Any bikers in the house??

[INDYFIGHTER]

"Harley" guys..
I really want help in understanding and do not want to sound judgemental so hear me out and give me your take..

When I approach the motorcyle on its merits and you look around the market..How can you say that Harley's are best??

It feels (to me) that the Harley guys are SO blindly loyal (Incredible score for Harley Marketing) that no matter how good (OR BAD) the product is you'll buy it.
I mean some of the Harley's vibrate your eyeballs off, are air cooled, have poor brakes, performance is terrible, have this BIG 1450 CC motor that Harley guys are just so proud of that puts a WHOPPING what 75 horsepower?!..The motors redline at 5K..starts to break up like the space shuttle at around 95mph...and the bonus for all that technology is they are WAY MORE EXPENSIVE for (technically) less bike than what is offered by the Japanese (or Victory) manufacturers..

And then the other 'Harley' thing is customizing and 'making it your own' (I though that was called paying for it). I went to Laconia Bike week once and I have to be honest..All these "custom" Harley's ALL LOOKED THE SAME!!?? triple trees...seats..rims....etc...all of it..
And 3/4 of these guys pull them on trailers, ride a mile down the street to STARE At them..WTF????

I mean honestly WHAT GIVES???
I really want some insight. Please help me understand.
Don't take my post as Harley Vs. "X" or Harley bashing. That is not what it is intended at all.

I want to know what makes a Harley guy buy a Harley without hearing the reasoning that 'hey its a Harley' because to me that is no reason..


Thanks all and I agree with what someone else said. Ride what you love and the bottom line is 2 wheels are better than 4 no matter what the name on the tank is.

Be safe out there.

I agree brother. Ride what ever makes you happy. I can only say that I love Harleys for there low end tractor pulling power. The lug of the engine at an idle that sounds like the beginnig drum solo from Hot For Teacher and pure damn sex appeal of black, chrome and leather. I like that I'm riding somthing that my father, uncles and grandfather rode and that even though it's the same 45 degree v-twin design engine it's done nothing but improve the last 70 years or so. I had some British engineers working for Lilly ask me once what it was about Harley that make them so great when technically they are so antiquated. They told the truth about how the best changes Harleys had seen since the 70's were all upgrades stolen from Honda and Yamaha. So why are they so awesome?
They're Harleys man.

But I love all bikes and will ride with anyone, anywhere, anytime.

 

[INDYFIGHTER]

One more important tip for safe riding. While riding in groups is probably safer than riding alone. A lot of riders make the mistake of riding too close to other riders. Riding Groups are very popular among the Harley riders and I've seen several beginer riders have accidents and cause other more experienced riders to have accidents while riding in tight groups. Just always give yourself some room for error.

 

[Carol]

"Harley" guys..
I really want help in understanding and do not want to sound judgemental so hear me out and give me your take..

I don't ride but the way I see it...motorcycles are more about fun and coolness than anything else. Yeah they have the side effect of having some practical uses but ...c'mon Todd, in our weather? The only reason why someone would own a bike up here is because they WANT to.

So if someone rides because they want to...they are going to want to choose what they want to ride. History, tradition, image, people to hang with...it all counts...and if someone has enough G's to drop on a bike, I don't see anything wrong with them getting the bike they want.

Whether someone else agrees with their choice is irrelevant.

 

[CTKempo Todd]

I don't ride but the way I see it...motorcycles are more about fun and coolness than anything else. Yeah they have the side effect of having some practical uses but ...c'mon Todd, in our weather? The only reason why someone would own a bike up here is because they WANT to.

So if someone rides because they want to...they are going to want to choose what they want to ride. History, tradition, image, people to hang with...it all counts...and if someone has enough G's to drop on a bike, I don't see anything wrong with them getting the bike they want.

Whether someone else agrees with their choice is irrelevant.

Carol..
Absolutely agree with you..But I was afraid my post was going to be going here..

Ride what you want not matter how much it costs..YES absolutley..
Again I am not knocking anyone choosing a Harley at all..(they are beautiful bikes) But I am trying to understanding chossing Harley specifically on the merits..

Not because it makes me 'tuff' or cool or now I can 'hang in this club or that club' to that high school stuff..

I put a ton of miles on my ride. (>37K in a year and a half) ..and I continue to ride to work if the weather factors are in my favor including twice last week when it was 23 out..There is nothing better than seeing another rider out here this time of year..not matter what kind of bike it is..They get a big thumbs up from me!

And I do ride with whoever and with whatever you ride. I make no judgements..I am really trying to understand the psyche thats all.

Not trying to offend and if I did then I am sorry.

 

[jim777]

I have to say, the ABS brakes and Telelever forks on the BMWs are excellent. The telelever won't allow the front end to nose dive under heavy braking, and it works like a charm. As far as I can tell, BMW dealers will let you test ride anything they have gassed up, so everyone should go out and check one out, what the heck! The Big Beemer is also quite a bit sportier than she looks, though not as sporty as a sport bike. Much sportier than a Wing, though.
That Night Rod Special looks like it would be a blast! That's the kind of bike I wouldn't mind adding to the stable.

 

[JasonASmith]

When it comes down to it, I don't HATE Harleys; I really don't.
Hell, I've demoed a couple(My dad's Sportser 883 and an Electra Glide Classic from the local dealer), and I enjoyed the rides...
However, the prices are out of control. For the cost of a Softail Standard you can get a fully-loaded Triumph Rocket 3, which you really can't compare with power-wise or comfort-wise(I demoed the Rocket too-AWESOME!) If Harley would drop their prices a bit, then it would make more sense to me to buy one...

 

[Drac]

When it comes down to it, I don't HATE Harleys; I really don't.

I don't really hate Jappers either..A friend let me ride a KZ-1 that he had tricked..HAd it up to 125mph and STILL had throttle left, almost had a movement when I realized just haw fast I was going....It's a choice...

 

[tradrockrat]

"Harley" guys..
I really want help in understanding and do not want to sound judgemental so hear me out and give me your take..

When I approach the motorcyle on its merits and you look around the market..How can you say that Harley's are best??

What merits? Some people want more than speed. Some people want a bike that they can work on - it's part of the lifestyle and allure.

It feels (to me) that the Harley guys are SO blindly loyal (Incredible score for Harley Marketing) that no matter how good (OR BAD) the product is you'll buy it.

Have you EVER tried to have a conversation about bikes with a Goldwing owner? Some people just get hooked on brand loyalty. I'm not one of them. I've owned 2 Hondas a Kawi and currently own a Yamer and a Harley. Bar none the Harley is the best riding experience I've ever had.

I mean some of the Harley's vibrate your eyeballs off, are air cooled, have poor brakes, performance is terrible, have this BIG 1450 CC motor that Harley guys are just so proud of that puts a WHOPPING what 75 horsepower?!..The motors redline at 5K..starts to break up like the space shuttle at around 95mph...and the bonus for all that technology is they are WAY MORE EXPENSIVE for (technically) less bike than what is offered by the Japanese (or Victory) manufacturers..

This is where we get ugly - you are flat out wrong. Harleys are WAY better than people want to believe - the image most people hold is of those AMF days when parts were made on old machines with poor tolerances. Those days are over. My Harley came from the factory with dual front disk brakes. Red line is NOT 5000 rpm (ha!) and tracks straight as an arrow at 100+. All for 5000 dollars (used 1200 Sporty).

a new RK goes for 18 G and sells used for...15 gs how much are you gonna get back for your Honda? 2, 3 g's? Not that that matters to me as I never sell my bikes - they're for life.

Are other machines better made? Yes - Honda nad BMW make great bikes from an engineering standpoint. But there ain't much soul in 'em. The Shadow I owned sucked, but never broke down. It was boring.

where you have a point is in the air cooled engine - because of that they have to seriously "De-tune" the bikes to pass emission standards. This is a wink wink thing between people who want the character of an aircooled twin and are willing to pay the cost to have the engine brought to life after the purchase. It's rediculous on the face of it (buy a bike that gets 80 ponies and then pay money to make it run?!?!) but we all know it going in.

And then the other 'Harley' thing is customizing and 'making it your own' (I though that was called paying for it). I went to Laconia Bike week once and I have to be honest..All these "custom" Harley's ALL LOOKED THE SAME!!?? triple trees...seats..rims....etc...all of it..
And 3/4 of these guys pull them on trailers, ride a mile down the street to STARE At them..WTF????

Those aren't Harley guys. Those are "enthusiasts" who want their toys. And more power to them. They know what they want and they get it. who are we to judge them? And lets face it - Bikes are toys whether you want to admit it or not. They mean a whole lot more to me than that, but it doesn't change the fact that 99 percent of ALL motorcycles are bought as recreational vehicals.

Have you ever painted your house, decorated the walls or bought new furniture? Or did you just leave it as is? My bike is as important as my house and it is MINE. I want it to reflect that. I bobbed my Magna too and replaced those stupid fugly turn signals on my Yamaha with aftermarket lights. I like what I like

I mean honestly WHAT GIVES???
I really want some insight. Please help me understand.
Don't take my post as Harley Vs. "X" or Harley bashing. That is not what it is intended at all.

none taken, but your post IS a little harsh and biased.

I want to know what makes a Harley guy buy a Harley without hearing the reasoning that 'hey its a Harley' because to me that is no reason..

I buy it because Bikes are more than a conveyance. They are more than a mode of transportation, and they are more than the sum of their parts. And no other bike in the world has the character and soul of a Harley. The experience of riding my Harley is better than the following bikes I've been on:

Honda:
Shadow
84 Magna

Triumph:
72 tiger (close second place!)

Norton (can't remember the year - late 70's)

Kawi:
Ninja EX500
Ninja 600
Ninja 100
440 LTD

Yamaha:
VFW
78 SR500 (currently my other ride)

BMW:
650
R1100

ducati:
916SS (what a machine!)

EDIT: Forgot that I rode one of those monster Hyabusas! Damn that thing is scary!

Thanks all and I agree with what someone else said. Ride what you love and the bottom line is 2 wheels are better than 4 no matter what the name on the tank is.

That was me...

Be safe out there.

you too.

 

[tradrockrat]

Here's a quote fro Michael Lock (CEO of Ducatti) that pretty much sums up my belief on why Harleys are so sought after as well.

My first question for Lock concerns consumer choice: When a rider decides to purchase a motorcycle, why would he or she go to a Ducati dealer when it's possible to find an inexpensive, mass-produced Japanese motorcycle that has -- on the surface, at least -- similar specs?

His response is hard to refute. "People don't buy motorcycles for rational reasons. You can take the subway, it's probably quicker to get uptown ... and probably safer than a motorcycle. But actually, the safest thing of all would be to stay at home, and then no one has a life," Lock reasons.
It's Lock's belief that his company's motorcycles offer an emotional pull on riders, something unique to European motorcycles and Ducati in particular that competitors simply cannot match. "It verges on the irrational. I think there's no easier way of putting it than that. It's an emotional decision rather than a practical one," Lock says.

http://www.thestreet.com/_yahoo/funds/toponepercent/10332927.html

Substitute Harley for Ducatti and you have a real good idea of what I mean

 

[Rich Parsons]

I don't really hate Jappers either..A friend let me ride a KZ-1 that he had tricked..HAd it up to 125mph and STILL had throttle left, almost had a movement when I realized just haw fast I was going....It's a choice...

It is a choice. I am not the normal size and one would think being a larger guy I would be more comfortable on a Harley. Well after sitting on a Fatboy and the Hondar Shadow Sabre, the Seat hieght to Peg is taller on the Honda, and it fits me more comfortable. I knew if I was to enjoy the ride it should be comfortable. To me it was a bonus that it was over 50% cheaper (* once you add sticker prices with all the standrad add-ons one gets *). I was willing to pay the price no problem assuming it fit me and I enjoyed it.

I ride with my friends who have Harleys, and my black Sabre with the chrome looks nice, and one of my friends has a Hand painted Aniversary Edition Screaming Eagle and people will walk up to us (* Assuming the noise came from my bike and not his *) and say Nice Harley or Nice Bike, and then they will see the Honda on the side and then look at his bike, and I say " I mean his bike is a nice Bike." I just smile and say "Yes his is a real nice bike."