My new toy '86 Cavalcade aka the Big Boy

[gsrick]

Just brought the Big Boy home last night. '86 Suzuki GV1400 Cavalcade, 112 HP/ 91.5 lb/ft of torque, arrr arrr arrrr. I'll have to replace the charging system, but it's a Suzuki, that's to be expected. He has just under 39K and not a drop of oil on the engine. It has air leveling suspension, air seats with adjustable passenger backrest/trunk, Clarion AM-FM cassette player with speed controlled volume, electronic cruise control and intercom system. No helmets to use the intercom, but I'm going to see what I can find that will work with it.

[fred smailes]

I road a Goldwing in those days, always wanted one of those SOFAS,, lol
ENJOY!
Fred

[Ecklund]

Those '80s era touring bikes seem like a good value.

When you get it all back up to spec maybe you can give a bit of a review. Sure looks clean in the pics.

The same era Yamaha Venture also looks like an interesting bike. Perhaps you'll have a chance to compare them.

Oh is it just a case of buying an '88 or newer 1500 GL?

[Steve]

Nice looking bike, Rick, congrats.

If you want to take advantage of the audio system and intercom, you can add speakers and microphone to your current helmet(s). Contact Sierra Electronics for details.

Don't faint when you see the prices, they are not cheap, but they are definitely good quality. You might find the parts at any decent store near you that caters to larger touring bikes (Honda, Harley, etc.), but Sierra is probably the company that they get their parts from. If there are any major rallies in your area (I belive the Golden Aspen rally is over for the year), Sierra usually shows up at most of them as a vendor.

I would not suggest falling for the appeal of wireless systems for the helmet (via Bluetooth). If you go on longer rides (more than 8-10 hours), you will lose your tunes and/or intercom when the battery dies. Any time you stop, you will have to get in the habit of recharging your helmet's battery, which gets tiresome quickly. My sister and her hubby got some Bluetooth intercoms for their Wings. Sold them after just one trip and went back to wired systems.

.

[gsrick]

We took it out tonight down to the local Sonics for a couple of sundays after dinner and I think I'm going to look into some new fork springs. Seemed ok by myself, but I didn't care for the response going over the train tracks, two up.

[Ecklund]

We took it out tonight down to the local Sonics for a couple of sundays after dinner and I think I'm going to look into some new fork springs. Seemed ok by myself, but I didn't care for the response going over the train tracks, two up.

After the basic maintenance and repairs I would argue that one of the most important items to get 'right' on a bike is the suspension spring rates. Obviously there is an acceptable range and a wide spectrum of probable use, but most bikes could benefit from moderately stiffer suspension springs.

We were both very surprised at the level of improvement on when my buddy installed moderately stiffer fork springs on his Dyna.

My own 1100e is day and night after a few basic suspension upgrades.

Let us know how up rated fork springs changes the bike. And while you are in there anyway an inexpensive emulator is a nice touch.

[fred smailes]

Those '80s era touring bikes seem like a good value.

When you get it all back up to spec maybe you can give a bit of a review. Sure looks clean in the pics.

The same era Yamaha Venture also looks like an interesting bike. Perhaps you'll have a chance to compare them.

Oh is it just a case of buying an '88 or newer 1500 GL?

I put 100,000k on a 84 1200 wing, busted it up and fixed it once, other than a weird front end great bike well built.
I recently bought 1200 Venture in need of tlc. I'd heard they were like sport bikes compared to wings so was looking forward to riding it. After getting into it 2 things bothered me , it was worse than I thought but still fixable but I ended up selling it because of the complicated way its put together and poor quality of the pieces surrounding a great motor.
If your looking at one of those find a real clean one.
After test riding a 1500 wing when they came out, IMO everything else is a step down anyway.
Fred

[JTGS850GL]

Good you got the 86 1400cc version. The 1200cc versions had issues with second gear that required engine disassembly to repair. Nice bike and good luck with it. They finally fixed the problem when the 1400's came around.

[habsdoc]

Check with the dealer to see if the " Cade Plug " mod was done. Love the bike and I will find one for myself one day.

[megatwin]

I had one of those for a time,and it was a great running bike.
The regulator/rectifier is a pain to get to,as it is up under the front fairing.I would definitly get a manual for it if you can find one.

[1948man]

Check with the dealer to see if the " Cade Plug " mod was done. Love the bike and I will find one for myself one day.

+1 and some of the early ones had a driveshaft that was a little weak which got replaced by a more robust one in later models. That looks just like the '86 I had and wish I had kept.

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/Cavalcade_USA/info

http://www.billydump.com/cav/instruct/lockup_3.htm

[Ecklund]

I put 100,000k on a 84 1200 wing, busted it up and fixed it once, other than a weird front end great bike well built.
I recently bought 1200 Venture in need of tlc. I'd heard they were like sport bikes compared to wings so was looking forward to riding it. After getting into it 2 things bothered me , it was worse than I thought but still fixable but I ended up selling it because of the complicated way its put together and poor quality of the pieces surrounding a great motor.
If your looking at one of those find a real clean one.
After test riding a 1500 wing when they came out, IMO everything else is a step down anyway.
Fred

Good comments.

I had thought the Venture might be a slightly sportier version of these 80s bikes. Good advice to find one that is in good shape.

But your comment about the '88 and newer GL1500 is very well taken. As a cheap tour boat its a great value. Of course I don't know what Rick paid for his 1400. If its what I suspect, he did well. But in general the GL1500 is probably worth the expense.

Of course in that same kind of evaluation of a cost vs value as a specific type of bike, the 2001 GL1800 might be worth a look too. The GL guys say that Honda fixed some stuff in 2006 as well.

Your comments seem to reflect a way of looking at bikes and their value that is similar to mine.

[wymple]

The Yamaha was certainly a beast in the engine bay. A buddy of mine has a long sitting 84 that I've managed to avoid because the plastics & such are hard to come by & very pricey. Apparently it decays with the sun and gets brittle over the years. I see very little useful difference between the Venture and the Cavalcade. Either one in top shape would be a great piece to have.

[Jedz123]

Congrats Rick! Enjoy the touring bike...
I wonder how those old bikes would do if you upgraded to a modern sport tourer suspension (Gen 1 FJR front end came to mind).
Good luck with it!!! Enjoy!

[dpep]

Good score, Rick. Looks like you (and the missus) have a lot of fun miles ahead.
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