[AIRPORTCOPPER]

HEY EVERYBODY NEW TO THIS WHOLE THING HAVE RODE BEFORE BUT NOt FTEN TOOK SAFETY CLASSES AND ALL THAT.. IM PURCHASING A NEW BIKE FROM HARLEY my family has been riding for years and told me that a road king was a great bike and stay away from the smaller bikes because youll wind up buying something bigger anyways.. what do u guys thinkkk??? and is a new bike a good bike to buy.... i dont want headaches with a used bike

[wvak47]

First welcome aboard.

I too am new to bikes. Just bought my first ever, and it were a problem child used bike. Had a lot of less than happy times trying to get her bugs worked out but now I am totally glad I went the way I did. I have a far better understanding of how my bike works and that is never a bad thing, especially if you happen to break down on the road somewhere.

As for not buying small bikes I can't say I completely agree with that. I bought an 05 883C Sporty. 558 pounds dry weight. Little less arse than a lot of folks want, but it is enough for me just starting. Last Monday night I about lost her thanks to lacking riding time. A buddy and I were coming up on a street light, he motor brakes (no light) as the street light turned yellow. I assumed he was going for it since I didn't see any brake light. I cracked the little sporty open just in time to realize he was stopping. Left lane of a three lane street, I was just right of the middle of my lane almost straight behind my friend. Work traffic with cars on my right and sidewalk on my left, so I went for the sidewalk. Bad choice as my front tire crossed the cage droppings it locked and went into a skid. As the bike was trying to lay down I dropped my left leg, more to get it out from under the bike, as I let off the brake and cut hard right. The bike did stand right back up, going into a highside, but since I was leaning with it and cut into the cut it laide right back over into a right hand turn. Came up straight between my buddy and the sidewalk, with no damage to anything but my left knee (bent sideways, felt like it was full of hornets).

Moral for me, had I gone with a larger heavier bike right off, and this samething happened. I would have lost the bike for sure, no way I could have held the weight at 30+MPH. Mostlikely I would have broken my leg and possibly my hip in the process, not to mention all the nice road rash I would have gotten and would have still hit my buddy from behind knocking him into a work traffic intersection. Instead of riding another 30 or so miles that evening I and proabably my buddy would both have been out bikes, and spent the evening in the ER about a block and a half from where it happened.

I won't tell anyone what to do, heck its your life and your choice man. All I will say is be sure you can handle what you get cause it goes REAL fast when it goes REAL wrong. Don't let folks talk you into doing something dangerous for yourself and others. Stay safe and enjoy the new ride man. God knows I love my little sporty, no matter how much grief the A-holes I run around with want to give me LOL.

[chucktx]

as far as bike size.....sit on the bike, make sure both feet touch the ground with the kickstand up. flat footed is best. lean the bike a bit and see if your legs will hold it..(have someone helping just incase you cant). check bar height,width. feet position on the pegs. do this to a number of bikes. all harleys are pretty fast and powerful. if your legs are long or belly is big you may want to stay off the sportster lowered models....ya know what they say about a monkey and a football....
hope this helps.....let us know!!

[wvak47]

The football is this monkey's best friend Chuck.

[Red Rider]

A. You'll love your Road King (I do!) - definitely the best all around HD. I love being able to drop the windshield every now and then, like having another bike.

B. I'm a big fan of buying a cheap beater bike for a first bike. Something that you won't sweat the $$ if you need to drop it, or if you do accidentally while getting used to riding. But if ya think you have enough saddle time not to have these issues, great for ya.

C. Used bikes are a safer bet than used cars, as there is less of them to go wrong. Also, sweet newer used HD's are available because folks with too much money are selling them to get the stock 96 inch of today's models. But a new bike is way-cool. Depreciation ain't an issue to me, as I'll never sell mine, but HD bikes don't depreciate in value much compared to other makes - if that is a concern.

Ride free & safe!

[voodoochild]

For my first H-D, I went with the Dyna wide glide. I took it slow at first and now I ride like an idiot (sometimes anyway, for the most part I am cool with it as I don't want to crash being stupid) Anyway, I rode a sporty a few times and didn't like the power or the fact that at 5'-6" my knees were in my chest while riding. Then I rode a low rider and liked the power and feel of that, but like Chuck said the best thing is to sit on one and get the feel for it, I did that and found the Dyna fit me the best. Good luck with your choice! I say, if you can afford a new one then why not?!

[skull2007]

wvak47 ; your're very lucky. happy to hear you didn't get hurt.

i'd do like chuck says. personally i'd say they're right about going to the bigger bike thing; but in time. keep in mind a bigger bike don't corner real good like the sm ones. and they are a little less forgiving when it comes to keeping them on the road. but god do they ride nice. think about what you want to do with it. if you're still wanting to roll em over on the corners i don't think you're ready for the big bikes. if you just want to cruize and feel alive you'll do well with a bigger bike.

[skull2007]

oh . . . . one other thing. i'll never buy another new bike. i recommend starting with a frame. the exact fit you want. then build it the way you want it. cheapest way i think. this way no extra rims, exhaust, bars, and ect.

[cowboy]

Harley has a whole lot of new stuff on the 08 models just might be a headace hiding in there till all is stright up with it as for new to riding do what chuck suggiested & go from there they have about all the goodies for the dyna mode;ls as they do for the road king & if you do buy used buy from a good HD dealer at least you can get a warnety I got my 03 in 04 used froam a HD dearler the only real money I spent on it was for my own taste

[FriendGregory]

Take the safety course before riding on the street, at least it is something. I think most of us rode motorbikes as kids and know what to expect when someone in front stops short or the road surface changes or some fool in a cage just decides to change lanes to where I am riding. I rode lawn mower based mini bikes, real honda mini bikes, mopeds, 2 and 4 stroke dirt bikes, Honda CB 350s, including one that I loved that would have killed me at some point, (swear I could do nearly any kinda trick on that thing including a 50 mile hour power wheelie),and a Harley FXB.

The Electra Glide has been the most challenging to me so far. The weight on 2 wheels can suddenly require you to use all your strength to mussel the bike into the gutter on a uneven surface(read mougles) to avoid a front bumper that seemed to have been turned just to f with the biker. To keep it upright is all in experience plus luck.

My opinion, buy a smaller used Harley and try it for a year, see if you really use it, get used to riding all hours and weather. If you find you are a "real biker", you will have figured out what you really want for the type of riding you do and then go buy the nicest ones of those you can afford. The used one will sell for not very much less than you paid if you shop well and take good care of it while you have it.
I may be wrong but, often not.

[mwelych]

Harleys do retain there value better than any bike out there. Even after I totalled my Sporty, the insurance company wanted 5000.00 for what was left. Hope this helps...

[rickster]

After being away from riding for about 18 years, the wife suggested we get another bike. since we thought we would like to travel more, I got an '06 ultra classic. for comfort & storage. although we love the bike & haven't gone on any major rides yet, the bigger bike is taking some getting used to. I'm getting more comfortable on it but I think I will take a rider safety course as a refresher next spring. keep the wife happy & pick-up a few safety tips. I've been very lucky to not have had any close calls yet! Good luck on picking the right bike for you. I still would love to ride a smaller sportier bike on occasion.
Rick

[ruffrider11]

My first Harley is a used one bought from an individual. There are lots of low mileage bikes out there if youll be paitient and look. I was glad I did, I found a 6 year old Fatboy with 3500 miles that the guy just didnt want and let it go reasonable I looked at dealers test drove bikes and narrowed it down to the models I wanted There is some luck involved and you might not get exact everything you want but a lot of times they have already dropped some cash on goodies like pipes and carb kits. seats and stuff like that. What ever you do new , used you will love it . About the big small issue get one you feel comfortable with I went big but I am a big guy and when I sat on a sporty well monkey and football you know . what ever you get write back and tell us



Ruffrider

American by birth,
Texan by choice.
God Bless the United States of America

[DKIN21]

After Being Away From Bikes For About 18 Yrs. I Bought A New 04 Low Rider, Loved The Way It Felt When I Sat On It The Way It Felt Corning, Then I Bought A 07 Road King, The Rk Out Rides, Handles Does Everything Better Than The Low Rider, But Because The Rk Being Heavier And Wider It Did Take A Little Adjusting. The Rk Is A Much Better All Around Bike. Put It This Way I Have Put Less Than 30 Miles On The Low Rider In Last 14 Months.

Dkin21