2010 Victory Hammer 8-Ball

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jaskc78
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2010 Victory Hammer 8-Ball

#1 Unread post by jaskc78 »

This is copied from a PM I sent a few months ago, so I'll do my best to update it but may miss a couple of references to time owned and the then-current time frame. Feel free to ask any other questions you may have, I'll do my best to either answer them myself or point you in the right direction.


Overall it's a great bike, I've put almost 11,500 miles on mine in the first year. I'd advise test riding one before you buy to make sure you like that rear tire, having almost 11 inches of rubber on the back end changes some of the turning characteristics, as I'm sure you can imagine. It has ridiculous amounts of power, especially torque, so when you hit the throttle from a stop it feels like a rocket underneath you.

I went with the stage 1 intake and exhaust, then added the S&S open airbox to just clean up the look a bit. I also went with forward controls and added the tachometer. I regularly see about 40-45 mpg on the highway, and 35-40 around town.

Some of the negatives about the Hammer 8-Ball are the lack of saddlebag options, the transmission, the tachometer, and seat options. Victory only offers 1 choice for saddlebags, and the aftermarket is limited to taking your chances with 'Universal Fit' bags or fabricating your own mounting brackets. It only has the 5-speed transmission instead of the 6-speed that's found on any non-8-Ball models. The transmission itself is great, but the lack of a 6th gear bothers me due to the amount of time I spend on the highway. It turns about 3300-3400 RPMs at 80mph, and kind of peters out around 90ish. It will still go faster, but the acceleration just drops off. It doesn't have a tachometer (about $225 to add one), and only has single disc brakes up front. Seats are another limited item, Victory offers 3 replacements to the stock seat--with only one of them being viable for two-up riding--outside of that you're looking at Corbin, although there may be other options out there that I haven't seen.

In addition to the limited seat and saddlebags aftermarket support, it seems that most aftermarket companies only list what HD models their grips, pegs, mirrors, etc fit even though I'm sure they'd fit just fine on a Victory you have to look at the measurements rather than just a list of models that it fits. Also, even though it only has the single disc brake up front, it's kind of nice because it does provide plenty of stopping power without having enough grip to lock up the front wheel. The other thing that I've noticed is that the front forks dip a LOT when you brake, but from everything I've read in some of the Victory owner forums I visited, putting some heavier fork oil in really stiffens them up nicely. I'm waiting until I do the fork seals to swap out the oil, so I can't speak to that from personal experience yet.

Overall, I think it's a really good bike. It's got a very sleek, muscular look to it and I just love the curves of the bike. In retrospect, though, I don't think I would buy it again simply because I do so much riding on the highway and would like to take longer trips in the near future--a 6th gear and some saddlebag options would make a world of difference, but they just aren't there for the Hammer 8-Ball. I would definitely buy another Victory, but not another Hammer (8-Ball or otherwise) unless I already had another long distance bike. I can easily do 100-150 miles between stops on the Hammer, but that lack of luggage always bothers me.

I did have the Victory saddlebags on my bike for a while, and they looked great on the bike when they were new, but even as soon as I opened the box and looked at them at the dealership they just seemed small and a little chintzy. The hinge to open them is plastic that just folds back over on itself and I couldn't help thinking that that is exactly how you break credit cards if you don't have scissors. Also, and it may have been the weather here in AZ, they shrunk quite a bit and that really made them lose their shape and they just looked bad even as early as 4 or 5 months after I'd bought them. I think a little bit of this dilemna is because I got spoiled with my Road Glide and having those big deep hard bags on the side of it, but I don't think it's too much to ask for some high quality bags considering how much they cost for the bags, brackets, and installation.

Another thing you may want to keep in mind about this bike is that the controls are closer to the rider on the 8-Ball than on the other versions of the Hammer. That may bother you more than it bothers me, if I remember correctly you're about 5 inches taller than I am, and I went with the forward controls and am looking to buy some highway pegs for the engine guard.

Also, the resale value on Victory motorcycles is nowhere near what it is for Harleys. I jokingly asked about trading in my 8-Ball on one of the 2010 Hammers when they started offering the end of model year specials and he offered me $8,000 on trade only 7 months after I'd bought the bike for $14,000.
"Dude, women are like Vol-Tron. The more you can hook up the better it gets!" --RvB
Currently waiting on a new hip before I can get a new bike.

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totalmotorcycle
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Re: 2010 Victory Hammer 8-Ball

#2 Unread post by totalmotorcycle »

Great review! I enjoyed reading that. :D

Mike
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jaskc78
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Re: 2010 Victory Hammer 8-Ball

#3 Unread post by jaskc78 »

You cheated, though. You've already read it.
"Dude, women are like Vol-Tron. The more you can hook up the better it gets!" --RvB
Currently waiting on a new hip before I can get a new bike.

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Gummiente
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Re: 2010 Victory Hammer 8-Ball

#4 Unread post by Gummiente »

Good read! I'd heard about the resale value (or rather, the lack thereof) but this is ridiculous - $8k for a 7 month old $14k bike?! :shock:
:canada: Mike :gummiente:
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It's THAT you ride

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totalmotorcycle
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Re: 2010 Victory Hammer 8-Ball

#5 Unread post by totalmotorcycle »

jaskc78 wrote:You cheated, though. You've already read it.
;)

Oh, there you go letting the cat out of the bag. haha.

Mike
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