Author Topic: Last day with the Norge  (Read 2012 times)

Offline Motormike

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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #30 on: August 03, 2022, 11:50:18 AM »
but that heavy thing just wasn't calling my name anymore.  It was the most beautiful Electra Glide made in eons though.  I sold it quite easily for what I paid for it.  The new owner is thrilled and I am relieved that it is gone.

That bike was stunning.  Pity they have gotten so damned heavy.  I wish Harley would put some engineering effort into cutting the weight of their touring bikes like they did with the softale line a few years back.  They'd sell more of them to old skinny guys like me that just can't deal with a 950 lb  :shocked: motorcycle any more.

Offline Kev m

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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #31 on: August 03, 2022, 12:08:05 PM »
That bike was stunning.  Pity they have gotten so damned heavy.  I wish Harley would put some engineering effort into cutting the weight of their touring bikes like they did with the softale line a few years back.  They'd sell more of them to old skinny guys like me that just can't deal with a 950 lb  :shocked: motorcycle any more.

To be fair the Revival was 862# Wet - though like my only 821# Wet FLHP I suspect the seat height makes it feel like more.

And you're not wrong they would do well to look into lowering the weight a bit at least for older and smaller guys. And to some extent you could argue they are addressing it with models like the Street Glide ST at 814# Wet.

It's funny how the current Softail platform (especially the Heritage) is arguably more comparable in size to what the FLH was back in the days of the EVO.

The Heritage Softail is 728# Wet and the Low Rider ST with fixed fairing is 721# wet while other Softail models run as low as 655# Wet.

And the new Sporty line includes the liquid cooled Nightster that weighs in at a svelte 481# Wet - which is V7/Bonnie territory.

So there are options and maybe they are slowly responding to these desires.

« Last Edit: August 03, 2022, 06:03:55 PM by Kev m »
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Offline Muzz

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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #32 on: August 06, 2022, 02:20:13 AM »
Good to hear you are ok Scott.

Not tempted to go back to a smallblock?
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Online Ncdan

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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #33 on: August 06, 2022, 08:07:17 AM »
My son, who is vertically challenged at 5’ 6” with a 26” inseam, was very limited to what he could comfortably sit on and flat foot, so he could push it backwards without assistance.
We went to the local HD dealership to experiment with the different models.
We narrowed it down to the soft tail deluxe.
From that point we started the search and found one an adult ridden, low mileage one in FL for a good price.
These bikes are a joy to ride regardless of around town on on an extended tour.
The low center of gravel makes them feel much lighter than they actually are, around 700+ pounds.
One cam hardly ride these machines without Grinning from ear to ear.


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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #33 on: August 06, 2022, 08:07:17 AM »

Offline Scott of the Sahara

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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #34 on: August 06, 2022, 09:41:17 AM »
I have looked at specs for all of the small blocks, they have a seat height of 30" or so. Also I want a touring bike with Windshield and Panniers. Originally I was looking at the  California 1400, but the seat is a bit too high (I have photographic proof of this).
The Harley Road King is heavy but I think it will check all the boxes. My riding buddy and I have put over 30,000 miles together over the last 13 years, I am impressed with his Harley and it has had very few problems.
I have looked at the Soft Tail, but I don't like them, but they do have a low seat height. I need to have crash bars fore and aft. I pray I never crash again, but if I do, I want some kind of crash protection.
I am feeling better every day. Last week I was able to work on installs 2 days and it made me very tired. This week I will install only one late in the week, hopefully I will be up to it by Thursday.

Online Bulldog9

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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #35 on: August 06, 2022, 02:21:17 PM »
Scott, Sorry to hear about this, and glad you survived to ride again.
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The Living: 1976 Convert, 2004 Breva 750, 2007 GRiSO, 2008 1200 Sport, 2016 Stornello #742,
The Departed: 2017 MGX, 2014 Norge GT, 
In Stasis: 1978 XS750, XS1100SF

Offline Motormike

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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #36 on: August 06, 2022, 03:03:10 PM »
To be fair the Revival was 862# Wet - though like my only 821# Wet FLHP I suspect the seat height makes it feel like more.

And you're not wrong they would do well to look into lowering the weight a bit at least for older and smaller guys. And to some extent you could argue they are addressing it with models like the Street Glide ST at 814# Wet.

It's funny how the current Softail platform (especially the Heritage) is arguably more comparable in size to what the FLH was back in the days of the EVO.

The Heritage Softail is 728# Wet and the Low Rider ST with fixed fairing is 721# wet while other Softail models run as low as 655# Wet.


I'll take my 1989 FXRT at 685 lbs. any day.  (And would still be riding it if not for a blind lady driving a Ford Taurus in Paducah, Kentucky back in 1999...Ouch!
 

Offline Kev m

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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #37 on: August 07, 2022, 07:26:28 AM »
I'll take my 1989 FXRT at 685 lbs. any day.  (And would still be riding it if not for a blind lady driving a Ford Taurus in Paducah, Kentucky back in 1999...Ouch!

I hear ya, but that new Low Rider ST is pretty close in a lot of ways with really good abs brakes.

I have looked at specs for all of the small blocks, they have a seat height of 30" or so. Also I want a touring bike with Windshield and Panniers. Originally I was looking at the  California 1400, but the seat is a bit too high (I have photographic proof of this).
The Harley Road King is heavy but I think it will check all the boxes. My riding buddy and I have put over 30,000 miles together over the last 13 years, I am impressed with his Harley and it has had very few problems.
I have looked at the Soft Tail, but I don't like them, but they do have a low seat height. I need to have crash bars fore and aft. I pray I never crash again, but if I do, I want some kind of crash protection.
I am feeling better every day. Last week I was able to work on installs 2 days and it made me very tired. This week I will install only one late in the week, hopefully I will be up to it by Thursday.

If size is an issue I really would encourage you to look closer at the new Softails as they are much better bikes than they were before 2017, but they are significantly lighter (100-200# so) than the FLH models.

You can definitely add front crash bars on them, but I'm not sure if anything is available yet for rear bars. That said the Harley saddlebags are quite robust and I bet they would provide additional support/protection.

It's funny but I've found on a number of classic style bikes the exhaust itself acts like a crash bar if the bike is leaned far enough/dropped. There may be less of a need than you realize. And this from a guy who we'd crash bars to every Sportster he ever owned.
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Offline Scott of the Sahara

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Re: Last day with the Norge
« Reply #38 on: August 13, 2022, 08:24:12 AM »
So... I thought I would go with a nice used Road King. I decided to go a little lighter. I am buying a Yamaha Star V950. It is a bit less power and only about 50 pounds heavier than the Norge. The one I am going to look at is priced within my budget and it looks really nice. I will buy the Factory Hard Bags and the mini crash bars for them and then I am good to go.

 

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