New Vetter Equipped Goldwing owner (again, sort of)

[aliensatemybuick]

My Dad bought a "naked" 1981 Goldwing (standard, I guess it would be called) off the showroom floor in late '81. Shortly afterwards, he "dressed" the bike with a Vetter Windjammer V Nightstalker fairing and KG hard saddlebags and trunk. I was 15-16 back then, and helped him install the fairing, bags and trunk. In 1990, Dad passed away, and I inherited the bike along with a number of other bikes Dad owned. I gave it away shortly after his passing, to Dad's best friend. Said friend sold the bike shortly thereafter, and I never saw it again...till about 2 and a half weeks ago, when it showed up on Ebay. I had been looking on and off for a black 1980-82 'Wing with a Vetter fairing and KG bags (hoping to find something relatively close) , and that is how I turned up his old bike. It was recognizable as HIS bike pretty much from the photos and based on the precise configuration of aftermarket dress-up chrome, but the fact of it was confirmed by the VIN, which was listed in the auction and matched the insurance card and registration, which are still is Dad's old wallet, which I have saved essentially untouched for these many years. The bike looks essentially unchanged since 1990, with the exception of an upgraded sound system and a single carburetor conversion performed by the previous owner. The prev. owner even replaced the aftermarket diamond tufted seat with a near identical replacement. It is in essentially the same condition as it was back in 1990, save for some road rash on the right side, suffered during a crash.

Looking forward to riding and fiddling with the bike, and repairing the effects of the road rash (already started on that!). I am actively looking for a righthand gold edging / moulding (unique apparently to the Nighstalker edition fairings, but perhaps also available on "Regal Edition" WJ5s (based on an ad I have seen from 1983). I suppose I could always replace the edging with new chrome ones offered by Craig Vetter, but I am more interested in preserving the bike as close as possible to Dad's intentions back in the day. In fact, I won't be restoring the bike, just correcting some effects of age and the bike having been dropped.

 

[brianinpa]

Let me see... a Standard 81 with a Vetter in front, yeah, I can relate! Welcome to the forum. Nice bike!!!!

 

[aliensatemybuick]

Thanks, Brian. I guess I should mention, my name is Scott...

 

[Scott]

What an amazing find! Wish I could find my dad's first wing! Welcome to the forum. I wonder if Craig might have an idea of where to obtain the gold edging.

 

[aliensatemybuick]

Thanks, actually i wrote Carol Vetter and she responded saying that the Gold trim was offered after the company was sold and that they had no knowledge of how it was sourced. Best, Scott

 

[Scott]

Yeah I knew it was only on the WJ5. I thought maybe they might know. I would think that it would be available somewhere as trim for something. But hard to say. That gold really does look good. We'll keep our eyes open for it.

 

[steppenwolf]

The trim seems to be easy to find in chrome,I'll keep looking for the gold trim.Don't think I ever saw one in person tho.

 

[Kynan C.]

Welcome to the forum. Nice bike! Great to see you two reunited. I have not seen the gold trim either. I will keep me eyes open, as I always do for Vetter goodies.

 

[aliensatemybuick]

Still have chills over getting this bike back. Was perusing craigvetter.com and saw that at one time he designed a helmet that looked like a 1940s Indian front fender. That prompted me to share another couple pics:

1. me on my Dad's OTHER bike at the time of his passing, a '47 Indian. You can see the Goldwing in the background.
2. Me on the same bike nearly 20 years later, now fully restored (um, the bike, not me)

So now I have both of Dad's old bikes! Sometimes I wish I had left the Indian unrestored, and that is why all I want to do with the Wing is a few cosmetic upgrades.

 

[brianinpa]

Who did the resto on the Indian? Nice work whoever it was - beautiful bike!

 

[aliensatemybuick]

Terry Krumm; he has since retired. I chose the paint and leather scheme, extra chrome, etc. based on recollections of my Dad's own plans to restore it.

 

[Scott]

Very nicely done!

 

[Kynan C.]

Very nice! What a cool piece of family history to have.

 

[aliensatemybuick]

Guy who sold me the bike E-mailed me last week to say he had the original speaker grilles, sent them to me gratis. Of course, I had to install them, even if it meant changing out the Polk DB401s on the bike when I got it. They were juuuust a bit too modern looking, though the truth is, it was more a matter of historical accuracy / having the bike as close to the way my Dad had it back in the day. Besides, the fairing just didn't say "Vetter" on it quite enough times before, haw haw!

Maybe I would have sourced a set on my own, or maybe I wouldn't have, but since they were offered to me, it was a no brainer. One thing I won't be doing is installing a vintage radio; playing MP3s is just too nice a feature to be without.

The J&M USK-9000 speakers I bought sound real nice, too.

 

[Kynan C.]

How do you like the Pyle?

 

[aliensatemybuick]

It's decent....gets plenty loud enough to be heard while riding. PLL tuner works nicely enough. I have to use the AUX jack on the front to play music from my I-phone. It won't work via the USB jack with my phone or my wife's Samsung Galaxy note. Haven't tried playing MP3s off a flash card in the USB slot yet. Good enough for my needs, however. It's a marine radio, so waterproof too (not that I plan on getting it wet).

 

[steppenwolf]

AV remember also the Wing is a very quiet bike compared to our 11's and are low rpm engines.I have the 750 fd on mine but think I would still have to really crank the radio up to hear it at speed,I am just speculating as I don't have or want a radio.

 

[Larry Fine]

If one is interested in a radio for a bike, I recommend a "mechless" unit, which contains no tape or disc drive. First of all, a cassette or CD would be somewhere between tedious and dangerous to juggle while in motion. Plus, as they're also known as media receivers, they have various inputs, such as USB and 1/8" stereo audio.

The head unit I have, an Alpine UTE-32, has a shorter-that-usual chassis, as do most. In my Rooster, there is no room for an amp. My amp, an Alpine KTP-445U, is small enough to fit behind the short radio, and, at 90 watts into 2 channels (or 45w into 4ch), it now sound as loud on the interstate as it did before at around 25 mph.

 

[Kynan C.]

Yeah Steppen, my XS is pretty loud, even being stock and all. I had to put an amp in to hear the sound while cruising.

 

[aliensatemybuick]

Figured it is "topical" to revisit this thread...

Attached is my 2014 holiday card, with my wife and I astride my Dad's old bikes. I made it a generic "holiday" / "season's greetings" card to apply in all cases, but *I* will have a VERY Merry Christmas this year, having found my Dad's long lost Goldwing, thus making this photo (not to mention many pleasurable rides) possible.