- This topic has 5 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 14 years, 3 months ago by WeaponZero.
My first ride on a cruiser
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December 25, 2009 at 2:42 pm #3626briderdtParticipant
I just don’t get it.
So here’s the story…
A couple weeks ago, I got my bike out to ride to work. Battery dead. Put it on a float charger and all was well the next day. Started it up again a week later to make sure all was still well (and ran it about 20 minutes). Wednesday took it out to ride to work again. Battery dead. Put it on the float charger again, and 4 hours later it fired up just fine.
Yesterday, took it out, and no-start. It turns, but won’t catch. So not I have a project…
But… Sitting in my garage is my (ex) wife’s Suzuki C50 with screen and floorboards. Got all of 241 miles on the clock. She has had a heck of a time riding the bike, as it’s so heavy. Compared to my SV650s, it’s a beast, even though it “only” weighs something like 100 lbs more. Feels like it’s all at the top of the bike. She’s actually very scared to ride it.
So I figure I’ll take hers out, as I needed to get somewhere, and I figured I’ll have to take it for a ride at SOME point.
And actually, the bike HANDLES quite well. Riding, it didn’t feel overly top heavy. Smooth running. Didn’t have the get-up-and-go like the SV at all, but hey, it’s a CRUISER. You’re not supposed to be in a hurry, right? I liked the tall gearing, but I was still wishing it were a 6-speed.
It actually felt comfortable… for the first 20 minutes. But you know how those guys riding the choppers look, with the bad curvature in the spine, kind of look like a human question mark riding? Yeah, that. Well, I kept finding myself doing the same thing a little. And EVERY bump went straight into my back. Imagine sitting in a desk chair, extend you feet forward, put your hands in front of you… now raise yourself up off the seat. Right… You really can’t loft yourself to float over bumps. By the end of the ride I was really questioning whether the bike was a hard tail.
So I guess the point of all this is that there was a reason I chode the bike I did (the SV650s), and a reason I found it so much more comfortable and natural FOR ME. Not saying that cruisers aren’t the right bike for others.
Now I just need to get my bike running again.
December 25, 2009 at 4:34 pm #23814MunchParticipantAs far as your bike goes. Check for a draw somewhere on the bike. If it’s getting a charge and running but dead again after sitting. Sounds like you got a draw on the battery that’s slowly killing it.
As far as posture goes. Most of the bent over half question mark postures you see are from the guys who think it looks cool and use their rides mostly for the week end or just for bar hopping (bad idea to begin with) and spend little to no time in the saddle. For a comfortable posture it would be good to get a set of risers for your handle bars that also have some pull back so you can sit more up right. As far as getting up off the saddle for bumps……2 things, either adjust the coil pre load to soften the ride or (with the proper handle bar adjustments made) just get yer but up.
I can understand the “not for me ” realization though. When I took my 9 in to get it’s 10k check up I tried some sport bikes on. Was curious because of the differences in riding styles with both posture and rider inputs needed. Let me say it just will not work for me. My feet do not turn in like that to get on those itty bitty foot pegs. Another thing that was very uncomfortable to me was the tank in the chest……I know risers could solve that problem too….. but eh…. the rest of the tank makes a dive to a very uncomfortable to close to proximity to other parts of my anatomy that I just will not unnecessarily put in peril. I first sat on the GS500F , then thinking ok not all are the same then found a Ninja 250 then a bigger 600. After knowing it would never happen for chits and giggles sat on a Gixxer….. yea poser was just oozing out of that seat and I had to just laugh. The biggest disappointment was sitting on the Kawi Concourse 14. Had always liked the bike and really considered getting one. Same problem with this bike that I had with the others….. darn. Oh yea…they had a Sporty there all decked out in Screaming Eagle performance upgrades…. sat on it and my friend told me I looked like a circus bear on a bike…. It really did feel like a ten speed was under me. Sorry Elwood, hats off to ya for having this thing….. even better that you got your new one.
So yea I can understand “not getting it”.
December 26, 2009 at 6:26 pm #23816WeaponZeroParticipantCongratulations bridert. You just fell victim to the classic first-gen SV650 R/R failure. You need a new one now. DO NOT GET the OEM one. Rather, retrofit a 5-wire unit from a Honda CBR600RR, CBR1000RR. Model number of it is the FH800EB.
December 27, 2009 at 1:14 am #23818briderdtParticipantIt’s not a first gen, though I have heard of the R/R failure. I’ve got it back on the float charger, and if it fires up again I’ll replace the battery. I’ve heard also the stator tends to go at the same time? Or am I just (more) ignorant?
December 27, 2009 at 8:12 pm #23828wbsprudelsParticipantMy current ride is the C50 and one of the first differences I noticed to the Buell Blast was feeling the bumps in the road. I found that if you pull your chest forward and sit straighter, then you don’t feel the jolts of the bumps in your back. Works for me, anyway.
December 28, 2009 at 11:46 am #23836WeaponZeroParticipantNot sure about with 2nd gens, but with 1st gens the stator CAN fail along with the R/R though it isn’t common.
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