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First V-Rod, Back on a Harley Again

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MonsterTorch

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2006 VRSCR
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29 Posts
Discussion starter · #1 · (Edited)
Hello All!

Yesterday, I picked up a 2006 VRSCR. It was a great opportunity and Ive wanted a V-Rod for a very long time! Been riding since 2008, mostly road air cooled Ducati’s, but I have fallen into love with the muscle bikes when I had a Diavel Strata, followed by an X-Diavel S, later a Rocket 3 GT, and now I am riding a Scout 101. My wife is a retired marine, she rode with me twice, and said “Nope, I want my own bike!”, so carrying a passenger has never been a concern for me. Two weeks ago, I saw this opportunity to grab a hard to find VRSCR, just couldn’t pass it up, yesterday I finally made the drive, and picked her up!

Forgot to mention, I had a 2004 Dyna Defender back in the day (FXDP). My riding buddy was a moto officer, and it was his work bike. I enjoyed it, but it was just too heavy for my tastes, so I sold it back in 2014.

She needs some cosmetic TLC, basic spit and polish, wrong exhaust, get rid of the windscreen, put the front turn signals back where they should be, etc… She’s a one owner bike, with 28K miles and full maintenance history from the local dealer.

Been lurking on the forum for a while, learning and doing research. Glad to finally join the family officially! Have a great weekend all!
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#3 ·
Forewarning, as much as I love v-rods, the Diavel Carbon I rode did nearly everything the Vrod did except better. Turned easier, more power, better highway cruising RPMs etc. IMO the Vrod is more reliable but both bikes can have parts availability issues.
 
#4 ·
Welcome aboard MonsterTorch ! You'll really like the R Model, it's a great all arounder bike, the V Rod that pretty much does it all, it's a Swiss Army Knife - good buy with the accessories, musta been owned by an older guy those downturned muffler ends look to be off a 1970 Pontiac :D - he may have installed them to quiet it down a tad. You could go with a stock set of head pipes with the aux volume chamber ( inexpensive on Ebay ) and install a set of TAB or tunable SuperTrapp slip on mufflers, or check out the new Trask exhaust - it has been said to fit the R with some minor work.

To get highway Rpms down you can install a 30 tooth fwd pulley, I did it works great and is what the first V Rods were delivered with. I installed highway pegs on the Unicorn engine guard, makes long distance cruising more relaxed. Looks like you may have both rider and pax Sundowner seat, it's much better than stock but pushes you forward a bit, I got used to it and really like it. Keep us informed on your progress with showing her some needed love ! (y):cool:
 
Discussion starter · #5 ·
Knut J said:
Welcome to the Forum.
An R, a wise choice, several active R owners here. Fun bike! (y)
I see you have the attractive engine guard; Unicorn!
Click to expand...
Thanks Knut! Yeah, definitely keeping that engine guard on, but the windscreen had to go 🤣
 
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Discussion starter · #6 ·
Pr0jekt said:
Forewarning, as much as I love v-rods, the Diavel Carbon I rode did nearly everything the Vrod did except better. Turned easier, more power, better highway cruising RPMs etc. IMO the Vrod is more reliable but both bikes can have parts availability issues.
Click to expand...
Hi Pr0jekt! I definitely miss that first gen Diavel, but I like to think of each bike as new experience, each one broadening my never ending journey to find “the perfect bike’ for me. Prolly will never happen (finding that perfect bike), but that doesn’t stop me! I really wanted a VRSCR back in the day, but what I could afford was a Ninja 650 🤣 Now I’ve got a Indian Scout 101, but when I saw this bike for sale, I had to jump on it. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and I’m really happy to finally get the opportunity to enjoy one of these for myself!
 
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Discussion starter · #7 · (Edited)
streetrodracer said:
Welcome aboard MonsterTorch ! You'll really like the R Model, it's a great all arounder bike, the V Rod that pretty much does it all, it's a Swiss Army Knife - good buy with the accessories, musta been owned by an older guy those downturned muffler ends look to be off a 1970 Pontiac :D - he may have installed them to quiet it down a tad. You could go with a stock set of head pipes with the aux volume chamber ( inexpensive on Ebay ) and install a set of TAB or tunable SuperTrapp slip on mufflers, or check out the new Trask exhaust - it has been said to fit the R with some minor work.

To get highway Rpms down you can install a 30 tooth fwd pulley, I did it works great and is what the first V Rods were delivered with. I installed highway pegs on the Unicorn engine guard, makes long distance cruising more relaxed. Looks like you may have both rider and pax Sundowner seat, it's much better than stock but pushes you forward a bit, I got used to it and really like it. Keep us informed on your progress with showing her some needed love ! (y):cool:
Click to expand...
Hi streetrodracer,

spot on the money! Older rider who’s decided it was time to sell basically! Thank you for your observations, I really wondered if that was the elusive Sundowner seat or not! I didn’t want to probe too deeply during the transaction, but now it seemed like he had seriously kitted out the bike with about every available option from HD.

I do really need to address that exhaust though, it’s not the right pipe for that bike, the rear cylinder pipe is right where your leg goes, and will burn you in a heartbeat. It’s just my guess, but I think the pipes are for a VRSCD, and not a VRSCR. I’d love to find a set of Akrapovic’s, but that seems like unattainable anymore. I’ll look into what you suggested, thanks for the feedback!

‘I’ll also check into the pulley, thanks for the suggestion! Have a great day!!
 
Discussion starter · #8 ·
Today I pulled the bags, removed the windscreen, took the leather tank guard off, and introduced her to her stablemates (my Scout 101, the Wife’s Scrambler 800, my Yamaha FZR 750RT resto project, and the FZR1000 ExUp resto project 🤣)

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#11 ·
MonsterTorch said:
It’s just my guess, but I think the pipes are for a VRSCD,
Click to expand...
No, most likely for a forward control bike like a VRSCA or B, ( but at least the D had highway pegs to get away from that hot rear pipe ) for any of them really but yea that's a major Faux Pas on a mid control bike, a form over function mistake.

Akro pipes went back into production for a short time a while back, if you do some serious internet searching you may find one out there - great to get that excessive weight off the right side, I saved about 20 lbs with a Bub7 2-1 exhaust, then put a BMW M3 4" resonator on the back of it to tone it down, sounds great now. Best of luck with it - btw I can't wait until you remove those droopy dick exhaust tips(y):D !! ( They're just WRONG on an R Model ) :cool:
 
#12 ·
streetrodracer said:
Best of luck with it - btw I can't wait until you remove those droopy dick exhaust tips(y):D !! ( They're just WRONG on an R Model ) :cool:
Click to expand...
(y)

Please note that when using Akra there will be a tight clearance between the peg and the heat shield. Some have chosen to remove the shield, others -like me- have chosen to extend the primary pipe by about 4" to achieve sufficient clearance.
Another option for exhaust is to use stock headers + Kerker mufflers.
2-1-2 or 2-1 exhaust is recommended on a Revolution engine. Avoid 2-2, it causes a loss of horses. The most extreme case was a loss of 30hp according to my dyno guru.
 
Discussion starter · #15 ·
streetrodracer said:
No, most likely for a forward control bike like a VRSCA or B, ( but at least the D had highway pegs to get away from that hot rear pipe ) for any of them really but yea that's a major Faux Pas on a mid control bike, a form over function mistake.

Akro pipes went back into production for a short time a while back, if you do some serious internet searching you may find one out there - great to get that excessive weight off the right side, I saved about 20 lbs with a Bub7 2-1 exhaust, then put a BMW M3 4" resonator on the back of it to tone it down, sounds great now. Best of luck with it - btw I can't wait until you remove those droopy dick exhaust tips(y):D !! ( They're just WRONG on an R Model ) :cool:
Click to expand...
You are correct, I spoke too quick, I did mean “a Vrod with forward controls” when I said vrscd. I’ve noticed there’s quite a few vrscds around here for sale that have forwards, but I forget that means an owner purposely swapped their mids out.

one is already off! Other has a screw in a hard place to reach so it’s coming off today when I’m not rushed for time 🤣
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Discussion starter · #16 ·
Knut J said:
(y)

Please note that when using Akra there will be a tight clearance between the peg and the heat shield. Some have chosen to remove the shield, others -like me- have chosen to extend the primary pipe by about 4" to achieve sufficient clearance.
Another option for exhaust is to use stock headers + Kerker mufflers.
2-1-2 or 2-1 exhaust is recommended on a Revolution engine. Avoid 2-2, it causes a loss of horses. The most extreme case was a loss of 30hp according to my dyno guru.
Click to expand...
Thank you Knut, the clearances on the Akra do concern me. I’m not a fabricator, and the town we live in is pretty small, and we don’t have any real welding services so I try to find solutions that don’t require significant customization. I’ll look into your suggestions, thank you!
 
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#17 ·
MonsterTorch said:
Thank you Knut, the clearances on the Akra do concern me.
Click to expand...
It took me 30 man hours to get a VRSCA muffler mount bracket, modify it to fit on the R Model, and fab up an attachment for my Bub 7 2-1 exhaust, to clear the foot peg and mount it up. Another 30 manhours to find the BMW M3 resonator, find the proper stainless conical adapter, have it fit, welded up and then drill & install it.
No easy task getting an aftermarket pipe to fit an R Model.
Like Knut and I both said your best bet is to buy a stock set of header pipes and aux volume chamber ( R specific exhaust has larger head pipes than other early V Rod systems, but they may fit the R as well - their smaller head pipes give more low end torque, vs R exhaust which is more high Rpm Hp ) Buy the R system to be sure it fits, then install stock, hollow point or aftermarket mufflers. Best of luck with your R you'll really enjoy it just remember it's fast and not a true sport bike so she can get you in trouble, I call it " Dancing with the Fat Lady " which means don't throw her weight around too much or you'll end up on the dance floor, with her on top. :oops: Manage momentum and speed within her limits and you'll enjoy dancing with her - (y):cool:
 
Discussion starter · #18 ·
Continued working on her today, got the following accomplished (in no particular order)
  • Removed passenger peg mounts
  • Reused passenger pegs to replace the baseball handle looking rider pegs
  • Removed the smog stickers from the frame
  • Removed the windshield quick release mounts
  • Started relocating front turn signals back to stock location
  • Removed the vrsca/b exhaust
  • Removed the mirror extensions
  • Ordered stock headers and midpipes
  • Ordered other small bits based of observation
Overall it was a good day! It was good I removed the exhaust, turns out the header pipe nuts (to the head) were extremely loose, like not even finger tight!! Glad I didn’t ride it home on the day I bought the bike lol!!
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#19 ·
MonsterTorch said:
  • I removed the exhaust, turns out the header pipe nuts (to the head) were extremely loose, like not even finger tight!!
Click to expand...
These nuts must be rechecked for correct torque after warm-up during installation.
Feel free to check "the fall-away" while in mode. And condition of the Dot4 fluid. An original HD shop manual is nice to have.
(y)
 
#20 ·
Appears to be factory headlight? If so, remove it also and replace with aftermarket headlight if you plan on night driving. Vintage Parts in beaver Dam Wi. has NOS VRSC parts at good prices. They have a website and also list on Ebay (if listing says make an offer, make an offer)................. Thank you for removing those pipes, they don't do our R's justice............
If you need parts and don't know the part number head to Ronnies website to find the numbers. Ronnie''s Harley-Davidson''s 2006 Harley Davidson
 
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MonsterTorch
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