LOL. Old guy at work bought brand new HOG. Only riding experience is minibike once as a kid. His take on handling is how it feels all balanced going down the hwy. Many ways to skin a cat but don't tell Fluffy.
Today, I rode a Harley
- Thread starter Pete5000
- Start date
LOL. Old guy at work bought brand new HOG. Only riding experience is minibike once as a kid. His take on handling is how it feels all balanced going down the hwy. Many ways to skin a cat but don't tell Fluffy.
Dresden
Well-known member
I too once hated (the idea of a) Harley. I see the light now.. Still wouldn't put the "I want to be heard in Mexico" loud pipes on them, but the comfort, brand recognition, fit and finish are very high. I personally love the Night Rod and the 883. That said, I'd still keep a sport bike in the Garage for those need-for-speed days.
RedDogDarren
Well-known member
You sure are lucky to have a bike that never breaks down that you get parts for the next day! Why are you ordering parts, just to see how quick they come?
I am not as lucky as you, I have those Japanese bikes that you have to wait half the season to get parts.
But after 35 years and 20 Japanese motorcycles I have never needed any parts so I guess I really dodged that bullet!
I really hope to one day have a Harley because they are the best! And with no real evidence needed to support that claim, they must truly be the best.
LOL
Roomie
Banned
Come talk to a guy at my work. He can't say why but he tells me they're the best too. Funny he didn't ride ugh this summer because it broke and he waited on whatever. Calls my bike the weed whacker yet I managed 30k this season to his sub 5k
Nah, Ducatis are the best, and once my neighbor gets his 900SS started, he'll prove it.
Those chrome bolt-on farkles don't come standard.
I affectionately call my bike an oversized weed whacker, lol. My coworker asked me if I was going to race against scooters when I bought it.
Since we are talking about Harleys.. Has anyone heard of the H-D Live Wire project. Its pretty cool check it out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyJr8BoklC0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyJr8BoklC0
Tons of threads on this. I give it a 10% chance of production.
Yes. Shoved a couple rabbit ears from under my rock, caught it on the telly. Some people are giving it 10% (don't quote me) chance of production.
SweetOnion
Well-known member
lol inreb... I don't know how anyone can talk **** about your posts, you've risen up to my favourite frequent poster on the board at the moment I think!! 
Roadghost
Well-known member
You sure are lucky to have a bike that never breaks down that you get parts for the next day! Why are you ordering parts, just to see how quick they come?
I am not as lucky as you, I have those Japanese bikes that you have to wait half the season to get parts.
But after 35 years and 20 Japanese motorcycles I have never needed any parts so I guess I really dodged that bullet!
I really hope to one day have a Harley because they are the best! And with no real evidence needed to support that claim, they must truly be the best.
LOL
LOL. I knew someone was going to pick out that obvious irony. But, yeah I ordered a couple of parts for it last summer and they were in stock at the HD dealer. My Yamahaha broke down several times. 4 months for a tank, 2 months for a CDI box, etc. If you can find a Jap dealer that hasn't gone bankrupt or is in financial stress he might stock something more than just helmets and jackets. HD stocks almost every part on the bike. To be fair, friends who owned CB750s never had a minutes trouble with their bikes and had less trouble getting parts. Are Harley's the MOST reliable? Not likely, but they are easy to repair and don't break down very much in my experience with the models built after 1985.
Harleys are way more reliable now compared to the pre Evo days. People expect Toyota Corolla type reliability now a days. That's a bit of a stretch for HD. Or BMW.
Couple years back I needed an air filter and exhaust gaskets for my Buell. Pooles HD had them in stock. Nearly died of shock at the price(not exotic pieces, regular Sportster fare). Old Bill let me know in no uncertain terms "At least we have them in stock!" Identical experience at Budds BMW. Online or go home.
RedDogDarren
Well-known member
I couldn't resist, it just seemed too funny. Your Yamaha really was a bag of trouble by the sounds of it.
BigEvilDoer
Well-known member
From what I understand an Outer Mongolian tractor mechanic from 1932 can repair a harley, as they use pretty much the same technology. (that's a good thing actually)
Sure, the engines are easily repairable as their technology is so far outdated, but the whole package suffers from the same dated design. Lousy brakes, lousy suspension, etc etc. (that's a the bad thing).
Fail ...
HarleyHare
Well-known member
They want customer feedback on an electric HD? Once you lose the loud pipes the attraction to many Hardley riders is gone. However there will be a noise generator to make it sound a little like a jet engine (I'm not making this up) A 10% chance of production sounds about right. To quote Jay Leno, 'this bike will not appeal to the traditional HD rider'.
However reliability would go up exponentially as it's all electric (loses the antiquated gas internal mechanicals) and there are no gears/transmission. That might be a detraction.
Of course in 50 years everything will be electric with demise of oil and rise of fusion (electric generated power), just like some of the first few cars and bikes 100 years ago. Proof that oil was a relatively short-lived power source.
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Matthew.Tremayne
Well-known member
I took a V-Rod Night Rod Special (dealer called it that). It was one of their liquid cooled bikes, sportier and looked great. Sounded great (not the typical Harley sound, much more refined). I went on it in my Blue/White/Black Yamaha power ranger suit, so I looked funny comparatively to the other Harley Demo riders. First time riding a Harley. My thoughts on the way it rides.... Absolutely garbage unless you go straight and like to hit every stop sign looking cool and sounding cool. Didn't corner worth sh*t... The Harley employee told me it handles so well and is so fast I could take it to a track and absolutely be competitive against sport bikes. Well, he had a magic wand up his @$$...... Oh and it cooked my leg through my damn suit.... I couldn't imagine the air cooled engines.
On the other hand, I am a HUGE Honda Goldwing fan. The 2014 Valkyrie (Naked Goldwing) is probably the fastest and best handling bike out there (cruiser wise). Slam that thick girl into sweepers at high rates of speed and she lays right over (thanks to the increased height). If I ever go and get a cruiser, it's a Valkyrie. The Bolt wasn't bad, not enough power though.
On the other hand, I am a HUGE Honda Goldwing fan. The 2014 Valkyrie (Naked Goldwing) is probably the fastest and best handling bike out there (cruiser wise). Slam that thick girl into sweepers at high rates of speed and she lays right over (thanks to the increased height). If I ever go and get a cruiser, it's a Valkyrie. The Bolt wasn't bad, not enough power though.
Here's my 2 1/2 cents on HD from new rider with a year's experience.
Any company that creates a strong brand and following in my books is a great company. I too could get easily lured to drink the kool-aid, buy into the lifestyle and up my cool factor. I went on that Jacox Harley Demo Day a few weeks ago - my first time actually stepping foot in a Harley Dealer. I was mesmorized by the leather, accesories, shiny bikes and the loyal customers. I fell in love with the Breakout after the demo ride purely because of its cool factor and the feeling you're bada$$ - call me wierd but scraping pegs in turns is cool. Being only 5'8 I had that pseudo napoleon complex. If didn't have 2 active boys in hockey, skiing, and a wife who'll forever roll in a premium SUV over a minivan, I'd probably have a shiny new breakout in my garage beside my Monster. I couldn't care for other models: Street Bob chattered the teeth out of my mouth, the Fat Boy felt like a whale, the street 750 wasn't enough of a difference (ride experience) from what I ride now, and anything with a stereo system, GPS, BatWing, hard bags etc...is way too distracting for me. I didn't ride the vrod but it looked really cool.
Sure the Victory Hammer or an equivalent metric bike could be more reliable and state of the art, and I don't have enough riding experience yet to comment on those factors. But Harley sells the cool factor, lifestyle and experience that would compliment my current Ducati riding experience.
Any company that creates a strong brand and following in my books is a great company. I too could get easily lured to drink the kool-aid, buy into the lifestyle and up my cool factor. I went on that Jacox Harley Demo Day a few weeks ago - my first time actually stepping foot in a Harley Dealer. I was mesmorized by the leather, accesories, shiny bikes and the loyal customers. I fell in love with the Breakout after the demo ride purely because of its cool factor and the feeling you're bada$$ - call me wierd but scraping pegs in turns is cool. Being only 5'8 I had that pseudo napoleon complex. If didn't have 2 active boys in hockey, skiing, and a wife who'll forever roll in a premium SUV over a minivan, I'd probably have a shiny new breakout in my garage beside my Monster. I couldn't care for other models: Street Bob chattered the teeth out of my mouth, the Fat Boy felt like a whale, the street 750 wasn't enough of a difference (ride experience) from what I ride now, and anything with a stereo system, GPS, BatWing, hard bags etc...is way too distracting for me. I didn't ride the vrod but it looked really cool.
Sure the Victory Hammer or an equivalent metric bike could be more reliable and state of the art, and I don't have enough riding experience yet to comment on those factors. But Harley sells the cool factor, lifestyle and experience that would compliment my current Ducati riding experience.
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