Do any of you like Harley Davidson....

[53driver]

I have both a Honda & a Harley Davidson. Have always had one of each, give or take a few months here and there.
Two totally different rides and two totally different missions.
I have never had an Ultra/Road/Duo Glide, so as far as a cross country bike, I cannot comment.
I have had a '73 Ironhead Left Foot Shift Sporty and I still have my '95 Heritage Special.
My first bike was an '81 Standard Wing. Then got the Sporty, then got the Heritage, then got a '98 Valk, sold the '81 Wing, sold the sporty, sold the Valk and got the F6B.

I don't dress like a pirate when I ride Saorla, nor do I care if my jacket & helmet matches my bike when I ride Isleen.
I really don't care what other people think when they see me on either one.
If someone wants to judge my contents (good or bad) on the method of delivery? That's so not my problem and I shan't be taking it on.
I'm not the fastest guy out there, I'm not the safest guy out there, I'm not the smartest guy out there.
But I can easily live with my choices and be happy in my own skin.

There is a time and place for almost anything.
Including Harley Davidson motorcycles.

[shooter]

I personally would like to see the pirate thing...........just sayin.

[hardtail]

Pirates wear an eye patch. Looks cool but is it tuff to ride with one eye?

[shooter]

No depth perception. But that's OK , 53 is not very deep anyway.

[Airborne06]

I have owned both Harleys and Hondas. My current rides are a 2013 F6B and a 2011 Ultra Limited. Both great bikes.
I have owned Harleys for the past 25 years, and Hondas since 1968 (OK, it was my older brother's bike, a 50cc step-thru). I threw in the occasional BMW, Yamaha, and Kawasaki for good measure. I have had a blast on them all.

I rode my 1999 Harley Low Rider all over Europe without a single hiccup...and I ran the hell out of it on the Autobahns at speeds that should have caused the engine to explode according to some on this board. I have taken my various Electra Glides and Super Glides all over the USA as well, with nary a problem.

I guess when you sell as many bikes as Harley, the law of averages suggests there may be some issues with some of the bikes. The Harley dealer network is incredible however, and their customer service is usually world class.
On the other hand, Honda service and sales are amateurish at best (in my opinion).

My Ultra Limited vibrates a bit at idle, but it is not as unbearable as I've seen described by some. Once underway, it is as smooth as any Goldwing, and ergonomically, it fits me like a glove (OK, not OJ's glove!).

I enjoy both of my bikes, and I'm sure I will purchase another Harley in the next couple of years, and likely a Honda as well. Waiting to see what happens with the Goldwings next year (probably nothing), or the F6Bs. Then again, the new BMW bagger (spy shots) has piqued my interest as well......

[racer]

I rode my 1999 Harley Low Rider all over Europe without a single hiccup...and I ran the hell out of it on the Autobahns at speeds that should have caused the engine to explode according to some on this board. ....

If it was a stock lowrider, you weren't going more than about 105 mph indicated. A hotrod 103 (105 hp) will do about 120 mph. Most stock hds won't see more than 105 - 110 mph.

I wouldn't expect your low rider to explode, but if you ran it hard enough and long enough, you probably wore some engine oil.

It is a known issue.

I have personally seen an 88" stock heritage puke oil all over the engine after running high sustained speed, we were running around 85 mph for an extended time. Also happened on a built 95" on a different occasion for the same reason.

the problem is the continuous rise and fall of the air pressure in the crankcase, cam chest and rocker boxes. That the pressure changes are caused by large volume of air moving in and out of the crankcase as the pistons travel up and down. As a result of this air flow and the changes in pressure in the cam chest, air also flows in and out of the rocker boxes through the cylinder head oil drain passages. At sustained high speeds the constant in and out flow of air in the rocker boxes interrupts the free flow of oil from the cylinder heads to the cam chest . In fact a small quantity of oil, pushed up and down by the pressure changes, is trapped in the drain passage, effectively blocking the passage so that no oil can drain out of the rocker boxes . When enough oil has accumulated in the rocker boxes, it will start to blow out the breather passage to the air cleaner and ends up all over your bike, your passengers new boots, and in extreme cases on your rear tire .

Reason for Oil Blow By: More air is displaced by the ascending and descending pistons when a 95" and larger kits have been installed, simply because there's bigger pistons moving up and down. Sustained high rpm riding aggravates blow by because more oil is being pumped into the engine since the pump is turning faster. The rocker boxes become overwhelmed with too much oil that it cannot separate the oil from the escaping air. Some stock displacement engines have oil blow-by problems even when ridden moderately, but that is not the norm. Blow-by does not happen immediately because the oil buildup that causes it takes time to occur. That's why blow-by sometimes doesn't occur until after sustained high-speed riding.

But there is a fix:

TP Engineering has addressed the issue with their engines and Twin Cam models as well as all 1992 and later EVO big twins, and 19991-2003 EVO Sportsters. You can read about TP’s $900 solution at
http://www.tpeng.com/rockerbox.html

Some pictures of the TP Rocker Boxes in this Hot Bike article: http://www.hotbikeweb.com/tech/0303hb_cam/

Ride your Harley within the speed limits and it will never experience this.

I ride with Harleys and have for years. They definitely break. Not everyone will experience failure, but plenty do. I will readily admit that they have little or no trouble if left stock and ridden accordingly. Start "building" them and ride accordingly and they seem to develop issues.

Nothing wrong with Harleys, there are just a lot of better motorcycles available.

[Airborne06]

Yes, stock Lowrider. Didn't burn any appreciable oil. Some on this board claim (or mistakenly think) Harley will explode if you ride them long and hard. Mine didn't. Sold it with 41,000 on the odometer, and it was still running great.