Ok, my 2007 Honda Shadow VLX Deluxe is now, after $2000 and over 75 man hours, including a self applied Pearl Metallic Gold Paint job,
A swap meet discovered "Driver back rest/14 inch long luggage rack combo" Swap meet acquired crashbar off a 70's CB550-4, National
Cycle 24 inch (head light to top, 14 inch crossbar-to-top ) 24 inch wide windshield,New universal mount highway pegs on crashbar for any
round one to one and a half inch bar, New floorboards, Blacked out engine (every non-chromed square inch) Blacked out lower forks, and
exhaust baffles. one 500,000 candle-power road light (2 1/2 inch Optronics 50W Halogen, daylight for 1/4 mile at new moon black night!)
reworked cool air free flowing intake, Dyno-jetted carburetor, 5 half inch holes drilled through front and rear baffle walls on each pipe.
(nice deep but sociable sound ) 16/44 stock chain gearing changed to 15/44 for better off the line, and passing power! (equal to a
10 to 15 % HP increase.) Dunlop D404 OEM rubber tossed in trash (7500 mile life) for Bridgestone Spitfire's ( 15-18K average life, AND,
30% less cost than the Dunlops.) On a fuel economy test, one 12 hour ride through/around/and all over on damn near every street in
Billings MT. using fairly light throttle movements, shifting at a rate that caused zero lugging, keeping up with the flow of traffic, but never
actually going over the posted limits, over three fill-ups at the point of switching to reserve, I averaged 72 MPG. On the Highway loop,
from Billings MT to Red Lodge MT, over the back roads to Bridger MT and back to Billings MT, approximately 150 miles FYI, in 75 Deg F.
temps with a 10 MPH west cross wind, also keeping up with the flow of traffic, to the 70 MPH Daylight Speed Limit, with the 20 miles
from billings to Laurel on I 90 each way at the posted 75 MPH speed Limit (40 miles total at 75) and averaging close to 60 MPH from
Belfry, where you join the main car/truck route from Cody WY to Billings MT, then at Bridger, you pick up ALL of NW WY traffic into MT!
I was stuck in heavy 18/26 wheeler traffic with it's 60 MPH speed limit.(never understood, how on a 2 lane road, the idea of different speed
limits for different vehicles is considered "safe"? all it does is force auto drivers, who THINK they have the RIGHT to drive that 70 MPH on
the signs, so they take some incredible chances, and that road has the most fatalities of any road in MT!) When other states changed from split speed limits, they , in the First year, had a 70% reduction in accidents that before could be contributed to the split limits!
back to the report, I averaged on that loop, 58 MPG. and since I bought her new, before the engine mods, I averaged 55-60 MPG.
After the engine enhancements, I now average 50-55 MPH. Which is something I can live with quite easily! I should mention, that I use
"Champion" Chain Lube (a spray-able white lithium grease in a can that looks like a rattle paint can) $5 at Walmart, Iridium plugs, for a
much more complete fuel burn and 20,000 mile lifespan, where as the OEM plugs had to be changed every 8,000 miles, and
Mobile One V-Twin 20W50 full synthetic oil in summer months. Even the Dealers shop manual suggests 20W50 oil in the 40-120 deg F.
operating range, as the transmission shares the oil with the engine. The sad part about this great all around "every bike for everyone"
is that it was discontinued Dec. 30, 2007. Due, I was informed from a Dealer Principle that I became friends with, the fact that to meet
2008 EPA specs, it would have had to be switched from a carburetor to fuel injection. and Honda is changing every cruiser in their new
line up to shaft drive, which the 583cc VLX engine, is low enough already, would lose ANOTHER 15% through the shaft drive! and these
changes would bring a 600CC class bike into the price range of it's 750 Shadows! They also moved the Gold Wing, which, up to the 2008
model year was the HIGHEST PERCENTAGE of USA made parts made in America Motorcycle! And, they did all of this also to keep the factory that for 19 years made the VLX open, by combining the Gold Wing and the New 680CC Liquid cooled V-twin full automotive type
automatic 6 speed transmission DN-01, A $14,999 MSRP bike. For pics of my own handy work, visit the link to my Photobucket Site:
http://s481.photobucket.com/albums/rr176/montanaghost/ then, Drop me a line at
glenn.merideth@gmail.com, and give me your thoughts.
