[BlutoBodine]

Brother and I were at Yamaha shop buying riding gear and noticed a couple of nice looking low mileage used bikes that I normally would never have considered as a possible future bike because I thought the bikes were too big and heavy. Now I can't believe how light off of the stand they felt and how balanced and smoothly they handled in traffic. First was the Yamaha Raider and then a Yamaha Roadliner - Liked the looks of the Raider better, but the Roadliner had a more comfortable riding position. Too bad I'm not ready (financially) just yet to get rid of my C50, because they had a new 2012 Raider sale priced at $11,900.00

Anyone here that has riding experience or knowledge of the Raider and Roadliner, your opinions would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Woodswoman]

Plenty of the Yankee crew either have owned or currently own 'Liners, and I hope one of them will be along to offer their opinions. I know the bikes have a *great* rep, and supposedly handle like a dream.

.

 

[cougar28]

Love my Stratoliner!!! They are a power house and one of the best handling bike in the upper weight class.

 

[Vol4Life]

I have a VStar 1300 and The Raider is a real head turner! The Roadie owners having nothing but good things to say about their bikes over on the Starbikes Forum. Doubt you could go wrong with either one.

 

[BlutoBodine]

Thanks for the replies. I'm not sure that either bikes are quite the Harley Davidson destroyers that the salesman claimed them to be, but I'm really impressed with build quality of most new Star motorcycles. I had seriously considered a Stryker or a V Star 950 after "owning" my brothers 950 for two months, but after being on the Roadliner and Raider I changed my mind. Not sure why, but both of the larger bikes felt lighter than either the Stryker or V star 950. Maybe not during slow parking lot maneuvers or when your foot starts to slide out on loose gravel, but it's worth the risk IMO.

 

[danimal]

Yamaha does have a good build quality on their cruisers. I was very impressed with the build on the 1300 we had. Nice chrome, good paint, quality components. We had looked at some of the Honda 1300's, and they were horrible in comparison. Ugly weld joints, just cheap looking overall, fewer features, yet they were a lot more $$ than the Yamaha's were.

 

[Woodswoman]

Gregstur had a 'liner. Said it was the best cruiser he'd ever owned.
Moenko had a 'liner. Said it was the best cruiser he'd ever owned.
Snake had a 'liner. Said it was the best cruiser he'd ever owned.

Ebwan has a 'liner still. He's ridden it for years now, seems to love it.

I have this feeling I'm overlooking someone from the Yankee crew ....

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[gregstur]

Gregstur had a 'liner. Said it was the best cruiser he'd ever owned.
Moenko had a 'liner. Said it was the best cruiser he'd ever owned.
Snake had a 'liner. Said it was the best cruiser he'd ever owned.

Ebwan has a 'liner still. He's ridden it for years now, seems to love it.

I have this feeling I'm overlooking someone from the Yankee crew ....

.

Sean Squire (sp?), but he ain't around anymore. Loved my Roadliner. Unbelievable power & torque. Aluminum frame, handled great. I just got bit by the sport tourer bug

 

[BlutoBodine]

Gregstur had a 'liner. Said it was the best cruiser he'd ever owned.
Moenko had a 'liner. Said it was the best cruiser he'd ever owned.
Snake had a 'liner. Said it was the best cruiser he'd ever owned.

Ebwan has a 'liner still. He's ridden it for years now, seems to love it.

.

I may be added to this list in the future, but since my brother is determined to get the Roadliner...I'd prefer to get something different. The Raider. I know they're a huge upgrade in power over the C50 and have a reputation of being very strong motors, for cruisers, but I was surprised to learn that the performance wasn't too far off from the M109 - M109 having more HP, but less torque. I could live with a Raider/Roadliner that was 2/10ths slower in the 1/4 mile than the M109, but was probably much more comfortable as a daily rider. Nothing against the M109, but "113-cubic-inch (1854cc) air-cooled" is what I really want.

 

[cougar28]

Couple of other things-the stock seat sucks big time! I got the Mustang with the back rest and love it!! They go through the rear tire pretty quick. The best I got out of one is 9,000 miles. I'm a little heavy on the throttle which don't help getting the most out of tires. Little over 40,000 miles on it now and don't use a drop of oil!

 

[Woodswoman]

Cougar raises a good point. Just about all of my friends who have had this bike changed out the seat. Hopefully not a deal-breaker, but good to know.

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[beezer]

Tell me more about the Harley destroyer story the salesman was telling you. I wonder why he singled out Harley. Could it be because they're the industry standard others are trying to beat or at least duplicate when it comes to a cruiser? When you go to a Harley dealership I don't think they'd say their bikes are Yamaha destroyers. It just struck me funny.

 

[gregstur]

Jeez, Beez, do you just do a search for Harley every thirty minutes or so? What a fanboy you've become

 

[ThePostman]

I don't find it strange that the salesman single out Harley. Apparently most people think Harley is Top Dog so of course he would say Harley. He won't say its a Victory killer or Indian killer or any other bike maker.

I delivered either Road and Track or Car and Driver a couple of months ago and on the cover it said that Kia is coming out with a new model that's supposed to be the Mercedes killer. Why Mercedes? Well again, most people thinks Mercedes is top Dog in Luxury.

If you go to a Harley dealer heck its a Harley dealer.

So chill out Chili Dog. Not only you the Top Dog here but you ride one too.

 

[Vol4Life]

"Harley Killer" appeals to the low information buyer. If that was the salesman's pitch, find another one who doesn't knock the competition.

 

[ThePostman]

"Harley Killer" appeals to the low information buyer. If that was the salesman's pitch, find another one who doesn't knock the competition.

Then we are all "low information buyers". TV commercials does it all the time. McDonald's vs Burger King, Mercedes vs BMW, Ford vs Chevy, etc.

Everybody is just too sensitive.

 

[beezer]

Jeez, Beez, do you just do a search for Harley every thirty minutes or so? What a fanboy you've become

:smoking: what? :biglaugh:

 

[beezer]

Those Strats are beautiful bikes. Moe's looked like a piece of jewelry. It was gorgeous. They did a nice job when they designed it. I never rode one but wish I had. I think Yamaha made their cruisers a separate entity with the Star line.

 

[Jendesigner]

After owning a Yamaha Stryker for the last month I will agree they make a very nice bike. The two you are looking at are different animals when it comes to riding style so that is probably where the decision will come down to. I have the Nomad for long hauls so I didn't need a 1800cc bike. Believe me with Styrkers 1300cc and only weighing 640 pounds there is plenty of power in that bike (It does seem like it weighs more because of the extreme lean of the kickstand, I still feel like I'm dropping it every time I put the kickstand down).

 

[cougar28]

After owning a Yamaha Stryker for the last month I will agree they make a very nice bike. The two you are looking at are different animals when it comes to riding style so that is probably where the decision will come down to. I have the Nomad for long hauls so I didn't need a 1800cc bike. Believe me with Styrkers 1300cc and only weighing 640 pounds there is plenty of power in that bike (It does seem like it weighs more because of the extreme lean of the kickstand, I still feel like I'm dropping it every time I put the kickstand down).

If you keep adding bike Jen we can start having rallies at your place and we won't have to bring our bike to ride!!:biglaugh: