BlueSky

Condor, that's a 64 Galaxie, the big Ford. The Fairlane was the mid-size. My girl friend in 1964 had a new one.

I think some of those riders were using Cheng Shin tires, the ones with NO grip.

Many of us, especially me, could eat half as much and have a newer motorcycle paid for in an amazingly short time!

But that whopper tastes so good!

I went to Disney World with the 1st wife and 2 kids back in the 80's. I towed our popup camper trying to save some money. We stayed at a KOA campground about 7 miles from the resort for $23/night. Every day we drove past a sign in front of a motel advertising rooms for a family of 4 for $27/night!!! There are ways of doing stuff for less money. Staying inside the resort is not one of them. Lots of fun to stay there I'm sure but at huge cost. Going first class in everything severely limits what you can do or own. I grew up poor and I've been a cheapskate all my life. My boat is a 98. My truck is a 2002. My car is a 2005. And my motorcycles are the two old bikes in my signature. I have lots of toys because I'm cheap! I would be tempted to buy a new or newer motorcycle if there were some that suited me but they are few. The new Venture ain't it. Seems that they are almost all either the cruiser style or sport bike style and I don't like either.

One of my nieces who is in her early 50's is an addict as well as her son and daughter and ex-husband who happens to be a retired parole officer. Multiple rehabs that they always quit. The family is getting tired of helping them. Her son is trying hard to straighten out. He married a woman whom he met in rehab and they are trying together. I'm hoping for the best for them but there isn't much that can be done.

Now Mom goes to jail. What a scumbag.

The V4 is the most expensive to build of all the designs because of the DOHC twin heads. I4, I3, I2, & V-twin are all cheaper and that is what Yamaha went for. An I4 in the new Venture would have been okay with me. But, my opinion doesn't count. Hey, I saw a 2012 BMW K1600GTL for sale on the local craigslist for $1800. I think I'll send the money by paypal before someone else buys it! NOT! I did call the number listed and got an answering machine. I left no message. Later I got a text requesting my email so the guy who is selling it for his aunt can send more photos. I ignored the message and got another one a couple days later. This time I sent a text back telling the guy to find a sucker somewhere else.

Yeah, the small scooters must be selling well because I see so many of them on the roads. My two sons never had an interest in riding a motorcycle because of safety. Perhaps they are smarter or more mature than I? One is 38 and the other is my stepson who is 26. Both like fast cars.

Even way back, it was cheaper to drive some cars. The latter part of 73, I was driving 70 miles to and from work daily. My base Pinto got 29mpg. My CB750 got close to 40 or so. Even back then considering the cost of tires, it was cheaper for me to drive the Pinto. That Pinto had two options, the big engine which was a 2.0L Ford of Germay OHC 115hp engine and front disc brakes (manual). The base engine was a 1.6L pushrod Ford Cortina engine.

Weird!

Preliminary data just in shows that the economy grew 3.0% at an annual rate for the 3rd quarter, second quarter in a row despite all the hurricane damage. Maybe just maybe, things will be picking up and people will have more money for toys.

Well SilvrT, for a guy without a bike, you're doing pretty good at finding rides! :biker:

When I brought my Russian wife and stepson over, our paperwork was never rejected but there were so many appointments and documents to send in and she was fingerprinted multiple times. And every time a document was sent in or taken in there was a fee involved. I wish I had kept a log of all the documents and appointments it took over 4 years for her to get her citizenship. And then it was a hassle for my stepson to get registered to vote when he was old enough. They kept taking him off the voter registration because the local dummys didn't understand the law. They are good people. She has a degree in Electrical Engineering and he has a degree in Computer Science. He was 11 yrs old when they came to the USA.

I noticed that he didn't use any lube when assembling the engine??!!

My Ruskie stepson is a computer science graduate. He was down on anything Apple. Then after graduating and working for a company writing programs that only uses Mac computers, he changed his mind. His phone is an Apple and computer is Apple.

You can use your Droid with the Bluetooth according to the Motorcycle.com video. One other thing I thought I heard from that video is that Nav map updates are free!

Based on what I've read on this forum, there are several differences: The front brakes on the 86 MKII up are much better. they have 4 piston calipers instead of 2 piston. The anti-dive feature is electrically powered rather and hydraulically powered which uses some of the brake pressure. Some owners have switched the MKII forks to the MK I Venture to improve braking. Some 83s have frame issues. 2nd gear you know. Starting in 91, they got a 4 brush more powerful starter. They will fit the earlier models. Any V4 1300 Yam engine starter from 91 up will work including the RSTDs and Gen II Ventures. They say the 1200cc V4 is more powerful than the 1300. Don't know how much. Proabably more but that's all I can remember at this time.

Beautiful Bike! Lower weight! Better fuel economy! No fork seals to replace! Going from a 2 valve engine to a 4 valve engine and still made it lighter and rumored to have more hp! I'm lusting! Looks like the improved Gen 1 we were hoping from Yamaha.

The larger Versys has a 4 cyl engine 120hp and has gotten good reviews and it isn't that heavy, 551lbs. wet.

One of the best features of a GW is the low center of gravity making it easier to handle at low speed. Lots of choices in this world. In 2010, I loved the 2006 GW that I test rode but I didn't want to pay the $17,500 the dealer wanted for it. And I've always loved the looks of a first Gen Yamaha Venture. Beside I would never have been a member of this site if I had bought that GW.

How do you get wifi when living in a TT or MH?

In the USA, at the present time, the loan interest on a TT or MH is tax deductible as a second home. I don't know if that will survive the new tax system revision and with the proposed increase in standard deduction it may not matter as the deductibles may not equal the standard deduction.

And the higher the rpms the more the seat/valve will wear. In other words, if you like to beat on it, you need to check the valve clearances more often.

Doesn't the new engine have a dry sump? Is that different from the Raider?