike, has anyone looked to see if the fuel injection would work on the Vee?    BDC

Hartless

man, that honda has some ground clearance. almost like a dual-sport
Ride Hartless or stay home


"strive for perfection , settle for excellence"

don_vanecek

And for myself who has very little in the way of twisty roads, a well tuned Vision at highway speeds is almost like having an electric motor between the legs, and it will go for mile after mile-your own body will be the limiting factor, not the V. 

nwrider

 ;)  I've been thinking about another bike, something really sporty...but...when I really think about what I've done with my Vision in just this past year, commuting, highway miles, mountain passes and really tight canyon corners...I can't think of why I need another bike ;D ;D ;D  Nope, I'm sticking with this bike for the foreseeable future.
First dirt: Hodaka Ace 100B
First street: Honda 150 Dream
First racer: '86 Honda 500 Interceptor
Most memorable:Kawasaki 350 triple, GSXR 750 limited edition
Current: '83 Vision