Some Harley Questions.....
Discussion
Looking at an 883 Iron for local fun and wanted to establish how much certain parts will cost me being fitted at a Harley Dealer.
The lost is-
Forward Pegs
New Rear single seat (roughly)
Moving the Speedo to a lower level on the left
Different Grips (again Roughly)
The bike doesnt have a screaming eagle tune etc.
I'm no good at fitting this stuff myself and due to location it'll need to go to a dealer to get the bits added.
Tks in Advance
The lost is-
Forward Pegs
New Rear single seat (roughly)
Moving the Speedo to a lower level on the left
Different Grips (again Roughly)
The bike doesnt have a screaming eagle tune etc.
I'm no good at fitting this stuff myself and due to location it'll need to go to a dealer to get the bits added.
Tks in Advance
CousinDupree said:
Yes, but you probably don't want to hear 'em!
A friend had a brand new one many moons ago. Aside from shedding various parts on the highway, he always struggled to keep up with our group on country roads. We were on 125s..
Its ok, i'd just use it for local riding and fully accept they are for 50-60mph. A friend had a brand new one many moons ago. Aside from shedding various parts on the highway, he always struggled to keep up with our group on country roads. We were on 125s..
How about the 48 is that very different ? I do like the FatBob too
Your opinion is welcome !
FocusRS3 said:
CousinDupree said:
Yes, but you probably don't want to hear 'em!
A friend had a brand new one many moons ago. Aside from shedding various parts on the highway, he always struggled to keep up with our group on country roads. We were on 125s..
Its ok, i'd just use it for local riding and fully accept they are for 50-60mph. A friend had a brand new one many moons ago. Aside from shedding various parts on the highway, he always struggled to keep up with our group on country roads. We were on 125s..
How about the 48 is that very different ? I do like the FatBob too
Your opinion is welcome !
My perception was hideously fast for the chassis. Was a reasonably pleasant place to sit and for hacking down some gently winding roads and the odd blast to overtake it would work.
Brakes are more show pieces than items of use too but the engine braking makes up for it.
MotorsportTom said:
I rode a HD forty-eight.
My perception was hideously fast for the chassis. Was a reasonably pleasant place to sit and for hacking down some gently winding roads and the odd blast to overtake it would work.
Brakes are more show pieces than items of use too but the engine braking makes up for it.
I wouldn't argue with that. Way too much engine for the chassis and suspension travel. My perception was hideously fast for the chassis. Was a reasonably pleasant place to sit and for hacking down some gently winding roads and the odd blast to overtake it would work.
Brakes are more show pieces than items of use too but the engine braking makes up for it.
But fun nonetheless.
I posted this in another thread:-
garylythgoe said:
The Sportster 883 has 'mid controls' so you'll need to factor in changing them for forward controls, if that's the position you want. It's also 'only' an 883 and doesnt really have any poke to speak of. You can do a 1200cc upgrade to it, but costs ££.
The Sportster Forty Eight has forward controls as standard, and a 1200cc engine as standard. So you might want to take a look at the Forty Eights instead of the 883's.
HTH.
(I own a 2016 Forty-Eight just for reference)The Sportster Forty Eight has forward controls as standard, and a 1200cc engine as standard. So you might want to take a look at the Forty Eights instead of the 883's.
HTH.
OP,
Costs for each will depend highly on where in the country you are, and if you go to a dealer or not. Personally I'd avoid going direct to Harley every single time as their prices re hyper-inflated when you can get exactly the same component ordered in from the states for quite a saving, plus their workshop rates are fairly exortionate.
As for costs:
Forward Pegs - looking at about £130 for the kit and about an hour's labour - it is a fairly easy job providing you take your time with it.
New Rear single seat (roughly) - prices on these range HUGELY depending on exactly what you want (£100 for a 2nd hand one upto £750 for bespoke design stuff), but to fit one its just a single screw at the rear and then push forward to dislodge the metal tongue - takes about 1 minute! (unless you go for a single springer seat which needs new mounting areas)
Moving the Speedo to a lower level on the left - never done this myself so cannot comment.
Different Grips (again Roughly) - again, these range dramatically depending what you are after - cheap plastic jobbies are something like £20 all the way upto £300 for certain Gucci harley ones. Personally I have Kuryakyn grips which cost something like £70
For context: I ride a 2008 883 sportster superlow, it's my daily commuter and does around 15k miles a year all weather. A lot of that is motorway miles which it happily cruises along at 85 nice and torquey with no issues, it does go upto 115 but it is a slow creep up to that after about 95. It does only have a 12.5 litre fuel tank, of which something like 1.5litre is taken up by the fuel pump on the EFI versions like mine, so range can be limited: I get about 150miles per tank, but fuel up at 100-120 depending if I've been stuck in London traffic at all - there is no fuel guage so you go by experience/trip metre/ and the fuel light which in and of itself will decide to come on anywhere from 80to 105miles!
The forty-eight is a nice bike for those who just want a weekend play thing: it's nippier as they are 1200cc by standard, has a slightly better lean angle, and fat front wheel: but the negatives of an even smaller fuel-tank (7.9litre), poor suspension, and from my experience - are very uncomfortable make it unsuitable for anything more than being a toy.
The chap saying that someone on a sportster couldn't keep up with 125's on country roads isn't a commentary on the bike, its a commentary on the rider as they are perfectly happy with nippy turns but it does take some practice as they are rather heavy bikes and their lean angles before scraping pegs aren't great. I will agree with one thing though: the risk of shedding bolts is very real if you don;t keep ontop of checking the bike over - even these rubber mounted engines do vibrate a lot: so make sure you check bolts and use a bit of thread lock where necessary - I learned this lesson after noticing three out fo 4 exhaust bracket bolts had shacken off shortly after buying mine!
I've ridden quite a few diferent harleys now, including the fatbob, but my personal favourite is the heritage soft-tail, but sadly I cannot justify one due to the miles I put on every year and how much this would devalue a soft-tail, at least sportsters don't really drop value with high milegage - mines currently somewhere around the 60k mark, was only 12k when I bought it 3 years ago and if I were to sell it, would get pretty much what I paid for it, if not a little more as I've tarted her up a bit.
As for buying a Harley, I'd always look at buying second hand via a non Harley dealership as their prices are always inflated. I also have no inclination to own a brand new bike: I'd rather let someone else run out any initial gremlins and pay that money out to fix any teething issues- but it's down to personal preference there i guess.
Hope that helps!
Costs for each will depend highly on where in the country you are, and if you go to a dealer or not. Personally I'd avoid going direct to Harley every single time as their prices re hyper-inflated when you can get exactly the same component ordered in from the states for quite a saving, plus their workshop rates are fairly exortionate.
As for costs:
Forward Pegs - looking at about £130 for the kit and about an hour's labour - it is a fairly easy job providing you take your time with it.
New Rear single seat (roughly) - prices on these range HUGELY depending on exactly what you want (£100 for a 2nd hand one upto £750 for bespoke design stuff), but to fit one its just a single screw at the rear and then push forward to dislodge the metal tongue - takes about 1 minute! (unless you go for a single springer seat which needs new mounting areas)
Moving the Speedo to a lower level on the left - never done this myself so cannot comment.
Different Grips (again Roughly) - again, these range dramatically depending what you are after - cheap plastic jobbies are something like £20 all the way upto £300 for certain Gucci harley ones. Personally I have Kuryakyn grips which cost something like £70
For context: I ride a 2008 883 sportster superlow, it's my daily commuter and does around 15k miles a year all weather. A lot of that is motorway miles which it happily cruises along at 85 nice and torquey with no issues, it does go upto 115 but it is a slow creep up to that after about 95. It does only have a 12.5 litre fuel tank, of which something like 1.5litre is taken up by the fuel pump on the EFI versions like mine, so range can be limited: I get about 150miles per tank, but fuel up at 100-120 depending if I've been stuck in London traffic at all - there is no fuel guage so you go by experience/trip metre/ and the fuel light which in and of itself will decide to come on anywhere from 80to 105miles!
The forty-eight is a nice bike for those who just want a weekend play thing: it's nippier as they are 1200cc by standard, has a slightly better lean angle, and fat front wheel: but the negatives of an even smaller fuel-tank (7.9litre), poor suspension, and from my experience - are very uncomfortable make it unsuitable for anything more than being a toy.
The chap saying that someone on a sportster couldn't keep up with 125's on country roads isn't a commentary on the bike, its a commentary on the rider as they are perfectly happy with nippy turns but it does take some practice as they are rather heavy bikes and their lean angles before scraping pegs aren't great. I will agree with one thing though: the risk of shedding bolts is very real if you don;t keep ontop of checking the bike over - even these rubber mounted engines do vibrate a lot: so make sure you check bolts and use a bit of thread lock where necessary - I learned this lesson after noticing three out fo 4 exhaust bracket bolts had shacken off shortly after buying mine!
I've ridden quite a few diferent harleys now, including the fatbob, but my personal favourite is the heritage soft-tail, but sadly I cannot justify one due to the miles I put on every year and how much this would devalue a soft-tail, at least sportsters don't really drop value with high milegage - mines currently somewhere around the 60k mark, was only 12k when I bought it 3 years ago and if I were to sell it, would get pretty much what I paid for it, if not a little more as I've tarted her up a bit.
As for buying a Harley, I'd always look at buying second hand via a non Harley dealership as their prices are always inflated. I also have no inclination to own a brand new bike: I'd rather let someone else run out any initial gremlins and pay that money out to fix any teething issues- but it's down to personal preference there i guess.
Hope that helps!
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