[kawmagnum]

I have an 1600 Classic with a windscreen, tuner, V&H. 25k Trouble free miles. Plan on doing some extensive solo touring and don't care for the heavy feel of the Voyager nor would I care to have a full blown tourer for daily driving. Curious how the the Vaquero with the frame mounted fairing compares to the Nomad in ride and handling. I am moving up to the 1700 six speed or I would just buy hard bags for my current bike. Unfortunately closest dealer is 120mi and I would likely have to take a trip just to test drive the few Nomads for sale.

 

[Swamp rat]

I haven't been on a voyager yet but I am curious. I've recently put some 2+2 bars on my nomad, it made a big difference in handling and comfort. Next is either seats or exhaust.

 

[revrider]

Sat on a vaq,Prob would buy one if I Didn't Have my Nad,Love this Bike,so not in the market Right now,1700 Nomad cockpit seems shorter to me,but not sure it is,the vaq would be on my list,6 speed tranny is nice to have and the cruise, Gotta say the nad is my favorite bike so far

 

[DraKhen99]

I have a 2016 Vaquero with over 8,150 miles since August of last year

It's a great bike! Easy enough to muscle around town, although not as easy as a KZ or my Vulcan 800 bobber, obviously. Loves highway speeds, for sure. Also handles the twisties OK. I've done a lot of highway riding as well as corner carving on the Vaq, and it's got more lean angle than I'm gonna use.

Once moving, the weight sorta disappears. At speed, when sideways winds hit, it fairs pretty well. You get blown around a little bit, but not too bad. On a windless day, I can set the cruise and take my hands off the handlebars for 5+ miles at a time on the highway without any issues.

I'd say it's definitely worth a test ride on one.

-John

 

[matt7even]

Handling would be about the same I would imagine. The Nomad seat is more comfortable for a passenger but the Vaquero would offer better wind protection. Personally I find the top loading bags to be more convenient since I don't have to get off the bike in order to access them.

 

[SteveJB]

I rode my VN900 Custom for 10 yrs before moving up to a 2017 Vaquero last month. The only time I have any difficulty is walking the bike. The extra 150 lbs and higher center of gravity makes that a bit tougher, but handling, even around town isn't a problem. I would have preferred the Voyager bags though. Not only are these side opening, but need the key to open and close them. I carry 2 keys so I can pack the bag whIle the engine warms up.

 

[DraKhen99]

I rode my VN900 Custom for 10 yrs before moving up to a 2017 Vaquero last month. The only time I have any difficulty is walking the bike. The extra 150 lbs and higher center of gravity makes that a bit tougher, but handling, even around town isn't a problem. I would have preferred the Voyager bags though. Not only are these side opening, but need the key to open and close them. I carry 2 keys so I can pack the bag whIle the engine warms up.

Pro Tip: The ignition on the Vaquero (and I'd assume the Voyager as well) will allow you to remove the key while the bike is running. Thus, you can carry 1 key, use it to start the bike, and then open your saddlebags without stopping the bike.

I agree about the handling, too. I tried wearing a backpack once, but darn near dropped the bike going around a slow corner. A lot different than my 05 VN800B - probably 250lbs or so heavier.

Also, how long are you warming up your bike? Mine typically sits for 30-60 seconds or so while I don my helmet, ear plugs, and gloves.

-John

 

[kawmagnum]

Thanks for the input.... Purchased a 2013 Nomad with 14 k miles. Needs tires , and basic maintenance. Still have my 08 Classic . Need to get the Nomad set up right. Has Vance & Hines and stock air filter. Ordered a Chuckster air filter set up and looking for maps for the PCV.

 

[Diggles]

Forget the PCV- go straight to Ivan


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[imerani]

I've had my Vaquero for 3 years, rode 37K so far. It's very dependable, comfortable in the highway. I don't like much the handling, got used to it. You have to get the Ivan's flash for sure, before that I was frustrated, it is too hot, doesn't have the power it should and looses some push when is hot. So I Ivanized it and put the V&H slipons, now it is a totally different bike, nice to ride.I put the ipod adapter and bought an used ipod in ebay, which I loaded with tons of music for the long rides. Also you have to put some decent windshiled, the wind deflector that comes from factory is only for the looks. Some other things I did:

- Flushed the coolant and replaced with engine ice
- Put the auxiliary lights and replaced all the headlights and bulbs with LEDs.
- Passenger backrest
- Passenger floorboards
- Clearview winshield

 

[DraKhen99]

How do you like the LEDs? Are they brighter than stock?

Also, can you provide link(s) to the bulbs? I'd love more light

-John

 

[imerani]

How do you like the LEDs? Are they brighter than stock?

Also, can you provide link(s) to the bulbs? I'd love more light

-John

I really like the LEDs. Now I can see, specially in dark roads and also cars see me coming. They are a lot brighter than stock, you cannot watch directly to them during the night. These are the links for the ones I bought:

Headlight (very easy to replace)

[ame]https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00WVJR0D8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1[/ame]

Auxiliary lights (hard, you have to remove the fairing)

[ame]https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LCE19OI/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1[/ame]

Now, for the turn lights you will have the hyper-flashing problem. I got used to it, I'll probably try to fix in the future

Single and double filament

[ame]https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018LOLIJ8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1[/ame]

[ame]https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071DCC7XL/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1[/ame]

 

[Peg]

...Auxiliary lights (hard, you have to remove the fairing)...

Or easy... if you just remove the storage pockets and reach in from the back?

 

[DraKhen99]

Peg, you stole my comment!

I installed the aux lights by removing the cubbies and the speakers. Doing that again should make it easy to access the back of the aux light housings. IIRC, the bulbs are a twist-in-and-out setup.

imerani, thanks for the links! Sounds like something to order over the winter and install come spring time

-John

 

[rick]

Pro Tip: The ignition on the Vaquero (and I'd assume the Voyager as well) will allow you to remove the key while the bike is running. Thus, you can carry 1 key, use it to start the bike, and then open your saddlebags without stopping the bike.

I agree about the handling, too. I tried wearing a backpack once, but darn near dropped the bike going around a slow corner. A lot different than my 05 VN800B - probably 250lbs or so heavier.

Also, how long are you warming up your bike? Mine typically sits for 30-60 seconds or so while I don my helmet, ear plugs, and gloves.

-John

Also have an 05 800b and a 2012 Voyager. The Voyager is round 870lbs vs the 800s 500lbs. After riding the Voyager the 800 almost feels like a toy, but would not willingly give up either one.

 

[SteveJB]

Pro Tip: The ignition on the Vaquero (and I'd assume the Voyager as well) will allow you to remove the key while the bike is running.

Yeah, I figured that out after paying $10 for key!

Also, how long are you warming up your bike?

About the same. Long enough to snap my chin strap and pull my gloves on.