Condor Posted June 30, 2009 #1 Posted June 30, 2009 I've been casually interested in the Stratoliners for a while now. Once in a while I'll do a search on Ebay. This morning this show'd up STRATOLINER. It's located about a mile away so I went over to look at it. It's clean..flawless.., but when I looked at the ignition key area it was grubbier than all get out. Touched it with my finger and it came back black with oil... or road grime?? But that was it for the whole bike. Otherwise with 17K on it, it's still like new, and so far the bidding on the big E is at $7100, which is about trade-in value. I really don't know what to do. Do I say screw it, and if I'm going to buy anything, make it an early 2-Venture which comes with a lot more accessories?? I'll never be able to afford a new RSV. I do like the Strat's styling..and for me it sits good. One thing that bothers me is of the strats I've seen for sale... 2006's mostly... are all low milers. A bunch at 3-4,000 miles. Some a little more, and some a little less. Is the bike that bad of a road machine that they're all garage queens??? I donno, I'd hate to buy a pig in a poke. Yeah I know... I'm a wuss...
Venturous Randy Posted June 30, 2009 #2 Posted June 30, 2009 Guys buy a Strat because it reminds them of an HD, and they have that same mentality that it looks real good parked in the driveway. RandyA
1BigDog Posted June 30, 2009 #3 Posted June 30, 2009 Go for the earlier 2nd gen RSV. A co-worker was going to buy a new RSV 2 years ago, went to the dealer and saw a Stratoliner with Vance and Hines pipes on it and he shelled out 15k for it. Once he realized he didnt like the bike he went to trade it in on a RSV and was only offered 9k in trade....man he was pi**ed. I think someone here has an 03 listed in that price range.
MasterGuns Posted June 30, 2009 #4 Posted June 30, 2009 Second Gens remind me of Harleys. As a matter of fact some look just like my Ultra Classic.
Eck Posted June 30, 2009 #5 Posted June 30, 2009 Clean out garage, no need to worry about new bike...no place to keep it.. Ok, .........I'll be serious now.. Your legs would definately be able to touch the ground on it.. They sit fairly low to the ground. 2nd gen's, some people have an issue with touching flat footed on ground, and install a lowering kit.
beyeker Posted June 30, 2009 #6 Posted June 30, 2009 The Stratoliners are good bikes if you want just a windshield and small leather bags. I tried one out in 2006 but bought a Vulcan 2000 Classic LT instead because I liked the looks and price of the Vulcan better. I am riding a Venture again but do enjoy the feeling of a "minimal tourer". The Stratoliner and 2000 Vulcan both suffer from tire eating. 6000 miles on the back tire and 9000 on the front, and they are expensive tires. If you don't ride much that isn't a big deal, but at 15,000 a year like me it gets expensive and a pain.
Condor Posted June 30, 2009 Author #7 Posted June 30, 2009 Clean out garage, no need to worry about new bike...no place to keep it.. Ok, .........I'll be serious now.. Your legs would definately be able to touch the ground on it.. They sit fairly low to the ground. 2nd gen's, some people have an issue with touching flat footed on ground, and install a lowering kit. With a 35" inseam I don't have any trouble flat footing even a 1stGen....
Squidley Posted June 30, 2009 #8 Posted June 30, 2009 Stardbog bought his Strat back and installed a front fairing on it. Looked pretty good and offered fair wind protection. If you have sat on it and taken it for a ride and like it...do it. They are very torquey as I rode Stardbogs when we installed his car tire on it, it's impressive.
Squeeze Posted June 30, 2009 #10 Posted June 30, 2009 Forget about those V2... Buy an '09 VMAX and you'll have anything you need, once and for all Time ... I know, I know .. Money ... Forget about the Money, in the End, it's only printed Paper, or in Case of the Greenback, printed cotton Fabric.
Owen Posted June 30, 2009 #11 Posted June 30, 2009 I've been casually interested in the Stratoliners for a while now. Once in a while I'll do a search on Ebay. This morning this show'd up STRATOLINER. but when I looked at the ignition key area it was grubbier than all get out. Touched it with my finger and it came back black with oil... or road grime?? But that was it for the whole bike. I donno, I'd hate to buy a pig in a poke. Yeah I know... I'm a wuss... My ignition, saddlebag latches, and trunk latch gets the same way. In my case it is from regular dealer service and them putting too much lube on those items. I now just automatically wipe them down when I get it back from service.
Condor Posted June 30, 2009 Author #12 Posted June 30, 2009 My ignition, saddlebag latches, and trunk latch gets the same way. In my case it is from regular dealer service and them putting too much lube on those items. I now just automatically wipe them down when I get it back from service. Hmmm... Graphite lube??? That must be it..
SilvrT Posted June 30, 2009 #13 Posted June 30, 2009 Your legs would definately be able to touch the ground on it.. They sit fairly low to the ground. 2nd gen's, some people have an issue with touching flat footed on ground, and install a lowering kit. heh ... I don't think there is a scoot made that Condor would have trouble flat-footing ...
flb_78 Posted June 30, 2009 #14 Posted June 30, 2009 The Stratoliner would be an excellent touring machine. Add the Corbin fairings and bags to finish it out. The rear wheel can be modified to hold a 240mm tire with no modifications to the frame or swingarm. Here's more information then you'll probably want to know about the Stratoliner. http://www.fxstein.com/blog/index.php?op=Default&postCategoryId=4&blogId=1 http://www.fxstein.com/blog/resserver.php?blogId=1&resource=fxliner.jpg&mode=medium http://www.fxstein.com/blog/resserver.php?blogId=1&resource=fxliner.240rear.jpg&mode=medium http://www.fxstein.com/blog/resserver.php?blogId=1&resource=fxliner.2007.calendar.jpg&mode=medium
Tom Posted July 1, 2009 #15 Posted July 1, 2009 A friend of mine has one..GREAT machine BUT The rear tire is only gonna last you about 6000 miles and you have no other choices..I know a CT but not for he or I. Tom
Art708 Posted July 1, 2009 #16 Posted July 1, 2009 I had an '07 Strat that I traded for my RSTD. It was a beautiful bike....and comfortable to sit on. But I totally HATED the noisy, clanging, banging air cooled motor. I traded it with about 6,000 miles on it. I rode away happy on the TD.
Lone Eagle Posted July 1, 2009 #17 Posted July 1, 2009 Ummm - Condor - did you buy it - I just clicked on it - and it is no longer available?????
BigBoyinMS Posted July 1, 2009 #18 Posted July 1, 2009 It's still there at $7100 and 16 hours left. Search for 220441532579.
stardbog Posted July 1, 2009 #19 Posted July 1, 2009 Go for it, I get spoiled on Venture and didn't ride much strat, so now Strat is my only bike in garage. Yamaha did really good homework building that bike. 2 spark plugs per cylinder. 2 oil pumps, 2 fuel pumps, 2 gas tanks ( one on the top, one under seat ) 50/50 weight distribution and a LOOOOOT of torque. More I Ride more I like's Downs are ( If I ca call'em downs ): Tire last 7-8 K miles ( Wrist disorder ) - Fixable wit Specific car tire brand. Installed one @ Dons MD and couldn't be happier. handle as close as MC tire use 5 qt of oil, I us e Amsoil synth oil 3 separate bolts to drain oil, pain in ars first oil change, but now is just pice of cake. 4.5 Gallon Gas tank I can go only 130-140 mils. There is a Lot of accessories for Strat. Nice bike Go for Condor
RoadKill Posted July 1, 2009 #20 Posted July 1, 2009 I've been casually interested in the Stratoliners for a while now. Once in a while I'll do a search on Ebay. This morning this show'd up STRATOLINER. It's located about a mile away so I went over to look at it. It's clean..flawless.., but when I looked at the ignition key area it was grubbier than all get out. Touched it with my finger and it came back black with oil... or road grime?? But that was it for the whole bike. Otherwise with 17K on it, it's still like new, and so far the bidding on the big E is at $7100, which is about trade-in value. I really don't know what to do. Do I say screw it, and if I'm going to buy anything, make it an early 2-Venture which comes with a lot more accessories?? I'll never be able to afford a new RSV. I do like the Strat's styling..and for me it sits good. One thing that bothers me is of the strats I've seen for sale... 2006's mostly... are all low milers. A bunch at 3-4,000 miles. Some a little more, and some a little less. Is the bike that bad of a road machine that they're all garage queens??? I donno, I'd hate to buy a pig in a poke. Yeah I know... I'm a wuss... In my work classifieds someone has a 2006 RSV for $10500 lower miles. PM me if you want me to get you more info or check it out for you.
Condor Posted July 2, 2009 Author #21 Posted July 2, 2009 In my work classifieds someone has a 2006 RSV for $10500 lower miles. PM me if you want me to get you more info or check it out for you. Any milage less than 17,000 doesn't make up for a $3,000+ difference. I went and really scrutinized the Ebay bike. It looked new in every respect..... and when the smoke cleared the high bid stayed at $7,100. The same as when I ran acrossed it. However... the end result was, I didn't bid on it. Here's my final rational. The bike was being sold by a dealer and with taxes and registration the final out the door was going to be pushing $8,000, and this was for a bike that was.. outside of the FI and chrome... pretty bare bones in design. For that kind of money I could find a private party 2000-2003 RSV with not that many more miles. I gotta admit though that puppy really tugged on my emotions. The one thing I liked about it was it sat big. Much bigger than an RSV, and in my particular case I like big things. Anyway that's my story and I'm sticking to it.
1sttenor Posted July 2, 2009 #22 Posted July 2, 2009 (edited) The Stratoliner would be an excellent touring machine. Add the Corbin fairings and bags to finish it out. The rear wheel can be modified to hold a 240mm tire with no modifications to the frame or swingarm. Here's more information then you'll probably want to know about the Stratoliner. http://www.fxstein.com/blog/index.php?op=Default&postCategoryId=4&blogId=1 http://www.fxstein.com/blog/resserver.php?blogId=1&resource=fxliner.jpg&mode=medium http://www.fxstein.com/blog/resserver.php?blogId=1&resource=fxliner.240rear.jpg&mode=medium http://www.fxstein.com/blog/resserver.php?blogId=1&resource=fxliner.2007.calendar.jpg&mode=medium That is sweet looking! Edited July 2, 2009 by 1sttenor spelling
Condor Posted July 2, 2009 Author #23 Posted July 2, 2009 Like I said it really yanked on my emotions. It already had the 240 rear. It was purddy....
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