Rode 4 Indians at a Demo event today...

[crossbowme]

I have the Traxxion Full Monty and it adds zero "plushness". However, it improves every other facet of riding/handling.

[lake_carl]

Unsprung weight is suspension stressor so bigger tire might bridge road imperfection but will ride and make handling likely worse. Low profile tire have stiffer sidewalls and those tires absorb less road feel. I bet if you rode 2 up or put those Indians through some curves you would start to feel many issues with soft normal ride.

[olegoat345]

I owned a 2016 Indian Chief. Not long after I brought it, I was in the Honda dealership to P/U a throttle rocker for the Chief. I was looking at a "B's" they sitting on the floor when a young salesman said, "want ah take it for a ride?" Let me run home & get my helmet & jacket. I took that new 2016 "B" for about 15 miles run. When I got back I tried to make a deal but the dealer fees (almost 2k) ran me off. I brought a very nice 2013 "B" & put the '16 Chief on the market with only 600 miles on the clock.
I found the Chief very, very top heavy, handled awful, rear cylinder heat would cook your "doda's", sweat something awful. After a ride it would take me 2-3 hours to clean it. It had a beautiful Corvette red & pearl white custom paint job, a real eye catcher. I sold it. Did better than I thought I would, lost a few bucks but I was never so glad to get rid of a bike in my life.
I've owned several dozen bikes but this is my first Honda, I must say, I think Honda has this whole motorcycle thing figured out.

[wjduke]

This doesn't help the OP's question, but, all I know is, I rode my friends Roadmaster for a couple of backroad miles at his suggestion. He loves his and wanted me to try it. I couldn't wait to get my bike back. He said mine was ok, but wanted his back too. He likes his adjustable windshield, being a lot shorter than me. It just shows you that everyone is different and the perfect bike is an individual taste. I'm no perfectionist in handling and ride comfort. I haven't touched mine and am happy. The Indian was heavy and loud. I didn't have the time or expertise to critique it much more than that. I just think the Honda is the perfect bike for me.

[VStarRider]

Jason, you are not alone. I noticed the difference in ride quality when I rented a Chieftain in D-FW in November 2016. Very smooth, and absorbent. Remember that the Chieftain has an air shock in the back, which contributes to the ride quality.

I agree with the others that the Chieftain is a loafer, but the Honda is significantly faster and better handling.

[Verismo]

Jason, you are not alone. I noticed the difference in ride quality when I rented a Chieftain in D-FW in November 2016. Very smooth, and absorbent. Remember that the Chieftain has an air shock in the back, which contributes to the ride quality.

I agree with the others that the Chieftain is a loafer, but the Honda is significantly faster and better handling.

Thanks for the solidarity, VStarRider! I know we're not the only ones who feel this way. I found an informative thread on this topic here

http://gl1800riders.com/forums/5-gl1...?action=thread

The GL1800 is an interesting platform. On a smooth surface, you really get to experience the unbelievable turbine-like powerplant and there's nothing like it. The whole bike feels like a miracle. However, on irregular or rough surfaces, that harshness gets translated right to the hands and the arse. If I had more time, I'd wrap an accelerometer around the bars and then go do the same thing to one of those Indians so we'd have some hard data rather than just the subjective experience. But since I don't, subjective will have to be good enough for now.

When I stand the bike up off the side stand, I notice that I lose at least an inch of travel on the forks. That makes me think that other observations are correct and that the bike is possibly undersprung. I think my first "fix" will be to install the Progressive Monotubes and see where that lands me. Next will be a bigger front tire that I can comfortably run 34 psi in. If it doesn't totally do the trick, I may eventually get a triple tree with more rake, and I'll do the tapered bearings at that point. My hypothesis is that if I rake the front end a few degrees, then that will center the engine weight some and spread it over front and rear suspensions more evenly. I'll lose some handling, but like I've said before, corner carving isn't my priority. A nice comfortable flat 6 is.

Jason