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hondarider here

2K views 9 replies 6 participants last post by  SubSailor 
#1 ·
New to the forum but long time Honda rider. I have bean riding for over 23 years. Some track, some canyon carving, but more recently just riding for pleasure. I currently have 5 bikes. I'll list them oldest to newest. 1982 Honda Magna V-45. 1995 Honda VFR750. 2000 Honda CBR600F4. 2002 Honda RC51 SP-2. 2005 Honda Goldwing GL1800.
 
#3 ·
Had to get the GW so the wife would go riding with me. Now she is starting to understand my riding obsession. She just started to want to go riding with me after I got my VFR, after she toughed out over 800 miles on the back of that I decided I would get a Goldwing so she would enjoy riding more and it has paid off in spades. She has now ridden over 5200 miles on the back of that, for a total of over 6000 miles for the year and she nolonger complains when I go riding with my friends on sportbikes.
 
#5 ·
'82 Magna, beautiful bike! That was one of the bikes we used on our trip around the US (the other an '07 vfr800). It was a comfy son of a gun, after you get the handle bar positioning right. We ended up losing compression in one of the cylinders (cam lubrication is a common issue, and he forgot to do a valve adjustment beforehand) and ended up trading it in for a 1980 Yamaha xs850 triple.

Anyways welcome to the forums! If you've got any projects going on with the RC I'd love to heard about them!

Regards,

Drew

P.S. Very jealous of the Wing ;)
 
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#10 ·
Good thing you got the XS850, the XS750 was a pile or junk.
I had a '78 XS750 and it was the worst bike I've ever owned.
They fixed a lot of the 750's problems on the 850.

Center-stand broke in half after the 3rd day of ownership.
Starter clutch died shortly thereafter, and the kick starter reduction gear ratio didn't allow the engine to spin over fast enough to catch, so it usually resulted in a push start each time.

And the bike suffered constant failure of the clutch pushrod seal, with oil puddling at the side stand.
This was caused by an external oil feed line to the gearbox right at the clutch pushrod seal. So the seal had to hold back a positive oil pressure while rotating and moving in and out during each gear change.
Initially it was a double-lip seal, then Yamaha switched to a triple-lip design which worked a bit longer, but it was still a lost cause.

I used to carry a pocket full of seals and could pop one out and install a new one in minutes.

I eventually got tired of it and sold it for a pittance in '81.
That was the last Yamaha street bike I owned until my '08 FZ1.
Which I might add, has been utterly reliable. Other than the typical maintenance items any bike goes through, only a battery and starter relay have needed replacement.

And my daughter's '08 FZ6 has been even more reliable, with only a starter relay needed a month ago in its history.
It gets the least attention of any bike I own, and it's always "the little engine that could".
 
#7 ·
thanks, I started out this year with a 2007 drz400, my cbr, and a 1985 yamaha venture royal1200. I have had a sweet spot for the older vfrs for quite a few years now and finally found 1 clean enough and in the price range that I wanted to spend in January, so I bought that. I absolutely love it for making long solo trips as it's sporty and comfy. Then my neighbors son asked me if I was interested in his magna because it's way to much bike for him to learn on. I didn't want to see him get hurt so I bought that in March and his dad bought my venture royal the same day. My buddy from work wanted my drz to learn on, so I gave him a great deal on that as well as a lot of training. I got my gw in May and I would never let it go without another 1 to take it's place.Wifey and I are planning a cross country trip to San Diego on it for late July next year and I can't wait. Last but not least, I just picked up my rc51 a couple weeks ago. It was somebodys track bike that they tried to make roadworthy again and screwed up the wiring and now it has no spark. I purchased the honda service manual for it and now my venture begins as I am planning on making this my solo sportbike. I have had the oppertunity to ride a rc51 in the past, so I am very exited to finish this project through the winter months so I'll have a sweet ride in the spring. It is currently missing a few road going parts and I only have the fibergass fairing that he was using for track use. It should be a fun winter project, and with the helpfull knowledge of forum members, hopefully I won't bang my head against the wall too hard making this bike what I invision it to be. Thanks again for the warm welcome.
 
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