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5 Common Wear and Tear Items on Motorcycles
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jayboydogParticipant
after reading and looking and enjoying the process, i lost interest in a cruiser. i was looking at one guy’s suzuki boulevard c50 and i kept thinking (regardless of his reason for selling it) that an 800cc engine on a 540 lb bike must not be giving a cruiser rider much fun after he gets used to the accelration. (most harley-davidson have 96 cu inches –1550 cc and weight 600 lbs so i concluded an engine size of only 50 cu inches is probably boring!) and i was thinking i want my feet below my butt not out in front!
i met several guys independently while shopping at a dealer who ride the BMW R 1150. this bike has not been manufactured for a few years now. R is the BMW boxer engine with two opposing cylinders– one to the right side, the other to the left, horizontally configured. 1150cc is the total displacement of the cylinders. the R 1150 RT has suit cases attached above the rear wheel. the T means touring. the R1200 is the current engine. and a variety of fairings and fenders come with the diff models. G means adventure. R1200G, the R1200R is cool looking but the newer BMW are expensive. maybe a five year old R1150 would be cool. The R bike is said to have power which is not especially torquey from a stop but is lovely throughout the RPM range.
one of the guys who loves his BMW R1150 said the Suzuki DL 650 v-strom is popular as a similar riding experience to the BMW. light weigh, the v-strom 650 accelerates quickly and is fun to ride. i believe that is probably true.
jayboydogParticipantThanks for making your ideas part of my decision-making! I looked at the two cylinder Suzuki GS500F (review here at BBM) online and my first impression is there is a lot of plastic faring which looks expensive and breakable. Four cylinders seem desireable rather than two cylinders each having 1/2 the total displacement of the engine although I have read that fewer cylinders produce a more thrilling acceleration from a stop. Four cylinders are said to be more forgiving to the throttle mistakes of an new rider because a four cylinder bike exudes its power when the engine is revving high. The two cylinder GS500F has handlebars rather than racing style clip-ons so I like the standard riding position of the GS500F. the GS500F is air cooled– there is no radiator and it uses carburetors–it does not have fuel injection. I notice the chain drive and I am thinking how messy oiling a chain could be! Contrast to the Suzuki GS500F would be the Yamaha FZ6 which has four cylinders and chain drive. One aspect of the farings which seems weird (yet is common on bikes) is as the handlebars are turned, the faring stays straight with the chasis of the bike. I assume this would not be a problem to anyone who rides but for my visual sense such seems awkward. The Suzuki sv650 (review here at BBM) is available with or wirthout an upper faring. Does anyone have any thoughts on a 650cc single cylinder machine? The dual purpose bikes seem to be one cylinder. Suzuki makes a DR 400SM (review here at BBM) which feels comfortable with a low seat height. I am most excited by the cruiser bikes I see around town but I realize that stop and go traffic between LaCienega and downtown Los Angeles might be an environment better suited to a lighter weight, narrower, urban street concept! The Yamaha V-star 1300 has my attention now, but I am not engaged to it! I have a hunch that riders soon get bored with the power of an 800cc cruiser and want to ride a cruiser with a bigger engine.
jayboydogParticipantin 2007 there were two Yamaha 600cc bikes designated which are different from the “R6” the “600R” has carburetor– is not fuel injected . it seems to me the R6s is merely the engine of an R6 from a few years earlier. if you compare the ’07 or ’08 R6s to an ’05 R6, they seem to have the same engine. there are are also differences such as exhaust, faring, brakes, fork, clutch.
jayboydogParticipanthi kicks! thanks for asking! i like the cruiser bikes and i like the standard bikes. i do not think i want lean forward cafe racer or a bike like the Honda 600rr or the Yamaha YZF-6r. so i am considering something like the Yamaha FZR-6 but I am looking at the cruisers. I met a fella riding a belt drive harley last summer and he mentioned the belt drive was better than shaft when going over bumps in the road. another fella told me he’d never buy another chain drive because of the messy oiling. so looking towards a belt drive cruiser…. kawasaki vulcan 900 and yamaha v-star 1300. but i do not know if i would be happy owning any bike! maybe after a few months, the novelty of riding would wain and the bike would just be something to look at. i have a car. i really do not need a bike. i am not sure i want to spend time riding. bikes look fun! i am afraid of getting hit by a car. i do like looking at bikes! i like comparing specs! i like analyzing bang for buck in terms of features of diff bikes. i do think fuel injected and liquid cooling are superior to carb and air-cooling. i fear getting one bike and then wanting a diff kind (if i buy an FZR-6 i might see the cruisers and wish i had made the other choice or vice-versa!). insurance costs are another factor as well as my financial situation in general! i am confused and i like reading what others think! i also think i might be satisfied with a 250cc std bike!
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