How the golly gosh darn flip do you ride a cruiser?

[skinman]

how you get them round corners depends on how the bike is setup
I do push through as I have found that doing that drops my shoulder in & reduces the scrapage, also I tend to corner with the throttle, roll off on the way in, roll on at apex to stand bike up for straight, all gently of course, doing anything suddenly will unsettle bike & it will get scared & go straight on. If you need to use the front brake to slow for a corner use it early, as you tip in be releasing the front, you can trail the rear till quite late if you need to scrub off speed & also use the engine for braking.
It will never be as fast in the tight stuff as a sprot bike but much more relaxed on the more open road.

have fun

[frogfeaturesFZR]

Did a track day at HD in feb and there was a guy there on a 1700 Vulcan. He hammered that thing round the track. They handle ok, you just have to ride within the limitations of the frame.

[SMOKEU]

Why not just buy a bike that's designed to go around corners properly? I can understand that not everyone enjoys the riding position of a sports bike as much as I do, but there are plenty of bikes out there which handle quite well without having to bend over the fuel tank. A Hornet or Bandit are the first things which spring to mind.

[Subike]

It will never be as fast in the tight stuff as a sprot bike but much more relaxed on the more open road.

have fun

Bwa hahaha

[Madness]

I reckon you should buy a DR650.

[ducatilover]

Bwa hahaha

I don't get it?

[Subike]

I don't get it?

not as fast as a sprot bike in the twistys,

thats what I am laughing at,

but there are other makes of cruzers in the right hands, will be a serious challenge to a sprot bike in twisties

And many cantabrians will know well a certain beaten up old 1340 softtail that is raced at ruapuna which quite often well ahead of the buels

in the right hands.

[GrayWolf]

So i recently bought a 95 virago 1100.

WOW

What a shit house bike. How do you go around corners.

Can Robert Taylor or someone improve the suspension on cruisers?

So wobbly at high speed in corners.

And WOW dose the front twin discs feel like the rubber brakes on an old moutain bike!!!

Impressive rear brake tho.

Not to scare you, the 1100 Virago was the first V twin I owned, I traded a Kwaka 1000 on it. For 3 months I wondered why the fuck I had bought such a heap of shit.... (I was giving it full bore on a UK motorway on the Kwaka, indicated 150, and had one of those epiphany moments).. Anyway, the XV1100 was reckoned to be the best handling cruiser in those days, the VN's HD's were far worse, and it was quicker than the 1200 Evo sporty.
Cornering..... you need a completely different style of cornering. Set up the corner early, rather than HARD braking, gentle brakes, use the torque rather than sprot bike gear changes. Have the corner speed 'set' before entering it, Out wide, apex ONLY as it reaches the point your view round the bend is beginning to open, then back out wide... making the corner as straight as possible. Cruisers are about smooth riding style. Dont try to corner at anywhere near sprot bike speeds until you've mastered the technique needed. Once you have you'll be surprised how quickly you can hustle them round.

Brakes? you're about right, even compared to the old 80's kwaka brakes,they werent exactly fantastic, a bloody good sqeeze!! Oh and a lot of the Yammy calipers of those days were prone to seizing up. Rear drum was brilliant for feel and power. There is some amount of engine braking, your actually better off to lose speed early into corners by allowing some engine braking first.

Suspension? It's a cruiser, soft, wallowy and spongy. AND I'll say again the VX outhandled all comers in the 1980 for cruisers. A set of Ikon's on the rear will work wonders, and if not progressive springs, thicker oil and a little 'extra' 15-25cc will improve things. I can assure you the XV1100 handled far better than my VN1500C, but choice for handling? Was the Guzzi California 1100 I owned in the mid to late 90's......

[ducatilover]

not as fast as a sprot bike in the twistys,

thats what I am laughing at,

but there are other makes of cruzers in the right hands, will be a serious challenge to a sprot bike in twisties

And many cantabrians will know well a certain beaten up old 1340 softtail that is raced at ruapuna which quite often well ahead of the buels

in the right hands.

That argument is invalid.
I can keep up with a poorly driven Lamborghini in my father's Hilux. That means the Hilux can go around corners well.

I'll find a reasonable rider, put 'em on a sport bike, and the same for a cruiser, which will be faster...

Anything poorly ridden will be slower than anything ridden well (unless we're talking S1000RR vs CT90)

[Subike]

That argument is invalid.
I can keep up with a poorly driven Lamborghini in my father's Hilux. That means the Hilux can go around corners well.

I'll find a reasonable rider, put 'em on a sport bike, and the same for a cruiser, which will be faster...

Anything poorly ridden will be slower than anything ridden well (unless we're talking S1000RR vs CT90)

Fair enough
OP has now a bit of information to work with,
And my find his ride will become more fun as he learns its limits
Adjusts his riding to suit the bike.
Not try and change the bike to suit his riding style

[ducatilover]

Fair enough
OP has now a bit of information to work with,
And my find his ride will become more fun as he learns its limits
Adjusts his riding to suit the bike.
Not try and change the bike to suit his riding style

Agreed.
And if it's too hard I'll be happy to chug around on it for him, because I'm a nice guy like that.

[gatch]

Cut 50mm off the fork spring and put in 70mm of preload spacer, use straight 50 motor oil for the fork oil. Safe.

As for the rear, dump the shocks and make it rigid, then use about 20psi in the rear tire for absorbing bumps.

Mean bro

[baptist]

So i recently bought a 95 virago 1100.

WOW

What a shit house bike. How do you go around corners.

.

try a set of these, they might help...

+1 to that.

Now Prick Smiff is gone it's all Judith Collins fault... no wait better not say that she will sue me

[Virago]

Dude.

I mean, come on.

You're seriously too cool to ride a Virago. Seriously.

I've noticed it time and time again. If you put someone who's really cool on a cruiser, they look like a complete twat, and ride like a total n00b.

Your street cred is at stake here. Don't do it, eh...

[jonbuoy]

The good news is that riding a bike that doesn't handle well will do more for your riding and road skills than you thought possible. (if you survive.....)