A funny thing. . . . (HD Switching Buddies)

[Hollywoodgt]

I just got my FJR end of last season and enjoy the hell out of it. I also have a custom 2007 Ultra and a 2000 built R1180 rear wheel hp full carbon fiber ultra light wheels ......but I need to do some carb work Mikuni slides.

Love the FJr

 

[lnewlf]

A man should always have two. One is too close to none!

Dolly Parton once asked Jay Leno what he thought about breast reduction...he thought for a moment and said " No, two is good".

 

[FJR Bill]

Would be interesting if you asked your buddies what makes them think the FJR is inferior. Maybe they mention brakes. Then go to a safe place and do a side by side brake comparo.

Cornering? Find a safe place and see which bike is better at cornering. Power? That's a laugh! Comfort? That's a wash as it's a very subjective.

However ask them how many of their cruisers of choice won positions on last years Iron Butt. Then inform them the FJR placed in the top 5 positions. Reliability? Would be hard to prove one way or the other but the Iron Butt riders wouldn't have chosen the FJR if it had reliability issues and they wouldn't have placed in the top 5. Can't see how they would not understand YOU ride the better bike. If I had friends like yours, I'd pick my place and time and leave them in the dust and then wait for them far down the road while drinking from my water bottle or having a smoke. LOL

Bill

 

[rckendall]

I am also nearly 69 years young and I started riding at 14, but was away from it a time or two. I guess I have been riding about six years this time around and just recently bought my first FJR.

I spent some time and did some riding with my son this spring, and he is a HD guy. He rides it quite well and we enjoyed riding together. It also suits his wife riding as a pillion passenger well. So, I have no problem with any of that. But, what I found strange is that every ride or talk of a ride, included stopping at a Harley dealer. After a while I just kind of waited outside.

Richard

 

[Harald]

The ZsDad,Yeah I had a love/hate relationship with the GS1000E. I couldn't keep stators in it. Had one go out on me in Kanab, Utah in 1979 on a trip from NoDak to the Grand Canyon. But, when it was running it was the best until the FJR. I had the GS for 10 years, though after 4 it became my 2nd ride in favor of a '83 Gold Wing. In the end I wound up selling the GW a year before the GS, so it became my primary ride again for a while. Then like you I didn't ride for a while. I wish I could get those idle years back. Oh well...

And nothing changed over the years with the GS series. I bought a brand new 83 GS1100E in 84 and it had electrical gremlins from day one (2 trips back to the dealer due to failing headlights on the first day of ownership!). I think I put 3 stators in it over the 13 years I owned that bike. But that 97 CBR1100XX I bought as a replacement made me very happy until I switched to motorcycle nirvana with my 07 FJR. :yahoo:

To each his own, but I've never seen the logic in buying a HD and have no plans to do so.....

 

[Twigg]

To each his own, but I've never seen the logic in buying a HD and have no plans to do so.....

I could write a book, or at least a decent essay, about that comment

Suffice it to say that logic plays no part whatsoever in buying a Harley. When people buy HD, they are buying an idea, a dream, a vision of an America they wish they lived in.

It's not a bad dream, and I have no axe to grind with Harley owners ... but you are correct, it isn't logical. I am open to the argument that a "logical world" might be a sterile one

 

[HotRodZilla]

And what if HD owners think there is no logical reason to buy a crotch rocket with hard bags? Some guys pose, sone guys bar hop and some guys ride. Some HD owners fall in those categories too.

I love how we're so holier than thou because we ride FJRs. We're better than BMW riders, better than HD riders, better than sport bike, scooter, Concourse, ST, and just about everything else, riders. Hell, we're better than car drivers...or maybe were not and have the same percentage of douche bags as everyone else.

Just looking around here, I bet I know the answer.

 

[Twigg]

Not being "holier than thou". as I said, I have no axe to grind here.

However, you mentioned riding styles and typical usage. If that is the case then you are hinting at the idea that "Cruiser" style motorcycles have easily defined uses and that is completely appropriate.

Now explain why a Harley Davidson is more "logical" a choice than the many other cruisers available on the US market.

Go on ... the never-ending Harley debate just got a bit more interesting

lol ... don't make it too interesting, or I might be forced to write that essay

 

[Redfish Hunter]

I leave in the morning on a 10 day trip Out West and one of the four bikes is a Harley. A 2011 CVO Street Glide with the 110 inch Screaming Eagle Motor. I have high hopes that the reliability of the bike and the purpose for which it gets used for the next 10 days will complement the Sport Tourers nicely. If I survive it I may post a little ride report of my adventures.

The HD guys at work make fun of my ugly Honda ST1300 but they are forced to admit that they cannot outrun, outcorner, or outstop it. They can't understand the suspension working like it does. They look at me with confusion and envy when I ride it to work EVERY DAY! Even when it rains! But with all that logic and knowledge, they want no part of a bike like that. What good is a bike without chrome? I have no bitterness toward the HD guys and when I am riding a Harley I do really "Get It". The problem is that most of the HD guys don't "Get It". No matter what their T-shirts might say.

 

[HotRodZilla]

Twigg,

My point was: What is logical for us may not be logical for them. Why do we care what they do or do not enjoy. I know and see plenty of HD dipshits. I've also seen lots of Honda, Yamaha, Victory, Kawasaki, Ducati, BMW and Suzuki dipshits. I know some that ride FJRs.

Why are we so.obsessed with how much better we think we are because we think our riding style is better than everyone else's? If everyone rode an FJR, that would suck.

That is all! Lol.

 

[Twigg]

Right ... but the point was "logic". Purchasing decisions are made for any number of reasons, some of them are logical, but the point that was made was that buying a Harley is not a "logical" choice.

I didn't say it was a poor choice, nor did I ever say I, we or any group was better than another. I didn't say that because actually, I have never thought that. Especially pertinent to this thread because the OP reflected that his HD buddies clearly thought their choice of ride was superior!

The interest here is specific to HD, because for the demographic that buys them there are some common themes. Common to the group as a whole, not necessarily to specific individuals.

Understanding why the Baby-Boomer generation bought Harleys in such vast numbers is a fascinating subject, just because it is, and it is a peculiarly American story. There are some contradictions and much irony, and it can all be discussed and understood without having to be rude to anyone

 

[Redfish Hunter]

I bet I buy some Harley shirts in the next few days. I almost know I am going to ride a Harley motorcycle in the next few days.

And I KNOW I am better than those HD guys because I am a member of the FJRforum! I fit right in with the other dipshits.

 

[SunRider]

This almost morphed into a Suzuki GS thread....

My first bike was a new '78 GS550E, followed up a year later with an '80 GS1000E, which I still have.

So, there were two bikes back then, and I married one of the two GS1000 riding girlfriends.

The GS was the primary bike until the '02 Aprilia RST1000 moved in. Still a two up couple.

And in '12, this couple needed more storage and more range.

 

[SoCalFJR1300]

Here's why I think it's not logical to own a HD.

Poor handling

Poor power

Poor braking

Poor suspension

Too heavy

Fragile transmissions destroyed by a little drag.

Very expensive for what you get.

Everything a motorcycle SHOULDN'T be!

That being said I'm all in favor of riding what you want but they don't make a bike I'd want to ride.

No sport/touring or sport bike.

 

[64Y80]

Right ... but the point was "logic". Purchasing decisions are made for any number of reasons, some of them are logical, but the point that was made was that buying a Harley is not a "logical" choice.
I didn't say it was a poor choice, nor did I ever say I, we or any group was better than another. I didn't say that because actually, I have never thought that. Especially pertinent to this thread because the OP reflected that his HD buddies clearly thought their choice of ride was superior!

The interest here is specific to HD, because for the demographic that buys them there are some common themes. Common to the group as a whole, not necessarily to specific individuals.

Understanding why the Baby-Boomer generation bought Harleys in such vast numbers is a fascinating subject, just because it is, and it is a peculiarly American story. There are some contradictions and much irony, and it can all be discussed and understood without having to be rude to anyone

Let me play the devils advocate. I have ridden Japanese big four bikes my whole riding life, starting with a 1964 Yamaha 80 and ending with a 2007 FJR. I switched to Harley last year. I like the harley, I like how it put together and the fact that it is, for me, easier to live with. I don't have to check valve clearances or balance throttle bodies, changing spark plugs or air cleaner are 10 minute jobs. It's really a gas and go vehicle. It doesn't have near the performance curve of a FJR but that's no indication of quality. And speaking of quality, for me only time will tell, so far it has never had a problem, but I'm only into my second year with it and 5000 miles.

 

[hppants]

I've got plenty of H/D riding buddies. We enjoy a little playful ribbing at each other, but in the end, if you like your bike, and you won't try to kill me, I'll ride with ya.

H/D has made big improvements over the past 5 years in reliability. The Switchback is a very nice motorcycle. My biggest beef with the H/D is the non-use of counterbalancers in the motor.

 

[64Y80]

I've got plenty of H/D riding buddies. We enjoy a little playful ribbing at each other, but in the end, if you like your bike, and you won't try to kill me, I'll ride with ya.
H/D has made big improvements over the past 5 years in reliability. The Switchback is a very nice motorcycle. My biggest beef with the H/D is the non-use of counterbalancers in the motor.

FYI, the dyna family and the touring family use's a rubber mounted "a" engine (no counterbalance), the soft-tail family uses's a solid mounted "b" engine (counterbalanced).

By the way I too had a 1980 Suzuki GS 1000e. Loved the bike, just had to put up with stators frying and cheap fasteners.

 

[rbentnail]

I bet I buy some Harley shirts in the next few days. I almost know I am going to ride a Harley motorcycle in the next few days.
And I KNOW I am better than those HD guys because I am a member of the FJRforum! I fit right in with the other dipshits.

Get the typical HD tshirt and have "ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE" put on it across the back in big, bold letters. My HD buddies really like it when I wear that one. YMMV but it's always good for a laugh at a gas stop or two, especially when we start ribbing each other about buying a 'real' bike. All in good fun but over the yrs we have really pissed off a few.