My first kill... Me

[shorthair88]

I Picked up a 85 max 3+ yrs ago, 9,500k, K&N filter-jetted-UFO exhaust, other than a half dozen bolt on extra bling I put on, pretty much stock... Iv'e tried raceing a few people but they pretend I'm invisible. except for a couple a R1's where the situation was reversed..lol..( not counting 2 big dog customs & 2 1800 vtx's wich I smoked hands down, but all were friends of mine.) 2 months ago I picked up a 86 v65 magna in mint condition, 14,200k. this thing hauls the mail brother, I'm not kidding.
So a buddys rear tire is shot on his scooter from one to many 3rd gear bacardi burnouts against his internal garage wall so I let him ride the max while I saddle the magna. the VTX & I do a roller @ 5mph, Those big bore 1800's move hard out of the hole, Like a 45/70 slug on roids. get a good rider on one & he will make you work hard for the 1/8...But I digress, @ 90 I'm maybe 6 lengths ahead...shut'er down @ 110..
But heres the story, my pal on MY!!! max say's he had to get on the binders at 75mph or he was going to rearend us, then wants to know why the steering gets so sloppy when shifting into 2nd gear under hard throttle..LOLOLOL... his 1800 vtx is the only ride he has ever riden or owned. Great times,

Shorthair88.....

 

[4gasem]

So the max is faster than the V65 right?

Cool!

 

[RaWarrior]

V65 is about the closest relative to the Vmax there is. TBH they were the first real purpose built muscle bike and in '82 the fastest thing you could buy on two wheels.

But Yamaha came and rained all over Honda's parade in '85, and the rest is history.

From my time on a Magna forum when I had my V30(still amazingly fast for a 500), it's pretty widely accepted even there that a V65 just doesn't stack up to a Max. Close, but the Max will win out every time. A few people claimed that with some motor work they'd taken Maxes, but I never saw any videos or hard evidence(though I'm sure it's possible).

If you think the Max has bad headshake....try a Magna....

 

[Mitchell]

Fwiw. 1983 was the first year V65. Rebuilt one back in 05. Loved the 6 speed and comfort! Hit 135mph a time or 2 and yes it liked to shake. Sold it to help pay cash for my Vmax. Your absolutely right. The V30's are quick. But the V45 Magna's are quicker. Kinda like comparing the 45 to the 65. Notta chance. Hell, I get just as many, if not more questions and compliments on my Super Magna than my Vmax. Most are dumbfounded when I tell them its a 1987 Super Model : )

 

[The Beekeeper]

I own an 83, which is the 1st year of the V-65 Magna, My buddy and I were out a while back and decided to see how the Honda would stand up against my 97 Max from a dig, the previous owner of the Magna had used synthetic oil in the bike so the clutch slips in the powerband above 2nd gear, being the good friend I am I rode the 65 and let my friend pilot the Yamaha, we launched on a green light and I pulled him a bit out of the hole but he got by me by the top of 2nd, not big time but enough to say the Max was king, we knew that anyways but it was a good excuse to touch em off.......................Tom.

 

[CaptainKyle]

Fwiw. 1983 was the first year V65. Rebuilt one back in 05. Loved the 6 speed and comfort! Hit 135mph a time or 2 and yes it liked to shake. Sold it to help pay cash for my Vmax. Your absolutely right. The V30's are quick. But the V45 Magna's are quicker. Kinda like comparing the 45 to the 65. Notta chance. Hell, I get just as many, if not more questions and compliments on my Super Magna than my Vmax. Most are dumbfounded when I tell them its a 1987 Super Model : )

Super Magna's are cool as shit. I had one & will get another one day. I think there one of the coolest looking bikes made right from the factory.

 

[shorthair88]

Yep, max was faster, but if ya took a stock max against a moderatly tweaked magna, I'd put my $ on the magna..my little bro has his eye on a 85 madura that I passed up do to poor cosmetic condition. now theres another muscle classic.

Shorthair........

 

[Mitchell]

Super Magna's are cool as shit. I had one & will get another one day. I think there one of the coolest looking bikes made right from the factory.

I like your style! Beware of purchasing one though. Parts are becoming more and more scarce. Plus Honda doesn't manufacture or support important parts anymore. For instance. Shift drums. Most body tins. New exhaust system runs around $1,500. The list goes on and on. Thank God for the donor/parts bikes. But the sellers are getting premium price for used parts anymore. Enjoy!

 

[MtnMax/Magniac]

Synthetic oil is NOT the reason the clutch was slipping, unless he used the "energy conserving" type, which is intended for automobile use only, not approved for wet clutches. Proper synthetics are perfectly OK for wet clutch applications.

 

[The Beekeeper]

In all fairness I'm not sure which type was in there, my first change was back to the Honda dealer oil and filter, the bike has 21k on the clock and I plan on replacing the clutch anyways, thanks for the info...................Tom.

 

[RaWarrior]

Also FWIW....my V30 Magna would take a HD Fatboy up to about 80mph, when the hardly would slowly start to chug by. Off the line it was a total blowout.

So a 500cc Honda, against a 1600cc (96 inch) HD. Guess I shouldn't be too surprised....