Yamaha (Star) Raider

[Greb]

I've always liked the look of the Raider. I had the opportunity to ride one today and I must say I'm very impressed.

Having ridden many H-D and Victory cruisers to compare the Raider to; I came away feeling very impressed with the power, smoothness, and gearbox on the Raider. I've always thought if you're going to spend top dollar on a cruiser you'd better be knocking on the dealership door of Victory or H-D. I have come to realize the big 4 have stepped up their game substantially to compete for a piece of the US cruiser market.

The engine is smooth at idle through 90 MPH ....and has PLENTY of get up and go in any gear. I was ready to trade in my KTM Super Duke today but alas they wouldn't take the risk of such a trade in this economy. I must sell the KTM privately or find a dealer willing to trade up.

I'm sold on the Raider if I can unload the Duke.

I like my KTM but the FJR fulfills my appetite when I'm hungry for sport. What I need is a stable mate for the FJR that is a complete 180 of the motorcycling world.

 

[SaharaJp99]

Yep, the Raider is a nice bike for sure. I traded one in on my FJR. Tons of torque with that machine, and like you mentioned, tranny is silky smooth, but that bike desperately needs a 6th gear. 80mph on the highway and its reving pretty good. No vibration or anything, very smooth engine, but rpms are a tad high for my liking. It will go 130+ in 5th gear, so a 6th would probably be over kill but it would make hwy mpg's a little better. As far as cruisers go, I don't think there is a better one out there. It can fit a 240 rear tire on the stock rim, and I felt that it improved handling quite a bit. Gave the bike more of a sidewall and roundness to the tire instead of the pancake flat stock 210. You'll be replacing the stock tire pretty soon anyway as that first few thousand miles it's hard not to put that torque to the ground. If doing a drag style launch with that bike won't put a smile on your face nothing will! I put 20,000 miles on mine in about 2 1/2 years and was ready for something sportier with more luggage capacity, hence the trade, but if I ever want another cruiser, that will be the one I get again. Reasonably comfortable, I did a SS1000 and a BB1500 on it and other than having your legs stretched forward for that long and being in a "sitting on the tailbone" sitting position it wasn't too bad. I never did change out the stock seat. Hope you get one, you'll have fun on it, and it's a real head turner, every stop it steals the show, including from the Harley guys until they figure out its a Yamaha.

Here's a picture of my old one:

 

[sgoat]

Good lookin' cruiser!

 

[Greb]

Thanks for your thoughts Sahara. I picked one up on Saturday. Leftover '09 with 0 miles and full factory warranty.

I don't think I'll miss the KTM. This thing is alot of fun. :yahoo:

I understand your thoughts about the 6th gear and touring on it. This bike is just for local riding, but I have thought about a detachable windshield and soft bags for short trips.

You might be able to see the Feejer in the garage amidst a tire change and driveshaft spline re-grease

 

[Greb]

Here's a picture of my old one:

This is the one I wanted with less chrome. Like it alot more sans chrome but the dealer with this model wouldn't take the KTM on trade. That thing looks sweeeeeeeet.

 

[SaharaJp99]

Congrats! You'll have fun with it. Check out roadstarraider.com and mybikeforums.com for some decent forums for that thing.

Agree on the windshield. I had the Memphis shades pop top with the trigger lock hardware and just some cheap saddleman throw over bags on cobra mounts for trips.

Have fun! Drill some 5/8" holes in that exhaust and it'll sound a lot better!

 

[Greb]

Congrats! You'll have fun with it. Check out roadstarraider.com and mybikeforums.com for some decent forums for that thing.

Agree on the windshield. I had the Memphis shades pop top with the trigger lock hardware and just some cheap saddleman throw over bags on cobra mounts for trips.

Have fun! Drill some 5/8" holes in that exhaust and it'll sound a lot better!

Thanks for the tips. I'm a tad nervous about modding the exhaust. I wonder if you can drill holes, tap them and put bolts in when you want to quiet it down?

I noticed that someone makes an electronic cruise control for it also. I do wish it had a 6th gear, but with the FJR in my stable I probably won't do any long hauls with it anyway.

Do you have any pics with the windshield installed?

 

[HotRodZilla]

I rode a Raider at Laughlin on Friday. It really was a nice bike. It had tons of torque, and pulled really well. The motor was smooth, right up till the dammed rev-limiter kicked in. Once, accelerating from a stop sign, I hit the limiter in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. Just about the time the motor feels like it's strong, it disappears.

I wasn't happy about dragging the pegs out of every turn, but like you said, it would be a good "around town" bike.

 

[Greb]

But you don't buy a V-twin to rev the hell out of. It makes 109 ft/lbs of torque at 2500 RPM. If I want to rev the dog piss out of something I jump on the Feejer.

Unless that V-twin is a KTM 990 Super Duke which I had prior, and oh yes! There is certainly something sweet about a V-twin you can rev to 10,000 RPMs. It was a fun ride for sure!

 

[HotRodZilla]

I've ridden plenty of V-twins. I traded a Honda VTX1800 in for my FJR. Almost never hit the limiter on the VTX. Maybe I've been on the FJR too long, but it just seemed the limiter kicks a little too early.

Either way, I would never buy one. Feet forward, not able to see the speedo without really having to look down, dragging the pegs at every turn because the bike has no lean angle...I don't ride to Hooters enough to make it worth the money.

 

[Greb]

My wife works at Hooters so I get plenty of use giving her a ride to work and back. This was the main reason I bought it. <_<