Venture vs Goldwing

[Sean]

Thanks everyone for the help with Sean's Quest for the Perfect Bike.

Recently I came *this* close to buying a Silverwing, but the guy
kept changing his prices and acting difficult so I let it go.

Yesterday I talked with someone selling an 83 Venture Royale;
he says he had a Goldwing before that but preferred the Yamaha
for comfort and handling. Is this true for anyone else?
The bike has 170k Km but is well maintained (he says); asking
price is $4800 Canadian.

Meanwhile I'm still considering the ST1100 -- I'll try to test drive
one ASAP to see if I like the riding position (hopefully there's
a fallback riser kit available if needed).

Meanwhile I went down to Trev Deeley's Harley shop yesterday and
got some clues on what to do about the '99 Ultra Classic. The
book value is about $15,000 Canadian (in rough condition, which
it is) so $11k is suspiciously(?) low, although the vendor said
he could get $14k for it if he waited long enough.

Sean

[Ken]

Post by Sean
Thanks everyone for the help with Sean's Quest for the Perfect Bike.
Recently I came *this* close to buying a Silverwing, but the guy
kept changing his prices and acting difficult so I let it go.
Yesterday I talked with someone selling an 83 Venture Royale;
he says he had a Goldwing before that but preferred the Yamaha
for comfort and handling. Is this true for anyone else?
The bike has 170k Km but is well maintained (he says); asking
price is $4800 Canadian.

The Venture Royale is a truly loaded bike and is indeed comfortable on
the road. It has a V4 1200 cc engine which provides plenty of power.
The bike is, however, more topheavy than the GL1500 or GL1800 Wings.
Also, the engine is neither as quiet or smooth as the 6 cyl engine on
the above mentioned Wings. Also, the rear lighting on a Venture is
abysmally inadequate compared to the Wings. I don't think the front
lighting is all that great either. Finally, there are a LOT of used
Wings out there and a huge aftermarket for parts and accessories. The
Venture is an orphan model and was never a huge seller to begin with so
from the aspect of availability and price of parts, you'll be better
off with a Wing.

Today, I would not consider the purchase of one of the older Gold Wings
(GL1100 or GL1200). The 1500s and 1800s are far superior in terms of
smoothness, power and handling and parts are starting to get harder to
find for the pre 1500 (particularly the 1100) Wings.

[Bob Kruse]

Post by Sean
Thanks everyone for the help with Sean's Quest for the Perfect Bike.
Recently I came *this* close to buying a Silverwing, but the guy
kept changing his prices and acting difficult so I let it go.
Yesterday I talked with someone selling an 83 Venture Royale;
he says he had a Goldwing before that but preferred the Yamaha
for comfort and handling. Is this true for anyone else?
The bike has 170k Km but is well maintained (he says); asking
price is $4800 Canadian.
Meanwhile I'm still considering the ST1100 -- I'll try to test drive
one ASAP to see if I like the riding position (hopefully there's
a fallback riser kit available if needed).
Meanwhile I went down to Trev Deeley's Harley shop yesterday and
got some clues on what to do about the '99 Ultra Classic. The
book value is about $15,000 Canadian (in rough condition, which
it is) so $11k is suspiciously(?) low, although the vendor said
he could get $14k for it if he waited long enough.
Sean

Sean,

I can't comment on the big touring bikes but the ST1100 is a sweet
ride. My buddy has loaned me his on several occasions and it's just
plain nice. The only problem with the STs is they have a slight head
wobble at low speed if you take your hands off the bars. My friend
took his back to the dealer and they said that's an annoyance of that
bike. He was told he could put a steering dampener on it but that
would require cutting plastic so he left it alone. Frankly, I really
didn't notice it because I didn't take my hands off the bars. Just a
light touch, not a death grip. Ride one, you'll be hooked.

Bob

[Robert Bolton]

Post by Sean
Thanks everyone for the help with Sean's Quest for the Perfect Bike.
Recently I came *this* close to buying a Silverwing, but the guy
kept changing his prices and acting difficult so I let it go.
Yesterday I talked with someone selling an 83 Venture Royale;
he says he had a Goldwing before that but preferred the Yamaha
for comfort and handling. Is this true for anyone else?
The bike has 170k Km but is well maintained (he says); asking
price is $4800 Canadian.
Meanwhile I'm still considering the ST1100 -- I'll try to test drive
one ASAP to see if I like the riding position (hopefully there's
a fallback riser kit available if needed).
Meanwhile I went down to Trev Deeley's Harley shop yesterday and
got some clues on what to do about the '99 Ultra Classic. The
book value is about $15,000 Canadian (in rough condition, which
it is) so $11k is suspiciously(?) low, although the vendor said
he could get $14k for it if he waited long enough.

From Harley to Goldwing? That's like giving up free sex to join the priesthood.
But seriously, hope you find something you want.

Robert

[Bob Mann]

Post by Sean
Thanks everyone for the help with Sean's Quest for the Perfect Bike.
Recently I came *this* close to buying a Silverwing, but the guy
kept changing his prices and acting difficult so I let it go.
Yesterday I talked with someone selling an 83 Venture Royale;
he says he had a Goldwing before that but preferred the Yamaha
for comfort and handling. Is this true for anyone else?
The bike has 170k Km but is well maintained (he says); asking
price is $4800 Canadian.
Meanwhile I'm still considering the ST1100 -- I'll try to test drive
one ASAP to see if I like the riding position (hopefully there's
a fallback riser kit available if needed).
Meanwhile I went down to Trev Deeley's Harley shop yesterday and
got some clues on what to do about the '99 Ultra Classic. The
book value is about $15,000 Canadian (in rough condition, which
it is) so $11k is suspiciously(?) low, although the vendor said
he could get $14k for it if he waited long enough.
Sean

Actually, right now, $15,000 isn't far off normal average condition.
Like I said elsewhere, I have my eye on three bikes in that price
range. One, a '99 Classic, is $14,800 in average condition.
The others are more but are in very good to excellent condition.
--
Bob Mann

"Without pain there is no gain.
Without pain there is no glory"
-Geoff Capes