Test Riding Harleys

That's addicting!

Went out to look at a Pacific Coast. Sigh, love been short. Even on that bike I can't get both heels on the ground. Sulking, on my way home I stopped off at a Harley dealership to kill some time, and to check on some helmets. Bear in mind, I've never been on a Harley in my life. Ended up spending several hours learning Harley and taking a dressed Roadking out for a good long ride. Oh man, I liked it. A lot. Too much money, but I'm rationalizing it in my head still.

Fascinating all the things Harley has to fit a bike to you. Short people seats, super short people seats, short people handlebar, short people foot controls, short people suspensions, etc. Being friendly (and the owner is as short as I am), they swapped out several short people controls and seats for me to try, lovely!

Really, I did enjoy riding the bike. All that gentle torque. The shake at idle isn't a problem, and it really does smooth out once you start moving. The brakes were astonishingly good. Super leggy gearing and a 6 speed box. That windscreen is the best one I've ever been behind, bar none. Much quieter once you're on the bike than standing behind it. A very solid presence on the road, while being quite nimble actually. It easily slalomed the dashed lines, without getting upset.

So great, I now find myself thinking either Pacific Coast, with a lowered suspension, a Harley dresser that I can't afford, and I need to go test ride someones Burgman 650. What a weird mix!

If I sell a bunch of the toys I don't play with, and the projects I'm never going to get to, I can come dangerously close to covering the purchase price of a Harley....

Buy a used one from a dentist or other weekend rider who traded in on yet another new Harley and have fun.

You can get a decent Road Kind pretty cheap nowadays.

The 6 speed was standard in 2007, but gearing improved in 2008. 2008 got the throttle-by-wire, the 6 gallon tank and the Brembo brakes, but was still the 'old frame'. 2009 was the new frame and is, other than the change from the 96" to the 103" engine, basically the same as a new one. Try and find a nice '09. You'll love it.

What do you want to spend?

I have a nice 2010 with a detachable tourpack and V&H duals--about 22K miles.

I have a new 2012 "Standard" In Red/Merlot that can be discounted a fair bit as well.

If your just going to Ride Harley's are great. Service, parts, and people are everywhere, they get good MPG and keep the pipes quite and you can really fit in with all riding groups (Cept maybe "sportbikers").

Reliability of the new ones is great and they do look nice. Cost for Used ones are very very low right now so it's the time to buy.

Well, I was shopping Pacific Coasts trying to keep it under three grand. I know, not at all realistic with a Harley (except for Sportsters apparently). So if I really go this route, I need to hoard pennies for quite a while.

The one I rode was post 09, it had the taller frame, albet with the smurf 1" suspension drop front and rear.

And yes, I just want to ride. I don't want to race it and I don't want to spend time and money trying to make it fit. I just want a sweet bike from the get-go that I can ride pretty much anywhere. Be it around town, commuting to work, on dirt roads, and cross country.

foxtrapper wrote: And yes, I just want to ride. I don't want to race it and I don't want to spend time and money trying to make it fit. I just want a sweet bike from the get-go that I can ride pretty much anywhere. Be it around town, commuting to work, on dirt roads, and cross country.

Yep. That's the first Honda I ever rode. I could reach the ground on it.

On a Harley note, there are FL's I see on ebay that rather baffle me for their price. Namely, why can I almost afford them? Seriously, if I keep saving, I could come up with that by spring time.

This 87 http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/87-Harley-Davidson-FLHTC-Electraglide-Classic-/130808213952?pt=US_motorcycles&hash=item1e74c6f1c0#ht_500wt_1182

and this 92 http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1992-Blue-Electra-Glide-Classic-/110981608422?pt=US_motorcycles&hash=item19d704f3e6#ht_13331wt_1165

Now that I've learned what I like is called an FL, are there any good sites describing them throughout history, and that will help me learn which ones are horrible?

A pretty good place to start.

Some members can be a little catty, but there's LOADS of info.

foxtrapper wrote: Well, I was shopping Pacific Coasts trying to keep it under three grand. I know, not at all realistic with a Harley (except for Sportsters apparently). So if I really go this route, I need to hoard pennies for quite a while.

The Sportster is a ton of fun, not your cup of tea I imagine but you can outride the tank on them and be comfortable.

Harleys seem to drop to a price and then just sit there until they turn into projects or the tech just gets to bad to handle.

7K can... get you a 02-03 softail and its not going to lose more then a grand or so in value in the next couple years you ride it.

OK, I'm slowly learning things. Reading this old article, especially about short riders, makes it pretty clear an older shovelhead model won't be for me.

http://shovelhead.us/pics/sheets/tech_1978_FLH-80_anniversary_RT.pdf

This article on a 2010 model by a Harley virgin mirrors my experience with whatever year one I took out.

http://www.webbikeworld.com/motorcycle-reviews/harley-davidson-road-glide-custom/

Now, if I could find some review on the years in between.

I'm surprised Hess hasn't chimed it, yet.

Fox, are you dead set on a Harley or just like the cruiser style? Because my budget is similar to yours, I've never had a Harley.

My neighbor bought a Yamaha Road Star a few years ago, then last year bought his wife the smaller 800cc version. Hers will keep up with him all day, the only difference is he can walk a bit after 90 mph.

HUGE aftermarket, similar riding position; his has bags, floorboards and a windshield, and they're less expensive than Harleys. IIRC hers brand new was ~$4800 out the door.

Of course you have to put up pics when you get something!

Dan

I can't ride with my feet out in front of me as most cruiser do, But I did like the style of the Buell bikes (Sportster engine). The torque is the one thing I really liked, the rough idle, not so much.

My brother has a Buell Thunderbolt, tough getting parts for. The two local Harley dealers don't carry parts, won't even talk to you unless you have an Evo motor or newer.

The torque is the thing.

914Driver wrote: Fox, are you dead set on a Harley or just like the cruiser style? Because my budget is similar to yours, I've never had a Harley.

I'm not dead set on anything. And like most of us in this forum, my attention gets easily swayed by shiny things.

I've ridden and owned many different types of bikes. All were mixed levels of acceptance, none fitting quite right. As I've gotten older, I'm less willing to put up with it, and I'm focusing in more on what really matters to me.

I'm very inseam challenged, and must have narrow hip socket spacing or such, because many bikes hurt high up in the thighs getting both feet down. Very few bikes are what I would consider casually comfortable for me to ride as a result.

I really dislike vibration. It makes riding exhausting, especially long rides. Handlebar vibration will put my hands to sleep in seconds, and then have them hurting in minutes.

Hand positioning and riding position have me swapping bars frequently, trying to find that elusive fit. I like my hands wide apart for leverage. I like them square across, and up near shoulder height. That way I keep pressure off my hands and can wrestle the bike in ruts and such.

My idea of a good time riding is spending hours noodling around admiring pretty scenery. I'm neither a canyon carver nor a bar hopper. I tend to go for long rides when I can.

The Harley Glides fit all this, and more, better than anything I've ridden. The factory options and adjustments let me get the bike to where I could stand up on the footboards, put my feet down solidly without any pressure on my inner thighs, it was the silkiest ride I've ever felt.
More than any bike I've ridden (including some Gold Wings), I wanted to go cross country on it. Would the bike be "fun" on a fire trail? No, but I'm sure I could do it.

The killer? The price. Even older ratty used ones cost thousands more than I have in the pocket, or want to spend.

Dunno. I find myself thinking strange things. Like not doing anything but hoarding money until spring time (not like I do much winter riding these days), as well finding one of those places that will rent a Harley for a weekend, so I can spend hours riding one.

Who knows. Maybe I will still get a Pacific Coast, maybe a Valkyrie, maybe a BMW (doubt that actually). Definately not a KLR.

PC is friendly to the vertically challenged? Visit many many Stealerships and ride everything! Nothng worse than plunking hard earned cash on a bike you grow to hate (had a Honda 1100 cruiser like that).

In the mean time gather information and hoard money.

Dan

Dealers around here don't do test rides. Every so often someone will have a demo new bike, or some test ride day where they'll have a demo fleet out for rides. But just walking into a dealership and saying, "I'm interested in that one. Lemme ride it. Look at my cash," won't get you a ride.

Wow. Around here, just looking at a bike will get you questioned, "Want to take it for a ride?"

At least, that's how it is at Harley dealers. Honda dealers won't even let you sit on one without a deposit.

914Driver wrote: My brother has a Buell Thunderbolt, tough getting parts for. The two local Harley dealers don't carry parts, won't even talk to you unless you have an Evo motor or newer. The torque is the thing.

Buells are Evos. www.americansportbike.com has parts.

914Driver wrote: PC is friendly to the vertically challenged?

I think it's a myth, propagated by freakazoids with 30+ inch inseams . I'd had hopes the bike would squat down a bit with me on it, not hardly. Mostly though the width was surprisingly uncomfortable.

Dealers around here don't do test rides

I don't remember the metric bike dealers doing much either, but then my hair wasn't grey. Grey hair helps things sometimes. In any case, no ride, no sale. Their loss, if they play it that way. I can find another.

Most likely, I'll buy private anyhow. Though All American Harley was so nice and helpful...if I were to buy from a dealership, it would be them.

Ducati Monster? I have heard those are good for inseam challenged people.

This is what I'm talking about with regards to fitting the Road King to a smurf like myself. Yes, I know I can do much of this with aftermarket parts onto various other bikes, including (to a degree) a Pacific Coast. But I'll have to wing it and hope it works. With Harley, I was trying it all right there on the bike I was testing, and finding of for sure what worked, and what didn't.

short rider Road King

If you click the link in the lower left corner of the bike picture and go back to the story, look at how she's sitting on it riding by. That's not foot forward cruiser style (which I actually dislike), that's standard UJM upright posture.

Not listed, but available, are shorter pedals that bring them back and up about an inch closer to the rider. I didn't try them as the seat and the 1" lower kit were quite enough. It would be a toss up between the mini-ape hangers or the reduced reach handlebars for me.

883 Hugger?

fat boy lo will work as well. Harley really does go out of there way to make sure that everyone in the 98% demographic on body type fit on the bike.

I'll be up that way on my Burgman 650 in the spring (not that I'm not riding it now, just that my next trip up your way will require a large load to be hauled home, so I will be in my pickup). I'd be glad to let you try her if you haven't tried one yet.