I plan to tour the country on a motorcycle, with a budget of $5000 for a used bike, what should I get?

Question

My friend wants us all to have sportsters like his harley but I think it might get uncormfortable, however I don't want to get a goldwing, I think they are uncool. What are you personal thoughts and opinons? Is there a cool bike good for long tours, what engine size will need, is a V-Twin a bad idea because of the vibration?

Answer 1

a v-twin is okay as long as it's not a used Harley you do not want to break down. I'd try to get a used cruiser try Honda Shadow.

Answer 2

You are not going to find a Harley, even a Sportster, for $5000 that is in good enough shape to trust for a cross country run. An old Goldwing at that price is a possibility. You might want to set aside some of your budget. A used bike may need repairs, or you might want different accessories.
As far as what works, almost any cycle will do. Find what fits that you like. Or, find what you like and make it fit. Works either way. Stay above 600cc so the engine won't scream at highway speeds. As far as engine design, V- Twin, inline-4, whatever, go with what makes you happy. Bad ideas usually don't last over 100 years.

Answer 3

i ride an '05, XL1200r roadster sportster. is all stock except for seat and a detachable windsheild. i can easily....easily put in a 400 mile day. btw, i'm 6', at 190 pounds...i've put on a bit of weight over the winter, but i have no problems being comfy on my sporty. u will be the weakest link in the chain...ur azz will get sore way before the bike will in any case. on my bike, i wear gloves to minimize hand vibrations...thru the seat, i dont get much vibrations, but the stock shocks of sportster's on the 'soft' setting causes medium sized bumps to feel extremely jarring....up to and including the feeling u are about to get tossed out of the seat.

i put on a sundowner seat. its the best seat hd makes but is half of what a mustang seat will cost u. it would also be adviseable to have a windshield on the bike. 95% of the wind blast will go over ur head...and some of the bugs will be deflected also. i can tell u from experience that, if u ride at dusk or night when the 'squito's come out, hittin a swarm of them at 45 or 50 on back roads feels like hundreds of tiny pin pricks....not all that painful, but very annoying.

u most likely wont find a post-amf sporty for 5 grand....u might, but the odds are against u. more than likely at like 7500 to 8 grand, but because the new '07 hd's are a hot item, i see a few sportsters in the paper over here....like this 1: '04 sportster 1200 custom. black & chrome, $7000.

sporty's that are 5 grand or close to it are most likely 883's. they feel kinda small in comparison to a 1200, but they are also lighter in weight, and those 883's that have had the stage 1 and stage 2 on it are extremely potent little hot rods....but an 883 that has had that done to it wont be selling for under 8k either.

Answer 4

All of the new V-twins are balanced motors and mounted on gel or rubber mounts.

I suggest buying a Yamaha 1100 V-star used. My father bought a 2005 with only 3000 miles on it for 5k. So just keep your eyes open.

I don't suggest buying anything smaller than 1200cc's of riding a sportster on more than 2 hr. trip. I have a Softail HD and I don't enjoy the ride after 2hrs.

You can improve the ride of any bike, using a gel seat pad.
Also using an improved seat, heated etc.
Many options to make life better. Air ride.
Just remember that bugs hurt and 70+MPH.
Windshield.

Answer 5

We us Craig's record too. do a sprint diagnosis before you purchase. Scooters oftentimes don't have as lots capacity and you will possibly be able to't take them on the throughway, for occasion. Do pass forward and take the State bike secure practices coaching classification which you will desire besides to get your license. that's properly well worth the time and money, you will how you will force a bike or scooter, and that they'll talk the diversities between categories. that's going to additionally probable keep your existence by making use of scuffling with an coincidence born or lack of awareness (no offense, that got here approximately to me on my first trip before the class). one among our motorcycles is a 2008 Honda insurrection, a ideal bike for a newbie, that we latest in Craig's record. It grew to become into in straight forward terms $2,500. We did this in 2009 and that's nevertheless a widespread.

Answer 6

If you are looking for a sportster and a comfortable bike, why not get both? If you go to the Harley website, there are sportsters there that can be had for under $5000. Or go to Ride-USA.com and check out their classifieds. Same thing applies. If the seat isn't comfortable enough for you, replace it. There are a bunch of after market seats that you can get to make the ride more comfortable.

Answer 7

See if you're comfortable on a cruiser. A Sportster may be OK, or you can pick from various Japanese models. I don't know what your experience level is, but if you're beginning you will not want to go too heavy as the heavier cruisers are trickier to balance at low speeds.

As a general rule, people who find themselves comfortable sitting on cruisers seem to be able to ride them for very long distances. And V-twins vibrate less than parallel twins as they're pretty well balanced.

If cruisers aren't your thing, and you have a bit of riding experience, see if you can find a Honda VFR Interceptor or BMW in your price range.

Answer 8

If your first concern is being cool, then maybe you should reconsider touring. You can tour on any size bike but you should consider riding comfort and how much weight you need to carry. For five grand I'd look for a Kawasaki Voyager.
If your going with a twin, you might be able to find a decent Honda Shadow.
Good luck.

Answer 9

The Yamaha V-star is a great looking bike. I have a 2005 650 which is midnight black and looks really cool. A friend of mine has a 2004 1100, which has cobra pipes and is very loud. I'm only 5'6" tall at best, and weigh around 150 pounds, and I can ride it easily. His is also the cruiser where mine is more of a sportster, the only difference is his has bigger fenders, besides the bigger motor of course. But also I was going to say, his rides better than mine and has better brakes, probably better for longer rides at high speeds. Anyway, good luck!

Answer 10

check out he Suzuki c50 (2005- 2007), or called the volusia (from 2001-2004) great bike, really big, comfortable and a excellent bike. new ones run 6000 to 7000, so a couple years old 5000 to 4000 dollars. no vibration, its a v-twin. many accessories can be found for it. and have known a couple of riders with them with already 100,000 miles. engines are long lasting. i have a 2004 volusia and love it.

Answer 11

First of all...Five thousand is not very much at all for a Harley..But I wish you the best of luck in finding one...When it comes to touring....Road King's and Classics are the most popular. But if you will be touring and buying a used bike...Save some back to get it all checked out before you ride off. You dont want to be three days into your trip and have trouble. And make sure it is atleast a five speed.