I am thinking of trading or selling my 01 gs and getting a cruiser, any suggestions?

I have been thinking about a 1200c sportster. Thanks 

N4

Cruisers are much better than the general rap they have around here.
Cruisers are much harder to crash. Longer wheel base = more time to change direction in case of a slide out. They turn slower than a GS or sport bike but not that much slower if you buy a mid to smallish cruiser.
Cruisers have shaft or belt drive - Real cruisers have shaft ... Belt is an acceptable second choice on a low powered light weight cruiser. Clean and 0 maintenance.
Cruisers fit shorter people better and taller people just fine as well. Buy what you like and what fits you.
Cruisers have less $$$ tires and they come in high mileage varieties. A set of Dunlops on a maxim will be under $150 and will be 15K front and 10K rear. Under $100 if its a cheng shin and the same life span.
Not all cruisers have tons of chrome and not all of them just look and not run. HD OTOH specalises in both.
I have a long list of cruisers I prefer but the quick version is this.
V twins are inherently harder to work on so I avoid them. V 4's are even worse. Never have owned one.
Prefer 1 cyl, parallel twins or Inline 4's. Own(ed) several of each at this time.
If you are in the charlotte NC area check out my maxim or savage and you'll know what I mean.
For makes - mid 80's I'd put yamaha at the top of the list. Honda, kawi and suzuki are 2, 3 and 4. I'd almost say the model is more important than the manufacturer.
With V twins I'dput Intruders above virago's above vulcans above Shadows, but I4's entirely different story. There its maxim above nighthawk above KZ kawi's above GS suzukis. And in water cooled muscle bikes Kawi first, followed by suzuki then yamaha and honda.
This is all just my ranting. Try it before you buy it. I am thinking long term ownership being rider and mechanic for these. Short term you may want a V max before an eliminator for example in the muscle bike category.
Cool.
Srinath.

BTW, you can see where they missed a few spots in the air brushing in that picture of the sportster you posted.
Cool.
Srinath.

I just find my hands and bottom getting numb after only about 30 min on the gs. It's a great bike, very reliable, cheap on insurance, great gas mileage, really light, but I don't want to feel like someone just beat me up when I get off of it. I have been riding a lot lately(300+mile's a week) and just want to be able to be comfortable.

Thanks for all the info seshadri_srinath. Can you recommend any fuel injected cruiser/tourer for a guy of the stumpy type(short arms/legs)?

Quote from: joshwilson18 on May 16, 2007, 10:57:32 AM
I just find my hands and bottom getting numb after only about 30 min on the gs.

do you have a deathgrip on the bars? that will definitely cause your hands to go numb. also, try to get your forearms more parallel to the ground. at least on the freeway. i had the same problem but did a search here and discovered i wasn't alone   once i lost the deathgrip, things got a lot better. once i got my arms more parallel to the ground, i was actually able to feel my fingertips after getting to work. your mileage may vary.

Fuel injected ... WTF is wrong with you ... older the better ...
Anyway your GS carbs may need to be balanced and I'd recomend a eyeball balance over a vacuum balance. Lower srinath bars may also help but he isn;t making any more, in fact he went insane and he ate all the bars he had. So that is it for a few months prolly.
The buzziness in a GS is 2-3 things usually. Bars, carbs, bad doughnuts under the top triple.
Those 3 are OK 99% its likely to be buttery smooth.
The cruisers I like are all pre 95, pre 90 in fact. Run from V twins = pre 90 cos they only make V twins after that, you know that.
Cool.
Srinath.

I would consider a cruiser as a second bike ( if I could )for those rides into the sunset on occasion 

Also the problem with numb hands will go away with experience as you learn to relax your hands as noted above

Go to dealers and sit on all the cruisers...  Comfort and fit are important...

Then think about the features you want...  Shaft, belt, or chain drive...  FI or Carb...  Disc brakes or drum...  Inverted forks...  Tach...  Etc.

THEN think about looks and brand.




Or you could do what 70% of the people out there do...  Buy one that looks cool and suffer through riding it.   

I have already changed out the bar weights on the got new bars. And after reading about numbness months ago on this site, have tried to support my weight with my torso with a loose grip on the bars. This still doesn't help. I find that if lean back a little gripping with my right arm(kinda leaned back) I am more comfortable. Thus the reason for wanting a cruiser. Maybe I need to balance my carbs and get some of those donuts srinath is talking about. It is a hard decision since my bike is paid for.

have you tried a cruiser yet? if not, see if there is any place in your area that rents them. rent one and go on a long ride to see if it works for you.

[4

Quote
I'll second the others... something is wrong. I've ridden for several hours, and never had any hand numbness at all.

Let me clarify a bit. I do have poor circulation in my left shoulder from  a motorcycle wreck I had about 8yrs ago. I think a lot of
the numbness comes from the forward lean and short arms.

With cruisers - V twin ones vibrate. More like the bump and grind ...
4 cyl ones buzz, but on the whole its less than a GS for sure.
The lean forward stance of course ... none of the cruisers have, they all are upright to reclined.
Cool.
Srinath.

Anyone has any experience with BMWs?

R1200C - man I love that bike, but never ridden it. Its got one harmonic that's not balanceable and its definetly not rubber mount. So idea how it vibrates/buzzes. Rubber mount bikes vibrate and buzz less obviously.
Cool.
Srinath.

Quote from: joshwilson18 on May 16, 2007, 01:25:41 PM

Quote
I'll second the others... something is wrong. I've ridden for several hours, and never had any hand numbness at all.

Let me clarify a bit. I do have poor circulation in my left shoulder from  a motorcycle wreck I had about 8yrs ago. I think a lot of
the numbness comes from the forward lean and short arms.

When I bought my first GS500 in 99, I had already put about 220,000 miles on 4 standard Hondas over the previous 15 years and never had any significant hand numbness problem.  The GS was my first bike with a lean forward sitting position and I had a big hand numbness problem with it, after an hours riding my hands would go completely numb. 

Put up with it for a few months and then got the GenMar risers that moved the bars up and back and the problem was all but gone.  I've put over 120k miles on 2 GS500s since then and now consider it the most comfortable bike I've had.  Will be with great reluctance that I'll go to a cruiser if age and increasing arthritis forces me to do so one of these days.

What I don't and never had with the GSs that I had a lot of trouble with on the old Hondas with the erect sitting position was a sore back and a sore butt. 

You mentioned an old injury. I wonder if you've tried a Cramp Buster for the 'go' side, and foam grips ?

Also, let the bike seat you, don't 'force' a seating position on the bike.

You really MUST empty your back pockets also. A thick wallet can set off backbone fire alarms, lower back problems, and of course a sleepy butt and shoulder pain.

Checked your rear wheel alignment ? If it's off and you have to ride unequally on the offset handlebars, that'll hurt too.

Bad helmet ? Heavy ill fitting jacket ?

Or, maybe you should just enjoy the known good option in your case, a cruiser ?

I know there are alot of questions, but each one can play a role. Good luck on your comfort quest.

I really dig the Suzuki Boulevard M50... those are very cool bikes.