A Little Mindless Rambling

 My Road King is just rolling over 37,000 miles and it is beginning to
feel quite loose.  That speed wobble I used to experience only
occasionally is becoming a common experience.  Dirty air from the big
rigs on the highway tends to rock the bike more than before and the
front tire now catches the tar snakes and linear cracks in the asphalt,
giving the bike a little shake when I cross them.

Now these are more of an annoyance than a safety concern.  That said I
do not like being annoyed while riding. Of course the same symptoms
would have David spinning in his chair.

Pursuing a potential remedy took me to the Victory dealer the other day.
They are clearing out the 11's getting ready for the next generation.
There is a very nice looking Cross Country, with a very attractive
sticker price, on the showroom floor. At the risk of being agreeable
with Saddle, once you get rid of the crash bars designed by George
Jetson and replace them with a more traditional tubular bar, it is a
good looking bike. Victory is introducing a 2012 Cross Country Tour
model, which is a cut above the 2011 Cross Country.  Along with creaming
the price of the 2011s, as an added incentive they are offering a five
year warranty on them. I tell ya I sure liked the five year warranty on
the Venture.

I also stopped by Yale Custom Cycles to talk about hot rodding my Road
King a bit. Yale is a decent guy. He's been kicking around the bike biz
in Cowtown for a few decades.  I wasn't thrilled with his ideas
regarding the next steps for my bike though. We did get to talking about
the handling issues I have experienced, which led us to discussing the
True Track, which has been highly recommended by a few friends of mine.
  It seems Yale is a distributor for the device. His price was about
fifty bucks more than what it would cost me to buy it direct. I can
justify an additional fifty bucks to support a local guy so I asked him
to bring one in for me.

I think I am going to have to do something with the front suspension and
the brakes. Even with the mushy brakes there is a lot of dive in the
front end. The deterioration is so slow it kind of creeps up on you
until one day you realize it is not the same bike it once was.

And new tires. Yeah it is time for new tires, front and back. Add a
front motor mount along with a steering head bearing adjustment and I
might be getting close to what I am looking for.

So while I ponder buying a new bike I am going to throw some money at
rejuvenating the RK.

I may need to take a part time job to pay for it.

"Welcome to Wal Mart"

Yeah I could get the hang of that. <g>


--
Disclaimer
Do not believe a thing I have said, unless you already know it to be
true, or can independently verify it from another source.

Reeky Ride To The Rockies
http://actualriders.ca/reekyrockies.htm

 I took a quick ride on an older Victory a while back.  This particular model
wasn't my thing (footpegs Way forward), but other than that, it had a load
of power and it felt solid.

I've been kicking around the thought of buying one to replace my Royal Star
for an around-town-chugger lane-splitter, two things that aren't much fun on
the Valkyrie.  Not a new one, of course, 'cause I don't have that kind of
scratch.

From what I understand, they handle very well (videos on Youtube), the
engines are powerful and last a long time, and a good value.  They also come
with stainless braided lines, which I think is a nice touch.

A somewhat local bike shop has started renting them.  You might want to
check around for rentals in your area.

My Royal Star is mechanically wonderful, but after a very hard life, it
looks like crap, things are falling off, it's developing electrical issues,
and putting money into it just feels like a waste.

CS



"Calgary (Don)"  wrote in message

My Road King is just rolling over 37,000 miles and it is beginning to
feel quite loose.  That speed wobble I used to experience only
occasionally is becoming a common experience.  Dirty air from the big
rigs on the highway tends to rock the bike more than before and the
front tire now catches the tar snakes and linear cracks in the asphalt,
giving the bike a little shake when I cross them.

Now these are more of an annoyance than a safety concern.  That said I
do not like being annoyed while riding. Of course the same symptoms
would have David spinning in his chair.

Pursuing a potential remedy took me to the Victory dealer the other day.
They are clearing out the 11's getting ready for the next generation.
There is a very nice looking Cross Country, with a very attractive
sticker price, on the showroom floor. At the risk of being agreeable
with Saddle, once you get rid of the crash bars designed by George
Jetson and replace them with a more traditional tubular bar, it is a
good looking bike. Victory is introducing a 2012 Cross Country Tour
model, which is a cut above the 2011 Cross Country.  Along with creaming
the price of the 2011s, as an added incentive they are offering a five
year warranty on them. I tell ya I sure liked the five year warranty on
the Venture.

I also stopped by Yale Custom Cycles to talk about hot rodding my Road
King a bit. Yale is a decent guy. He's been kicking around the bike biz
in Cowtown for a few decades.  I wasn't thrilled with his ideas
regarding the next steps for my bike though. We did get to talking about
the handling issues I have experienced, which led us to discussing the
True Track, which has been highly recommended by a few friends of mine.
  It seems Yale is a distributor for the device. His price was about
fifty bucks more than what it would cost me to buy it direct. I can
justify an additional fifty bucks to support a local guy so I asked him
to bring one in for me.

I think I am going to have to do something with the front suspension and
the brakes. Even with the mushy brakes there is a lot of dive in the
front end. The deterioration is so slow it kind of creeps up on you
until one day you realize it is not the same bike it once was.

And new tires. Yeah it is time for new tires, front and back. Add a
front motor mount along with a steering head bearing adjustment and I
might be getting close to what I am looking for.

So while I ponder buying a new bike I am going to throw some money at
rejuvenating the RK.

I may need to take a part time job to pay for it.

"Welcome to Wal Mart"

Yeah I could get the hang of that. <g>


--
Disclaimer
Do not believe a thing I have said, unless you already know it to be
true, or can independently verify it from another source.

Reeky Ride To The Rockies
http://actualriders.ca/reekyrockies.htm  

 
Oh yeah, that reminds me.  The one issue I had with my Warrior besides
the tiny tank was vibration in the grips at super legal speeds.  The
Vic is counterbalanced as well and mutes this to a level that makes
the engine still perceivable, but no where near the levels that put my
hands to sleep on the Warrior.  If you demand glass smooth, you either
have to ride the Vic in 6th gear at a constant throttle or ride a
rubber mounted Harley or a Gold Wing.

Oh yeah, and with only just over 1000 miles on the new Vic, I got 45.8
mpg riding a mix of highway/city wherein the highway runs are
typically around 80 mph.

The Vic also comes standard with cruise control, though ABS a no go on
the 2011s. This year ABS is standard.

The one thing about this bike is that it was made properly right out
of the factory.  Unlike my Yamis, I did not need to add handlebars,
seat, suspension, throttle lock, highway pegs, power commanders etc to
correct various shortcomings.

 On 24/08/2011 11:43 PM, CS wrote:

I wouldn't be too hasty giving up on the Star.  That drive train will go
forever. The electrical stuff can be fixed and a little duct tape will
secure those loose parts.

 "Calgary (Don)"  wrote in message

On 24/08/2011 11:43 PM, CS wrote:

I wouldn't be too hasty giving up on the Star.  That drive train will go
forever. The electrical stuff can be fixed and a little duct tape will
secure those loose parts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

I thought about holding on to it.  It's tempting, after all the time, blood,
and money I put into rebuilding or replacing the brakes, linkage, clutch,
windshield, Ultimate seats, signals, impossible to replace bolts,
floorboards, Lindby bars, and whatever else I forget right now.

Then there's the issues.  I replaced the twice-repaired-failing tank with an
Ebay special that was black in the auction, black in the package, black in
the garage, then suddenly turned a very dark maroon once on the bike.  The
front fender is trashed, thanks to my wife backing into it, which also
knocked the bike down and scratched up a bunch of the stuff I replaced.  To
start it, I have to turn on the ignition, try the starter, see if I get a
spark, don't get a spark, turn off and on the ignition, rinse, lather,
repeat, until eventually, it starts.  The headlight bounces around.  The
forks are all pitted, and its certainly due for new fork oil.  The mufflers
have been gutted, which makes the bike sound awesome around town, but feels
like a drill slowly digging into my brain on the freeway.  The saddlebags,
tank, cylinder fins, fender, sissy bar, passenger floorboards, and about 70%
of the chrome looks like ass.  A couple of these things I can fix easily and
cheaply, but all together, it's just a lot of work and money for a bike that
will never be worth all the work and money.

Then I ride it, and it's so damn comfortable, easy and relaxing to ride,
fun...

Define "too hasty."  heh

CS