How Many Sportster owners on Bike Talk

Trying to see how many people on Bike talk have and ride Sportsters.

What year and size.

And do you have any pictures.

I bought my wife one.

Me, 1995, 2000 models. Started out being 883 Standards (aren't anymore) & while they look pretty much the same as in the below photo, I tend to change 'em around from time to time. Which IMO is easier to do with a Sportster than with any other bike on the planet.

I did good to git a picture period.

Hope she brings the camera this weekend and I don't have to use my Iphone again.

Anyway I like it.

2005 XL883C pics in gallery. Haven't seen Oldman1 on here in a while but he had one as well. His pics were in gallery too.

More to it than that - back then there were a LOT more flat-track races & if the shifter's on the left side, it's your way - besides, you can't downshift when your left foot's on the ground. Most guys wore a metal plate on their left boot & the term "hot shoe" came from that. And if you look @ an XR750, you'll see that both shifter & rear brake are on the right.

I used to go to the races on the 1-mile dirt track @ the Indiana State Fairgrounds & the fellas were hitting 130 mph in the straights, then they'd hang the back end out to slide all the way thru the turns with their left foot down, then rocket back down the straight. AMA cut way back on those races & the last one I saw was in Charlotte a few years ago. Nat'l. Champion Chris Carr was there & so was my favorite, "the old man" Jay Springsteen - great fun !!

In Pro or amateur classes you could run other brands of bikes & the Sportster was the 1st American bike made to compete with the British Twins. The right-side shift wasn't a copy of the Brit bikes with respect to style, it was for practicality - if you're used to a Brit bike you're already used to the foot controls & if you wanted to go flat-track racing, you didn't have to move the shifter. Rotate the brake pedal down a bit, take the headlight off, put a number plate on & you're good to go!

guess mine is nothing new to the ones who posted:roflmao:

I just want to git everybody to admit that a sportster is a Girls Bike.:roflmao:

Hey cardboard, that looks like one of those nightsters? I like that look, sort of a retro, cafe racer style. My opinion.

I have a 95 1200 XLH. That was before the rubber engine mounts. Vibrations are a bit tougher at highway speeds, but manageable. I think they are good bikes if you like the curves.

Unlike the BTs, the sportster only has one oil tank, same oil is used on the engine and transmission. I do not know about the newer ones, but mine is fussy on oil, mostly to reduce false neutrals between 5th and 4th when downshifting. Amsoil works good. HD syth did not. Art may know if the newer ones are as fussy.

Enjoy the riding!
Panth

IT IS NOT!:fight:

Bike shifts real easy, finds neutral real easy.

Has Plenty of power. It will be on 80 in 3rd gear before I know it.

Got a 6 yr extended warranty on it for the OL.

All I did was stick a mustang seat on it for her.


I like my electraglide. All I want to do is sit behind the fairing and cruise.

Ifn' I had a 2nd bike for me I would probaly want a FAT BOB !

But I still crank the OL bike and take it out.

Dang thing is Light !

Sportsters do NOT share engine / transmission oil. However, unlike the BT's the primary & transmission share the same fluid, as the transmission is in the engine cases, not a separate unit. The oil tank you're referring to is for engine oil - you change the primary / trans fluid by draining / refilling the primary.

I haven't ridden a newer ('04-up) Sportster (newest one I've got is a 2000) but I do know that the trans ratios are a bit different & there is no more "trap door" in the primary, so you can't remove the trans without splitting the engine cases as you can on earlier models. But the basic design is still the same & all reports I've seen say the trans on the newer models shifts just fine.

Such things as "false neutrals" are usually due to the primary chain being too loose, but adjusting it properly is not @ all difficult or time-consuming. As to fluid, I switched to Red Line 75W90 quite some time ago & the results are XLent.

Ain't gonna happen. Back when I started riding Harleys (1969), all the "cool" guys rode Sportsters & I'll bet you wouldn't have told Sonny Barger that he rode a girl's bike :roflmao:

I believe where the "starter bike", "girl's bike" ideas came from is H-D's own marketing - buy a new Sportster & get the MSRP as trade-in value if you trade for a BT within a year. They did that not too long ago, but certainly not for the 1st time, which was back in the early '70's - if I remember right, the MSRP was $1899 back then.

Simply put, a Sportster is not a smaller version of a BT, it's a different motorcycle designed to do different things & it's a lot better on the curvy, hilly roads where I live. If I'd have wanted a Barcolounger on wheels I'd have bought one, instead of 2 Sportsters

And @ 500 lbs. (565 for the newer ones) a Sportster is NOT a good "starter" bike. Also, people used to BT's often say a Sportster feels top-heavy - it does in comparison. At least mine do - appears all you can get now are the "Low" models & they won't lean over as far as Sportsters thru 2003.

On a non-lowered Sportster you don't have draggin' problems like this:

Yea Folks that were cool Like Fonzie on Happy days. But he couldn't touch the ground on a Harley or hold it up so they had to put him on another bike and he could hardly ride it.

Cool guys.

Art was right about the oil and tranny fluid, I am not sure where I got it on my head otherwise, but I stand corrected. It was a timely post too, since I was overdue for changing that. Thanks Art! Just goes to show I am never to old to learn, or too knowledgeable to be wrong! While I was at it I changed the primary cover gasket as it has started leaking.

He is also right about the sporty not being a smaller version of the BT's. It does look a bit like a smaller Dyna, but it is still different. It is higher, more top heavy, and corners a lot better than the BTs. It is not a good starter bike, in my opinion, due to it being top heavy and tall. As far as a girls bike, well, I am average height, and with the Mustang seat, I can touch ground on both sides, but I have a little trouble pushing it back on a slight incline (parked in at a curb). A shorter person, as most women would be, would have a lot of difficulty. Perhaps that is why the push for the low models.

I think a lot of people consider it a started bike due to the pricing of the bikes, which is considerably less that the BT's.

It is a fun bike to ride, it does OK on highways, though with mine, over 70 the vibes get annoying, it does ride sweet around 65. It handles curves and hills very well. As mentioned, it can take off like a shot! I have been considering moving up to a BT, but haven't made the commitment yet. Maybe next year, if the economy picks up to a more comfortable level.

Happy riding!
Panth

Go to Demo rides at a Dealership and ride a nightster.