Cruiser guys know it's the torque that gets the job done, not the ponies. That's why only 79 horsepower (but 126 lb ft of torque) can push this chesterfield around (with my ass on it as well) quite briskly.
My Harley is dumb and fun to ride... Just like your mom.
- Thread starter adri
- Start date
But you'd be able to not get it done faster.
Sorry, are we still talking harley?
My wife picked up an 883 Sporty SuperLow last year. Spent my whole adult life poking fun at Harleys and now there's one in the garage! lol
Fun to boot around on for a bit, but why is it that it weighs almost exactly what my xDiavel weighs, but feels like it weighs 900lbs when trying to wheel it around the garage/driveway???
Fun to boot around on for a bit, but why is it that it weighs almost exactly what my xDiavel weighs, but feels like it weighs 900lbs when trying to wheel it around the garage/driveway???
afici0nad0
Well-known member
As much as i read about people commenting on sportsters being 'girl' bikes, i have yet to encounter that situation. Or, maybe people just say it when im not around....
I rode with a bunch of touring HD riders and everyone of them smiled knowingly when I brought the Sporty out. No one claimed it was a girls bike but, they also achieved the age when it was no longer an appealing character to ride anytime I offered them the chance to take it for a rip.
Mind you it was a 1200 rigid mount classic and always made me smile.
Owned a few Sportys and Buells and they are stupid fun. Just like my second wife!
…….I’m looking at another machine with character that is air cooled and low HP to weight ratio but, it’s German. Pics will follow in a separate thread.
Mind you it was a 1200 rigid mount classic and always made me smile.
Owned a few Sportys and Buells and they are stupid fun. Just like my second wife!
…….I’m looking at another machine with character that is air cooled and low HP to weight ratio but, it’s German. Pics will follow in a separate thread.
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Are you riding a Sportster as well?
If we cross paths, I'll tell you it's a girls bike, because it is, and that's okay.
Then we can slap hands and potato potato our separate ways, bottoming out on even the most miniscule of potholes, as Sportsters do.
Wise words.
I forgot to mention in my review, this bike's ground clearance is so pathetic I can't even get it on to my motorcycle lift table unless I put some wood underneath to lengthen the ramp... but once I do get it up there everything is easy to work on... Such a dumb ******* bike. I love it.
The Sportster is a great local cruiser, a bike to ride to Timmies to talk about bikes with your buddies and then ride home. Anything else and you'll likely regret it.
A few of us rode to Auburn, in the Finger Lakes area, for a 3 day gathering of primarily ST1100 / ST1300 people a few years ago. Evening we arrived we met a 40ish year old women who was on a completely stock 883 Sportster and had made the 750 km ride from Sudbury in one day. Her riding partner was on an older BMW RT. They had to stop frequently to fill up the tiny Sportster tank and to tighten bolts to prevent parts from falling off. She looked completely shell shocked and could barely walk, probably hoping someone would steal the bike so she would not have to ride it home.
She wanted to ride with her partner and purchased the Sportster because it looked small and manageable to her and she could flat foot it OK when stopped. She'd never spent more than 30 minutes on it at a time before she set out on the 750 km trip.
A few of us rode to Auburn, in the Finger Lakes area, for a 3 day gathering of primarily ST1100 / ST1300 people a few years ago. Evening we arrived we met a 40ish year old women who was on a completely stock 883 Sportster and had made the 750 km ride from Sudbury in one day. Her riding partner was on an older BMW RT. They had to stop frequently to fill up the tiny Sportster tank and to tighten bolts to prevent parts from falling off. She looked completely shell shocked and could barely walk, probably hoping someone would steal the bike so she would not have to ride it home.
She wanted to ride with her partner and purchased the Sportster because it looked small and manageable to her and she could flat foot it OK when stopped. She'd never spent more than 30 minutes on it at a time before she set out on the 750 km trip.
You gotta pay that Harley tax! Bone stock, they ride like a mid 70s Raleigh 10 speed bicycle.
For $300 plus tax, you can find a decent seat from Saddlemen, Mustang or whatever. Then rear shocks and progressive front springs. Unless you go for the slammed look, then it might as well be a hard tail.
Sportys from 2005ish IIRC and newer at least have a rubber mount engine that made it a little better but, also heavier. lol.
I could ride all weekend with a couple of Sporters I owned but, I can’t tell my wife how much I really spent on making it comfortable enough to ride that long.
Added my first Sporter that had the most chrome and very out of fashion. I didn’t care and still don’t.
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Can't tell if you're referring to a new bike or third wife!
One of my HD friends has a very expensive Street Glide and his wife has a Sporty. Just sayin
Something about a Sporty with a dual seat just looks off. I'd want a solo seat, no bags and that ridicuosly small peanut tank.You gotta pay that Harley tax! Bone stock, they ride like a mid 70s Raleigh 10 speed bicycle.
For $300 plus tax, you can find a decent seat from Saddlemen, Mustang or whatever. Then rear shocks and progressive front springs. Unless you go for the slammed look, then it might as well be a hard tail.
Sportys from 2005ish IIRC and newer at least have a rubber mount engine that made it a little better but, also heavier. lol.
I could ride all weekend with a couple of Sporters I owned but, I can’t tell my wife how much I really spent on making it comfortable enough to ride that long.
Added my first Sporter that had the most chrome and very out of fashion. I didn’t care and still don’t.
A bike with a small tank makes no sense - except on the sporty.
Agree with you Tim.
The look of a single seat or slope back seat looks best.
I had 3 different seats for my red custom. A solo Le Pera bare bones that was actually very comfortable and a flame stitched drag specialties that placed me a little too far back from the forward controls.
I road a lot 2up with either my kids or spouse and got lazy swapping out the seats.
2 Week Update:
The good: I still love this stupid bike.
I love the way it feels, I love the way it pulls, I love the way it sounds, I love the way it idles. I love that it isn't faced with the same performance limitations the 2007 XL 883 I had 13 years ago was. I'm smitten.
It's dumb and fun to ride, just like your mom, and this is 100% us right now:
The bad: My confidence on it is pretty dog **** still.
It's not that there's anything wrong with my Iron 1200 specifically, but for the last five years I've been spoiled by the 650 GS (and now a 750GS) that rode to Quebec City and back, rode across Italy twice, can park on a dime, etc. This thing just feels so inexact by comparison. It's just not that kind of motorcycle.
And I'm not some "inch-perfect" rider, but I notice I'm a lot more cautious on more technical riding, or even just on overtaking other vehicles, on my Iron, then I am on other motorcycles. I would say I'm more cautious on this thing than I am even on riding motorcycles I've never ridden before. I'm just very aware that steering, braking, and suspension are... quaint.
I wouldn't call my riding style OVERLY-aggressive, I would call it... standard-friendly-but-still-Italian-aggressive. And I really can't ride like that on this motorcycle, yet.
So long story short
I think I'm falling in love with this dumb bike, but I'm still learning how to mesh with her, and we're still a long way from living up to our potential.
But I like the way she looks when I look at her, and I like the way she feels when I get on top of her, and many a man has married and divorced for less.
The good: I still love this stupid bike.
I love the way it feels, I love the way it pulls, I love the way it sounds, I love the way it idles. I love that it isn't faced with the same performance limitations the 2007 XL 883 I had 13 years ago was. I'm smitten.
It's dumb and fun to ride, just like your mom, and this is 100% us right now:
The bad: My confidence on it is pretty dog **** still.
It's not that there's anything wrong with my Iron 1200 specifically, but for the last five years I've been spoiled by the 650 GS (and now a 750GS) that rode to Quebec City and back, rode across Italy twice, can park on a dime, etc. This thing just feels so inexact by comparison. It's just not that kind of motorcycle.
And I'm not some "inch-perfect" rider, but I notice I'm a lot more cautious on more technical riding, or even just on overtaking other vehicles, on my Iron, then I am on other motorcycles. I would say I'm more cautious on this thing than I am even on riding motorcycles I've never ridden before. I'm just very aware that steering, braking, and suspension are... quaint.
I wouldn't call my riding style OVERLY-aggressive, I would call it... standard-friendly-but-still-Italian-aggressive. And I really can't ride like that on this motorcycle, yet.
So long story short
I think I'm falling in love with this dumb bike, but I'm still learning how to mesh with her, and we're still a long way from living up to our potential.
But I like the way she looks when I look at her, and I like the way she feels when I get on top of her, and many a man has married and divorced for less.
Enjoy the honeymoon my man. I feel you and get it completely. It’s so wrong but, so right at the same time.
Not that I’m looking forward to it but, I suspect there will be a post at some point of no longer being together and it’s not the bikes fault but, you’ve changed and need something different.
