Aether? Man, that sent me down a trail. Dark energy. Spirit of God. Too early in the morning for all this.
Not really a bike guy although inexplicably last night I found my myself watching Hell's Angels '69. Nice work, they found a good caretaker for their memories.
A little while back I looked semi-seriously into both older gen 1 FJRs and 08-09 C14s, my personal preferences/priorities landed me firmly into the Yamahammer camp. Technologically speaking, I'd say they're a generation apart with the Yamaha still having DIYer friendly valve adjustment (relatively speaking) and the Kaw having some dumb late 00s security-key fob thingie. Both offer insane value for money, around here it's not uncommon to find a decent 30kish mile FJR for $3000-3500. C14s clock in closer to $4k on average.
This question keeps me up a lot at night, actually.
Which affordable early-gen tourer? And given what touring and commuting really entail, isn't it smarter to just spend more -- a lot more? -- on a new one?
Seeing as I did enjoy a $200 5 mile flatbed tow home three weeks ago (that pesky VRR)... you have a point. The tow was followed by an, admittedly lackadaisacal, troubleshooting period mixed with unrelated parts replacement. Three weeks of downtime on the commuter which would be unacceptable as primary transport. If touring it's even worse! Have the bike shipped home if there's no dealership or parts available to get it on the road ASAP.
Also, new heavyweight tourers with shaft drives approach car prices! It's a serious investment in a way the used motorcycles aren't. Very much a luxury either way, IMO.
Serious commuters who aren't going Blackbird speeds should probably be on maxi scooters but where's the fun in that?
IMO the FJRs are so damn bombproof *and* so damn cheap, I see little reason to pony up for what modern MSRPs have shot up to.
You're gonna hate hearing this, but I'm very seriously considering buying my neighbor's '07 DL1000 Vstrom off of him. Another example of a basically bomb-proof minimal maintenance bike that are as cheap as chips, owing to their modest MSRPs when new and relative abundance on the used market. 42k miles on this one, a bit of clutch chatter (updated OEM basket is $250ish shipped via webike from japan, but you can keep riding it as is forever), will likely need a little bit of everything in terms of catch-up maintenance over the winter. There's one floating around ADVrider with 439k miles on the original motor, nothing except a stator and water pump replacement somewhere around the 180k mark. For me, used to fiddling with 40-50 year old carb bikes, it sounds like easy street.
This good article doesn't read like a rookie written one .
I remember these when new, nice to see they're still adequate . my how time flies .
I wonder if flushing the old brake fluid out and adding some better quality pads will help the front brake, also of course, wipe the possibly oil soaked rotor with alcohol or brake cleaner (wipe, not spray and hope) should help the adhesion of the pads, my old ex L.A.P.D. Kawasaki Z1P always needed this from time to time .
I hope it gives you good service, I like my old tech AirHead boxers yes but I'm also a staunch HONDA enthusiast .
Nice! My buddy bought one new and still has it. Haven’t tried “filtering” yet, pretty much stick to the sticks and avoid Denver. My RG may be a little girthsome.
I lean towards caution when filtering. I haven't had any incidents, but it's still new and few riders on my.commute route make use of it. It can save significant time depending on the lights and traffic quantity.
Aether? Man, that sent me down a trail. Dark energy. Spirit of God. Too early in the morning for all this.
Not really a bike guy although inexplicably last night I found my myself watching Hell's Angels '69. Nice work, they found a good caretaker for their memories.
Very good review. Not what I’m really interested in these days, but very well done.
An intriguing machine for sure, but I can’t help but wonder “why not a gen 1 FJR1300?”
After establishing sports tourer as a genre I like I also have this question except it's why not a Kawasaki Concours 14?
Also the V4 is cool!
A little while back I looked semi-seriously into both older gen 1 FJRs and 08-09 C14s, my personal preferences/priorities landed me firmly into the Yamahammer camp. Technologically speaking, I'd say they're a generation apart with the Yamaha still having DIYer friendly valve adjustment (relatively speaking) and the Kaw having some dumb late 00s security-key fob thingie. Both offer insane value for money, around here it's not uncommon to find a decent 30kish mile FJR for $3000-3500. C14s clock in closer to $4k on average.
My great complaint about the FJR/C14/ST1300 is that they're all ugly.
Otherwise, yes, they strike me as good value for money*
*and will blow through rear tires like mad from what I hear.
This question keeps me up a lot at night, actually.
Which affordable early-gen tourer? And given what touring and commuting really entail, isn't it smarter to just spend more -- a lot more? -- on a new one?
Seeing as I did enjoy a $200 5 mile flatbed tow home three weeks ago (that pesky VRR)... you have a point. The tow was followed by an, admittedly lackadaisacal, troubleshooting period mixed with unrelated parts replacement. Three weeks of downtime on the commuter which would be unacceptable as primary transport. If touring it's even worse! Have the bike shipped home if there's no dealership or parts available to get it on the road ASAP.
Also, new heavyweight tourers with shaft drives approach car prices! It's a serious investment in a way the used motorcycles aren't. Very much a luxury either way, IMO.
Serious commuters who aren't going Blackbird speeds should probably be on maxi scooters but where's the fun in that?
IMO the FJRs are so damn bombproof *and* so damn cheap, I see little reason to pony up for what modern MSRPs have shot up to.
You're gonna hate hearing this, but I'm very seriously considering buying my neighbor's '07 DL1000 Vstrom off of him. Another example of a basically bomb-proof minimal maintenance bike that are as cheap as chips, owing to their modest MSRPs when new and relative abundance on the used market. 42k miles on this one, a bit of clutch chatter (updated OEM basket is $250ish shipped via webike from japan, but you can keep riding it as is forever), will likely need a little bit of everything in terms of catch-up maintenance over the winter. There's one floating around ADVrider with 439k miles on the original motor, nothing except a stator and water pump replacement somewhere around the 180k mark. For me, used to fiddling with 40-50 year old carb bikes, it sounds like easy street.
You already know I approve!
Jack is firmly (and not incorrectly) in the camp of "Vstroms are ugly boring dork-bikes." I happen to mostly agree, namely on the ugly/dorky aspect.
This good article doesn't read like a rookie written one .
I remember these when new, nice to see they're still adequate . my how time flies .
I wonder if flushing the old brake fluid out and adding some better quality pads will help the front brake, also of course, wipe the possibly oil soaked rotor with alcohol or brake cleaner (wipe, not spray and hope) should help the adhesion of the pads, my old ex L.A.P.D. Kawasaki Z1P always needed this from time to time .
I hope it gives you good service, I like my old tech AirHead boxers yes but I'm also a staunch HONDA enthusiast .
-Nate
Nice! My buddy bought one new and still has it. Haven’t tried “filtering” yet, pretty much stick to the sticks and avoid Denver. My RG may be a little girthsome.
I lean towards caution when filtering. I haven't had any incidents, but it's still new and few riders on my.commute route make use of it. It can save significant time depending on the lights and traffic quantity.
I did lane splitting in Greece but the car drivers are considerate. Colorado has too many crazies.
I don't disagree - I see a lot of dumb behavior. Today was someone turning down a 3 lane one way road going the wrong way.
Otherwise, probably I am doing some avoidance thing once a week on the moto.
That was probably me ha ha