Hey RRR I follow your Day Trippin thread. Its nice when you get the Vulcan out in your area. I miss my dual sport a lot, but it's more realistic to have our vulcan right now. I am getting a Mustang seat this winter for sure. Next spring I hope to trailer the bike West to the mountains so the wife can experience it too. The Mustang seat should make riding a little nicer. The only reason I want to trailer it is to get out there in one day and I can drive overnight, then spend majority of the time riding where we want to be. Can't wait I keep showing her your pictures to keep her motivated and let me spend money on bike parts haha
I think that ninja 500 motor in there is a hoot. Don't think cruiser rpms - it needs to go higher... Those vulcan 900s are also cool bikes. A lot of bike for the money especially in the LT trim. Rear rack and lowers and that's it. Tour and camp the country.
Congrats! I really like my little '04 Vulcan 500. Still riding even though the morning temps are in the teens now I did put away the half helmet though. Full face with pinloc is the only way to go this time of year (I know, I'm not a real man).
woah urs is cool! looks like it didnt change too much in 12 yrs good for me. they went back to spokes. Im still riding this for now: told my wife id sell it for the new one but its quick, little, dang near unbreakable... now that I have 2 bikes I guess i could just keep both
the t250 is a little jumpy and stiff on the hiway. Kinda rides like a hard tail- you gotta be ready on the handlebar just incase of any irregular pavement. Its the original "sport bike". Im exited to make the pavement dissapear under a comfy cruiser. Some guys were video tapin me on my last hiway ride makes me think it looks bizzare or dangerous even. I guess being tucked into the wind on a 300lb machine from the 1970s at 80mph must look crazy to most ppl. Oh well they let me put real tags on it right so it must be ok?
This is what I wish the Vulcan 750 had been. I used to own a 454LTD that I bought new back in 1986. It was very fast for a 450. A 500cc version of that same engine was used for the EX500 sportbike, and later the Vulcan 500. It is a very well designed and proven engine. A lot of it's design and many of it's parts came from the original Ninja 900 and 1000 engines, and are overbuilt for a 500. I wish they had used a 750cc version of that engine in the VN750 instead of that seriously over complicated v-twin. I also had an '09 EX500, and while I wound up having to sell it because of the pain it's riding position caused, it was just a hair faster than the Vulcan 750, with 250cc less displacement.
I really like the IDEA of a savage 650/s40. I like smaller bikes too. cheap simple easy riding. I heard of trans issues and that they were underpowered for their displacement too. Plus no one around here rides theirs so they want retail for a used one. Still kind like em tho. this is from a guy here -gumshoe- who seems to be enjoying his.
agreed (but i love to ride aggressively) cruiser are very comfortable for kick-back riding ie cruising along. there is a reason why many put hiway pegs on adv bikes...putting your feet forward during straight road times is comfortable. the problem with cruiser riding position is you are then not in an ideal position for aggressive cornering. your feet are not under you for proper peg pressuring. your knees are not ideally cupped into the tank for knee pressure inputs. cruiser seats are often cupped and thus you can't move your but around for ideal body position in cornering. the bars are not set up ideally for counter-steering. finally since cruisers are setup for lower seat heights, they have parts that drag way too early compared to bikes setup for cornering. yes i've seen people hustle cruisers around corners, but this is more the exception not the norm. cruisers are so popular in the US because much of the countries paved roads are straight (unlike say europe) and cruisers are comfortable to ride when you don't actually have to learn to corner. try riding a cruiser on a tight euro switch back and you too will hate it. HD presence has created a cruiser cultural because it is the "USA" bike. add to that people in the US are obsessed with having flat feat on the ground when stopped. this is just goofy but the way it is. cruising is a lazy yet comfortable way to ride. those who are into performance riding and cornering techniques find the position counter-productive. if you are a kick-back rider who is not into dynamic cornering you'll love a cruiser. it works for many but only those with the right riding mindset. for those that love to rip around a corner (and see that as THE pinnacle reason to ride a motorcycle) a cruiser is the wrong tool. it's all what you expect out of your ride that dictates the bike you choose.
Kick back riding is what I do. I have found that the Vulcan 750 handles very well for a cruiser, certainly well enough for me. I am not an aggressive rider. I ride to relax. For me the riding position on the Vulcan 750 is a little different than that picture. I sit right back against the bump in the seat (which gives some back support) which makes the knee bend different, like the pegs were even farther forward. I find it a perfect position for comfortably racking up miles. The only thing wrong with the LS650/S40/Savage is the cam chain tensioner, and there is an easy fix for that. Only other issue is whether you want to ride very far on a bike with tube tires and no centerstand. I don't. 99% of the time, what has brought my ride to an abrupt stop has been flat tires. I've had very few mechanical issues, but a lot of flat tires, and I want to be able to fix them beside the road. My Vulcan 750 has it all. Tubeless tires, a centerstand, and shaft drive. That's because it's a 1985 design. They don't build bikes that way anymore.
Hi Guys, I just found this cruiser thread and couldn't stop reading it. Iam really enjoying the last 4-5 pages most with all the pictures. I recently sold my ZX6R because Iam too old to sit like that for too long. I now have a 2007 Vulcan 900 Classic. It suits me well. When I first bought it,It was a standard bike. I have added a cheap windshield which is much better on the highway. I added some saddle bags and have a Mustang seat on its way now. I ride this bike 400km each weekend down the coast and back with great comfort. The standard seat is great for short rides,But numbs my rear end after an hour. In the middle of January,Iam planning a ride from Sydney to Brisbane and back again over a week (Just under 2000km) I hope to enjoy the ride and Cruise there and back stopping for rests and photos along the way. I will post a few pictures as I go. Just wanted to say "Hi" and give a thumbs up for this thread. Regards Jason
Welcome I know what you mean about the seat. I am working on getting the Mustang too by spring time. I would also like the rear passenger floorboards. The Vulcan works great for me and the wife around here. Everything is flat and straight The Vulcan makes it a good ride tho Maybe I can dig up some more pictures to add to keep everyone sticking around....maybe we all can?
The passenger floor boards would be great. My girlfriend always melts her heels all over the exhaust and it is a pain to remove. My normal ride is 200km each way on the weekends and most of that is flat straight highway,But there is some nice winding roads along the way. My Vulcan was neglected before I bought it and looked as though it was never washed and always in the sun and rain etc. 3 days of scrubbing and it is pretty clean now. Some surface rust will need attention as I get time. Once I get organised,I will post some pictures. Regards Jason
I finally remembered to get a photo uploaded of my new-to-me 2007 Honda Shadow Sabre 1100. Rumble rumble rumble **edit**The semi-silly saddlebags are being changed out for a set of nice no-stud waterproof hard cases and a roller sissy-bar bag. Other than that this is such a joy to ride....nice torque...actually flickable (not like a sport bike but this has great balance and the forward controls are pretty high up and VERY comfortable), and has a pretty unique look-at least to me. Add in bulletproof 1100 V-twin shaft drive and a very reasonable price tag and what more could I ask? Oh...the pipes are Cobra's and I hate to admit this but are almost embarrassingly loud. Yes the baffles are in place and yes the bike sailed through inspection. I have been tempted to quiet them down or swap them out; however, it seems whenever I think about it some idiot cager gets startled out of his/her cellphone and actually looks up and SEES me after HEARING me. I can live with that and I don't sit there blipping and lugging through residential neighborhoods.
That's a really nice bike. And next to the last year for it. In '09 they completely ruined it. The '09 and up Sabre looks like the Fury, or something that might come from WCC. I put a couple hundred miles on a 2003 Shadow Spirit 1100 and loved it. If you just want to go out and enjoy riding, or want to do some long distance touring, you just can't beat a cruiser. However, it does seem they have gone too far with the style thing lately, compromising handling and comfort. Mine was designed in 1985, back when they had high pullback bars on them. You sit completely upright, and the bars are right in front of you. I've been noticing that many newer cruisers use lower bars, and still have forward pegs. Having my feet out front and then having to lean forward to reach the bars is not at all comfortable for me, and may be the reason why so many say cruisers are not comfortable. Some of the newer ones with what are known as "beach bars" are not. The first cruiser I ever rode was a 1980 Yamaha XS1100 Special, and they nailed the riding position. It was an easy chair on wheels, and with no pressure points, there was nothing to cause pain. Back then I couldn't afford such a bike, so I bought a new 1980 Suzuki GS450L.
Nice looking setup. My friend had that bike, and my wife had the 750 ACE Shadow. Like the fairing/screen. Very agile rides. I've been thinking hard on a new screen for my bike (HD Switchback). Is the headlight on your bike a 5" or 7"? I've got the 7" on the SB and finding a cool looking sporty screen/fairing is not easy. Again, bike looks cool.
I may be an old geezer now, but I started riding cruisers at age 18. Always been my favorite of street bike.
I remember that photo. Haven't had that S40 in a long, long time. It was my re-entry bike and was good at what it did, but was eventually passed on down the road. It was undersized for me and would simply not get out of its own way...marginal on the freeway and so on, although it was fine in the mountains, as shown in the photo above. It became apparent after awhile that I needed more motive power to lug my large self around more efficiently. Liked the bike a lot, but just wasn't enough. It was traded in on a year-old VN750 which, as Jerry has said, was a pretty decent machine for the most part, except for the stator/regulator-rectifier...the historic weak point on VN750s, requiring engine removal and case split to change out...happened to me and to a friend of mine and, I believe, to quite a few other VN750 riders, as suggested over on the VN750 website. While I enjoyed the VN750 and it was generally good, I ended up giving it to a friend of mine who needed a bike but couldn't afford to buy one. I went the scooter route and have been mostly pleased with the Honda Silverwing. When I get a hankering to ride a motorcycle, I have a very nice VStar 650 Custom I bought from another friend who stopped riding. It's good for short jaunts, but reminds me why I shipped over to the SWing in the first place....the SWing is much more comfortable, more storage, and doesn't vibrate your fillings or beat you up with wind buffeting (it has a Givi AirFlow). That's the long way around to say that the S40 was a good bike, but not enough for me.
Too funny. Still have my Duc too but LOVING my Softail Deluxe! 2yrs and 10,000mi of awesome fun. Mark H.
My old beast. Honda Shadow ACE Tourer. The "T" had factory hard bags and a big old windshield. It was sorta comfy, but at times my back would kill. I did put it through a few Iron Butt rides. I LOVED those big ass saddlebags. I could fit 3 kermits on the floor of it side by side! Along with my tent, sleeping bag and sleeping pad. And back then I wasn't using tiny ultralite backpacking sized stuff either. On the highway nothing could beat it for comfort. I could take my hands off the bars and steer with my ass. Here in NYC, every pothole and bump let me know how much the suspension sucked. I did manage to pass a bunch of douchebags on high powered, big ticket race bikes on the dragon. At the end, they came up to me and were like dude, do you race? When they took off their $1200 helmets and $1500 race suits they were a bunch of 17yr old kids. I said no, I have just been riding longer than you've been alive. I even wore a beanie helmet a few times, shh, don't tell anyone. Barely had enough fuel to do 150 miles. An old Honda ad Man, I really do miss that bike. I replaced the tiny rear rack with some shelf support bracketry and an old giant Harley rack. It was much much larger.
