Enough workin' on em , let's ride em !

[Lucasind]

Got home from work today and felt more like riding motorcycles than going into the shop and workin on em ! I decided to wake up the 1300 /6 from her winter's nap turned on the key and listened for the fuel system to pressure up ...then one touch of the button and she fired right up as if it had been rode yesterday !



Brad and I got a very nice ride in this evening as the temps here in Toledo actually got into the low 60's this afternoon ! The 31 year old Voyager runs as good as it did when it was new I gotta believe, a very comfy and enjoyable bike to ride !



We rode out along the river to get a milkshake at one of our spots,but found the parking lot empty,and the dairy inn still closed for winter



Now that "daylight savings" time has kicked in,it is still actually light out at 7 o'clock
nothin' like a bit of sunshine and warmer temps to get the ridin' juices flowin !Thousands of lake Erie walleye will be coming up that river you see in the back ground to spawn...it will be elbow to elbow fisherman here in the next couple of weeks .
did anyone else get any riding in today ? .................................Tony

[misft]

Looks like you and Brad had a great day for a ride. The bikes look nice. Was kinda gloomy on my turf today so I only got 135 miles. Maybe get some fluffy white stuff tomorrow so I don't think I'll be going anywhere. Perhaps it would be better if I found a station in say Florida to get my weather forecast.

[trikebldr]

"did anyone else get any riding in today ?"

Yup! First 120 mile highway ride with the sidecar! Still on the original 37 year old tire, too! No passenger, but carried two T-105 gold-cart batteries for ballast and just in case my alternators weren't putting out. Seems they are just fine, though. For some reason this engine seems to run a bit cooler than my old '83 did. Four bars most of the time when doing 70-75mph. 5-6 bars when doing over 85. It does have Norris cams and exhaust system, so who knows how that might affect things. I was expecting the clutch to slip a lot, but only at the first of the trip in fifth gear with lots of throttle. No slip at all by the time I got home. Pulls 85-90 rock solid. A bit breezy today around here, so my only problem was keeping it smoothly centered in the lane at those speeds. And, a LOT of looky-lews pacing alongside don't help matters either when I wanted to change lanes or get off! Had to slow way down (so did they!), then get on it and outrun them to pull over!
Feels SO good to be back on a Voyager 1300 sidecar rig again! It's been 27 years!

Tony, I think my bike was talking to your bike, so that's why you took your 1300 today!

[Lucasind]

We sure did get in a nice ride Misft ! the wind was blowing terribly....but Brad said "Im goin anyway"
well not to be out done by a young guy .... I suited up and went along, glad I did... that ride put me into the start of the second thousand miles on my 1300 / 6 ! very pleased with my $1950. investment !
($1450. price ,$500. shipping) .............................. ............Tony

[Lucasind]

WOW Bruce, you almost doubled us on our riding distance, glad to read that your build is going down the road straight and true ! I had my ol' girl going 90mph yesterday also ! (trying to keep up ! )
and I gotta say (being a dunlop guy...) there isn't anything to complain about with those new Kenda tires that the PO installed just prior to me getting this bike, back in the summer of 14' .I like the adjustable handlebars on the Voyagers. Since I installed the rider backrest on it that I bought off Gene , I also set my handlebars back closer to me, makes things nice and comfy !
Prior to getting this 1300 ,it had been about 27 years since I had last rode one also...and always kept in the back of my mind, that if the right deal presented itself ,that I was gonna own one of these ol' bikes that were way ahead of their time when they first came out .... fiddlin' around with my trip computer yesterday, I notice that it has decided to light up ,but no longer work ,but it did last season,something I may have to look in to ,but of no great importance to me . As far as the clutch slippage goes... I experience a minor amount, when really accelerating the bike out of the hole, but I don't ride a touring bike that way... and just won't do that ! ! .............................Tony

* as far as telepathy goes.... it won't work with ME ...but it might just work with our 1300's

[trikebldr]

... as far as telepathy goes.... it won't work with ME ...but it might just work with our 1300's

Well, if you come home from work someday and your 1300 is gone, it's out riding all alone since I am out riding.

LMAO. After I got home I discovered I had forgot to screw my headlight back into place. It just sat there the whole trip with just the rubber gasket holding it in place! Just call me Mr. Al Ziemer!

[krasmu]

Love reading the banter from you guys on here. Glad some of you are getting out and about. The weather in Northern Illinois is trying to turn nice but is still struggling to get above 45. I'm riding to work every day but still keeping close to home on the weekends. I'm itching to go somewhere.

[Neal]

Do like I did...Just point it south and let-er-fly.........Daytona was HOT 2856 miles

[Lucasind]

I just happen to know that the day NEAL left Michigan to go to Daytona bike week it was a brisk 36 degrees ! more power to ya there Neal !

[Neal]

Ya... but by the time I got to your area it was already about 40. and climbing....

[Lucasind]

Love reading the banter from you guys on here. Glad some of you are getting out and about. The weather in Northern Illinois is trying to turn nice but is still struggling to get above 45. I'm riding to work every day but still keeping close to home on the weekends. I'm itching to go somewhere.

I gotta agree with ya there Krasmu ( I'm itchin to go somewhere too) ,I suppose the benefit of winter (for us ), is it really makes ya miss going out on all of your normal rides ,as well as filling up the tank and just go out "exploring" all day.Then ya really appreciate when warm weather comes back ! My friend Craig Z in FL.,says pretty much the opposite for him , he don't ride much in the summer ,
"cause it's just too damn HOT " there ! .............................Tony

[krasmu]

I've heard that same thing from my brother in Florida.

I've been working on the bike all winter,"as time allowed with new born twins in the house". Now I want to get it out and put some miles on it. I'm trying to talk my better half into Hurely but not sure she will go. Also have an invite to meet my best friend in Nashville for a long weekend. Waiting see how the cards fall.

[Lucasind]

Got in a great 4 hour ride today under a clear blue sky and 71 degree temp. !
(glad I got the ride in before the storm that is raging outside with thunder and lightning hit)
I rode down along the river to see how many fisherman were trying to catch those spawning walleye. I would say less than 50 guys out there do to the amount of rain we had here the other day the river is fast flowing , stirred up, and deeper than most anglers desire . However...the same ol' guy that makes his own fishing lures is always there year after year, selling his wares and chit -chatting with folks all day. Sure let's me know another riding season is starting ,and my XII is running perfect ,and ready for the season !



This guy has the prime spot for selling his lures ,as the river is just to the left of his white trailer.

[trikebldr]

Man, now that is some serious fishing stuff he has in his trailer. Maybe I should set up something like that to sell custom motorcycle parts. Hmm, how many Hondasaki drives could I sell a day?!?!?! Maybe Gene would consign some of his wares for me to sell, too!

[Lucasind]

So after waking up the 1300 from it's winter nap last week ...I started thinking about the poor ol'CSR 650 sitting out on a island in the middle of Lake Erie,not started since Labor Day weekend 2015. So the opportunity presented itself to get away from my usual mid-week activity,traveling around in my service truck (humping heavy equipment)in the arm pits of the world !





Hey ! let's go out to the island and get that bike going and RIDE it around !
Stop at one of our favorite places for a fish sandwich and fries, much better way to spend a day !




Not many people on this "tourist trap" island this time of year,just a lot of construction going on. We watched em load five dump trucks on the ferry boat and then were next !
The ol' 650 is up against the garage wall waiting to get out and ride around the island !
(at least the golf cart was there to keep it company ! LOL )



So after re-attaching the negative battery cable, and putting it on charge for a bit....she fired up !
and after airing up the tires ,we were ready to go out and enjoy this sunny warm day !



I didn't realize how SMALL the 650 looks while I'm on it, till seeing this photo !
No leaves on the trees yet...In 30 + years of going to this island , we have never been there in March.
Pam did find a snake and let out a scream ! it was just a small garter snake sunning itself after it;s winter nap ! So the day comes to a end at the island after a nice meal..... and those 2 , 30,000 lb forklifts in the above picture are calling my name for tomorrow...back to reality.........Tony

[trikebldr]

I have my late brother's old 850 Suzuki, sans lights, fairing and title, but the engine and running gear are all great. Been thinking of resurrecting it to ride around the city on just two wheels. Need something lighter weight than a Voyager so I can hold it up at stop lights.
Yup, you do sorta swamp that little 650, Tony! I think you need to sell that one off next. Maybe to a smaller guy! Hey, I know just the person! ME!
BTW, just how many bikes do you have strewn all over these United States? And you don't keep them on Battery Tenders? Tsk, tsk, tsk!
Does that 650 have kick start, too? I haven't had the fun of being kicked back over the bike for a long time. My 650 Yamaha did a pretty good job of it if I wasn't paying attention!

[Lucasind]

Yeah, I think ya should get that ol' Suzuki going for short around town rides, I have decided to just leave that CSR 650 on the island for good, I didn't pay very much for it in a non-running condition,It is the model that has the accelerator pumps on the carbs,so it is actually very peppy with plenty of power !No kick starter though (I think 1978 was the last year)... way better than the ol' CB 125 that we used to ride around the island ! Pam and I must have looked like "dumb and dumber" on that !
We will return to the island with the "gold rush" truck pulling the camper memorial weekend,the place is so crowded that ya don't stand a chance on something other than a M/C !

[ekap1200]

You do make that 650 look like a mini-bike with you on it
Just sayin

[cushman eagle]

The 650 is probably bigger than my Cushman

[krasmu]

I had a 78 KZ650 that took me all over the midwest and then some. Don't remember it looking so small back then.