Curious...How many ex-Royal Star Venture Owners

arkiebiker · Apr 22, 2014

Just curious how many of you are ex-Venture owners and what your opinion is of the XCT,and also what are your thoughts NOW on the old Venture?

Here's mine...I bought a 2009 Venture...it was a TANK. Great motor, but a TANK to ride. Of course the dash console was/is so RETRO for all the wrong reasons.

Now...I love my XCT. Period, not qualifiers, no excuses...best bike I have ever owned (and I have been riding since 1979).

Wally

rewindguy · Apr 23, 2014

Close, 4 Venture's- all first gen's, good bikes, over 500,000 miles on the bunch, decided didn't like the new style, bought a 1600 Nomad, it was a real Road Turd, however better than the new style Venture. Just got the XCT- Ima thinkin this thing is hands down a better bike! It's better than the old first gen Venture- but then it's 26 years newer than my last Venture!

BruceI · Apr 23, 2014

Kept my 2008 RSV when I brought the 2012 XCT. RSV is over 100,000 miles and going strong. BUBs on the RSV, sounds much better than stock XCT. Stock RSV sounded better than XCT. RSV smoother, not so much cruising, but huge difference under acceleration. Even mild acceleration. Transmission, RSV wins. Key location and steering lock, RSV wins again. Kick stand kill switch. Helmet locks on RSV. Trunk latch, again RSV. Loved the five year unlimited mileage warrantee of the RSV. Luggage capacity goes to the XCT. Like riding American, especially Minnesotan! Would buy another XCT in a second. Loved the RSVs but after three of them and an original Venture it was time to move on.

RICZ · Apr 23, 2014

Was an early adapter with an '83 Venture, then graduated to a '92 for the larger cases. I could not have had a better bike then. Comfortable, powerful, great handler, bulletproof, you name it. Then cancer struck and I'm not as strong as I used to was. That Venture became too tall, too heavy, too top heavy and too intimidating. I needed a lower seat height and CG if I was to continue riding and I did. Ma Vic came out with the XR at that perfect moment for me.

Hemidan · Apr 23, 2014

someday I will see some pictures of your Victory.....

honestly...I have not seen a picture of your bike....please share...since I think we have the exact bike with the
exact same mods....someone has good taste....

rickster · Apr 23, 2014

I had a 2008 RSV traded for my 2012 XCT the RSV was a nice ride, very dependable, great warranty but very heavy, love my XCT and it feels much lighter and has all the power you need.

RICZ · Apr 23, 2014

Hemidan....I do have running lights. Look at the bottom of the crashbar, where it meets the cowling--there they are. Those are Clearwater Darla High Power LEDs rated at 2,000 lumens each. I now enjoy night riding, I never have before.
http://oldsite.clearwaterlights.com/infopg_darla.html

SilvrT · Apr 23, 2014

I'm also a former Venture owner. Had an '85 Royale ... awesome bike! Then an '87 ... not as good as the '85 but still a great bike. Then I got a great deal on an '06 Midnight Venture. THAT became a love/hate relationship. Like others stated... top heavy, hard to handle at slow speed ... and then there was that annoying clutch basket whine ... and I was pulling a Leesur-Lite tent trailer which caused me to hate the bike even more... so I bought an '03 Wing .... now that was an impressive machine and it pulled that trailer like it wasn't even there, not to mention it handled great at slow speed even with the trailer in tow. Problem with it was, it just didn't seem to feel like a motorcycle ... more like a 2-wheeled car which was boring.

So, after some crappy camping experiences we sold the trailer and traded the Wing in on the XCT. I'd been eye-balling the XCT for a couple years, even before buying the Wing and had test rode them a few times.

I can't say enough good things about the XCT. Been riding for over 40 years and this is by far the best bike I've ever had.

Comparisons to the '06 Venture...

Handling under all conditions the XCT wins hands down.
Power ... with a few mods, the XCT has more and it's felt much sooner.
Comfort ... the stock XCT seat is by far more comfortable and the lower seat height is a huge plus even though I had no problem flat-footing the Ventures. With the RSV I had to install bar risers otherwise I would get cramping and pain in my neck and shoulder ... with the XCT I can ride all day and I feel fine.
Stereo system is far better on the XCT
Stock tires on the XCT are far better than the RSV and in fact, are the same kind I replaced the stock tires with on it.
There is more engine performance "goodies" for the XCT.

ok, enuf for now coz the warden just rang the dinner bell LOL

Lostintexas · Apr 23, 2014

Pretty much agree with brucel. I had 2 of them. Both went to the next owner with 120+K on the odometer.
Fine rider wonderful road manners. XCT is better, in fact about the best IMHO. That is pretty much where my love affair with the XCT stops.
Venture was nice, it was modable with VMAX parts if one wanted to, easy to tame in a lot with a different front tire or leveling links, but it was tall and the links raised the rear a bit FWIW. It was also anvil reliable, not once did it leave me on the road nor did the tought ever cross my mind. Wing was about the same but never "fit".
I'm looking foreward to the next generation of RSV, and hope Star does it some justice. If they hold true and don't convert the Strat platform, I'll give it a very close look.
Waiting for the next big thing, I've never had a bike I wanted to trade any more than this one but frankly, nothing else will hold up at the moment for comfort.
Venture fit out of the box, XCT fit nicely after some seatage, but easy enought to get right.
Sorry to be the fly in the ointment, but Vic has bvurned their bridge with me for now, although the bike is trying hard to make up and be friends.

hazema · Apr 23, 2014

Had a 2006 Venture for about 3 years. Rode it all over. I could sit on that thing all day long, loved it, it was the definition of the word bullet-proof. The thing I didn't like was the top heavy weight when moving around in small areas.
I always wanted an American made V-Twin that was reliable. I had the other brand but spent way too much time keeping it running.
I have the Cross Roads, and other than possibly an Indian can't think of another bike I'd rather have.

SilvrT · Apr 23, 2014

hazema said:
Had a 2006 Venture for about 3 years. Rode it all over. I could sit on that thing all day long, loved it, it was the definition of the word bullet-proof. The thing I didn't like was the top heavy weight when moving around in small areas.

I will agree that the Ventures (both 1st and 2nd gen) are "bullet proof". They have a very tried and proven engine/transmission/driveline and many have gone well over 200,000 miles with zero problems. I had my '06 for 3 yrs also and did many long days on it and for the most part, enjoyed every minute of it. That said, I didn't do it without a sore butt and having to mentally tune out the whine of the clutch basket gear ... it was either that or run it at a higher rev which could also be annoying at times.

The two main things that caused me to change was the poor handling at low speed and issues related to towing that heavy tent trailer. Suppose if I was a younger man and still had the strength I used to, things might have been different.

They are good bikes but for me, the XCT is a much better one.

NJ8BALL · Apr 23, 2014

I had 97 royal star, not a venture. I loved the looks I got riding my fat bitch. 4 piper for me she handled great in the twisties.

Sent from Motorcycle.com Free App

irv · Apr 23, 2014

i did enjoy 2 yamahas back in the late 70s and early.80s.
wanted shaft drive and honda didnt have any. 77 750 special triple
and an 82 750 seca. both very nice bikes. good looking too.
both had aluminum wheels. got back into cycles in the mid ninties
and went back to honda. never had a touring type or bagger
till the xr. also never went very far on a ride back then.
the people on this forum and my dealer convinced me to give
victory a try.

Iron Ranger · Apr 23, 2014

2000 red Venture

I stopped in at the shop I bought my Vision at and they said the Venture sold in three days. When you have a bike as long as I had the Venture you always end up doing all the mods and setting it up to fit yourself. As with this forum the Venture forum was a great library of knowledge and fine friends, just good people. As I get older I knew that the top heavy nature of the Venture would catch up with me someday. When you ride two up as much as we do, parking, backing, and stopping in any kind of sand or gravel gets really scary. First you must air up the shock to acommodated the weight, now my 30 inch inseam is stretched to the limit. I wear logging boots at work and when I rode it just for the two inch heels. I even lowered the front 3/4 of an inch and that helped a lot in parking lots. I loved the engine of the Venture. All the power I ever needed and never hit the rev limiter. 6 gallons of gas and my wife on the back was just getting harder to manuever as time went on. I really loved the looks of the bike too. Since I bought it used I did not know about the SCREAMERS! This one turned out to be one, it had the most annoying high pitched sound in every gear. I did learn to cruise at whatever speed made the least sound in each gear, but my hearing took a beating on long trips. Now to the Vision! Love at first sight! After the first demo ride with the wife on the back and I knew as soon as the finances were right I would have one. I honestly forget she is back there from the way this bike handles. My only disappointment is back seat room with drivers backrest in place. No biggie though, I just leave it at home. I put fifteen thousand miles on the Venture in two and a half years and that spoiled us on luxury touring bikes. In my opinion there is no other bike like the Vision. You can tell that it was designed from the start to be a world class v-twin touring bike. I was sold by the ride and yet spoiled by the luxury. There is no looking back from here.I have officially stopped shopping for bikes, the itch is gone.

kkent66 · Apr 23, 2014

I had a 06 RSV for 5 years. Put 63,000 miles on it and rode all over North America. Nothing but great things to say about the bike and people who ride them! Traded it in for a 2013 XCT and after 1634 miles love the new bike! Deciding factor for me to switch was having a few options on the Vic that I could not get with RSV specifically ABS! Would love to see Yamaha come out with a 3rd gen of this bike. Make some changes like remove the cassette deck, add fuel injection, ABS, sound and GPS system etc.....Seemed to me like Yamaha gave up on this bike. Like I said great bike and great people riding them!

PLAYBOY · Apr 23, 2014

I too came off of a Venture very comfortable bike. We ride 2 up 99.99% of the time ( wife wont let me out alone she loves it that much) which made changing bikes that much more difficult as I had to buy one for two being top priority. Wife really didn't want to trade because we hadn't found anything as comfortable for her. We had a real close call as far as dropping it early on and with out her we would have. Then last year it happened we dumped it over on the Three Sisters in Texas in a real tight spot nearly broke my ankle trying to hold it. After that I have to admit I was scared of it in the tight spaces you sometimes get into which I never admitted to my wife I didn't need a nervous passenger. After SiverT got his and posted about it on another board I got to looking at Victory wasn't crazy about the styling at first but it grew on me. Then came the test ride and I realized the handling handicap I had been dealing with and finally admitted my fear to my wife. The rest is History especially since red is her favorite color. If Yamaha comes out with a 3rd gen Venture which I seriously doubt then I will definitely be looking but if it doesn't handle like the CCT and have some modern technology it will be definite pass.

SilvrT · Apr 23, 2014

PLAYBOY said:
Wife really didn't want to trade because we hadn't found anything as comfortable for her.

So how does she like the CCT vs the RSV for ride and comfort?

What about buffeting? My wife says she gets less buffeting but she also sits lower than she did on the RSV.

Any noticeable difference in how the CCT handles the bumps compared to the RSV?

I liked the fact that I could adjust her floorboards both up/down as well as angle, not to mention being able to adjust the shifter and brake pedals.

Lostintexas · Apr 23, 2014

Playboy, Never, ever, never, ever, ever try to hold on to a falling bike. You'll hurt yourself. About the last thing I want is to see a touring machine of any brand fall over, but the alternative is much worse.

If Victory did anything right, they got the tip overs to a science. Mine has been on its side for many reasons a few times. Greet the adoring public, take your bow, pick it up and go on.
Yesterday was a clumsy day for me. Pulled in to a station, stopped, right foot down, left foot, notta. Over she went, wife asking what just happened. There was a drop off that tapered down and was all but invisible on the bike. Well, if it was there I'd be the one to find it. Momma went to get on and the passenger board hit her about mid thigh. Hard to say why that wasn't very visible, but it wasn't.

Enjoy the VIc.

rickster · Apr 23, 2014

Welcome Playboy from one former Venture Rider to another, you will love your Victory. When you were on (or I was) the RSV sight you were a bug help to me wiring my 08 up for a trailer. I still check the RSV sight and was a part of the WNY gang. Anywho welcome you'll love that new scoot, ride safe.

PLAYBOY · Apr 24, 2014

Hey Rickster yeah I remember trying to help you with the getting set up for a trailer. Maybe we can do it the other way around this time. I still have that to do but not in a big rush shouldn't need the trailer the rest of the year.

BruceI · Apr 24, 2014

My wife also likes the room on the Venture. She sits further back, says she doesn't have to spread her legs as wide to fit around my big butt. She also complains that the Victory vibrates more and sounds like a lawn mower. The passenger grab rails are also better placed on the Venture, and standard equipment.

rich49 · Apr 28, 2014

Had two RSVs, a 99 bordeuax/silver that I lost in Katrina and a 2006 I lost in an accident in west Virginia. Would have gotten another one had they made a couple of upgrades but got an 08 GW Airbagger instead. Lost that in an accident in Alabama. By the way, none of the accidents were my fault. Was leaning towards a HD Streetglide when I found the Victory XC.

jackthebiker · Apr 29, 2014

I had a 1999, 2004, and a 2007 Venture. They were great bikes, but I like my 2013 XCT better. I also liked my 2010 Electra Glide. If they build a new Yamaha touring bike I'll look at it, but it would have to be better than what I have, and I don't think thats going to happen.

pgreen7436 · Apr 29, 2014

2009 rsv

I had a 2009 RSV that I traded for the 2013 XCT. No regrets. I do agree with all that was said about them. Tranny, etc. but it was a beast. Cornering much better on the Victory. It actually handles almost as well as the 2004 Gold wing that I had. Almost. The noise while accelerating on the Victory bothers me but I'll just get used to it. It is a noisy bike.

SilvrT · Apr 29, 2014

pgreen7436 said:
The noise while accelerating on the Victory bothers me but I'll just get used to it. It is a noisy bike.

I put loud mufflers on to cover up that "noise" ... I'd rather hear that than the noisy engine LOL

cokyodi · May 6, 2014

Rstd

I just traded my RSTD for a 14 Cross Country. Had 55,000 miles, great bike.

Ahoutzer · May 6, 2014

2006 Royal Star Venture, six years, put 95,879 miles on it. To improve its handling, I put on leveling links and a 130-width tire, which helped. That bike was my commuter for the 600-mile trip that I took many times to Florida to care for my mother when she was dying of cancer. The Venture served me very well. Seat was very cushy and it had a lot of leg room. I had 1.5-inch handlebar risers on it for better comfort. I liked listening to the CB for entertainment during those 12-hour rides. The clutch basket did squeal. I used ear plugs on long rides, and sometimes even on daily rides to and from work. Leg room was better than any other bike EXCEPT the Cross Country. I also added a Utopia rider backrest. Problems: fuel pump died at about 50k miles. Everything else worked without any problem. I had swapped the windshield for a ClearView with vent, added air wings and added heated grips, and put in an HID headlight.

My 2012 XCT came with HID headlight, upper and lower air vents, heated grips and heated seat. I've swapped the windshield for a MadStad adjustable system, which is great! This bike is very comfortable. 30k miles so far, and zero problems. The RSV had a lot of storage space, but the XCT has even more. Handling and balance is better than RSV, without needing any mods. I have stage one pipes and flash, Lloydz air cleaner and timing wheel at +4. XCT delivers better low-end power but not as good zoom at higher RPMs, so XCT fits my riding style better. XCT's trunk is made to be removable, so I can switch to a lighter-weight bagger style when I want. Electrical system on XCT is much more capable or the gauge is lying - 14.5 volts even with heated jacket and gloves, heated grips, heated seat, stereo with iPod, GPS and auxiliary lights.

Tomorrow morning, I plan to set out for California to support my sister as she deals with cancer. 2,220 miles each way. I am hoping the XCT will serve me well. Will be using a Utopia rider backrest again. I will probably miss the CB radio, but I don't think I will miss anything else from the RSV except that I never had hot legs from the RSV. Will ride with ear plugs just to keep fatigue down.

davev1pa · Feb 1, 2017

86 Venture

Really enjoyed my 86 Venture Royale.......had a ton of get up and go...after I had the 4 carbs re built.....Just a really nice smooth ride with lots of storage....which I'd say I really miss on my Vision....all in all ...I've liked all my bikes for different reasons....The Venture ..was too tall (5'7") the vision....flat footed ...can't say enough about being well grounded.

djh3 · Feb 1, 2017

Traded my 09 RSV last January for my 13 XCT. As mentioned the Venture was top heavy. We loved the seat and positioning. Very smooth. But the XCT I feel more comfortable control wise. I can flat foot, slow speeds are easier to handle and I dont feel like I'm going to dump it.

grumpyoldretiredcop · Apr 25, 2017

I had a '99 RSV. Loved the power and handling at speed, not so much the high center of gravity and its effect on low speed handling. Didn't much like the clutch howl mine developed either.

In contrast, my XC handles as well at highway speed, far better at low speed and all I hear is exhaust, not clutch howl. Gotta like it!

RICZ · Apr 25, 2017

Had first gen Ventures from their into in '83 until 2010 when I bought my XR. In addition to an '83, had a '92. Although the photo shows both, the '83 was sold shortly after it was taken and is still on the road.

Curious...How many ex-Royal Star Venture Owners

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