Forgive me for i have strayed....

[Beowulf]

So i traded in my beloved Guzzi v7 ii. 39800 plus miles. I found myself in a weird spot. No Guzzi dealer really wanted to deal with me due my higher mileage.

Well i had dealership offer me a really good deal. Too good to pass up. But alas not a Guzzi.  I been working a ton of overtime paying things off and in general significantly improving my financial situation. Still working towards that end. Got rid of all my credit card debt! Working on paying off everything really.

Well to my surprise my lovely budget minded wife approved and i was out the door on this lovely thing.

[fotoguzzi]

Sweet!

[GeorgiaGuzzi]

The Sportster is one of the best bikes made by Hardly. That being said, to enjoy the handling if you’re over 180# you might need upgraded shocks/springs. And don’t take any lip from from all the fanboys who say the sportster isn’t a real Hardly. You can outrun 98% of them. 99.9% on twisties!

[Guzzitenn]

The Roadster is a fun ride, good choice
I tested one recently, found the footrest position to far back making me feel like my toe was doing the shifting then
When we got back couldn’t get it in neutral. Turns out they put different footrests on the CX. They are set back more
That and lack of abs in all the Roadsters in stock here keep me on my 06

[timonbik]

The Roadster is a fun ride, good choice
I tested one recently, found the footrest position to far back making me feel like my toe was doing the shifting then
When we got back couldn’t get it in neutral. Turns out they put different footrests on the CX. They are set back more
That and lack of abs in all the Roadsters in stock here keep me on my 06

THAT YELLOW BEAST IS STUNNING!!!

[MotoG5]

Hey, just jump on that bad boy and keep on truckin! 

[MMRanch]

Beowulf

Congratulations that's a hansom bike !   

I've had two Sportsters and like them both.   When they started rubber mounting them I got interested.  First was a 1200 Roadster (2004) , then a 883 (2007) .   I liked the 883 better for the SMOOTH , but the 1200 for its Carb and its Great-MPG. 

Sometimes ... I think I'd like to have a (2004-2006) 883 , but the garage is already full !

 

[Kev m]

Soooooooo you guys know how much I love our V7s.

Hell I got rid of our 2007 Sporty Roadster this past summer.

But truthfully, if I could only have ONE bike (and not our V7s and my RK), it might likely be a CX Roadster!

Enjoy.

The Sportster is one of the best bikes made by Hardly. That being said, to enjoy the handling if you’re over 180# you might need upgraded shocks/springs.

The suspension on the CX is pretty damn good. Maybe only bested by the XRX on "recent" Sportys.

[Kev m]

The Roadster is a fun ride, good choice
I tested one recently, found the footrest position to far back making me feel like my toe was doing the shifting then
When we got back couldn’t get it in neutral. Turns out they put different footrests on the CX. They are set back more
That and lack of abs in all the Roadsters in stock here keep me on

?!? Did I miss a recent change or did you test something that had been modified?

Cause the foot pegs on the ones I've ridden were in the exact same position as my 07, and our 04 and 05 before?!?

[Moparnut72]

i had a 2006 XL 883 Custom for a couple of years. In my opinion the Sportsters are the best bikes Harley builds. They are bullet proof and will last for a long time and many miles.
kk

[Beowulf]

Thanks for all the kind words. I had an 883 iron before the v7 and really found it to be a good bike. The seat killed me but the rest was great. Looking forward to many miles. I will of course still be lurking in here as i find this board fun and addictive. I can stop anytime i want.....

[Muzz]

The Sportster is one of the best bikes made by Hardly. That being said, to enjoy the handling if you’re over 180# you might need upgraded shocks/springs. And don’t take any lip from from all the fanboys who say the sportster isn’t a real Hardly. You can outrun 98% of them. 99.9% on twisties!

My son is a Harley guy but will only have the sportys.

Having gotten tangled up with a group of big block guys on a very twisty hill he found that the sporty ran rings around the big blocks.  He hadn't realised that yes, they really are that slow in corners!

The Guzzi of course ran rings around them all.

[Kev m]

My son is a Harley guy but will only have the sportys.

Having gotten tangled up with a group of big block guys on a very twisty hill he found that the sporty ran rings around the big blocks.  He hadn't realised that yes, they really are that slow in corners!

The Guzzi of course ran rings around them all.

Myth.

Well mostly.

Like in most things it varies. There are castrated lowered models and there are capable models. But thing is, since the rubbermounted Sportys (04+) there are a lot (maybe the majority) of castrated Sportys too.

And if you look at the specs of the most capable (stock) Sportys they just about match the average FLH in lean angle or ground clearance, don't quite equal the hp:weight of the BTs for the last decade or so, and are 5-speeds.

That said there are some very low models often ridden by guys who can't or won't even try to match a Jeep Wrangler in the twisties.

[Perazzimx14]

Good on you and your wife for focusing on getting rid of debt especially CC debt 

[Muzz]

Kev, all his have been pre-rubber mounted.

He noted on this hill that they were grounding and he wasn't.

The guy he bought it off had worked the exhaust (not just loud pipes ), the carburation and the ignition, and had it set up on a dyno.  It went really well.

[Adk.IBO]

Nice choice, here's mine.

[Kev m]

Kev, all his have been pre-rubber mounted.

He noted on this hill that they were grounding and he wasn't.

The guy he bought it off had worked the exhaust (not just loud pipes ), the carburation and the ignition, and had it set up on a dyno.  It went really well.

The pre-rubbermounts will generally outlean the BTs, but not by a lot and they are definitely short on power to anything past say the 6-spd TC96+.

You can of course work them into monsters if you want, but just w don't.

As for grounding of parts, as you know, it's also rider dependent. How many non-aggressive suffers t don't use proper body English ertc. Hell I've seen some stay upright leaning the bike beneath them.

Besides your realize there are now more rubbermounted Sportys in the world than solidmounted? Production numbers for the first decade and a half way exceeded anything ever done with the solidmounts.

Anyway, just trying to clear up the often mistood world of Harleys.

And remember, I love Sportys.

[greer]

Hope you'll pop in regularly Beowulf, along with a picture of your bike.  Congrats to you, I really enjoyed the 883 I owned, there was an element to that engine that has caused other bikes to feel as bland as our Prius, regardless of their specs.

Sarah 

[Rebochi]

   Good, sportsters are fun bikes with a definite mechanical presence. I bought a 1200CX at a insurance auction a few months ago and use at as daily transportation to my "essential " job. 
   After changing the Bars, Seat, pegs and shocks the sportster has a similar feel to the Griso with more low end torque and more mechanical feel.
       

[Kev m]

the sportster has a similar feel to the Griso with more low end torque and more mechanical feel.

I've made that comparison before, and heard others here make it (especially after riding an XR/XRX), but others think we're nuts.

Which is cool, we are all a little nutz here.

[bodine99]

Very nice bike!! Best wishes and enjoy it. Despite the clueless and so called bikers/experts XL's are terrific cycles. And big fun. I sold my 99
Buell M-2 in 03 to buy my current modern bike, my 03 Bonny. Loved my M-2 but it was time to slow down and not get hurt. Not the fastest twin on the planet but with Andrews cams, exhaust and carb stuff 90+ at the rear wheel and big torque it was peppy!!
Ride safe!!

[blu guzz]

my first harley was a 92 1200 sporty standard.  the first thing it got was a corbin seat.  what a transformation.  i could not ride through a tankful (laugh as that was only 90 miles).  this was the first year with the belt drive and the 5 speed was relatively new.  i loved the bike, totally reliable though only kept for 5500 miles.  it was sporty, but not a sport bike.  low cg and high torque were fun.  it was very smooth up to 59 mph., since the speed was 55 in those days, it worked.  over 60, very shakey and i could not endure it for very long.  i can see why they went to rubber mounting, should have gone to a 6 speed then too.

[cliffrod]

Very cool.  No need to ask forgiveness- Ride and enjoy.

[Ncdan]

Just a question for you guys with experience with the Sportster. Can the 1200 models be triple digit a day mile munchers if set up properly for touring?

[Bill929]

So i traded in my beloved Guzzi v7 ii. 39800 plus miles. I found myself in a weird spot. No Guzzi dealer really wanted to deal with me due my higher mileage.

Well i had dealership offer me a really good deal. Too good to pass up. But alas not a Guzzi.  I been working a ton of overtime paying things off and in general significantly improving my financial situation. Still working towards that end. Got rid of all my credit card debt! Working on paying off everything really.

Well to my surprise my lovely budget minded wife approved and i was out the door on this lovely thing.

I just bought this one.  Love it so far... 

[Adk.IBO]

I just bought this one.  Love it so far... 

Love that color!

[Kev m]

Just a question for you guys with experience with the Sportster. Can the 1200 models be triple digit a day mile munchers if set up properly for touring?

An article I wrote about a friend of mine.

https://www.revzilla.com/common-tread/would-you-ride-the-iron-butt-rally-on-a-sportster


I believe he's at ~260k miles on that 06 XL1200R.

It's a pretty personal thing about ergonomics.

But HAD I not bought my RK, I was planning on buying a new CX Roadster for around town duty and completely rebuilding my 07 XL1200Lr suspension for touring duty.

Certainly the windshield, bags, and mustang touring seat I had on it were fine.

A friend of the new owner flew into Philly last summer and rode it back to New Mexico.

[kingoffleece]

I love Sportys.  Every year I go the  local H-D dealer on demo days just to ride a 1200 again.  I had several EVO motors back in the day and still have a huge soft spot for them.  Rode an EVO 4 speed Softtail all over the East Coast for a few years.  Loved every mile.  4 speed chain drive-just perfect for the kid I was.

[Rebochi]

Just a question for you guys with experience with the Sportster. Can the 1200 models be triple digit a day mile munchers if set up properly for touring?

  Sure, I have done a couple of 500 mile days on my Sportster with out pain. It is fine if you do not want to maintain speeds over 100 MPH like I can on my 1200S of BMW GS. After the Wuhan virus is history I am going to ride the Pacific coast Highway from Santa Barbra CA to Grays Harbor WA.
   The stock seat is lousy and I hated the stock foot pegs. A Corbin with a extra inch cured the seat and Rearsets from Chainsickle fixed the peg problem. The stock pegs spreads your legs into the wind so you have to use your leg muscles to hold your feet and legs in position plus they interfered with your feet at a stop.

[sign216]

My son is a Harley guy but will only have the sportys.

Having gotten tangled up with a group of big block guys on a very twisty hill he found that the sporty ran rings around the big blocks.  He hadn't realised that yes, they really are that slow in corners!

The Guzzi of course ran rings around them all.

Muzz, I am w you all the way!  Guzzi to the end!