A bunch of Ass#oles

[CruisingRam]

I am totally non-brand loyal- I own, as of right now, 3 Z1 900 Kawi's, 1 KZ 1000 Kawi, an XS 1100 (not keeping it though, it is a "customer" bike- though I think it is a great bike personally) 2 V65 Sabres and about 5 smaller displacement commuter bikes of various brands (but none Yamaha LOL) that are destined to be "customer" bikes (have deposits on 2 so far, for custom bikes) .

I am model loyal I guess- one dream of mine is to have one of each of the mid 80s examples of power tour-ers- V-max, Madura, V65 Magna, Kawi eliminator (the only one not a V4- a crying shame none of the factories except Yami kept the development of the V4 going to the end- something I am greatful to Yami for) .

I regularly "test drive" (meaning goof off) brand new/used (within 2 years old) bikes with a friend that owns a dealership and wholesales bikes.

I like the R1 very much, but my favorite of the new superbike group tends towards the TL1000R and the superhawk.

A machine has no idea what factory it comes from, we put that particular emotion behind it-

I am a diehard Mopar fan, every cage I own is mopar- but I realize that it is not always the best vehicle on the planet, just the best vehicles on the planet for me LOL

[xs650mike]

trashing other brands?

Hey CR, I've got a Chrysler M-body myself.

I frequent a bunch of XS650 sites and lists and I've noticed a lot of pics of Harleys on those sites, a lot of Harley owners are into XS650s too. Nobody trashes 'em, or the Hondas, Kawis or Suzukis...most comments are complementary. There is a little good natured ribbing of Harleys, way milder than what I've seen here even though there's a lot of Harley folks here too. Kind of pathetic that the Honda guys want to trash Yammies, don't understand that mentality. They must have inferiority complexes. LOL

[CruisingRam]

I think it is kinda unusual at all that a honda site is blasting another metric brand- I don't see that too often on any asian bike sites.

[pggg]

Chill out boys, the sun'll still rise tomorrow. Nice as a pimple on a buzzards ass - hilarious! Tell them the village people dunger will whip the 4-valve 900F motor in all facets. I've ridden a tricked 900F rejetted with 4-1. Felt light and quick. XS11 motor is still another level up for 'grunt' tho.

[xs650mike]

Well, having ridden a 900F, I will say that it may not be as fast as an XS11 but it sure handles better. Bet your chain drive beast handles as well though pggg.

[GNEPIG]

.. YEA..I kicked the crap outa one of my buddys on his 900f a couple times to, he was'nt very happy about that either
.. and i had on the criss-cross 4 into 2 exhaust that the honda guys hate so much
.. all he would say was ;"but mine is 200cc's smaller than yours!"
. and i would come back with ;but yours is 4 years newer and 60 lbs lighter
.. you would think that he would at least have gotten me off the line ..but no way, i killed him all the way across to the big end

[CruisingRam]

I didn't think the XS was that fast? I mean, it is pretty powerful and all, but I don't recall it being THAT fast- what year 1100F would the XS beat?

[Geezer]

I gave up being brand loyal after about 10 years or so of turning wrenches. Every make has their gems and turkeys.

However the worst turkeys in memory are all Hondas. The V4 750's had a serious design flaw in the cam bearings and top end lube. It was so bad it wasn't funny and some shops I worked for wouldn't take one in without checking the cams and valves first.

I was seriously flamed for saying so on motorcycle news group. Those Honda riders are so loyal they refuse to see the flaws. For a long time I wouldn't consider owning a Honda but there are several models I'd ride if I got one cheap.

One of the bikes I loved the most had serious reliability issues. I've never seen an RD350 go more than 20k miles on a set of pistons or 40k on a crankshaft and precious few made it that far. However they were great handling and fast.

Geezer

[CruisingRam]

I put the oil mod on my V4- but have never had a day of trouble with it- everything has it's flaws- I understand the only perfect engineer was this God guy or something- but being an ******* when asked an honest question is still being an *******!

But really, I looked on www.bikez.com to look up the specs of a 1980 XS 1100 and a 1980 CB900F and they were both rated at 95 hp, but the 900 was over 50 pounds lighter.

However, specs on bikez dot com don't always tell the whole tale- so, really, year to year, which was faster?

[Geezer]

The cam bearings on the V45 Hondas were so sloppy that Honda made a special tool to suck the slop to get an accurate valve ajustment. As proof positive they undersood the problem but refused to fix it, the VFR750R was the same engine with completely different cam bearings but these were a limited production model. Also Honda didn't use that cam bearing design on any other engine.

I saw many V45 (and 750 Intercepter) Hondas have the heads and cams beat to crap and have to be replaced under warranty but Honda replaced them with the same bad parts so the bike would be out of warranty before it failed again. Sure an oiling system mod will help but it shouldn't have to be done. Some time go bike shopping for one of these and listen close to the running engine and you can hear the cams knocking about. The V65 had the same design but a lot less of them seemed to fail.

I don't give a crap which bike is faster. I ride fast (when I'm in the mood) for fun not to prove anything.

Geezer

Originally posted by CruisingRam
I put the oil mod on my V4- but have never had a day of trouble with it- everything has it's flaws- I understand the only perfect engineer was this God guy or something- but being an ******* when asked an honest question is still being an *******!

[mro]

quote

I don't give a crap which bike is faster. I ride fast (when I'm in the mood) for fun not to prove anything.

Geezer
_______________________________________________

right on!!!!!!!!!!!!!

only have put 3000 miles on my 80g (last 3 months)

gone fast 3 times
twice out in the "boonies" all alone, no other bikes or cars

once the other day in town just to pass a couple racing harleys

think I've filled my "go fast quota" for awhile (operitive word "think")

most fun for me is 40 to 50 mph twisties

mro
learing to ride agin

[CruisingRam]

I am a speed freak, been faster in cars than in bikes (rail dragsters and top fuel funny cars, nothing notable, just local stuff, had my license) - but have been pretty damn fast on bikes.

Like I said, I am not brand loyal, but I am always intrigued by how fast stuff will go, what will make it go faster, how to survive the experiance etc etc.

I am really in love with the whole V4 concept, and have always wished honda would have made a chain drive version of the big V4. And then supported the aftermarket like honda and given it tons of parts to buy! LOL

I will tell you if I have the same inspiration for the line with the XS 1100 at the end of next summer after I get this project done and see how it goes!

[Geezer]

Now a days I like hard acceleration more than top speed and I can often be found sreaming up freeway on ramps.

Many years ago I had a FJ1100 as fast as I've ever been, a little over 140MPH and I chickend out at the top of 4th and cut the throttle after I shifted into 5th.

I went a dozen years without a bike and after a couple years back in the saddle, I'm begining to get my mojo back. I used to live for fast riding on twisty roads, now I enjoy the sceanery more...

Geezer

Originally posted by mro
right on!!!!!!!!!!!!!

only have put 3000 miles on my 80g (last 3 months)

gone fast 3 times
twice out in the "boonies" all alone, no other bikes or cars

once the other day in town just to pass a couple racing harleys

think I've filled my "go fast quota" for awhile (operitive word "think")

most fun for me is 40 to 50 mph twisties

mro
learing to ride agin

[Geezer]

Didn't Yamaha build a chain drive V4 sport bike? I vaguely remember some one showing me a picture of one.

Honda does a better job stocking parts for older models but Yamaha in general builds a better bike.

I really like that new Yamaha 1200 sport-tourer. It's a shafty but while I prefer the handling of a chain drive bike, it's nice not to have to mess with chain maintaince. It doesn't matter, I don't have $10k to spend on a new bike... I see it as a true replacment for the XS11 but it took them almost 25 years to get around to it.

Geezer

Originally posted by CruisingRam
I am a speed freak, been faster in cars than in bikes (rail dragsters and top fuel funny cars, nothing notable, just local stuff, had my license) - but have been pretty damn fast on bikes.

Like I said, I am not brand loyal, but I am always intrigued by how fast stuff will go, what will make it go faster, how to survive the experiance etc etc.

I am really in love with the whole V4 concept, and have always wished honda would have made a chain drive version of the big V4. And then supported the aftermarket like honda and given it tons of parts to buy! LOL

I will tell you if I have the same inspiration for the line with the XS 1100 at the end of next summer after I get this project done and see how it goes!

[CruisingRam]

Chain drive? I don't know about that one- there is a conversion for the V-max to chain- costs about 3K last I looked, if they got it fixed.

You talking about the FJ1300? Bike of the year for a couple years? Great bike! Very, very fast, I rode one last summer, all the way to talkeetna and back http://www.bikez.com/motorcycles/yam..._1300_2005.php

Pic above and specs. Asked for my impression- went something like this: Very good balance between sport and touring, comfortable, a bit buzzy for an "iron butt" wannabe, engine heat feels great in the morning in Alaska, but would be a real problem in the "lower 48". Top notch bike.

It's only competition for a REAL sport touring machine is the ST1300 IMHO- and the real difference between the two is purely subjective as far as likes/dislikes. http://www.bikez.com/motorcycles/honda_st_1300_2005.php

The ST is my favorite sport touring bike of all time- 140mph Autobahn certified, 63mpg on the hiway, smooth as silk, fixed the place where my knees hit on the ST1100, all the same features as the Beemer. Heated handgrips, seat and adjustable windscreen. Thought the wing bag factory hard bag was WAY too expensive- would get one on e-bay if it were me.

I would be very, very happy to have either in my garage. In fact, almost picked up an ST, before someone snatched it up at full price without bargaining or anything <sigh>

My wife and I plan on a "lower 48" bike tour in the next year or two- she is Russian, and has seen nothing but Hawaii, Alaska, and various American airports of our great land- and our kids are almost old enough to stay for a couple weeks with grandma or aunts and uncles.

So you may see the old CR on one of those trips- but in the end, it will probably be on the trusty V65 Sabre- I have been down the Alcan and to Vegas on the V65 twice.

BTW- I like what my favorite and I consider the best old bike mechanic had to say about this entire debate as far as V4s and such go- "Hey, the factories help us out, they make things that break, design flaws that need fixing- how would I make a living without it? LOL- and he pointed out that he has been tuning my carbs for years, and in the meantime he has had to rebuild 4 V-maxes- none of them due to design flaws, all owner stupidity.