Revisited: picking a cruiser

What about a Magna 750?

http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/mcy/3852730265.html

These V-4's are extremely smooth runners unlike 45 degree V-twins. Never piloted one so I can't say what they're like to ride.

When I was shopping, I found that most modern cruisers are pretty interchangeable. They all have their plusses and minuses, but in the end, there wasn't much to separate any of them. It comes down to looks, riding position, and value for dollar. I don't think that you can go wrong with any of those choices.

I will say that I struggle with the dealer options in the Pittsburgh area, none are what I would call professional or reliable. I am still looking for a place that answers the phone and takes service appointments, let alone somewhere where I can get service done satisfactorily! So check out your local dealers and service options and let that be a factor in your decision.

foxtrapper wrote: You aren't buying this sight unseen, saddle un sat upon, are you?

Absolutely not. Its about an hour away and I'm headed up to give it a thrashing on Sunday.

pres589 wrote: What about a Magna 750? http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/mcy/3852730265.html These V-4's are extremely smooth runners unlike 45 degree V-twins. Never piloted one so I can't say what they're like to ride.

I did get a little bit of time in the saddle of one. (and by little bit of time I mean about 20 miles). It felt for all the world like an entry level cruiser frame (like a VLX size) with a potent V4 and more of a sporty setup. Certainly didn't feel cruiser-like or tourer-like.

pinchvalve wrote: I will say that I struggle with the dealer options in the Pittsburgh area, none are what I would call professional or reliable. I am still looking for a place that answers the phone and takes service appointments, let alone somewhere where I can get service done satisfactorily! So check out your local dealers and service options and let that be a factor in your decision.

Good to know. Fortunately about the only things I ever let someone else do is machine work and automatic transmission rebuilds. Everything else - I'm fearless.

i hear great things about the vulcan lots of different ways u can make it look and feel just right i was going to get one then i picked up my kz instead good luck hunting

ST1100? or is that too much like a goldwing?

curtis73 wrote:

foxtrapper wrote: You aren't buying this sight unseen, saddle un sat upon, are you?

Absolutely not. Its about an hour away and I'm headed up to give it a thrashing on Sunday.

Look forward to hearing the Sunday update.

bikerbenz wrote: ST1100? or is that too much like a goldwing?

No, its too much like an ST1100

I'm pretty dead-set on a cruiser/tourer. I know that a 'wing or ST would be more comfy after 500 miles, but I'm willing to sacrifice one saddle sore or one cramp to look cool during that 500 miles.

Ding ding ding! We have a winner.

I drove up today (Sunday) to take a look at the Nomad. I drove it on a mix of back windy roads and highway. It was as nice as the seller described (which was a very minimal description) but had WAY more goodies on it than he advertised. He failed to mention the V&H pipes he installed two months ago, a jet kit, LED flashing third brake light, and also forgot to mention the box full of receipts for Mobil 1 oil, the fact that he wired in a pigtail to plug in a trickle charger (or as he called it... a "trinkle charger"), and the receipt for a brand new battery AND brakes in February. He gave me the owner's manual and it is scribbled in every margin with part numbers, dates, mileages of maintenance... he ran out of margins and started writing on the cover.

The only thing that concerned me was that the tires would last through this summer, but would need to be replaced for next season.

He was asking $4000. Here is how the negotiations went:
Me- what would you take for it?
Him- what are you offering?
Me- I'll need to replace tires soon to make me feel confident. I can offer you $3500.
Him- Ok.
Me- silently wishing I had offered 3200

I then proceeded to frantically search for a notary open on Sunday and also desperately tried to pull up my insurance card on my phone in the middle of the sticks with little or no phone service. I gave him 35 Benjamins, bolted on my new plate, and drove the piss out of it all day.

Tomorrow I'm taking the $500 I negotiated and buying myself a good helmet (ditching my old HJC that smells like a foot) and some highway pegs.

Thank you all for your input. I was worried about being a Libra and sorting through a thousand bikes. Instead (with your help) I was able to hone in on a few and found a bargain that I love.

I'll take some "real" pictures tomorrow that aren't just snapshots from the ad.

Did I mention I'm excited????

Congrats! The bike looks great!

Very nice! Year? Mileage?

In reply to Beer Baron:

99 with 32k

Went shopping today at M&M Leather in Greensburg. Can't say enough good about them. I treated myself to a new armored waterproof jacket, and new helmet. I didn't find any highway pegs that I liked but that will happen soon.

Looks nice!

Please tell me your getting rid of the tassels from the grips

And what the hell is with tassels anyway? I have never understood them.

nicksta43 wrote: And what the hell is with tassels anyway? I have never understood them.

They are there to whip the E36 M3 out of your forearms and make you wish you were dead. The tassels will be gone as soon as my new Kuryakin grips show up in the mail.

Today I put on real horns. The wimpy little "meep meep" wasn't cutting it. Now I have real dual-tone car horns on there courtesy of a 78 Olds I parted out years ago.

curtis73 wrote: Today I put on real horns. The wimpy little "meep meep" wasn't cutting it. Now I have real dual-tone car horns on there courtesy of a 78 Olds I parted out years ago.

How tough is that conversion. I want something more effective than a polite alert to pedestrians.

In reply to Beer Baron:

Depends on the bike and the gauge of the horn wiring vs. amperage draw of the horns. VFR guys seem to use the factory horn wiring as relay control wiring and add in a new wiring run to bigger horns.

Beer Baron wrote:

curtis73 wrote: Today I put on real horns. The wimpy little "meep meep" wasn't cutting it. Now I have real dual-tone car horns on there courtesy of a 78 Olds I parted out years ago.

How tough is that conversion. I want something more effective than a polite alert to pedestrians.

Super simple. One nut per "meep" horn, pull the spade terminals off, one nut per new horn, put the spades back on. The "meep" horns were all steel and very thin, so I did have to bend the brackets just a touch to get the "honkers" to hang without touching the radiator. The Olds horns appear to be aftermarket replacements and have one side plastic. They are between the front cylinder and the radiator so we'll find out how they take the heat.

On this setup, the mounting was identical and both old and new horns had standard spade connectors. It was literally a 10-minute job. The original GM horns were on a 10A fuse (according to a google search) and my Nomad was already wired with a 10A fuse for that circuit so no relay required.

I figure they'll either hold up to the heat or they won't. If they don't, I'll just get some real steel/aluminum horns out of a random 1965-2010 American car and put them in.

curtis73 wrote: They are there to whip the E36 M3 out of your forearms and make you wish you were dead. The tassels will be gone as soon as my new Kuryakin grips show up in the mail.

They are a good alternative to coffee . I had some once years ago, you'll never fall asleep while riding with them. The occassional yelp can startle others though.

Glad you've found a bike you adore.

That's a nice looking bike, Curtis. Glad you found something like.

Congrats! Nice looking bike.

The stock HD big twin horn is one of those 196x - 20xx GM (Delco) car horns. Unfortunately, I don't think they are made here anymore and the new ones don't sound like the old ones did. I priced one at O'Reilly's and they are expensive, like ~$80. My horn went out last year and I researched these. I wound up buying 2 HD horns with very nice chrome covers for $12 at a pawn shop. Put one on each bike.