This is an honest review of all the issues no one else talks about along with a few of things they do. i made this video on the last ride just before i traded it in on a triumph rocket III. this is a great bike but i am trading it in after 9 months of ownership. that doesn't mean its a bad bike, just not the best bike for me.

as i found out, it was hugely better than my last bike, the Honda rebel but this bike had its limitations. the reality is it performs EXACTLY as advertised and i cannot fault Yamaha for the fact that it did not suit me. the Yamaha bolt, or star bolt 950 is an URBAN BOBBER. this means it is designed for in town or city driving. for the first 1000 miles everything seamed ok, once i got real comfortable with the Yamaha bolt / star bolt i started to notice the following:

1. at 50 HP it really is not enough power for the bike- 10.5 lbs/hp just does not really do it for me
2. it is too low. i scraped the pegs EVERY TIME i took the bike out, and not riding aggressive either. after a while i got nervous i was going to scrape the pegs again and a gain and lost confidence in the ability to lean the bike over
3. again the low clearance meant that i would bottom out trying to get into my driveway if i wasn't approaching at a crawl.
4. the gearing is too low for highway (90% of my riding) use....around here. with traffic moving at 70-75mph, i was left with little top end for passing or maneuvering, and i just could not rely on having enough umph to get out of a jamb if i had to.

these issues are only as they pertain to me, im sure many others find the bike perfect for their use but alas it was not meant to be for me and the Yamaha bolt.

the bike i have now and you can see a video of it here    • Triumph Rocket III Part 1 - owner rev...   is the Triumph Rocket III and to say that it is a BEAST is an understatement! it is 300lbs heavier than the bolt but handles WAY BETTER! corners better, better ground clearance and i can lean over far enough to utilize every inch of tread on the 240 tire!!! oh yeah and 147HP with 163ft/lbs of torque. i have finally found MY baby!!