Bonjour from the Bayou

Hey All.
I'm Richard from Louisiana. I'm an old f**t of 73 and a retired airline pilot(still fly my own). I used to ride bikes when I was a young kid in my 20's and 30's. Two of my sons and my son in law have bikes(Harley and 1300 Shadows) and I bought a Reflex last year to ride with them. Out on the highway, the Reflex is really being "pushed" at highway speeds, so I bought a Silver Wing about a month ago. Mine is a 2003 with ABS. The Reflex, which also has ABS, is fun to ride but the SW is exciting to ride. Plenty of power and speed for me. I have also already experienced the light left on because the seat didn't latch down properly and have removed the bulb to keep this from happening again. My SW has a Clearview with the vent and I don't care for it so am ordering a Givi today. I looked at a 650 Burgman before deciding on the SW. The SW just "sat better" in my opinion. I thought the Burgman felt a little top heavy. Of course the Honda reputation for dependability and long life entered into my decision as well. I look forward to participating in these forums.

Hi Richard,

Welcome aboard the forum. Enjoy!

DennisB

Hello and welcome Richard... for an "old f**t of 73" you are pretty intelligent. Gathering information before making a decision is showing wisdom some younger folks sometimes don't demonstrate. You will not regret your decision. You will be able to ride with the Harleys and the Shadows and learn to smile. Shear enjoyment is just something to smile about.

Gary

Opalsboy wrote:

Hello and welcome Richard... for an "old f**t of 73" you are pretty intelligent. Gathering information before making a decision is showing wisdom some younger folks sometimes don't demonstrate. You will not regret your decision. You will be able to ride with the Harleys and the Shadows and learn to smile. Shear enjoyment is just something to smile about.

Gary

Thanks, Gary. I usually procrastinate a lot before making a decision. On our last ride together, it was just cruising easy to ride with them on a 57 mile jaunt. I actually think I could outrun my son's Harley Soft Tail if I wanted to, but I have speed limited myself.

Richard,

Welcome to the forum. Looking forward to your participation.

Richard,

Welcome to the forum. The Silverwing is a wonderful machine.

Jerry

skydad99 wrote:

Mine is a 2003 with ABS. ... My SW has a Clearview with the vent and I don't care for it so am ordering a Givi today.

Hi Richard. I have a '03 Swing. Make sure to have it checked, b/c there's a recall on some of them, for problems with the gas tank.

Also, I have an extra large Clearview with a vent, and I used to have a Givi. Depending on what you don't like about the Clearview, you might want to consider ordering from CeeBailey instead of Givi, which is a very large windshield.

Hello and welcome from :union jack:

Welcome aboard Richard. Enjoy the Swing, and the forum.

Emeskay wrote:

skydad99 wrote:

Mine is a 2003 with ABS. ... My SW has a Clearview with the vent and I don't care for it so am ordering a Givi today.

Hi Richard. I have a '03 Swing. Make sure to have it checked, b/c there's a recall on some of them, for problems with the gas tank.

Also, I have an extra large Clearview with a vent, and I used to have a Givi. Depending on what you don't like about the Clearview, you might want to consider ordering from CeeBailey instead of Givi, which is a very large windshield.

I don't like the Clearview with the vent because at highway speeds it bends back a lot and I just don't like it so close to my face when it does that. Reminds me a little of a dull plastic knife.. I ordered the Givi this morning, but not from Givi and will then have the Clearview for sale. It is scratch free.

Thanks to all for the welcomes. Man, this is a great site!!!!!

Skydad,

Don't forget to check about the gas tank on your '03.


M-

Thanks a lot. When was that recall issued? The guy I bought it from really kept his bike up, so probably, if there was a recall, it was taken care of. The way I look at things, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".
Richard

Welcome to the forum

Richard,

Welcome to the site and hope you enjoy it. Congrats on your SWing and I'm sure you will really like it. I have had mine since March of '07 and have 24,500 miles on it now and it has been flawless. You may be like some of us and start to put accessories or mods on it. I have a Clearview too with the vent and mine flexes alot too at interstate speeds. So I bought a Givi like you did.

Here is a site that has all the recall info on many scooters, so you should check it out:

http://scootertrap.com/SilverWing600.htm

Post some pics of your bike and your rides when you get a chance. Just go to the "Album" and create your own folder and start putting pics there. Again, welcome.

JeffR wrote:

Richard,

Welcome to the site and hope you enjoy it. Congrats on your SWing and I'm sure you will really like it. I have had mine since March of '07 and have 24,500 miles on it now and it has been flawless. You may be like some of us and start to put accessories or mods on it. I have a Clearview too with the vent and mine flexes alot too at interstate speeds. So I bought a Givi like you did.

Here is a site that has all the recall info on many scooters, so you should check it out:

http://scootertrap.com/SilverWing600.htm

Post some pics of your bike and your rides when you get a chance. Just go to the "Album" and create your own folder and start putting pics there. Again, welcome.

Thanks, Jeff.
I started an album. Thank you for the link to the recalls. My scooter was built after the dates shown for the ones affected.
Richard

Miro wrote:

Welcome to the forum

Thank you. I've been through your city several times on my way to Oshkosh. In fact, I left me plane tyhere one time sionce Fond du Lac, Oshkosh, and Appleton were all full with no room left.
Richard