Even on a trailer...

[boomerA]

A friend of mine, who has been trying to get me to buy a Harley-Davidson, was so impressed with the first Roadstar I bought (traded a '09 950T for it) that he said it was the bike Harley should have made all along (and he's had H-Ds all his life. He has four of them right now, but only one is streetable. I'd let him ride my 950T once ,in a parking lot (he didn't want to ride it more than that), and he didn't say anything, but as long as we were riding together, he only filled the gas tank on whichever H-D he was riding, halfway. He told me (when I asked) that a full gas tank on the Harleys made them top-heavy. Then, a couple of years ago, he bought a 950T, which he claims is easier to ride than his other bikes. We haven't ridden together for at least a year, due to my shoulder injury (had surgery last month), so I don't know if he still holds to that sentiment....his current project is a old school hot rod.

[TwinCreeks1600]

I have owned three HD's and all three were good rides, some better than others, but I had the chance to ride a friend's RStar, and I was amazed at the difference between the two brands. I still like HD, but there is no comparison when it comes to quality, IMHO. But that's just me. Ride what works for you.

[Remzac]

My buddies that ride HD's say that the purchase of an HD motorcycle is a down payment on the accessories and all the screaming eagle parts you buy to replace the bad OEM HD parts they put in it at factory.....sorry to hear you have had to dump a ton of money into it man.

[Father Pobasturd]

I had a Ducati, a 1991 906 Paso, had it for a couple years, back when I was in a lot better shape physically and was able to ride more. I didn't have anywhere near the problems with it as I have had with H-D. Way more RPM's and much less shake and bake. Rode it all over New Mexico and only got 1 ticket.

[BigPainRing]

When I bought my Ducati a good friend sent me this...... Sounds like H-D is similar?

[Dick M]

Most H-D owners find they have less problems with them if they leave them in the garage.

[YZ18]

I like some of the HD bikes as well as some of the Indians. The one HD that I wouldn't mind having is the one my dad owns. It would be more sentimental than anything.

[drumsonly2002]

I was a Harley Fanboy until last year. After reading enough about the engineering and design of the Road Star and Harley, my testicles finally dropped and I now fully understand what is what. I am now a Fan-Man of the Road Star and departed from my boyish Harley fanboy ways. The Harley is part of a deep-rooted appreciation of American culture and in that way, I will always respect the brand.

[grubsie]

I have a 1997 Road King I bought last year that I have put way more money into than I will ever get back that I am selling if you are interested. Since you are also in the spending mood, I figure this bike would be the perfect candidate for you.

[roadiemort]

You need to join FB or shoot the wife & sell the HD.,lol.

[Father Pobasturd]

Last time I rode my wife's Fat Boy was coming back from getting the entire charging system replaced (stator, rotor, voltage regulator) and getting all the lights working properly. She hasn't ridden it since then. I start it up once a week and keep Sta-bil in it. So yesterday we load it up on a trailer with the sidecar to get the sidecar mounted. We get out there, get everything unloaded. I start it up, and now the turn signals don't work, the front brake light switch is stuck on, the neutral light is working intermittently and the headlight is flickering. All this from a 15 mile trailer ride. I was following the trailer so I know nothing happened enroute. I also have to put a new needle in the carb so it won't empty the gas tank into the motor if you forget to turn off the fuel. So there's that, mounting the sidecar, and now fixing the lights again. I've had this bike 6 month and it's been ridden about 50 miles and I have already spent way way more money on it than I have in 4 1/2 years on my Road Star. In fact , the only thing I had to fix on my Road Star was to replace that little plastic cover on the side of the carb, I think it was around $30.00. Mind you, it was still running before I fixed it, it just popped a lot. So even on the trailer, it breaks.

My wife's a good rider. She grew up on dirt bikes, like me. I introduced her to street bike when we were in our mid 30's and she took to it well. She learned on the mean streets of downtown Phoenix and never had an incident. For a couple of years we didn't have a car, just a couple big throw over saddlebags we used to shop for groceries. When we moved out to the desert, we were forced to buy a truck to haul water. That's right, no water, we had a 1000 gallon cistern buried in the backyard with a pump that pumped it into the house. I didn't mind hauling water, I would bring my pellet gun and shoot prairie dogs while I was waiting for the water trailer to fill to pass the time. But as time went on she rode less and less, then came the amputation. She can ride without the sidecar , but she can't reach the kickstand to retract it once she's on the bike. But she likes sidecar, she's got a few thousand miles on one, and it solves the kickstand issue. She says she wants to ride it to work, which is 130 miles one way, then she stays there 4 days and comes home for 3. There's a couple other women she works with who have H-D's, so I think it's more of a status thing. She had a 2007 Sportster before the amputation, and they dogged her about her "baby Harley", so she had to get a big twin. I don't know if she will ever ride it to work, hell, I don't know if it'll make it that far. I mean, it runs great, everything on it inside and out is practically new. But whoever put it together was of questionable skills. I had to replace the stator because they put the thrust washer in the wrong place and the stator rubbed on the rotor. The heel-toe shifter was on inside out, the rear shifter rubbed on the cases when it was pushed down. For awhile I thought it was the wrong shifter, but I kept looking at it and I finally realized that's all it was. I have went through it and blue Loc-Tited everything I can to try to keep it together. Of course I'll take it on at least a 100 mile test ride when I get the sidecar on it to see how it does. The moral of the story? H-D doesn't stand for Hunderd Dollars. It stands for Hundreds of Dollars.