Got the bike and made it home

[Mcompton1973]

Well....got my new to me '06 today. First ride...about 2/3rds of a mile. That was all I needed to know I wanted it. Second ride...496 miles home. I am in love. Thoughts and Observations.

1. There is nothing interesting to see, nor is there much to make the ride fun between Midland TX and Tulsa OK. I dont recommend it for a joy ride!

2. How did Yamaha make a bike in '06 without self cancelling turn signals....and a "Touring" bike without cruise? MUST get cruise!!!

3. I rode most of the way with windshield down because of the heat. No hearing protection. Probably a bad idea. My hearing is not right. I know it will be fine in morning....but I also know too many more trips like that can do perm damage.

4. Have to figure out how to protect hearing AND have music!

5. I need to get bar risers to set myself upright just a bit more.

6. Probably need to make an appointment with Russel Day Long. (ok....not Probably....just need too!)

7. Windshield when it was up is not quite enough for me. I am about 5'9.5" tall. Wind hit helmet...Was still loud....If I ducked a few inches I could find the still pocket and it was quiet...but not a natural riding position.

8. The bike did everything it was supposed to and nothing it wasnt....well, except spin the tires real good leaving a toll booth....possible it was not the bikes fault.

9. In a 500 mile first ride, you get to experience a lot of things. Rain....check. Heat....check....dark...Check.

10. Bike is WAYYYY more capable than I am.

11. After my venture...this thing is light, not top heavy, and so much easier to handle.

 

[NBB]

Welcome to the enjoyment of the FJR. Your first impressions are nearly identical to mine, after acquiring my first FJR also an '06.

NBB

 

[Viper Pilot]

Get some custom molded ear plugs that contain speakers internal and you will never look back as far as hearing your tunes while protecting your hearing!

 

[ruralgold]

I love the fact that you posted this message after riding 500 miles at 1:30 am. I've had my 05 FJR for about a month and am still so thrilled with it that I can't believe I didn't get one before. Congrats on the new bike.

 

[lnewlf]

I put cruise and cancelling on my '06...relatively easy...Yamaha touring screen is perfect for me without looking ugly...

 

[RossKean]

11. After my venture...this thing is light, not top heavy, and so much easier to handle.

I felt the same coming from a 2002 Royal Star Venture. Couldn't figure out why everyone was calling the FJR heavy.

 

[hppants]

It's fun to read first impressions of the FJR from experienced riders. Not that I hate reading about it from novice riders, but those people don't really know what they like yet. They are so enamored in the general riding experience, the'd offer an excellent review on an '83 H/D AMF.

I'd suggest choosing the bar riser first. Plenty (PLENTY) of options out there. You can go up, go back, or go up and back.

Then I would go to the saddle. The RDL is an excellent choice for you, especially coming from the cruiser market. Russel builds a saddle that is customized for your ass and you do NOT move. If you are interested in learning to shift your weight around in the twisties, consider the Seth Laam saddle.

Once you have your riding position figured out, ONLY then do you move to the windscreen. Your bar risers and saddle will alter where your head actually winds up. There is no point in changing wind screens until you set your riding position. There are so many options out there for your w/s, I'd suggest grabbing a large cup of coffee and start reading on this forum.

Music/quiet-wise, you basically have three options:

1. You can go with a wireless system with speakers in your helmet, and a good set of foam ear plugs. The Sena 20 is nice and you can feed your phone or other music input to it. If you have a GPS, you can also blue tooth your turn by turn directions to it as well.

2. You can go with a wired intercom system (J&M) and in helmet speakers. This is more expensive but includes CB radio and the head set is more robust.

3. You can go with a good set of noise cancelling ear buds, choosing by trial and error the best tips for your ears, and run that to your phone, MP3 player, etc. This is what I do, and the Shure SE-215 ear buds are very good for the price point.

What is the mileage on your bike? Do you know anything about the maintenance history of it? What other accessories/modifications are you considering or would like to have?

 

[RossKean]

If the cam chain tensioner has not been changed, please consider doing that sooner rather than later. The part was upgraded sometime after 2007 after there were a few failures of the earlier version (both Gen I and Gen II bikes). The new one is one with a blue dot or green dot on it. A CCT failure isn't common but results in a grenaded motor.

 

[jammess]

"Then I would go to the saddle. The RDL is an excellent choice for you, especially coming from the cruiser market. Russel builds a saddle that is customized for your ass and you do NOT move. If you are interested in learning to shift your weight around in the twisties, consider the Seth Laam saddle."

My 5th Russell Day Long will be built next month for my FJR. The other four were for BMWs. I don't know why you say you can't move around on a Russell because you can not that I ever wanted to move all that much anyway since they are so comfortable. I have no experience with Laam but I'm sure they make a good product as well but i can't see how anyone can improve much on a Russell if long distance comfort is your priority. Might be easier to touch the ground with both feet with a Laam though. As far as shifting around in the curves I have no issue doing this with the Russell on my R1100RSL, no trouble at all.

 

[Blind Squirrel]

Once you have your riding position figured out, ONLY then do you move to the windscreen. Your bar risers and saddle will alter where your head actually winds up. There is no point in changing wind screens until you set your riding position. There are so many options out there for your w/s, I'd suggest grabbing a large cup of coffee and start reading on this forum.

Excellent advice! The RDL will raise you up 1-2", as will bar risers. I struggled with getting a quiet pocket of air on my '04. One of the reasons I eventually moved away from it to another bike. However, many other riders have been able to tune the bike/shield to their liking.

 

[Mcompton1973]

Bike is an '06. Has 44k miles...wait...a little over 45k now. One owner. He bought a new 2016. He does some of his own maint....he gave me reciepts from what was done at the shop. I will have to did through to ask him about the CCT...or figure out where to look for the dot. Its nnot something im familier with. It makes since to figure the other items like seat and handlebars first. Especially since I ride with windshield down so much because its hot...and i can see how the perfect windshield now might not be right after i move things around.

 

[Harald]

Welcome to the FJR! I hated the stock windshield also when it was raised up to try and get out of the wind. It works fine all the way down when you want lots of air. The best compromise I found is a Cee Bailey stock width shield that it 2 inches higher with the reverse flip. It's a nice looking shield that still provides air when lowered, but stops the buffeting when raised up.

I won't ride without earplugs, because as you found out it's too loud and will permanently damage your hearing. I use a Sena Bluetooth communicator to get music into my helmet and it works great with a set of EAR Classic yellow foam earplugs in my ears. EVeryone's ears are different, so you may have to experiment with different brands/styles. I found that the countoured foam plugs work too good and I can't hear the music, but they are great to block out the snoring spouse.

 

[garyahouse]

Haven't had my stock windshield on in years. Good luck with your new ride.

Try putting some plain old ear buds in your ears. See how well they work for ya before you spring for the custom molded ear monitors

Gary

 

[Uncle Hud]

Congrats! Seems like you have received plenty of advice; here's a bit more.

7. Windshield when it was up is not quite enough for me. I am about 5'9.5" tall. Wind hit helmet...Was still loud....If I ducked a few inches I could find the still pocket and it was quiet...but not a natural riding position. Windscreen full up gives no breeze into my hat. Too warm that way.
8. The bike did everything it was supposed to and nothing it wasn't....well, except spin the tires real good leaving a toll booth....possible it was not the bikes fault. Correct. Wasn't the bike's fault.
11. After my venture...this thing is light, not top heavy, and so much easier to handle. Incorrect. At speed, shes' a dream, but many of us have "wrestled her to the ground" during tight maneuvers at 10 mph or slower. Your FJR is a heavy bike, and will drop faster than you can say, "Shit, shit, shit!"

Use our Advanced Search feature (gear icon to the right of the search box) to discover more opinions. And opinions? We have plenty of 'em.

 

[bluemeany]

I picked up a 06 during memorial weekend too. Had 6500 miles and except for bar ends pretty much stock. The previous owner threw in a filter and throttle tamer.

So got.1500 miles so far as been on vacation with family on the camper.

I am 6 2 and need a shield coming from fz1 its so much better

 

[HotRodZilla]

I picked up a 06 during memorial weekend too. Had 6500 miles and except for bar ends pretty much stock. The previous owner threw in a filter and throttle tamer.So got.1500 miles so far as been on vacation with family on the camper.

I am 6 2 and need a shield coming from fz1 its so much better

As soon as my new shield shows up, I'm putting my CeeBailey Reverse Flip up for sale. It may fit you better than it fits me. I'm too short for it at 5'9"

 

[Mcompton1973]

Yeah. I might be interested!!

 

[Charles.Robinson]

For the noise control and music combo, I've been using a Bluetooth "Beats X" headset (refurb from Best Buy for $80). The buds sit deep enough into my ears that I can get the helmet over my head without it ripping them out. The "collar" of the set sits neatly underneath my Aerostich.

They provide a good seal to keep out the worse of the noise, so the volume doesn't have to be set terribly high at all.

Playback runtime is approx 8 hours, but a ten-minute charge gives you 2 more hours, so if you find 'em running low, just plug them into a charger while fueling up.

Combined with a bluetooth play/pause/skip button up on the handlebars, streaming music from the phone while riding is a piece of cake.

 

[want2ride]

I am a windshield shifter. I use the V Stream for winter riding along with V Strom hand guards to cut down on the wind chill. Once spring rolls around I put the OEM back on and take the guards off. I like the air flow when it is warm, lol.