Your comments on the oil drain and the shaft drive are way off the mark. There is nothing wrong with the oil drain plug on this bike any more than any other motorcycle with an aluminum case. You MUST use a torque wrench on all bolts and spark plugs or you risk stripping the threads. If you see a bike that looks like someone did maintenance with vise grips and channel locks, walk away unless its FREE. When this bike was in production Consumer Reports rated it as THE MOST reliable motorcycle on the market. Top of the list. NUMBER ONE! If you want to buy a motorcycle and ride ride ride, this is the bike you want. If you can find a used one that is still factory original and has been properly maintained you got a 100,000 mile motorcycle. If someone put after market exhaust, air intake pods, tried to rejet the carbs, then there is a good chance they screwed up and the bike has been running lean or rich. With everything stock you can get 60mpg at 55mph with this bike. The shaft drive spines are lubed at the factory with 60% moly paste. It is the ONLY lube you can use on the splines. Axle grease will be thrown off and the spines will be destroyed in about 2000 miles. There is no scheduled maintenance for lubing them in the owners manual or shop manual because that factory 60% moly paste will last 100,000 miles. It will not dry out, its not axle grease its Molybdenum disulfide paste - GOOGLE IT! BUT: IF you take your bike to a shop that does not know how to handle a shaft drive to get your rear tire changed, and they wipe off the 60% MOLY paste and put axle grease on it, your drive shaft is TOAST. If someone watches this video and wipes off the factory 60% MOLY paste and puts on axle grease.... same deal. I only know of one source for the correct lube: Loctite Moly Paste 51048. An 8oz bottle is about $35 online. DONT use anything else unless it clearly states it is 60% moly. The Vstar 650 is the most reliable motorcycle ever made (Consumer Reports), and a big part of that is the shaft drive requires NO maintenance and its bullet proof. But its not fool proof. If you buy a used bike and pull the back wheel off the moly should look dark grey or black on the splines. If they look brown or caramel like axle grease, then dont ride the bike till you get the proper 60% Moly. If you are not sure dont risk it. The rear hubs sell used for hundreds of dollars, and again these bikes are highly reliable, so the only ones you normally find being parted out are wrecks.
Thank you ! I learned more in this 2-minute read than I have watching hours of videos. Which Not one mentioned the MOLY lube. I just grabbed a 2009 V650, garage kept with only 2056 miles for $2200. So I'd be grateful for any other v650 tips you may have. Again thanks for the info..
My wife's 2002 vstar had the final drive go out. $1100 to replace. We were told that in the early years of this model it was leaving the factory without adequate lube. I don't know if that's true. But you're right, have it checked at the rear tire change over.
No. There's no way you need to change the shaft oil every oil change. The user's manual says you change it every 25000 KMs, and there's nobody out there saying if you follow yamaha's user instruction it will still break on you. They are reliable bikes.
I own a v star 650cc classic 2002, I bought myself one last year on my 19th birthday with 7,000 miles, I absolutely love it, it has all the power you need and a great bike to drive to work or just to cruise around while having good gas mileage and reliability, I like your videos man, great job🙂
I got a V-Star 650 too bro, in November 2022. I want a sport bike but I got a cruiser to appreciate how fucking reliable and welcoming this bike is. Its slow but punchy, I love it
I have owned around 40 "metric" bikes since 1975. I have been riding Harleys since 2003, bought used. I ride Harleys because of the way they sound and the way they feel. I am not a fan of H-D. From my experience, "metric" bikes are generally more reliable than Harleys. They are just not nearly as much fun to ride. As for the shaft drive issue, pretty much all shaft drive bikes, with the exception of the Honda Goldwing, and the old Moto Guzzi bikes which use a completely different design, have shaft drive issues. I have owned THREE Kawasaki Vulcan 750s, two bought new, one used. It seems that every single Vulcan 750, from 1985 to 2006 did not have the final drive splines lubricated at the factory. And by the time they reached the first service interval where the splines were supposed to be lubricated, there would already be significant damage. This happened on my first one, a new 1993 model. Fortunately back then I was able to find a good final drive unit on eBay. I bought another new Vulcan 750 in 2002. That time I disassembled the final drive as soon as I got it home. It was completely dry, as expected. But I found it in time to save it. Those final drive splines need to be lubricated with Moly paste (not grease) every 10,000 miles. I use Honda Moly 60, which is 60% moly. Properly maintained, they will last forever.
Love your bobber! You make a good point about ensuring the final drive splines are properly greased and I would add to that by spending money on some quality molybdenum grease, not regular grease.
Another very helpful video! Thanks so much for taking the time and effort to making it and sharing it. I love my Classic, but this is the sweetest 650 bobber I've ever seen! In All honesty it's probably the best bobber of any make that I've ever seen. I'm glad you kept the classic sock air cleaner. It looks so much better than the ones that stick out with pointy cones. This is a gorgeous bike!
General recommendation: check the brake lines and fluid. If it’s a bike your familiar with, check the suspension adjustment. The ride should be consistent with the suspension settings. If not, you may have some work to do! Be wary of mods. Make sure any are done correctly. Check all bulbs, the horn and battery. Not major but might indicate care habits. Seat should be in good shape and reasonably comfortable. Take a checklist and toolkit.
I just bought one of these from afemale customer for $600. 52000 miles. I went thru carbs. Sounds great. Seems like gear oil change every other oil change would be excessive
It's literally two bolts and the easiest thing to do. I just do it because it's easy maintenance and doesn't take much gear oil, so it's not like you're spending a ton of $. But do whatever you think is best. Cheers
@@SnackDetour yeah its just that it doesnt get that hot or come into contact with combustion carbons. Maybe every 10000 miles would be diligent. Its all good.
Alot of great tips. I especially like the tip about shady owners. You never know but if you get unlucky and they hide a burnt valve or a rod knock or a smoking motor with a already hot motor,you are screwed if you buy it.
Hey man! I am enchanted by your moto, i would love to contac you to talk about some parts of your beautiful Moto, like that awesome rear fender, can i get a link or a clue of where can i find it for my own. I'm trying to custom my v star.
Hey dude, all the parts are on my links in the description. As for the rear fender they make them custom, so you can always contact them at blackops bobber, you might need to wait awhile as they are possibly made to order now.
You want to make sure it's a complete cold start (it's been sitting for a few hours) meaning the owner hasnt already warmed up the bike. As a warm bike can hide issues compared to a cold start.
@@SnackDetour got you now. That makes sense now. Yes the carbureted engine has lots of problems in cold Star. I recently bought a XVS650A (2006) with 5500 miles on it. I didn't really look at any of them you mentioned but luckily the seller was pretty honest I guess. I haven't seen any problems so far. How much is a 2006 xvs650a worth with 5500 miles you think sir ? Thank you for sharing this video and for the reply.
Question, I have someone wanting to sell one of these (2006 yamaha v star 650). Claims it ran before parked and drained gas. Does not have title. Should I get it? (Btw, selling for $600)
Dude, you've got sweet ride. I'm riding a V STAR 250 right now and I love the 80mpg gas milage, but I feel like I need an extra gear and more weight on freeway. 650cc would make the cut and it is probably my next bike. I haven't decided yet between Vstar 650 or SV650 from Suzuki. Thanks for sharing this video!
If you're 6'4 and you can handle a bike, I would prob get something bigger for more power. You can always get forward control extenders to make it more comfortable. The previous owner of this bike was 6'3 and he rode it fine with the extensions. What the extensions do, is move the pegs forward about 4" so your legs aren't as cramped. I had to take them off because I'm short lol.
Beautiful bike brother, I've got a 2014 650 custom. Its a sweet ride! Could you do me a favor and please let me know what blinkers and taillight setup you are running? 🤙
@@liquidsword12345 that depends if you use synthetic its more like every 5000 miles The most common problems with the Yamaha V Star 650 include: Timing chain tensioners failing by becoming loose or sheering off. Ignition system problems including faulty starters and ignition coils, making it difficult to start the motorcycle, especially when cold. Starting issues due to bad batteries or parasitic draining issues. Carburetor jets and syncing issues. Clutch adjustment or slipping.
@@SnackDetour might see you the summer then out on the road or something ! Currently in the build stage though and I’m getting close to being done my 650! (And yes I did watch your video after I bought mine) lol sorry 🤣
Sorry Man, I ordered majority of the parts a few years ago. Not sure black ops bobbers even makes the rear fender kit anymore. As for the LED signals, side mount licence plate, final drive cover, and mirrors, I got them off Amazon.
May I add to your outstanding demonstration is I check the fork seals for any leakage. Additionally, since this motorcycle is a street bike I check under the fenders to see if there is any caked mud. Typically for myself, if I notice that, I would reject the bike. Great video Bro.!
@@SnackDetour haha thanks man. Yeah im in the yeg area. I found a vstar out in Westlock for $2200. 38000kms. Looks to be in good shape. I'll just be starting out riding with the sixers as soon as I get my bike then I can get my six
@@ivegotansti nice nice decent price as long as its been taken care of many more miles to come. I have a group I ride with here and there, but they're all on sport bikes. I'm looking at getting a 2nd bike soon.
I live in texas and I get pretty hot at summer. Is there anyway a oil cooler can be installed to run the bike a little cooler. I couldn't find any video on that. Please advise. Thank you.
As long as you're using the right oil for your temps, and not idling in super hot weather for hours you shouldn't need to run a oil cooler. Plus with the oil cooler unless you have a fan as well, there is no air circulation at a stand still. So again it wouldn't make much of a difference. Don't fix what isn't broken :)
I plan on buying my sisters boyfriends v star. I absolutely love it Ive been on it, I've heard it run. Now that gas is so high I hope it would make a good daily for me. Its also going to be my first real motorcycle.
Nice bike 👍Take it a little further add a big air intake upgrade the jets and throw a dynatec dyna 3000 ignition and achieve the full potential of the 650 !
@@mn_mt0964 I couldn't tell u if it works good with just stock I went online and bought a power package for my vstar it included the dyna 3000 the package cost me almost 3 grand but it was well worth it gave me plenty of power and I didn't have to buy another bike . So look into one of those power packages if that's what u want without having to buy another bike
@@mn_mt0964 If u plan on keeping the bike it and got the hyper charger with the jets and the exhaust throwing the the ignition on there will give it the extra bump and 300 dollars ain't bad any upgrade is better than stock the ignition just raises your rpm up witch in turn allowing to shit higher than normal witch in turns gets up to speed faster and not having to granny shift
Would you recommend a yamaha vstar 650 as my first bike?? I've never owned a bike before but I'm thinking into getting one or what cruiser bike would you recommend as a first bike for someone that has never had or ride a bike before??
If you're looking for a first time cruiser, this v star 650 would be a great starter cruiser. A honda shadow 750 would also be a great choice. Suzuki M50 or the Vulcan S would also be some other choices! It all depends on your preference. I have a bias towards Japanese bikes though.