Put 100 miles on the "new" Nomad today.

[faxxxy]

Put my first hundred miles on the new bike, oil leak and all.
Through the twisties of SW Missouri and Eureka Springs, Arkansas.
We never hit the 4 lane so I never really got her out of 4th gear.
on 3 occasions I dropped it into 5th and it shook so bad wanting more speed that I went right back to 4th. Evidently this baby doesn't like to cruise below 60!

Shifting is smooth! What little bit I had to do was easy and deliberate.

The CG is low enough so that the bike is at home in the twisties and felt very stable regardless of speed.

I noticed that it took about 5 miles before it really warmed up and ran super smooth. It did concern me that the fan was running almost every time I pulled in to a parking spot. It was in the low 70's today, it seems like it should never have gotten hot enough to kick the fan on.
Does anyone else think the fan runs too much? I ride in a lot of parades and I would like the engine to run as cool as possible.

That was my only real issue.
The thing ran like a champ and I watched the guy on the Yamaha 1100 shift three times as much as I did and heard his poor bike labor up the hills.

100 miles on the stock seat wasn't too bad.

That reminds me.. 100 miles and it's got about 1/8 tank left. I noticed when I filled it that it only held 3.1 gallons. Thats about 33 Mpg or so. Is that about right? I saw other members saying they got 50.

Besides the oil leak, the only mechanical concern I have is the speedo rattle. I don't know if it needs a new rubber ring or what, but the speedo vibrates and rattles like crazy.

Buyers remorse?? whatever remorse I had is fading fast... Just judging by the first 100 miles, this seems to be a great bike for the money!

[Netnorske]

I got in about 110 miles myself yesterday...with the wife riding bitch. Every time I take my bike out I am glad I bought it... !

[dabull]

i got about 400 in yesterday...

[bosko]

Rolled mine around the garage. :)

[strobe]

Originally Posted by Bosko

Rolled mine around the garage. :)

LOL...too funny.

I feel for you, but I did around 170 miles yesterday, but rain / snow today...

[ringadingh]

My fan doesn't come on very often at all, If the engine is warmed right up after a good highway run, and I let it idle for about 10 minutes on a warm day then the fan will come on.
Check the coolant resevoir in theLH sidecover to make sure it is about 1/2 full, then maybe check the thermostat.

[johnb]

I put in 150 miles yesterday and another 100 miles this morning. Temps in the mid-high 30's to low 40's. My fan doesn't come on that often, even when it is warm. Then, only if in stop & go traffic or when I stop the bike it'll go on fora minute.

[Cajunrider]

Faxxy, My mileage was 33 - 35 when it was new. Your mileage will get better as it breaks in. My fan will kick on on a warm day if I sit at a traffic light for a couple of minutes. My guess is the engines are running very lean causing them to heat up pretty quickly. My coolant tank is about 1/2 way between High and Low. I did notice that after switching to synthetic oil the fan didn't kick on as often. I waited until my 3,500 mile oil change before switching to Mobil 1. The 600 mile oil change was done by the dealer and they recommended staying with dino until the second change.

[stevenm]

We put just over 300 miles on yesterday. Road with 7 other bikes to Dublin, GA for a Gold Wing Rally. (Note: Several in the group ride Wings so we humor them sometimes and act like we don't mind riding with them. Good folks, all.) Many of us had been there in the past and they always had a good turnout of vendors. This time not so many. Good barbecue though!!

It was just under 40 degrees when we pulled out at 8:00 a.m. The day warmed up some and we got home around 4:30 p.m.

This was our longest trip on the Nomad to date with one stretch of 110 miles non-stop. The seats were pretty comfortable and we only moved around slightly to keep from getting any permanent "brain damage".

I have been reading the threads regarding seats and tires with interest. My Nomad came to me used with a new Bridgestone Excedra on the rear so I ordered an Excedra for the front. Even with a very worn front tire this bike holds the corners very well. Several trips to the North GA mountains in the very late fall and early winter left me very satisfied with everything about this machine. The new front rubber should only be an improvement.

I have replaced the factory seats on a 2001 1500 Classic and an 04 1600 Classic with different results. The 01 Mustang seat was very comfortable on long rides but the 04 less satisfying. After the demise of the 1600 (May it rest in peace..my fault..) I didn't replace the seat on my 00 1500 Classic. This Nomad will probably keep it's factory seat.

I am waiting on a trailer hitch so we can pull our new Piggy Backer Trailer for some camping trips to the Mountains and Florida panhandle for some quality time. We have a large ride in June to Ironhorse Motorcycle Lodge in NC with our group. Last year we had 16 bikes for a 4 day trip. I highly recommend Iron Horse for a couple or group looking for great lodging and some great riding. It is very near the Tail of the Dragon, Cherohala Skyway, Blue Ridge Pkway, Cherokee and Maggie Valley.

Our riding season is underway and we are very excited!!!!

Happy Riding to all.

Steve

[lw]

I got in a little over 175 miles yesterday, and even though we were ~80 or so in the afternoon I dont recall the fan coming on at all. Glad you were able to get it out on the road. It only gets better.

[schoeney]

Faxxy-

I also noticed my fan did not kick on as often after switching to Mobile 1 synthetic.

[waterman]

Ells and I did close to 280 miles today. Dan was a little less. Check the antifreeze. You may also have air bubble in the system. I switched to synthetics and think it runs cooler.

[davidjones1]

I did 1055 miles for Friday and Saturday, had to go Jacksonville fl. for the company I work for, so my future son-n-law and I rode our bikes he rides a very good looking HD but the nomad lead the whole way kept it about 80-85 for most of the trip, SteveM I had lunch in Dublin at the "ruby Tuesdays" about 3pm saw a bunch of bikes riding though, my fan only came on when we were stuck in traffic for about 1.5 hours south of Atlanta (sucked) but other then missing the meet with coachA on Friday it was a great weekend to be on the nomad.
ride safe.

[jamiep24]

Did 135 miles on her yesterday and today. Got a little over 1300 in 2 1/2 weeks. Everything was almost perfect but it's been windy (almost too windy) just about every day here in Mississippi.
My newly debaffled pipes sound great. My fan has only cut on a couple times on warm days. There's a lot of Harley riders who wish they could hear the sound of a fan running. Mileage will go up. I started about 30 mpg or so and have been in the low 40's and high 30's range since.

[kenb]

Faxxxy's ride, if I am not mistaken, is a 2001 1500 with about 35000 miles. The fan may be coming on too often due to a problem with the cooling system. A bad cap, low or weak coolant mix, using tap water instead of distilled, etc. can cause some issues. New cars have 5 year coolant. Faxxxy's bike is 8. May be due for a t-stat and a flush and flow check. I sure would if it were mine. Even flush the brake and clutch systems and service the forks. But, some may just change the oil to bring down the temps. Making sure everything is working as designed is important for the life of any machine. (and maybe the life of the operator!) JMHO