My FJR has left the garage

Well, I’ve done it again. For the 6th time in ~3 years I’ve traded bikes and switched brands yet again. After about a year and half of happy ownership, I’m no longer an FJR owner. The FJR was a great bike, but just not for me. I did a lot of commuting, a 2K mile weekend, and an 850 mile day so I got to spend quite a bit of time on the bike. Mentally I enjoyed the ride, but I found during this ride time, that physically, the FJR pained me. No fault of the bike, just an incompatibility with my body. I found out that my body wouldn’t tolerate anything short of an upright seating position that I couldn’t find on the FJR. I really hoped it would work out, but that’s not the case. A bit of cervical kyphosis has shot me in the foot. The timing on this change found me looking to sell a bike in the dead of winter, and doing some shopping as well. My other bike is a HD bagger that doesn’t pain me but is a bit long in the tooth, plus the FI of the FJR and my wheeler have just about weaned me from carburetors. So while perusing the net I found a cop bike not far away and brokered a deal. When we struck the deal the forecast for the day of the trade was an overnight low of 48 and a high of 61, on the day of the trade it was 34 when I got up and I was headed north. I got in a last ride of 225 miles on the FJR (the last 40 miles on MO hiway 5 was nice), it ended at 25 degrees indicated on the dashboard. I did the paperwork and hit the trail on the new to me HD cop bike (FLHTP). It was 25 degrees when I left and again 34 when I got home. Though HD has made significant improvements in the platform in recent years, it’s still no FJR. For me riding has turned into a classic case of “you can’t have your cake and eat it too”.

My new bike has a bolt upright seating position that agrees with me, the original cop bike air bag seat feels like a cloud, and as a friend once put it, “There’s just something about the inefficient, 1950’s absurdity that is a Harley Davidson”. I guess that’s a description of me as well. In my 50 odd years I’ve resisted electronic ignition, fuel injection, fly by wire, and many other sorts of electronic gadgets. Now after 45 years in the saddle, I have a bike with no throttle cable. I’m doomed.

I’ll be hanging around, even though I’m no longer an owner, I’m still a kindred spirit. If anyone is looking, there’s a nice ’06 at a dealer in south-central MO.

Congratulations on the new purchase! :yahoo:

Motorcyclists are motorcyclists, regardless of what brand they ride. Obviously, you are not a Harley rider but a motorcyclist who owns a Harley and I've met many of your tribe while traveling.

It's always sad to hear that a bike someone likes can't be made to fit their physical requirements but it happens. That's why there are so many vendors selling everything from bar risers to seats to adjustable levers and foot pegs to....you name it.

Heck yeah...stick around and ride with other motorcyclists in your area.

Recently went to a diff bike myself. My local dealer has my 08 sitting on the floor and asking a HUGE amount more than what they gave me!! typical

Can relate though brother, sometimes we change rides and realize our needs are better met in other ways. My change is to a much lighter bike and I'm lovin how easy it is to move around in the garage!! That's odd I know but hey... I'm weird

Enjoy!

If you're gonna buy a Harley, the police model is the one to get.

It's your money and your comfort. Enjoy yourself. Congratulations!

To add to the symphony of experiences~ I recently bought my first FJR :yahoo: , I have had Virago 1100's (2), many dirt machines and 2 BMW F650's (which I love and still have one).

I bought the FJR for American touring, highway and interstate crossings to get to the good stuff, required a bike bigger than my F650. I was fodder for anything driving by on my smaller, lighter bikes and spent many a ride cursing the fact that semis are on my roads!. The FJR is smooth powerful and freaking heavy, especially if you are a 145 lb woman...lol

I too have had to do some augmenting of the bike to make the ride more upright for me, Heli risers helped but the real ticket for me.... committing to a better riding position. The old "master Yoda" position does the trick, although I slump at times, but generally catch myself when my neck starts to fuss.

Keep swapping the rides out until you find one that meets your needs. Life is far too short and precious to ride in discomfort.

AGirlOnTheGo said:

Life is far too short and precious to ride in discomfort.

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Amen Sister!! You got that Right! Welcome to the Forum. You're gonna like this place

AGirlOnTheGo said:

...I recently bought my first FJR ... The FJR is smooth powerful and freaking heavy, especially if you are a 145 lb woman...lol

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You go girl. That's pretty amazing that you can handle an FJR. There've been a couple times I've really felt the weight of the FJR while jockying around at slow speeds, and had a pretty tough time keeping her upright due to being a little sloppy. Hope that doesn't happen to you. Like you said, that's a lotta machine for a 145 lb. rider.

AGirlOnTheGo said:

...The old "master Yoda" position does the trick, although I slump at times, but generally catch myself when my neck starts to fuss.

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I know the feeling. My neck reminds me, usually within about a 1/2 hr, that I'm slouching again. Gotta remind myself, stick the stomach out, pull the shoulders back and hold the head up tall. Works every time.

Gary

darksider #44

frito1, if there is pain what's the point? Hats off to you for giving the FJR a fair shot. Enjoy your new ride!!

Amen to life being to short to put up with pain when you ride. Find the position that works for you, regardless of the type of motorcycle. And a hearty welcome to Girl on the Go. How do you do with the seat height??

Great question Ally,

Luckily, I have very long legs so I am almost flat footed, however I was going to try to get the seat narrowed a bit at the front to firm up the flat stance. How about you? I have dropped the bike...it happens... and I have to rely on the kindness of strangers to get the darn thing up again.

Love the bike and will take a few longer trips this Summer up to your neck of the woods with some friends from Vermont.

Ally House said:

Amen to life being to short to put up with pain when you ride. Find the position that works for you, regardless of the type of motorcycle. And a hearty welcome to Girl on the Go. How do you do with the seat height??

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Frito,

If yer ears are in the wind, who cares?

BTW, congrats on buying a real motobike, not some Japanese tin based POS! :blink:

Girl on the go,

One possibility for you, rather than carving up the seat, would be to get a set of lowering links for the rear shock. The bike has so much cornering clearance it shouldn't matter much. It'll get cher feet back on the ground.

Gary

darksider #44

dcarver said:

Frito,

If yer ears are in the wind, who cares?

BTW, congrats on buying a real motobike, not some Japanese tin based POS! :blink:

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Yeah buddy, one hundred and three cubic inches of real 'merican horsepower ('cept for the stuff made everywhere else) and the grace of a "D" John Deere. Oh well, it does have good tractorability.

Nothing better than a HD on two-lane back roads.

Mine is really old, 1991, so it only has 5 speed,

not so good for interstate work.

The new ones, they *are* improved.

I care more about the rider, not the marque.

Prove to me you ride, you're OK.

Good Old Air Heads :yahoo: Twin's are Fun ! Picked up a New Triumph Bonnie & with my 1990 BMW R100RT just Crusin the highways!

PS: the FJR is still fun to go Fast & Long. :clapping:

dcarver said:

Nothing better than a HD on two-lane back roads.

Mine is really old, 1991, so it only has 5 speed,

not so good for interstate work.

The new ones, they *are* improved.

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My two in the shed are 2001 and 2011 models. I guess every brand has growing pains from time to time. My '01 had me getting suspicious of the cam bearings at 35K miles so I did a preemptive investigation. The bearings were OK, the cam chain tensioners would have gone to 50K, but the hardcoat on the cams was gone and they were showing visible wear. I dropped in a mild set of gear drive cams, fresh bearings, and sealed it for good. Over all my '01 was an improvement over the '97 Evo that preceded it. The '11 I just traded for has the new hydraulic cam chain tensioner, auto primary adjuster, the new frame, FI, and fly by wire. So far it seems the last 10 years have been a major step forward. Time (and another 50K miles) will tell.

..and I for one would love to hear your results on the new HD. I am not out of the market for a new harley in the stable..

AGirlOnTheGo said:

Great question Ally,

Luckily, I have very long legs so I am almost flat footed, however I was going to try to get the seat narrowed a bit at the front to firm up the flat stance. How about you? I have dropped the bike...it happens... and I have to rely on the kindness of strangers to get the darn thing up again.

Love the bike and will take a few longer trips this Summer up to your neck of the woods with some friends from Vermont.

Ally House said:

Amen to life being to short to put up with pain when you ride. Find the position that works for you, regardless of the type of motorcycle. And a hearty welcome to Girl on the Go. How do you do with the seat height??

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AGOTO, I put a Rick Mayer (Anderson, Ca)seat on my bike, and he trims the width on forward area of the of the seat, that give at least 1-2" leg extension, makes a huge difference. Not to mention, the elemination of numbness the stock seat produces.

FWFE