To Harley or not to Harley?

[RockBottom]

I was struck by your "hours on end" comment. I'm certainly open to the notion that it's just me, but I rented a Fat Bob last Christmas and rode it 200 miles one day. I felt that I'd been beaten with a baseball bat. I was absolutely exhausted. I think it was a combination of the riding position, vibration, heat, and noise. Bob was a hoot for short rides, but not long ones, at least for me.

That said, I haven't ridden any of the big Japanese cruisers so this may be more of a cruiser thing than a Fat Bob thing.

[HYPERR]

I am a brand mean. I don't care what name is on the thing.... if it hits all the right nerve clusters, I'll ride it.

Mega ditto!

I have 4 different bikes right now and I love them all equally. Each one has it's own distinct personality and each one is so much fun to ride in its own way!

[Wordherder]

Just went from a Zook Intruder 800 to a Harley Superglide Custom.

The H-D vibrates like a concrete compactor, is mucho expensive and the company is always grubbing for even more of your money (harley credit cards, special harley bug dissolving juice or your chrome will dissolve, harley special motor oil and harley special this and harley special that, I've gotten at least one envelope in the mail every day since I bought the thing a month ago).

But when I start that Harley up, I grin like a banshee. I mean, Damn. OK, DAMN. Nothing else in the world sounds like that off-kilter, for-gods-sake-tune-me-up 96-cubic-inch motor. Yeah, I like it when heads turn to check it out because I'm an attention mean, sue me. People pull up next to me, give the bike the once-over, and nod. "Nice bike," they say. I never, ever, heard that riding the Suzuki.

The harley's acceleration is so-so. I could beat the thing easily with the old Intruder. And don't try twitching the Superglide thru any sort of sharp turn or you'll end up in the hospital. Slow and steady, plan each twisty at least a week in advance, that's my new bike.

But I won't go back. I can't. Some sort of pixie marketing dust they sprinkle on you at the H-D dealer. Must ... always ... ride ... Harley ...

...

[jaskc78]

Rode the Fat Bob today, they didn't have any Night Trains available.

[RhadamYgg]

Rode the Fat Bob today, they didn't have any Night Trains available.

What did you think of it?

RhadamYgg

[jaskc78]

I was struck by your "hours on end" comment. I'm certainly open to the notion that it's just me, but I rented a Fat Bob last Christmas and rode it 200 miles one day. I felt that I'd been beaten with a baseball bat. I was absolutely exhausted. I think it was a combination of the riding position, vibration, heat, and noise. Bob was a hoot for short rides, but not long ones, at least for me.

I was worried about that too, Rock, but only got to ride it for about 10 miles and didn't even get near highway speeds so couldn't tell.

What did you think of it?

Liked it, but I think it was a bad idea to go test ride it when I know I won't be buying it for at least another few months. It was a lot of fun at 45-50mph, and was very surprised at how easy the clutch was. For some reason I wasn't expecting that at all. I knew it was a hydraulic clutch from the reservoir on the handlebars, but was still surprised how easy it was to pull. The front brakes seemed soft, but the salesman mentioned that to me before I even started it up because it only had 150 miles on it.

Took a bit of getting used to where to shift it since all I could hear was the salesman's motorcycle so I had to kind of shift and then check the speed or downshift if it started shaking too much, and I was really cautious seeing as it was still so early in the break-in period.

The one thing that I did notice was with the fat of a front tire the cracks in the road didn't seem to grab it near as easy as I've gotten used to on the Ninja or Madura. I still felt pretty much every bump I went over, but the cracks in the road didn't grab the tire at all. I've been told that the Dynas have a tendency to be a little rougher than the Softails, but I don't know if it was just a bad road we were on or if it was just that much rougher of a ride than I'd expected. Think I'm gonna go ride that section of road a few times on the Madura and see how it goes before I take any more test rides up that way.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the test ride except for how short it was. Would have really liked for it to have been about 20 miles longer. Do the 10 miles on the back roads, then hop on the freeway for a bit to see how it feels at speed. Hopefully I can convince them to let me do that once it gets closer to buying time. I think the fistful of cash idea is my best bet on that.

I would have really liked to have taken a Night Train out so that I could compare the two, but best I could manage was to sit on one in the showroom. Had a very hard seat, but I love the look of it. Very sharp with all the anti-chrome (blacked out).

[MTNMAN800]

jaskc78 - Lots of good bikes out there and I think most of the comments already posted are pretty spot on. The one thing I would suggest coming from the sport bike background to the cruisers is look for a little more HP than the V Star 1100. I just came off a Yamaha FZ6 and got the Road Star 1700. I am very pleased with it - but I am really glad I didn't go any smaller. When you get used to the power and performance that you have with your current bikes it will be very different going to a cruiser. The smaller cruisers don't have the power you think they do. They do have good torque, but I would recommend looking larger than the 1100 in the Star Line. With the Honda's being liquid cooled, the 1300 will be more to your liking vs the 1100, to make it a fair comparison (power wise) look into the bigger star bikes.

[Ryethil]

jaskc78 - Lots of good bikes out there and I think most of the comments already posted are pretty spot on. The one thing I would suggest coming from the sport bike background to the cruisers is look for a little more HP than the V Star 1100. I just came off a Yamaha FZ6 and got the Road Star 1700. I am very pleased with it - but I am really glad I didn't go any smaller. When you get used to the power and performance that you have with your current bikes it will be very different going to a cruiser. The smaller cruisers don't have the power you think they do. They do have good torque, but I would recommend looking larger than the 1100 in the Star Line. With the Honda's being liquid cooled, the 1300 will be more to your liking vs the 1100, to make it a fair comparison (power wise) look into the bigger star bikes.

It's been my experience that if the bike is comfortable and fits you then the larger engine is usually the way to go. It's much easier to ride down at "normal" city and hiway speeds. Your not constantly trying to keep it on the pipe or in some hp/torque sweetspot. That is the reason that while 750s seem to be forgotten, they are only slightly bigger than 600s and are the added hp/torque allows a more laid back biking experience.

As far as big twins, there are several good ones and they aren't all Harleys. I like the Road Star and I love the VTX1300. They and others are torque monsters that are really easy to gain confidence in. And the price per smile ratio is great!

However, if I were you (and I'm not), I would do some fairly intensive reasearch and decide what you want ahead of starting your search for a bike. I love Harleys for their specialness. I also love Buells, Ducaties, Triumphs and maybe even the Norton Commando if it ever comes to the states. All this maybe moot because you may try out something you've never even though about and realize it and you are soulmates. I didn't say it was all going to be rational.

I would say one thing else. Don't listen to other people that "know" what you should have. Harley's are special but the Sportsters aren't "real" Harleys and the Big Twins are bulky and take forethought so you don't get caught in a place they aren't comfortable in. I get away with riding a Sportster because I'm a gurl and it doesn't take much to learn the specialness of a Harley Big Twin. You might feel pressure to get a Harley or some other bike because other people's ideas of what you should get but don't listen to them. Unless there is some kind of "scene" that goes the bike type and model. I'm hard core Harley lover and most of my biking friends also ride Harley's so I have become a fixture on the Harley social circuit.

However, motorcycles are about freedom. Make sure you keep yours.

[joolz]

Why not have a look at the new Triumph Thunderbird?

[Ryethil]

Why not have a look at the new Triumph Thunderbird?

I guess paranoia on my part. We have a Triumph dealer in town and he pretty much a "good egg". However, while I've sat on the Thunderbird and like it's ergonomics (I can fit on it!) there just isn't as many dealerships as Harley or others if something goes wrong. I still love Triumphs and the local dealer will still try to help you get parts from the suppliers that carry them. I don't trust them out of town. I'm not so sure a new Triumph wouldn't be the same way.

I guess this is sort of a back handed compliment. The new Triumphs are put together in a unbelievabley better way than the best of the old ones.