BlueSky

Smaller light weight touring bikes just do not sell in the USA. Honda introduced the NT700V in 2010 and it was a poor seller and didn't offer it any more. It was introduced in Europe in 1998 and they like it. But, it appears to be a nice small touring bike. They are available on the used market. https://www.google.com/search?ei=MFLKWsykKY36zgKJ2K_4CA&q=honda+nt700v+photos&oq=honda+nt700v+photos&gs_l=psy-ab.3...5068.6464.0.7095.7.7.0.0.0.0.92.505.7.7.0....0...1.1.64.psy-ab..0.6.438...0j0i67k1j0i22i30k1j33i160k1.0.RBbeCFL4cNA The BMW boxer is about the only touring bike I know of that offers upright seating position, full fairing protection, and light weight.

https://charlotte.craigslist.org/mcy/d/2010-yamaha-royal-star/6553964008.html

I have a friend who lives in the UP of Michigan who loved to ride motorcycles and he was a wild man. He almost killed himself a few times and almost killed himself and a passenger one time so he gave up motorcycles when he was in his 30's. Later he missed riding so much that he allowed himself to get a scooter, a 125cc Yamaha that will barely run 60mph. He loves riding it and he is in his 40's now.

You can tell I know little about revolvers. I just remember the old western books I used to read and how the "gunfighters" like the single action best because they were more accurate. But now they are DA/SA. Cool.

If the Walther operates on the blowback, (doesn't have an ejector) the reason may be that steel casing don't swell as much and seal the gases that allow it to propel the bullet forward. More gases will blow back and help the operation of the weapon. Just a WAG here!

I assume the revolver is double action? Makes a difference in accuracy. One reason I like my Sig P226 is that I can cock it for the first shot or just pull the trigger and it will work as a DA handgun.

I remember reading a long post on the Voyager forum several years ago about a Florida to Alaska ride. The guy who posted all the photos rode a 250cc Suzuki and his riding buddy rode a Honda Silverwing scooter (600cc) with a trailer in tow.

Fine Print? :confused24: Oh that. No way Jeff would leave us. We wouldn't let him! Lowering links are available for the V-Strom...... Riding boots with a thick heel.....

I got fired up about a 2012 Suzuki V-Strom 1000 this week and spent a lot of time reading about them. The 650 is the most popular model and some of it is due to the issues the 1000s have from 2002 thru 2012. The 650 is more reliable and that is the preferred model and I think it has over 60 hp with a weight at or under 500 lbs. and it is not a small bike. The 1000 was changed in 2014 and supposedly the issues it had were taken care of. It has as much hp as our Ventures and the 1000 has a curb weight of 555 lbs. So, it will haul butt. The 90 degree twin has perfect primary balance so it doesn't vibrate like a Harley and will rev. It's a detuned sport bike engine that Suzuki designed to compete against the Ducati. You can get a leftover new 2014 Strom 1000 at a big discount, less than $10k. The 2012 that I was looking at typically sells for about $5500 with 10k miles. The seat height is over 33" though. Here is a video link of a 2006 1000 with some slip-on Two Brothers mufflers. Sounds great!

Have you ridden a FJR. Those sport tourers fold up your legs and lean you forward putting some weight on your arms. Ride one if you can before you buy. Lots of folks add bar risers to help alleviate the leaning forward and you may even be able to move the foot pegs a little. Have you looked at the adventure bikes? They are much lighter and the seating position is upright. But the seat is high. If you have long legs you may like one of those. Supposedly they are comfortable enough for trips.

I also have a Ruger LCP .380. It's small enough to carry in my pocket. I use a leather pocket holster to disguise its shape and to protect the trigger. The leather holster was tight at first but loosened up so when I pull it the holster stays in my pocket. It's a reliable shooter. When I first got it, I fired about 80 rounds and my hand was sore the next day from the kick from that little booger. Being double action, my accuracy is not as good as with the P226 but it's for close up protection.

I stumbled on a Sig Sauer P226 9mm handgun from a coworker for $350. The P226 and the Beretta were tied in the competition for the military purchase and the Beretta was a little cheaper is what I read so the Beretta was the chosen one. Except I also read that the Navy Seals use the P226. The P226 is a great handgun. I can drill the target with it. I also picked up a Smith & Wesson stainless steel Model 639 9mm from another coworker along with over a 1,000 rounds of ammo for $600. I'm not as accurate with the S&W but it's neat being SS. So, if you get a chance to fire a P226, you might like it. Everybody I let shoot the P226 tries to talk me into selling it to them.

I suppose it's like car insurance. They give you a low rate to get your business and then increase the premium at every renewal. Lately I've been switching car insurance every year because of that. I only have liability on my bike, so it doesn't change. I think the state sets the liability rates.

Keep an eye on the clutch fluid level. If the slave cylinder is leaking, it should go down. You will have to refill and bleed the system if you rebuild the slave.

Maybe it's the engineer in me, but I would never buy a new expensive touring bike with an air cooled V-twin. I don't mean to flame anyone who likes them. It's just not something I can understand. Yeah, my old 85 Kawasaki is air cooled but I paid $1200 for it when it had 1k miles on it in 2009.

Well, the V-Strom forum has been informing me of all the potential problems with the 1000 up thru 2012. And I just went to the Dealer and looked at a 2014 V-Strom 1000. Supposedly, Suzuki fixed all the issues with the older version in 2014. They had a new 2014. It's really tall for an old codger with a 29" inseam. So, time to forget about that V-Strom I suppose. However, I saw the bike that I wanted, there it was sitting on the showroom floor, a red 2018 Honda Goldwing. It's beautiful! I really like it! But, I'm not spending $27,000 on a motorcycle. Sooooooo, the next best thing is to get my 89 Gen I Venture on the road. That's the plan.

Time to move on Dan. I'm sure it's not the first time you ended up with the short end of the stick.

Oh, I don't do the mountain climbing and skydiving. Those were just examples. I think I will stop by the Suzuki dealer tomorrow and sit on a V-Strom 1000. I spent some time on the stromtrooper forum and those guys are fanatics about their bikes, especially the 650s. The 1000s have had more issues than the 650s but the 1000s were redesigned in 2014. I saw a youtube video of a V-Strom 1000 with some slipon Two Brothers mufflers and it sounded really good. That 90 V-twin is supposed to have good primary balance which the typical 45 or 50 degree or the parallel twin does not. And it is water cooled!

My wife's attitude is that the last thing she wants me to do is sit in my recliner watching tv. Skydiving, mountain climbing, motorcycling, almost anything is good, not sitting in front of the tv. Yeah, I'm fortunate in that respect.

rrr I have a Gen 2 manual on CD and all it has is something it calls a Caburetor Joint Screw, M4 x 0.8, Qty 4, 2.2 ft. lbs. I rarely put a torque wrench on anything. I've been working on my cars for over 50 years and just use my calibrated hands and arms on most stuff. I did use a torque wrench on my trucks front hubs since it was speced at 221 ft. lbs and other stuff like that, that is critical.

Lots of stuff, mostly typical: Leaking fork seals and now the front pads are soaked with oil Leaking clutch slave cylinder (I think) Howling speedometer (the last time I rode it that's what I think I heard) Corroded spark plug wires Carbs aren't right. It runs rich and the idle mix screws have to be turned down to 1 full turn out. I plan to remove the carbs and go through them replacing the enrichment diaphragms. I'm sure the weak ignition from the corroded wires has an effect on this. Nothing real serious that I'm aware of. I just need to get off my butt and git-er-done. Now that my knee is getting better and the weather is getting warmer, I'll probably get to it. Just the idea of getting a newer, FUEL INJECTED, more reliable motorcycle is appealing.

What I need is a good mechanic to fix my nice low mileage Gen 1!

Never mind on the Vstrom 1000. I just read enough on the internet to warn me off. Turns out that they don't run right because they are way too lean to pass the emissions testing and Suzuki can't legally fix them so they will run right.

It might be worth it to design some training wheels that will be easy to attach to your bike. Shouldn't cost too terribly much to get a machine shop to fabricate them. Might even be something you can market.

Looking thru craigslist this morning and saw a nice 2012 Suzuki V-Strom 1000. Anybody on here have one of those and if so, how do you like it?