The Trials & Tribulations of Harley Ownership

[speedjunkie]

It's all in perspective, for some reason break downs and failing seem to be the definition a motorized soul by a lot of people. I don't care for breakdowns which is why I ride Hondas, but my Hondas most definitely have "souls". They're rock sold and reliable, can't ask for more

Breakdowns aren't part of the soul, it's part of the adventure, especially on old iron. The evo & TC bikes don't break on the side of the road that often, but do need routine MX & do have failures now and then. My gripe is when they have a recurring failure item, they just seem to throw a redesign at it & hope it works, instead of spending some time at it for a real one time fix.

The bikes unique personality and how it makes you feel is the soul. My old iron literally makes me giggle when I ride her!

Least that's this knuckdraggers opinion.




Mike

[Heatnbeat]

My 2 bikes appeal to two different parts of my personality. Black Moriah feedst he sensible grownup side, but my 90 proto StreetGlide feeds the inner teenager.
At 68 it's harder to keep that kid alive and smiling, but the Naked Lady Xpress
sure helps😎

[53driver]

My 2 bikes appeal to two different parts of my personality. Black Moriah feedst he sensible grownup side, but my 90 proto StreetGlide feeds the inner teenager.
At 68 it's harder to keep that kid alive and smiling, but the Naked Lady Xpress sure helps😎

Sometimes, ya gotta be loud and possibly misinterpreted as obnoxious...

[Old Ryder]

I have 2 bikes, also.

My 14 Valkyrie (you really need to ride it before you say that it has no soul) sits next to my chromed out, ground shaking 01 Softail Springer. About the only thing they have in common if the fact that they both have 2 wheels. One is a race horse and the other is a show horse. One feels like you are riding on an electric powered magic carpet---- the other feels like you are being powered by a mini active volcano. Rode the Springer to work the last 2 days and put 240 miles on the Valkyrie during Labor Day.

Best of both worlds.

[F6B1911]

Bought a 1978 FLH, back when HD was owned by AMF, in four years I paid for it again in repairs.
My fastest Black F6B is 4 years old now, haven't had the need for any repairs - the brake recall doesn't count does it?

[TandemGeek]

Bought a 1978 FLH, back when HD was owned by AMF, in four years I paid for it again in repairs.

Those were some dark days.... and really crappy products.

Some of the stuff Harley puts on the street has continued to be crappy, hence the oft heard reply to a mechanical failure, "first time we've seen that" (yeah, right) or "they all do that".

Compensators.... I'm on a new and improved model that replaced the 2013 improved model which replaced the last effort to improve the compensator model... and so on. Lifters, crankshaft run-out and....

[Old Ryder]

I will say "Nobody beats Harley for quality".

Do not confuse that comment with "Harley builds the best motorcycle". They don't. But they do build with quality materials that hold up well.

They do not have the best design nor are they the most dependable or have the smoothest engine or ride. But they do make bikes that age better than most. I had a 20 year old Heritage and the paint was better after 1\5 of a century and 45K miles than any other bike I have owned. How many posts are here about the quality of Honda's paint. I can park my black 3 year old Valkyrie with 21K next to my black Springer --also with 21K miles and if you had to go by condition alone you would not be able to distinguish between the bike that is 3 years old and the one 16 years old. With the VRod, they proved that they can design a great bike that is dependable and powerful---even if it is not--nor ever was popular. They were great bikes for what they were meant to do.

Many Harley owners will tell you that they own a Harley for no other reason than they just want a Harley. Nothing wrong with that, I guess. I have owned a number of Metric Cruisers and ---try as they may---they cannot duplicate the Harley thump. The big Star bikes come as close as possible.

I will agree that the pre-EVO era was a nightmare. I think the 90's thru 2006 were their best years---JMHO of course. When I demo the new bikes, they just don't feel the same. They are very tame and feel domesticated and house broken.

What you have been reading is the ramblings of a bored warehouse supervisor who is through for the week and still has 2 hours to kill before the weekend starts. BTW---rode the Valkyrie to work the last 2 days. Love it just as much as the Springer.