Thinking of down sizing until today

As I am getting closer to the ripe old age of "80" and still love to ride when I can, I thought of maybe trading my F6B for a smaller, lighter, and less expensive bike...Checked out the local Indian dealer today and the Scout might fit the bill. I changed my mind when the sales person said they would offer me $6700-$6900 in trade for my bike...Perfect condition, many options, custom paint, only 15,800 miles bought late in 2013 and ridden for only 5 seasons....Told him goodbye and I will sell it outright if and when I decide to make the change..Told him I know I can get at least $10,000 or more in the retail market and was not going to "give away" my current ride as I did not need to....Going to stand pat for now unless I get a decent offer and I am in no hurry...Regards

:yes:

I was offered $7,000 for my 2015 with 60,000 miles on trade for a Harley. I gave them the same answer you did. I will ride this bike until it expires or I do.

Awww, come on, really??
I can't see giving up a flat six for a V-twin.
I can't see giving up a shaft drive for a chain.
........... you know what I mean.
Just get that wing lowering kit, and, VOILA!, you have almost what you need except for the weight.

Did you get a chance to ride an Indian?? How was it??

Unless Opas has his suspension cranked way up you can't get a B much lower or you'll be scraping pavement all the time. Weight is probably the biggest factor. My M109R only weighed about 100 pounds less but it felt like a ton. The difference was quite noticeable.

I went from a Scout to my F6b. It's a great bike but I hear you, dealing with salespeople is just silly. I get the program and starting point, trade versus retail, but when they are just so far out of middle ground it makes it tough. I was going to trade my Scout on a used Chief, not only did they lowball me half the value but as a Harley dealer they told me they don't bother trading used for used. I was like, if we see middle ground here on values, you still take in over $2k for a half hour's work before you go to auction with the Chief. Still no dice. Indian dealers usually are much better at being reasonable. Last one I tried to make a deal with offered me solid trade money on the Scout, but high ticketed the Dark Horse I wanted telling me about all the upgrades, after telling me they don't put value on the accessories I added to my Scout.....wait, what? So I told them you give me what you said you would on the Scout and I will pay high book for that Dark Horse...then they looked up book. No deal. It's kind of fun to play the game once in a while.

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Originally Posted by 1911

Awww, come on, really??
I can't see giving up a flat six for a V-twin.
I can't see giving up a shaft drive for a chain.
........... you know what I mean.
Just get that wing lowering kit, and, VOILA!, you have almost what you need except for the weight.

Did you get a chance to ride an Indian?? How was it??

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Scout is belt drive and very fast for a V-Twin with the high-revving DOHC motor and it handles great... I have no issues with the height on the 6 as I have a Mustang lower seat and 1/2" higher heels and soles on my boots...The 835 lbs. is the major problem now as I get older and somewhat weaker in the old legs...Otherwise I love my bike and hope I can ride it a while longer...The Scout is also only 560 lbs and much cheaper than most other bikes in this class...Regards

Just go get a Harley. They make light weight bikes (Softtails, Sportsters and the newer 500/750 models). Much better following than the Indian. Softtail Slim are low and weigh ~600 lbs and have the 107 ci engine.

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Originally Posted by opas ride

Scout is belt drive and very fast for a V-Twin with the high-revving DOHC motor and it handles great... I have no issues with the height on the 6 as I have a Mustang lower seat and 1/2" higher heels and soles on my boots...The 835 lbs. is the major problem now as I get older and somewhat weaker in the old legs...Otherwise I love my bike and hope I can ride it a while longer...The Scout is also only 560 lbs and much cheaper than most other bikes in this class...Regards

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My brother just got a new fat bob with a 114 motor.
I sat on it and it felt good. You sit in it and the bars were in the right place.
Nice bike.

Honda Shadow and CTX 700 are both lighter bikes. Trade ins on any vehicle car or bike are always low ball. You can always beat it if you sell yourself, if you want to put in the effort.

Google the Honda CTX700DCT a 500# baby "B." Look a lot like the B, w/ a low C/G. == If you go to a "Honda Power Sports" dealer ( they only sell Hondas) you'll get a better deal.
I'm 77yo & been thinking the same thing about my B.... I just brought a new 2018 CTX 700 DCT, from RC Hill Honda Power Sports DeLand, Fl. great to deal with ==haven't gone for a good ride yet, been thunder, lightening & pouring rain since I got it. Traded my 2009 Suzuki V-Strom DL1000.... For now I'm keeping my B. I've found most, if not all, V Twins are top heavy & very hot to ride.

Opas Ride: At almost 75 yrs of age I have been contemplating the same as you and the same replacement bike(Indian Scout). It sounds as though you have an Indian dealer fairly close by. If I had that situation, I would be totally serious about the Scout. The closest dealer to me is about 90 miles. I need someone closer than that. A nice feature of the Scout is the availability of "reduced reach" controls for us vertically challenged guys. I don't like the "feet forward" position at all and the closer foot controls, bars, and I believe a seat also should allow me to custom fit it to me.
Ironically, as Oldgoat said, the Honda CTX700(also the naked version)was also on my radar. Then came that feet forward thing again. The foot controls are way out there in front.
Another possibility is the Honda NC750X. This bike has the "Adventure Bike" styling with the same engine as the CTX700 only it has been bumped up to 750cc(or close to it). It also comes with the DCT which would be the only configuration I would want. Owners are reporting 60 - 70+ mpg with plenty of power for the highway. The NC750X is a taller bike, but like my V-Strom, by the time you get your weight on it, it settles in nicely.

Just my ideas, your mileage may vary. Enjoy the hunt.

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Originally Posted by motornerd

Honda Shadow and CTX 700 are both lighter bikes. Trade ins on any vehicle car or bike are always low ball. You can always beat it if you sell yourself, if you want to put in the effort.

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Your right and I would be more apt to consider the offer at the Indian dealership, except the sources I checked on the Internet tell me the 2013 F6B Deluxe is worth about $8500 to $9500 low retail...Average bikes going for about $10500 or more..Mine is pristine with only 15,000 K on the odo and "mucho bucko" in custom paint, seat, pipes, etc. etc. and I am not ready at this point to let the dealer get rich at my expense...Regards and ride safe

I may be selling mine in the near future. 27k miles. I am thinking of asking $9500 with accessories, $9000 without.

Have any of you guys contemplated the Valkry. Much lighter and same bike. I have been think for my second bike and get rid of my Vrod which is a night rod in blue. Attachment 6523

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Originally Posted by thunder217

Have any of you guys contemplated the Valkry. Much lighter and same bike. I have been think for my second bike and get rid of my Vrod which is a night rod in blue. Attachment 6523

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That is another possibility for sure. The one thing that kinda steers me away from the Valkyrie is wind management. From the sound of things on the F6C Board, those owners have the same issues that we do in getting a windshield that does a decent job. It is another thought though.

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Originally Posted by six2go

That is another possibility for sure. The one thing that kinda steers me away from the Valkyrie is wind management. From the sound of things on the F6C Board, those owners have the same issues that we do in getting a windshield that does a decent job. It is another thought though.

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Not for me after riding one a couple years ago...My 99 Valk Tourer was a much nicer bike in most every aspect in my opinion....Handled better, much better wind management as said above, and much nicer looking...BTW, has anyone ridden, or owned, or have any input on the older 2014/15 Honda V-twin Interstate model...I know they no longer make it, but I have always liked the thing for what I am looking for...Road tests from the past seem pretty positive for the most part...Should be able to find a left-over new one somewhere and have seen a couple posted for under $10,000....Regards

I had a 2014 Valkyrie and the F6B handles better and is easier to ride due to the lower center of gravity from smaller diameter wheels and the location of the fuel tank. The F6C has a metal 6 gallon tank in front of you above your hips instead of below you as on the F6B. The F6C 19/17 wheel setup also raise the bike’s center of gravity 1/2” higher than the F6B’s 18/16 setup. Lastly the Valkyrie brakes are not linked so the bike dives under medium to hard braking. I like the F6B’s brakes much better.

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Originally Posted by opas ride

Your right and I would be more apt to consider the offer at the Indian dealership, except the sources I checked on the Internet tell me the 2013 F6B Deluxe is worth about $8500 to $9500 low retail...Average bikes going for about $10500 or more..Mine is pristine with only 15,000 K on the odo and "mucho bucko" in custom paint, seat, pipes, etc. etc. and I am not ready at this point to let the dealer get rich at my expense...Regards and ride safe

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Current NADA values for 2013 F6B Deluxe
Rough Trade-In Clean Trade-In Average Retail
$6,460 $8,485 $10,630

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Originally Posted by 1951vbs

Current NADA values for 2013 F6B Deluxe
Rough Trade-In Clean Trade-In Average Retail
$6,460 $8,485 $10,630

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At $9000, mine should sell quickly. Who wants it?

[QUOTE=Joflewbyu2;178408]I had a 2014 Valkyrie and the F6B handles better and is easier to ride due to the lower center of gravity from smaller diameter wheels and the location of the fuel tank. The F6C has a metal 6 gallon tank in front of you above your hips instead of below you as on the F6B. The F6C 19/17 wheel setup also raise the bike’s center of gravity 1/2” higher than the F6B’s 18/16 setup. Lastly the Valkyrie brakes are not linked so the bike dives under medium to hard braking. I like the F6B’s brakes

I second the f6c brake concern.
I rode a 2014 f6c for a summer. I rarely use the rear brake when riding but I inadvertently locked up the rear wheel 3 times in the first few weeks on the f6c. This never happened to my f6b in 4 years of riding.

The newer generation of the Valkyrie was another major "Honda Blunder" that did not sell well...It was ugly, handled poorly, top heavy, no wind protection, no saddle bags, etc. etc. and was introduced in the wrong place at the wrong time....F6B had it all over this mistake and sales tanked shortly after it was in the showrooms...Give me my old 99 Tourer any day instead....Regards