Good Commuter Bike?

 

I would like to find a bike ca. 500 cm with a not-to-low seat, 1990 or
later.

Would like to outfitfit with windshield and crash bars.

Has Yamaha made anything like that?

Thank you in advance for your help.

 


Maybe not in that time period.
Earlier they made a 650 cc upright twin, kinda like a Triumph.
Or, there was the XS750 triple -not overwhelming powerful, but a fun
ride.
Let us know what you find.
Jay

 



if you bashed an 850cc kit for the xs750 and got a hotter
cam, they were very fast. a guy did a build article is one
of the cycle mags in the early 80's. he used pistons from
some jap motor that be lightened and modded for a 9.5
compression ratio. the cam was a one-off and cost him almost
$1000, so it wasn't cheap.
personally, i would find a good used sr500 and spend the
$400 for the minton mods, a better piston and the white bros
stage 2 cam. you can do these in a weekend and the bike will
go from 28 hp to over 40. makes a 300lb bike fly! i have one
thus modded and it's a blast to ride, takes almost no
maintencance and gets 45+ mpg.
with the current prices, you can get the whole thing, bike
and all, for less than $1500!

 



Depending on your commute, I would recomment a VStar 650 Classic or
customer. Plenty of oomph for the highway and a pleasure to putt around the
countryside.

For longer treks or riding 2 up (as with 2 unskinny people) you may want to
consider going up to a Star 1100.

Rhatt
--
"Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be
counted counts."
 (Sign hanging in Einstein's office at Princeton)