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Welp : I guess I've joined this group. Long story short : Grew up on the back of my dad's 73 sportster modded mutant of a bike. Had a couple bikes over the last decade (81 suzuki GS750, 93 CBR1000f). Sold those. Dad's rampant alcoholism landed him in the hospital back in 06. His choices were to quit drinking or die. So : a bit after that, we'd done some math and discovered that he was spending well more than a brand new softail payment just on booze. So : he got a brand new 2007 softail FXST standard. He only put 2600 miles on it, mostly due to the fact that his condition rendered him relatively feeble. He's been living a much healthier life since then, but he was just given 6 months to live, as apparently the liver damage has most likely been the factor contributing to his now inoperable liver cancer. So : he's getting his affairs in order (bought himself a nice truck with his retirement savings he'd never even touched), and has decided it's time to hand over the Harley.  Bittersweet. I now get to ride the symbol of my old man's retarded self destruction and the overcoming of it that bought him another decade on this earth. I don't think I want to make any changes, just because, but the wife apparently despises this Mustang seat he put on it. She won't get on it again until I put a padded sissy bar on there for her. That's fair. Holy poo poo this 96ci has an impressive amount of power. Also : it's a good thing I broke his balls that, at the time, my crotch rocket was a lot louder than his harley. The Screaming Eagle bullshit he installed just to be better than me sure is loud as hell. double edit : vvv thanks, guys. vvv My next hard lesson is to remember to wear pants even for the shortest trips. I burned my left leg once yesterday after a ride, wiping off some of the garbage that settled on the bike having sat for the last couple years... and burned the inside of my right leg THREE DUMBASS TIMES at stoplights this afternoon. I'm starting to discover this thing isn't my CBR. Nerdrock fucked around with this message at 18:09 on Jun 12, 2016 |
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Jun 12, 2016 12:29
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OMGVBFLOL posted:What a story; thanks for sharing. And congratulations to your pops on coming back from the brink. Alcoholism is a hell of a thing. Thanks. Interestingly, I went for a brief ride today with one of my best friends who is experiencing a very near identical situation. He's on his father's 2002 Heritage softail, given to him by his old man that's no longer able to conduct the machine himself, who was recently given a similar prognosis. Life just turns out weird sometimes. 2 early 30's dipshits on their dying dads' softails tooting around the county. But : yes. I can see this machine being my old man's rolling tribute. Nothing short of the apocalypse will separate this Harley from my possession. Definitely going to one day get another crotch rocket one day, but this bike stays.
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Jun 13, 2016 01:01
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Well, I decided the Softail needed a little sister. She's 2 years younger, over 200 lbs lighter, and (presumably) significantly faster. Putting her on the road tomorrow. To borrow a quote made by an unknown party , "This bike sounds like it's powered by loving hand grenades" Found a nice, clean 2009 Buell 1125r with 7k miles, offered them 5 grand (they were looking for 6. um, no.).
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Sep 19, 2016 02:22
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clutchpuck posted:Do yourself a favor and check the voltage coming off the charging system. That's the common failure Thanks for the suggestion. The seller told me he'd experienced that failure, replaced the stator and some associated things (can't recall specifically) to enhance cooling and ensure it wouldn't happen again. He seemed like he knew what he was doing, and wasn't just some punk rear end kid. Took it for a little ride yesterday : hooooooly poo poo. This thing is absolutely insane. My friend, an ex SV1000 owner got the front tire about 3 feet up and said 'yeah. thats enough'.. claims it makes his old SV feel like a moped. I pulled my wrist back in 1st gear once starting at about 20mph, and that was just.. jarring. Kept 2 on the ground, and have zero desire to change that. This is my first "supersport" bike, as, aside from the softail, the closest I had was the '93 CBR 1000F. Nerdrock fucked around with this message at 13:44 on Sep 20, 2016 |
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Sep 20, 2016 13:27
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clutchpuck posted:Are you still alive? Hah. yep. Learned yesterday I can get about 180 miles out of a tank on the Buell before the light comes on, at which point I have half a gallon left. I'm running out of time to enjoy it this season, as the weather is going to turn really, really soon. Next order of business is some accessories for the Softail. Mainly, a Sissy Bar so the wife can ride on the back confidently, and some saddlebags to make it have a little utility.
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Oct 6, 2016 19:03
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Got my bags and backrest for the wife set up, just in time for winter. At least she got to have one comfortable ride with me before the weather turned.
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Nov 3, 2016 17:49
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I have a ScalaRider Q3 personally. I know the allure of having stuff like that built in... and it's your money... but I wouldn't buy a bike for that feature, when you can get it on any bike with a helmet-speaker and a smartphone cradle.
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Feb 14, 2017 17:23
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I wore one of those tiny helmets once as a joke years ago on my '93 CBR1000f. I never realized how loving loud my bike was at the time, until then. I don't want to turn this into a helmet debate too much, but I've seen enough facial carnage just to say : PLEASE wear at LEAST a 3/4 helmet.
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Feb 16, 2017 14:03
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Took the buell out yesterday briefly, and today the wife demanded to do a pizza run. The Buell does not have a pizza shelf.  
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Feb 25, 2017 03:18
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Scrapez posted:I have a 2003 Road King and rented a 2014 Road King in Daytona Beach last week. I'd always been told how much better the new frame 2008+ touring bikes rode as if it were night and day difference. I couldn't tell a difference at all. fun. I, the wife, and the in-laws are in Orlando right now, and will be in Daytona in a couple days. However, Vacation Nerdrock will always have too much alcohol in his system to safely conduct a motorcycle in an unfamiliar place. (the number is one. never ride after more than one alcohol.)
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Apr 8, 2017 20:00
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well, plus, looking at midwest's website, they have a ton of used bikes for sale, implying that they probably are trying constantly to sell their rentals.
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Apr 12, 2017 15:30
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i have the same thoughts about the turn signals. Basically i just forced myself to operate the bike without making any of the assumptions. I push the turn signal button ALL the way in, and press it AGAIN as i'm completing my turn (well before it would have automatically turned off). You'll subconsciously get used to it. Still though, it's absolute trash.
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May 30, 2017 19:22
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Another HD Design complaint : The kickstand. It's spring loaded for a 'soft' landing or whatever, but as you set the bike down, the springs make the kickstand travel BACKWARD. This bit me in the rear end this weekend. I'd backed it out of my garage and set it down to put my lawn mower back inside... and heard WHAM. I knew it would eventually happen, and it did. gently caress you, Harley Kickstand. Now, my mirror is scraped, clutch lever scraped, footpeg scuffed, handlebar end scuffed, crank case derby cover or whatever scuffed, and shifter loving maimed. I suppose this is as good an excuse as any to look at some comfier footpegs, but still. gently caress you. This is going to be expensive. 
Nerdrock fucked around with this message at 14:24 on Jun 12, 2017 |
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Jun 12, 2017 14:19
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Strife posted:Yesterday I traded in my 2011 Nightster for a 2018 Sport Glide. Congrats! Of course HD won't sell you the tuner. That way they can sell you their tuning services! At least that's what my local shop does. Here's my softail and her little dirt bike sister in their new home for the season. Liberated them from storage yesterday. Feels good, man. Now the wife is cranky and sad because she's pregnant and can't hop on the back for a run to her favorite pizza place an hour away. I'm already filled with regret not getting the Buell rolling again yet  I have until winter to figure out the cheapest way to get something on the ground for the back part of my barn/garage. I'm not parking these on a dirt floor all winter this year.
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Apr 23, 2018 13:15
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Strife posted:I've never tuned a bike outside of my garage. Will the dealership give me a hard time about parts they didn't put on? I'm afraid they'll just tell me to beat it, and also tell me I've voided my warranty. 1) No clue. That's an easy question they'd probably answer with a phone call. One part of me figures they'd be happy to take your money to do the work, but I don't know about warranty shenanigans. My late father had bought the softail from our local dealer, and got mad that my CBR was louder, so he brought it back to the dealership with a wad of cash and just said "yeah my drat kid's lovely crotch rocket is louder than this Harley. This is bullshit. Put on one of those screamin' eagle pipes and make it work good" 2) It's too late. I courted mine with the premise that it's something we'd be doing. We met out at bars a couple times and our first 'date' was taking a ride on my '93 CBR 1000f. In all seriousness : I'd just start with a slow calm trip around town for 10-15 minutes and see how she reacts, if you can. My wife liked the CBR because it had an 'oh poo poo' handle on the back she could sense for peace of mind (and it was a big comfy seat as more of a 'touring' type sportbike). She made me get a backrest for her the Softail. She went from hating the harley to loving it, after that addon.
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Apr 23, 2018 14:10
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I test rode a Kawasaki Concours a while back out of boredom. It was luxurious and hilariously powerful, albeit ugly as sin. If I didn't have a significant emotional attachment to my naked Softail, I'd trade it without a second thought. Point being : the adjustable windscreen was so, so, SO good. I've considered a windscreen for the Softail but haven't pulled the trigger.
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Sep 9, 2018 19:46
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