The real deal

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 2:36 am

I went for a ride this morning. The weather was great, traffic not too bad, and I got to have lunch with my daughter who lives in New Orleans. A guy tried to buy my bike at a gas station in Metairie. I saw very few cops and had a blast on the river road curves. Put over 180 miles on the bike. It couldn't have been better except a sore butt on the way home. I was thinking as I rolled back into the garage at home.... This is why I bought this bike.
Later this afternoon, I stopped by the grocery store(in a cage this time). I overheard a conversation in the next checkout isle. An old geezer was in line wearing a harley t-shirt, harley denim jacket and carrying a harley branded helmet. The young(probably illegal) check-out babe said "what kind of bike do you ride?"
The old guy stating what should have been obvious just said "harley davidson". The babe responded "oh the real deal". I wonder if that old man was thinking the same thing as he rode home....

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 2:43 am

180 miles. damn that sounds good.....

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 3:08 am

Im glad to hear that you got out for a ride! Dont worry about those harley riders.... they dont know what the real deal is...

Harleys arent the real deal, the real deal are the pancakes at The Apple Farm....

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:08 am

Yeah. She would have probably said the same to you if you said you were riding a Honda. Just from personal experience.

A suck up if you ask me. Most of the young girls I know, don't really go for Harleys.

As I say this, I am cleaning my Shoei to be used as a second helmet. Sooooo as soon as my bike is in better looking condition, I hope to get a nice back warmer on my bike. Cool

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 2:03 pm

It might not have been so obvious. My leather jacket is all black except for a small HD logo on the left breast, my riding boots say HD on the bottom of the sole, and both my helmets have a small HD #1 sticker on the back, but I wear all three when riding one of my Honda's. I don't have a HD tee shirt though. I'd probably have at least one Honda jacket except my local dealer doesn't stock even one Jacket with the word Honda on it. I can't figure that one out. BTW, HD (not HD and Buell) passed Honda to become the number one selling motorcycle brand in the US in the late 90s and they did it without a line of off road, dual purpose or sport bikes.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 2:44 pm

bmcdonau wrote:

It might not have been so obvious. My leather jacket is all black except for a small HD logo on the left breast, my riding boots say HD on the bottom of the sole, and both my helmets have a small HD #1 sticker on the back, but I wear all three when riding one of my Honda's. I don't have a HD tee shirt though. I'd probably have at least one Honda jacket except my local dealer doesn't stock even one Jacket with the word Honda on it. I can't figure that one out. BTW, HD (not HD and Buell) passed Honda to become the number one selling motorcycle brand in the US in the late 90s and they did it without a line of off road, dual purpose or sport bikes.

True. They did it out of peoples true stupidity. The sheep they are when it comes to products.

"Wow, My friend Mr. Yuppy bought a new Harley, for way too much money. I must do the same to show them that I am cool."

Or better yet, maybe it was like this.

"Wow, I'll bet if I pay $20,000 for a chromed out, heavy, loud motorcycle. People will look at my tiny penis less!"

Sorry, but for the rare few out there that actually bought a Harley because they actually like Harleys, rather than doing it for the Trophy status.
For all of those people that bought one to keep up with the Jones' they can eat shit and die.

Because Harley is an overpriced product. However though overpricing their products they Have managed to fool people into believing that they are getting something for it.

Kinda like Nike. I can pay way less, and get a better shoe. But people buy it for it's namesake.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 3:21 pm

Ratfink wrote:

bmcdonau wrote:

It might not have been so obvious. My leather jacket is all black except for a small HD logo on the left breast, my riding boots say HD on the bottom of the sole, and both my helmets have a small HD #1 sticker on the back, but I wear all three when riding one of my Honda's. I don't have a HD tee shirt though. I'd probably have at least one Honda jacket except my local dealer doesn't stock even one Jacket with the word Honda on it. I can't figure that one out. BTW, HD (not HD and Buell) passed Honda to become the number one selling motorcycle brand in the US in the late 90s and they did it without a line of off road, dual purpose or sport bikes.

True. They did it out of peoples true stupidity. The sheep they are when it comes to products.

"Wow, My friend Mr. Yuppy bought a new Harley, for way too much money. I must do the same to show them that I am cool."

Or better yet, maybe it was like this.

"Wow, I'll bet if I pay $20,000 for a chromed out, heavy, loud motorcycle. People will look at my tiny penis less!"

Sorry, but for the rare few out there that actually bought a Harley because they actually like Harleys, rather than doing it for the Trophy status.
For all of those people that bought one to keep up with the Jones' they can eat shit and die.

Because Harley is an overpriced product. However though overpricing their products they Have managed to fool people into believing that they are getting something for it.

Kinda like Nike. I can pay way less, and get a better shoe. But people buy it for it's namesake.

I think you need to educate yourself a little about HD before making such sweeping generalizations. The HD 883R sells for about $6500 which is about where the midsize Japanese sport bikes begin. My Honda St-1300 lists for about $15K which is right in the middle of the Harley big twin range.

Yeah, you can buy a Harley off the showroom floor with $3000 in extra chrome, but very few people do. Most opt to buy the basic bike and add things they want at a lower price over time. By the time I added a trunk, saddlebag liners, fairing deflectors and a larger windshield to my NEW ST-1300 I added a thousand dollars to the price. My 1200 Sportster is has a rubber mounted engine, fuel injection, a tunable electronic ignition and a rubber belt that lasts 50,000 miles and doesn't sling oil all over the rear tire and my leg.

I'm not even going to get into the "poser" argument with you. There is enough "discussion" of that phemoneon on the Harley web sites without opening that can of worms here. I would venture to guess that there are some owners of Asian bikes who fall into that same category too. I try to be the anti-poser by minimizing the size of the logos on my riding gear.

They are different bikes for different people and provide a different riding experience. Harley's are not for everyone, but then neither are the crotch rockets.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 3:35 pm

The Kid I work with paid $18K for his 883 so I call BS there...

My cousin paid $26K for his 05 Street Bob, removed a wall from his house so it can stay in the (what used to be) dinning room... Laughing

Not that he is a bad guy, but everything he owns says HD on it.

True storys both of em..

Oh and we ALL ride together, they try and keep up... Very Happy

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 4:05 pm

Oh boy....

Dont most Harleys have twins discs in the back and single discs in the front?

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 4:23 pm

IF you can find an 883 for $6500 you have to spend a few thousand on speed parts so it will make decent power, then you have to spend more money for decent-looking hardware to replace all the cad-plated bolts etc.

They have always needed to make a decent sport bike that looks and sounds like an XR750 IMO. A pack of them howling down the straight of a mile track is hair-raising!

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:43 pm

sfhess wrote:

IF you can find an 883 for $6500 you have to spend a few thousand on speed parts so it will make decent power, then you have to spend more money for decent-looking hardware to replace all the cad-plated bolts etc.

They have always needed to make a decent sport bike that looks and sounds like an XR750 IMO. A pack of them howling down the straight of a mile track is hair-raising!

I can buy 883's all day long for that price at my HD dealer and its powerful enough. No, its not a real sport bike, but it isn't tyring to be one either. Harley's history is full of attempts to make "sport bikes" and they all failed. To be sure, they were "very good" bikes, just not as good as what they were competing against. People who wanted a full up sport bike could go elsewhere and buy a better bike for less money. People who wanted a "Harley" wouldn't go near them because they didn't look like a Harley so they failed. What Harley did is identify their core market and concentrate on it. Very successfully I'd say. Compare their market share from the AMF buyout to today and they are probably the most successful motorcycle company in the world. Not everyone's cup of tea, but then they aren't trying to be.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:44 pm

eatpasta wrote:

Oh boy....

Dont most Harleys have twins discs in the back and single discs in the front?

One disk in the back and twin in the front on most models. The brakes are good, but not stellar because they are two piston brakes, just like our 1100Fs.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:57 pm

CowTownBiomed wrote:

The Kid I work with paid $18K for his 883 so I call BS there...

My cousin paid $26K for his 05 Street Bob, removed a wall from his house so it can stay in the (what used to be) dinning room... Laughing

Not that he is a bad guy, but everything he owns says HD on it.

True storys both of em..

Oh and we ALL ride together, they try and keep up... Very Happy

I'll try to be gentle here, but your cousin and the kid you work with are not making sound fiscal decisions.

The list price on a 2007 883 is $6595. Add another $1000 (a generous amount) for dealer prep and tax and you're at $7500. I don't know how you could put $11,500 worth of aftermarket parts on that bike. I'm not even sure Harley makes $11,500 worth of accesories for it.

A 2007 street bob is $13,995, add another $1500 for dealer prep and tax and you are at $15,500. Again that leaves another $11,000 for parts? Pipes are $400, seats are $500, bars $200, chrome packages $700, saddle bags $400 and a windshield $300. Maybe another $300-400 for chrome bits and pieces. Nowhere near $11,000.

Can you get a look at the invoice and quantify the cost of the bike and accessories? Maybe they were upside down on trade or bought a few personal accessories like jackes, chaps, helmets etc and financed it in with the bike. Even then they'd have a hard time reaching close to $11,000.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 6:03 pm

That may be the case and $$ in the US, perhaps up here they have to add more taxes/import dutys?

I don't really know, but when I showed Kent (the kid) my bike (that I got for $2500 US) he said "you could almost have 10 bikes for what I paid for mine"

Either way, I'm sure you'll find it hard to get any HD love on this site....

<edit>
So are we to gather from your above post that HD's have brakes that are equivalent to what Honda had in production 25 years ago? Rolling Eyes

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 6:16 pm

There is only one Harley that I can think of that I would LOVE to have...

For the rest of them.... too heavy, too much chrome, too slow, too loud, too low.

If I drag the pegs leaving a parking lot, or have to polish it every week, or have to gas up every 200 miles (Ok well maybe not ALL the time...).... you can keep it.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 6:45 pm

CowTownBiomed wrote:

That may be the case and $$ in the US, perhaps up here they have to add more taxes/import dutys?

I don't really know, but when I showed Kent (the kid) my bike (that I got for $2500 US) he said "you could almost have 10 bikes for what I paid for mine"

Either way, I'm sure you'll find it hard to get any HD love on this site....

<edit>
So are we to gather from your above post that HD's have brakes that are equivalent to what Honda had in production 25 years ago? Rolling Eyes

I'm not looking for any Harley love, but I'd thought that people who love an old, heavy slow, 25 year old motorcycle like the CBF's could understand that there are bikes for all people and people for all types of bikes.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 7:27 pm

bmcdonau wrote:

I'm not looking for any Harley love, but I'd thought that people who love an old, heavy slow, 25 year old motorcycle like the CBF's could understand that there are bikes for all people and people for all types of bikes.

I dont know which F you have.... mine certainly is anything but slow. It wont stop..... but its not slow.

Motorcycles are definitely are personal and anything but universal. Especially these days with so many niche bikes.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 7:58 pm

larryg wrote:

180 miles. damn that sounds good.....

Heh, I did 150 miles on Saturday, it was great! All except coming up 95, Mass cagers took offense at my audacity and let me know it by riding my tail at 85MPH+

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 8:37 pm

bmcdonau wrote:

I'm not looking for any Harley love, but I'd thought that people who love an old, heavy slow, 25 year old motorcycle like the CBF's could understand that there are bikes for all people and people for all types of bikes.

You are right there, we all share the same wind.
Like I said before I ride with these two often.
Their "new" HD's can't keep up with me on my 25 yr old "slow" bike (maybe its just me Very Happy

)

I also understand that there are different bikes for differnt people, I'll just never be (yes that is a long time) a HD fan.
Not even a little bit.... Razz

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 8:42 pm

aw, c'mon...thats Lawwill dirt tracker is sick!!

Admit!

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 8:51 pm

eatpasta wrote:

Admit!

Negative!!! Twisted Evil

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 9:08 pm

CowTownBiomed wrote:

bmcdonau wrote:

I'm not looking for any Harley love, but I'd thought that people who love an old, heavy slow, 25 year old motorcycle like the CBF's could understand that there are bikes for all people and people for all types of bikes.

You are right there, we all share the same wind.
Like I said before I ride with these two often.
Their "new" HD's can't keep up with me on my 25 yr old "slow" bike (maybe its just me Very Happy

)

I also understand that there are different bikes for differnt people, I'll just never be (yes that is a long time) a HD fan.
Not even a little bit.... Razz

I believe that, especially if they are big twins. The 1200 sportsters will eat a big twin's lunch even though they are producing 15 less hp. A 96 cubic inch harley weighs over 700 lbs empty which makes it a large bike to move and I think they only put out about 85 hp stock. My ST-1300 weighs close to 700 lbs, but it also has 130 hp so it moves out pretty good.

Its just a different ride and as large and a slow as they are, you have to admire their marketing because they sell all they can make.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 9:10 pm

CowTownBiomed wrote:

eatpasta wrote:

Admit!

Negative!!! Twisted Evil

ADMIT!!!

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 9:18 pm

eatpasta wrote:

CowTownBiomed wrote:

eatpasta wrote:

Admit!

Negative!!! Twisted Evil

ADMIT!!!

Supposedly, that is coming to Europe this year and the US next year. It's still a pig at over 500 lbs and only 100 hp, but it will be the best performing Harley in the stable. Buells get different engines and have way more performance. A lot of Harley Riders wonder why the Buell mods don't make it to the HD line up since the engines come from the same place.

People are strange. If you go to a Harley forum you will find a lot of people complaining about the amount of plastic on "Jap" bikes and in the next breath wonder why Harleys are so heavy. Well duh! You can't have it both ways-metal and heavy or plastic and light. Take your pick.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 9:36 pm

I agree with Dennis.

People are strange.

Diversity/strangeness makes for fun - not necessarily in the sense of poking fun. And fun is what we are all into motorcycles for.

What really pisses me off is the failure of so many motorcyclists to see that others get their fun out of bikes in different ways. For instance, I would far rather see someone puttering along on a cruiser (HD, metric, whatever) and enjoying themselves than asbsolutely shitting yellow on a sportsbike trying to keep up with ride-fast wannabes.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 9:48 pm

bmcdonau wrote:

eatpasta wrote:

CowTownBiomed wrote:

eatpasta wrote:

Admit!

Negative!!! Twisted Evil

ADMIT!!!

Supposedly, that is coming to Europe this year and the US next year. It's still a pig at over 500 lbs and only 100 hp, but it will be the best performing Harley in the stable.

Pig or not, thats one of the toughest looking bikes ever created and Mert is a really cool guy with an amazing history.

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 10:10 pm

eatpasta wrote:

bmcdonau wrote:

eatpasta wrote:

CowTownBiomed wrote:

eatpasta wrote:

Admit!

Negative!!! Twisted Evil

ADMIT!!!

Supposedly, that is coming to Europe this year and the US next year. It's still a pig at over 500 lbs and only 100 hp, but it will be the best performing Harley in the stable.

Pig or not, thats one of the toughest looking bikes ever created and Mert is a really cool guy with an amazing history.

It is one of the most successful racing bikes ever made. The Harley afficinados were just disappointed it wasn't a 120 hp 400 lb motorcycle. I think they are sport bike wannabees.

Posted: Wed Feb 28, 2007 12:41 am

website developer's byline: "making fun of flag slathered retards and trend humping fashion lemmings since 1993"[web:762d710a66]http://www.goingfaster.com/angst/main.htm[/web:762d710a66]

Posted: Wed Feb 28, 2007 12:45 am

oh great.... more BMW owners...

Cool

Anyone that *HATES* any other motorcycle, has to really question what the hell they are doing riding in the first place. Because if someone held a gun to your head and told you to ride one, it wouldn't be THAT bad...

There are certainly things about Harley culture that I hate, but they are still bikers.

Posted: Wed Feb 28, 2007 12:53 am

that's right... some of the most opinionated and cultists people around are beemer owners. my wife says that bmw owners are way worse than HD folks. very snooty! Laughing

hard to stop being an a-hole when your bike will go fast, rarely breakdown, comfortable to ride and last forever.... and maintain value. see? another a-hole. Laughing