How to Ride a Venture

[Guest mjvdutch]

Greetings All,

 

Happy to have found a good online Venture club that I can converse with ! ! ! !

 

I'm a new owner of a 2006 Venture (one month). I`ve ridden other large bikes and my last bike was a Suzuki Indruder 1500. I really like the Venture but am still struggling with the new feel. Does anyone know of any articles that can suggest how to handle the bike. I stilll struggle with turns, turning the bike around, backing it up and a feeling that the bike is tippy when stopped. I realize that it is a large bike with more upper weight that I need to get used to. But any suggestions or articles would be helpful...

Thanks Dutch

[Godlover]

You will find all sorts of good advice here. The best mod I did was intalling leveling links. You can do a search and read all about it. They are easy to install and well worth the money! I also discovered that replacing my front tire made a ton of difference. You'll love the ride when you get comfortable!!

[Condor]

Greetings All,

 

Happy to have found a good online Venture club that I can converse with ! ! ! !

 

I'm a new owner of a 2006 Venture (one month). I`ve ridden other large bikes and my last bike was a Suzuki Indruder 1500. I really like the Venture but am still struggling with the new feel. Does anyone know of any articles that can suggest how to handle the bike. I stilll struggle with turns, turning the bike around, backing it up and a feeling that the bike is tippy when stopped. I realize that it is a large bike with more upper weight that I need to get used to. But any suggestions or articles would be helpful...

Thanks Dutch

 

Best advice I can give is 'Don't stop'. Actually you will start to get the feel of the bike over time. It is a learning experience. The hardest thing I've found is to not over react or over correct as the 2ndGens don't respond like a bike that's more agile. It's designed to gobble up the miles, and do it well....

[Owen]

Get a copy of ride like a pro and practice, practice, practice. It's a big bike, I'm a little guy, but I am comfortable on it and handle it pretty well. You will too. Welcome to the site!

[gibvel]

As Godlover said the leveling links are one way to go. If you are vertically challenged, however, you may not be able to do this.

 

Another thing that has been done is to mount a narrower tire on the front. A 130. This makes the bike turn in more quickly. Some have said that it makes handling at higher speeds "Squirely" and that the bike seems to follow tar snakes more.

 

Another thing you can do is to lower the forks in the triple tree. This accomplishes the same thing as the leveling links but keeps the bike from growing taller in the saddle area.

 

Then there's always practice, practice, practice. Always stop with the forks straight even if you're going to turn. This will alleviate some of the tippy feeling when stopping.

 

Compared to a V-Twin you're gonna have to keep the RPMs up with the V-4. It lives well over 3K anything lower and it doesn't seem like there's as much power. Rev limiter is set at about 6,200 or so. Rev the sucker up until you feel the rev limiter kick in a few times and you'll learn how far you can wind her up.

 

5th is a true overdrive. Most people don't even think about using it until they hit 70 or so. Even at 75 I will down shift if I need to move quickly.

 

Hope this helps.

[CMIKE]

Tires make a difference how these bikes handle...Most of the stock brickstones and Dunlop 404 have been proven to hinder the rider. I went back with stock size and the Dunlop E3 and it made a world of difference. I think with the Avons you will get the same results. A big plus of this mod...these tires last a lot longer than what comes on it stock.

 

Practice and seat time is probably the best thing you could do. A few thousand miles will make all the difference in the world.

Welcome to the site...I think you will like it here if you just hang around some.

:TEAL::welcome1:

[KiteSquid]

Get a copy of the recent version of Ride Like A Pro DVD.

 

 

Practice what is demonstrated.

 

 

 

Click HERE to go there.

Edited June 18, 2010 by KiteSquid
correct spelling errors

[Yammer Dan]

Just sit facing to the Front and Practice, Practice, Practice!! You will find ways to tune yours to fit you. Lots of hints on here. I think getting the Air System set to fit what you want is one of the biggest. Tires probally next.

[dynodon]

All good advice...I would add that if you are having trouble balancing at stops, consider reshaping the saddle or getting one that will lower you and maybe narrow the front part.

 

I have an '86 VR, which is a lot like the Gen 2 bike you have in construction if not looks. I found that the two bikes ride a LOT alike, but the Gen 1 is a bit sportier due to lower weight mainly from the lower gas tank. But I found the Gen 2 very easy to ride.

 

Make sure your tires are good, consider the changes mentioned, the EIII Dunlops I put on my '86 really helped the handling, but they took a little getting used to. Make sure your suspension is set right, experiment with it a little.

 

And of course practice. Find a big empty lot and just turn turn and then turn some more. Learn to look where you want to go and practice that every turn on every mile.

 

You may even want to find some other Gen 2 riders in your area and ask them to ride your bike to make sure it is behaving the way it is supposed to.

 

I just got a '04 GoldWing. It drove funny, and by asking around, I found it had a problem, most likely with tight head bearings. Hope to have it back and riding normal today. You may have a problem that is causing you to feel unsteady that isn't your fault. Ride someone else's bike if you can get that permission. If you can't find someone on this site then check out STAR Touring for a chapter in your area. http://www.startouring.org

[SilvrT]

yup... the key word is practise... 'nuther one is persistence. Every bike has it's own feel and when it is "new to you", you have to ride it and experiment and get a "feel" for it and eventually you become ONE with it. With these bikes, an adjustment here, a change there, etc (tire & shock air pressure, different tires, leveling links, etc) all affect how the bike feels and with a little practise and experimentation you will find that you can handle this bike as good as most others.

 

enjoy !

[Magnawake]

I used to have the same problems. It feels like a beast. Tire pressure has a little to do with it. The lower the press, the more sluggesh. I went to the Vogel ride last year and these guys here on this site makes it look like childs play. The dragons tail was a blast. Keep listening to these experts on this form and you'll be fine. I just rode today for the first time in 9 months ( Been out of state working). It felt great to be back on the Venture. I Love it !!

[midnightventure]

I took mine on a 3000 mile 5 day trip. By the time I got home it didn't feel near as heavy.

[V7Goose]

These two points have already been mentioned, but they are so critical to your question I wanted to stress them again.

 

First and MOST important - if your bike has Brickstone tires, get rid of them NOW - do NOT wait to wear them out. You will find this point very hard to believe, but the handling of those stock tires is SO BAD that they are causing most of what you complained about. And the problems will just get worse as that POS rear tire wears flat. Michelin, Avon or Dunlop E3 tires will all make that bike feel 300 lbs lighter at slow speeds and a joy at high speeds.

 

If you have Dunlop D404 tires, then just know that they are just average tires - not near as bad as the Brickstones, but no where near as good as the other tires I mentioned.

 

The second point is to keep those RPMs up! You are used to a big twin, and you MUST NOT try to ride this bike like that. If you do, it will rattle shake, hammer, pound and stumble all over itself while it fails to get out of its own way. The only way you will understand what the V4 engine can do (and the difference from low to high revs) is to jerk that throttle open on a straight freeway on-ramp and hold it till you feel the bike falter when it hits the rev limiter. Do this in second gear, then try to do it in third (but you will have to get it up to 96 MPH to hit the rev limiter in 3rd!).

 

In normal riding, you must keep those revs much higher than any twin. Never try to accelerate in 5th unless you are doing at least 65 MPH. Below that, you need to kick it down to 4th, or maybe even 3rd if you want to grab a hand full of throttle.

 

Keep those points in mind and enjoy the bike!

Goose

[Proud Dad]

Welcome Dutch. You have found a great site indeed. Best advice and best of help. Great bunch.

 

I purchased my 07 last July. Know exactly where you are at. So I'll share a little.

 

1. Purchased a good pair riding boots. Made me a little longer. lol Helped a lot. Inseam is 29 inches.

 

2. Got rid of the Dunlop 404s. Purchased Avons with the smaller front tire. Without a doubt this is the single best improvement I have made. Bike handles completely different at slow speed. I run 50 rear and 40 front as per tire instructions. Also ride 2 up most of the time.

 

3. Installed a Utopia backrest. Took some tweaking but I finally found the sweet spot. Supports the back but most importantly it removes the slouch. Shortens the stetch to the bars and actually makes me a little longer. Because it forces me to set up straight.

 

4. Wednesday I installed the Barons risers. Moves the bars up and back. Oh yeah. Again the bike handles considerably different. Have put 400 mile on yesterday and today. Still need to do a little tweaking to get the height just right.

 

5. Today Rick Butler rebuilt my seat. 200 mile in the new seat. Feet may be a little closer to the road as a result. For sure more comfortable.

 

I have put off lowering the front. Those who have rave about it. But I wanted to try these other mods first. Time will tell.

 

Oh yes, I did purchase the Ride Like a Pro Video. It's good.

 

Really enjoy fitting the bike to me. Just keeps getting better. It will for you too. Take your time and enjoy the ride. It's a great bike.

 

But your greatest change will come with the:12101: tires.