'86 Ducati Pantah 650SS. I really like this bike though many feel it's outdated. The only limitation is true long distance riding, which I want to do more of, but it runs with all the best just fine.

1984 Honda Goldwing GL1200 Standard.... Never would have thought I would own one... Not sure I would part with this one though....

I'll bet it's *decked out* isn't it Shane?

I have a 1986 Venture Royale that I do most of my riding on.This is my second one and if they were still making them there would be no problem in answering the "next bike" question.I would buy a new one in a heart beat.This one is the Royale version with cruise control cb radio,stereo.It has the drivers back rest added as well as floor boards,driving lights,trunk rack,loud horns,chrome vents and the cushon hand grips and a trailer hitch.I never thought that I would want to pull a trailer and now I don't see how I ever got along with out one.

Hey Paul, I got your brother in a 96 Royal Star..love that V4. I've put 23k miles on it in 17 months. Great long distance riding. Those Ventures sure handle good with great pep. Stock, they can take an RS, which mine isn't anymore. My buddy has an 86 Venture that's fun to ride. One of these days I just might add that trailer hitch and head to Sturgis.

Hi "K" .That Star of yours is a beaut.Can't wait to see it with the chrome front end.There is a guy here in Provo with a red and white one that he put the chrome on last spring.I could not believe the difference it made.Those emulatoprs should perk up the handling too.

Actually Terry, it is far from *Decked Out*. In fact it is VERY PLAIN!!.. No sidebags, 83 Fairing, 85 Trunk, Pretty lean. The only decking really is cosmetic, I recently took all the laquer off of the Valve Covers and Timing belt covers and polished them. Looks great! Would do away with the Trunk but wife needs a place to lean too, so it stays for now. My replace Fairing with a Windshield if the Valkerie parts become a bit mor affordable... Shane

See "First Bike" for my current bike.

I went on my first extended ride in 3 months yesterday (Saturday). The bike was giving me trouble and wouldn't start, so I took the tank off to see if the gas tank's hoses were all hooked up right. They were, so I put it back together and it started first try. Go figure. Anyway, I knew my back tire was pretty bad, but I needed to do an Italian tuneup, so I started off towards Conifer for lunch. It was sputtering and moaning and groaning and refusing to reve past 4000 rpms under load (it would rev all day in neutral). Obviously starving. I stopped and had some pizza, got back on the bike, it started up and ran pretty dang well (I can't say perfectly because there's still an occasional miss, but it's almost unnoticeable). I took a ride down a new road I've never been on called Shadow Mountain Road then back up to Pleasant Park Road through Deer Creek Canyon. This would be the supreme ride except that when the road gets really interesting it gets really gravelly. That's a big problem in Colorado. A--Some of the best roads in Colorado are unpaved and intersect with the paved ones--leaving sand all over the road near the intersections.B--Alot of people cut the really sharp corners short, kicking up gravel on the road where you need your traction most.C--In the corners after it rains gravel slides down the hill onto the road. And only in the corners. Anyway, I went down to Faye Meyers to drool on the Triumphs. They ignored me--but that's o.k. I'm going back in three or four months with four or five thousand dollars in my pocket--they'll talk to me then. After that I stopped by Glenn Carpenters' to visit. He's sold his BMW and now has his venerable Suzuki 850, an old Kawi KZ650 that runs good and a cherry (near perfect) '81 CB750. Sweet bike. It was then that he pointed out that my tire was worn down to the cord. Bad deal. I carefully made my way the 30 or so miles home and have parked the bike. See, the weather is stunning right now but by the time I have enough money to replace the tire (atleast a couple of weeks) it'll be too late to ride. Frustrating as hell. Oh, and my current bike is a Ninja 600R (I never answered this original topic.)

Motorbike or no, I'd have to agree with you on the Colorado gravel deal. Weather turns "crappy" today, maybe that'll give you an opportunity to be back together before the next Indian Summer hits (I'm counting on one too!) The Deer Creek Canyon you mentioned... the one that extends nearly to C-470, and comes out just east of the foothills?

Yep, that's the Deer Creek Canyon, Stacey. Ends up down around Ken Caryl. Nice, nice area. I wish I could afford a house there, but gee, I left my $1,000,000 in my other pants. Do you really think we'll have another Indian summer? That'd be awesome. Who knows, maybe the firm will get around to fulfilling my invoice and I'll get paid in the next couple of days. Aaah. Dang, I need too many toys. Next toy is going to be a nice mountain bike. I think I'll save my money and spend about a grand next summer and get a nice one.

Whether's not bad at all up here at 8500 feet, but it's cool, no doubt.

Let me know when you get a mountain bike! I loving showing people new trails! I went looking for a road bike Saturday and discovered the process will be long and labored, regardless of the price tag. The obstacle is my size. While I am not strikingly short (in my opinion), I am apparently not mainstream cyclist build. At this point the only road bike that came close as far as standover and top tube length was a Terry-type with a 24 in front wheel. The stem was a bit too short though so, regardless, it loo s like I will have to get a custom bike. Specialized, Gary Fisher, I even tried a LeMond! Just wonky size requirements!C'est la vie!

I guess you don't want one of those "ladies'" bikes with the tube that attaches to the seat tube way down at the bottom?

My sister has one of those (which she won't ride), but the seat heaght is a bit too tall for her, even at minimum height, and she's not all that short.

Heck no! The bike will be purely for pleasure but my pleasure includes stupid human tricks like triathlons and long charity rides. I want something fast and something I can sit on for HOURS and DAYS at a time. One of my dreams is to take a "credit card tour" across to California on the bike. Just me and the bike, stopping to eat when I'm hungry, to sleep when I'm sleepy. Stopping wherever I want for however long and getting closer to my owns thoughts. I've entertained thoughts of racing but I prefer th MTB when it comes to dangerous passtimes.

"Dangerous past times". A good expression. And what fun is life without a few dangerous past times?

The "credit card tour" sounds nice, but it would be you, your thoughts, a semi or two, and about a billion RVs and various other tourists. California is a beautiful place, but it's too dang crowded. I guess just about every place is these days.

Stop tainting my dream!!!!!!!!! Yea, exhaust and bike-hater drivers would eliminate some of the fun.

Sorry, don't mean to taint your dreams. Have you ever been to California? It is gorgeous. Just make your credit card tour last from Monday - Thursday and you'll be o.k. We went out there for a spring break a few years back. We drove up the Pacific Coast Highway on a Tuesday, I think, from LA to San Francisco. Absolutely gorgeous, and the traffic was tolerable.

California is a great place for travelin' all over. Try cutting over to the coast from IH5 by way of Coleman Valley road through Occidental sometime (or one of the similar roads in Sonoma County), and time it so you come over the last ridge to the ocean right around sunset. Talk about a 7th bardo heaven paradise. I long to do that again someday.

Monday thru Thursday is a bit short for a muscle-powered road bike! I've been to San Francisco and did the city on a bike (again muscle power) STEEP neighborhood streets! I spent a 6 hour layover in LAX -- not a really pleasant intro to California. I did the Napa Valley on a bicycle too -- plenty of wine mixes better with backroads!

Napa is the next valley over from the area that I was just describing. The ridges along the ocean in Sonoma and Mendocino counties are breathtaking, as they are in the Big Sur area to the South. This would have to be on the list of ideal places to go bicycling or motorcycling.

Aaaah. Napa Valley. Wine and bikes (no matter what kind o' power) are a bad combo. Too bad, cuz a bicycle or motorcycle trip sampling the wineries would be awesome. I've got an uncle who lives an hour north of San Francisco--he's used to great wines costing no more than $2 per bottle. Aaaah.

When we do France, we tend to do alternate days riding and Wine. and fill the panniers up to take home! HIC!

I don't know how effective this practice is, but I'd like your opinion: For riding through wine country (acadamic for me; Jamaica doesn't have any), find a place to park the bike for two hours. Use the first hour to drink one (and only one) glass of wine. Use the second hour for your liver to metabolise the wine. During these two hours, walk around, take photos, play whatever music you brought (instruments or recorded music) and just generallly breathe in the air. Unless you were very tired to begin with, I think that by the end of the two hours you should be ready to go again, especially if you took a nap during the second hour. I've never actually done this. Is it acceptable?

Denpending on how much alcohol your body is accustomed to, yes, that would be quite the acceptable riding/drinking combo. On our trip, we rode to a winery sampled (samples are very partial glasses and you can have a few) explored the winery, wandered around outside and got back on the bike-- bottles in the panniers! When you are exercising, your body metabolizes a bit faster. At Mumm's we decided the effects had begun to be cummulative and rested on their patio, overlooking the vines and snacking on sesam crackers. If you take a whole day and only attmpt 4 or 5 wineries with long jaunts in between, I think you can do it responsibly.

4 or 5 wineries! Damn better be responsible! The nearest winery here is a favorite stop for dresser touring clubs; they sample about 6 or 7 plastic shot-glasses of the product and head out, feeling real fine. is sort of a paradoxical situation--enjoying the wines & scenery without falling off your ride.

Yes, Sam, that would be acceptable, but you wouldn't get very far in a day. I'd say 3 wineries max if it was two hours at the winery and 1 hour between. Like I said, motorcycling and fine wines--two great things in life but they have to be kept mostly seperate. But like Stacey and Shebee said--load up the paniers and take 'em home!

Good idea!

After the paniers were full, we had it MAILED home.

YES! I was in Ireland a couple of years ago, touring on the Tiger, and spotted a Bodhran (the classic Irish Drum) that I had to have, we were staggering from pub to pub at the time, It is about 2 1/2 ft diameter but I "knew" i had space for it as well as everything else. When I got it back to the site I realised that I would have had problems getting it back on its own without all the camping gear etc, so I ended up mailing it home!

Hmm... I am going home in about two weeks, and I bought a lot of junk in M�xico! Maybe I'll mail some of it home! Thanks for the tip!

I once assisted a friend on mine in strapping a tree to her bike.... We were out riding, and there was a road side stand selling 3 gallon planters of Pin Oaks, that were about 3 to 4 feet tall... She just had to have on so we got it strapped on the back of her bike for the 30 minute remainder of the ride back to her place.... Looked pretty funny, but we got it there in one piece.... Shane

THAT'S HYSTERICAL!

Good idea to hide a CB antenna Yves

Whoa, been gone a good week and everybody's going to Napa. Was just there a couple of weeks ago for a charity ride..1000+ bikes in a couple of mile long train riding thru the valley. Didn't get time for wine though..maybe next time (dang). I did just ride down to Bodega Bay last Friday and then up the coast hwy to Ft.Bragg on Saturday. On Sunday we rode thru a nice coastal mountain grove of big redwoods (hwy 20) and cruised the north side of Clear Lake back into the Big Valley. Did drink some Merlot one n ght and some Sauvignon Blanc the next during dinner (CA of course). Absolutely perfect weather..dry and 70s or so mid day. Best riding weather of the year is in October.

Did you see any birds in Bodega Bay?

What was the charity ride?

No birds..lot's of stars at night though. Stacy..it wasn't a charity ride unless it was charity to my brain to get away from it all for two days.

That surely counts!

Well, to answer terry's original question, my current bike is an '84 Venture Royale. I feel the same as Paul does about the line and really don't know what I would replace it with. I don't think I'll have to worry about it for awhile, this bike is in good mechanical condition. I live in Abbotsford, BC about an hour S. of Vancouver in the Fraser Valley. Great mountain scenery, lots of windy roads to ride. Kathryn

Windy or windey, either one applies. Kathryn

Wow, what a great place to live. I've heard about that area.

Current ride--Harley Davidson Road King. Tons of fun!

Have two at the moment...a 1981 Harley FLT, which isn't quite what it seems to be (lots of treats and modifications) and a 1982 Gold Wing which I stole for a thousand dollars in June. Ed

So shouldn't the guy who paid you the thousand to steal it have the bike? Or are you hanging on to it because the guy won't pay you? :-]

No Sam, I was speaking sort of figuratively. The going price for an '82 GW here in Tidewater was anywhere from 2K to 3K. I rode this one before I made the decision to buy it...good and tight, engine clean, upholstery not torn up, no laydown damage, up to date safety inspection, good rubber, no oil pools, a little bit of head rust on some screws, no cracks in rubber boots, intakes, anyplace that suggested the previous owners had ignored. I made an offer of a thousand cash and they took it. Since I bough it in June, I have put over 6 thousand miles on it. Only thing I am going to do is replace the front wheel bearings and seals when I put a new tire on. All my acquaintances that know motorcycles (I mean really know!) can't believe I got the deal I did. Ed

Back to the original question: My current bike is a '96 FXSTS Springer Softail Planning to do a cam and new heads this winter.

Great to see you Dave (here & in the pic)! Lookin' "bad"! I think the Springer is the 2nd nicest factory Harley, after the RoadKing. Which cam/heads are you going for? Is that to outrun the Man at Nathan's? (o;{

Hey Dave, great to see you and the Springer...Nice bike.

Hey, I like that name. Springer. Since I'm such a spingeur.

'82 Yamaha Virago 920. I bought it cheap. It is black, hardly any chrome, it has been dropped and has a big dent in the tank, so what I am saying is she is pretty beastly looking. But she runs great and she is my ticket to long deserted stretches of road through the sparsely populated and achingly beautiful Texas hill country. Karl

Sounds good to *me*!

Man, this area is dead. What happened to everyone?

Jon, they're all out riding because there's no snow in Texas! Or Jamacia!

Yeah, but certain Jamaicans I know don't even have a bike yet! (Grin)

I have a bike, it just doesn't work (yet)...

Yeah, that's o.k. It's very obvious that you're a smart guy--you'll figure it out soon enough.

S'ok Sam, my bike doesn't have an engine!

Dave, love the pic and glad to see you're aboard. Still planning to come up your way one of these days and catch on with Frank too. What heads and cam are you going with? I'm just about to install the Stage 2 EFI kit on the toadster. The SE3 cam that comes with it is basically an EV27 grind with a bit more lift. Should be a nice boost (80+ ft.lbs. torque and hp). The Stage 3 EFI chip allows head work and higher compression pistons (up to 10:1). Who knows what the future may hold! Let your wallet fall back and your bike spring forward!

Who knows what the future may hold! A Harley with no power below 6000 RPMs? That's a good question--often with performance mods for a Japanese bike you push all your power up top. Is this a problem with Harley performance mods?

Speaking o' which, I saw these guys on TV put a turbo on their bikes. It was a pretty simple (I'd say one Saturday) project with all the hardware included--including a nifty looking exhaust header to run the exhaust to the turbo. It looked nice. The only really noticeable part was the air intake that comes from the turbo unit (which is mounted low and forward on the engine) and it looked really cool anyway. Sharp setup. Supposedly adds big time power across the range. You don't have to recam, but the guys I saw did. They said their hogs were up to around 100 horses and almost that much torque. Very, very cool--my kind of mod.

I seem to see that you can pretty well pick your place with the HD motor, Lo, middle, or high range, or a reasonable power increase across all 3, if you're patient and pick the right parts. With the UJMs, it's frequently at the top as mentioned. You likely saw the Aerocharger setup Jon. I think it's the best-engineered kit out there. Why doesn't Tim Allen have a Harley??

Brad, I'm considering an EV27 with Brancher heads. Should bring the compression up to about 9.5:1 with no piston work. Should be a good combination with the type of riding that I do. The EV27 will give you a range from about 1700 rpm to 5000 rpm...nice range. The heads are bolt on with no other mods. Should bring the old Springer close to 85 hp. Jon, I believe that in the latest issue of Hot Bike magazine the did a step by step install of the AeroCharger. Alot of work, not just bolt on.

Frank, Tim Allen doesn't have a Harley but he did put a Harley motor on a riding lawn mower once.

To get to the other side, Frank? ;-) Sounds like a joke. He did ride a Harley on one episode--I think into the crowd. Can't remember, I saw it a while back.

Yeah the mower episode was a hoot! Big twin stickin' up out of the mower. Man Dave those Branch heads are bux! I respect your love for the motor!

I now have two bikes with no motor (not including the Twinstar which has a motor, but it's open!). I just got my Mexican bicycle cleared through customs. I will NEVER bring home anything like that again! SELL! SELL! SELL! Customs is HORRIBLE!! And it's not the people, it's the system (or lack thereof!) I felt sorry for the customs officers, but that's probably because I brought lunch; if I didnt, I probably would have been very angry with them! Next project...Rebuild Matilda (my name for the TwinStar, 'coz we plan to go waltzin'!)

Customs in Mexico is easy if you've got the bucks. "Here officer, does that clear things up?"

How true!

Jon, Big Twin power is concentrated in low and mid range, where 99% of the riders spend 99% of their time. Torque is the name of the game. HP is primarily a high-end performance gain--torque is power where it counts. Dave, the Branch heads and the EV27 sound like a real nice combo. My buddy runs the EV27 on his Softail--stock heads--and the performance boost was very noticable, especially from 3,000 rpm up. I think the SE3 will give me essentially the same profile, although Kip Woodring (Thunder Press Motorhead) likes the SE3 better--slightly more lift, which produces slightly flatter and higher torque and hp curves. Check it out with your shop. BTW, the SE3 is made for Harley by Andrews. Aren't you also running a single-fire ignition Dave? Another good investment IMHO. Fortunately, the EFI bikes come stock with a single-fire. As far as the Aerocharger system goes, it is nice, but it costs a fortune--over $3,500 + I believe. I watched a mechanic put one on a Softail and there is a lot more to it than bolting it on--Dave is right. Lots of adjusting and riding and adjusting--lots of shop time $$. There are other ways to get to 100 + hp too, but I'm not convinced any of them are really worth it. A nice, flat torque curve in the 80's with similar hp will give you a roll-on MONSTER without the monster investment or the maintenan e headaches--like regularly replacing rocker-box and base gaskets. You can pay me now, and you can pay me later!

Got to agree with you and Dave, Brad; 80hp is plenty unless all you do is bench-race at the bars. I've turned into a conversation-stopper at times by stating that even though I've been riding on 100 horses, I can only say I've used/felt 75-80 in some real road-dices. Am I correct in assuming that most hog riders use the "punch" for passing in traffic and scooting beyond 18-wheelers?? That seems realistic to me. High-end b---s are rarely used off the track, and then not long enough to justify the usual exp nse of reliability, at least outside of Germany! My problem (other than $ limits) is that when you *know* the motor is good for 50% more than stock, you want it. See "Moto Guzzis"!

Brad, Yes as a matter of fact I'm currently running a dyna 2000 single fire ignition and a S$S super E carb. With the head work and the cam it should run real good but still be a dependable engine for the long distance trips that I enjoy taking. BTW a friend of mine has a '97 Road King (Fuel Injection) and went with the Stage II kit and claims he saw a HUGE difference.

Frank, Yeah getting up above 85hp becomes incredibly expensive on a Harley. You need to stroke the motor, etc., etc. No longer dependable either. The turbo deal, from everything that I've read and heard about it, you should really put a nice set of forged pistons in it to make it more reliable. That'll put you up around $5k for the whole deal. Not worth it for another 15 hp or so in my book. The cam alone will give you the passing power that you need to get by those 18 wheelers, but with the heads it'll give you a bigger smile on your face when you go by.

Biggest reasons I liked the Aero setup really came from talking to the principal at the NY show and seeing the work they put in the unit. But there sure are a lot of less costly ways to go.

What's the advantage of single fire?

Dave, check this out. A mechanic friend said he installed the Stage 2 kit on a full dresser last week. When he test rode it, he said the difference from 3,000 rpms on was unreal. In fact, he said on his shift into fourth gear, he easily pulled the front tire up--on an Ultra! Well, mine is scheduled for installation on December 8. Bring on the game! This could be a great stage in the life of my King!

Jon, the stock Harleys with electronic ignition had a single coil and a module that fired both cylinders at the same time, hence a "wasted" spark. The concept is a little tough to explain without a few beers, but anyhow, it worked reasonably well, provided that you left the cam alone. When us'ns started changing cams which affected the way fuel and air mixtures were moved around in the cylinders, then you could wind up with backfires. The idea with a single fire setup is that you get one spark for one ylinder, even with an electronic ignition. I hung a Dyna electronic ignition and a pair of 3 ohm coils on my FLT, and what a wonderful difference (besides that, someone told me I couldn't put two coils on the stock frame...did I ever fool them...built a hidden mount under the seat). Harder hitting, better idle. Now some of the new single fires run a single coil, but I am sort of the old school here about heat buildup in coils (one coil is going to build up heat firing twice as often as two in the two oil rig). Also, if I should have a coil failure, I still will get someplace on one cylinder. Oh yeah, on road trips on the Harley, I carry a spare electronic ignition plate and coil...haven't ever had to change 'em, but I figure the first time me and the shovel take off for a nice road trip without my ignition spares, I will lose a coil or burn out an ignition module. Ed

The backfires make sense. I understand the idea of a waste spark, I just didn't understand why it mattered much. That all makes sense. Don't most motorcycles have a waste fire?

Don't know Jon, never thought about it. In the HD V-twin, the "wasted" spark isn't symmetrical...it fires, then fires 45 degrees later for the rear cylinder. Again, I think it may be the HD V-twin is susceptible to problems with the stock ignition once you change the properties of the valve timing by recamming. On mine, I first put on a new carburetor; eventually rejetted the intermediate range. Got better perfomance throughout, but lower mileage. No backfires. Then I put a different style of pipe on got away from the HD crossover pipe arrangement used on the tourers. Now, my rear cylinder ran a little cooler, not quite as rich. No backfires. Then I recammed to a modified street cam, for better pulling from 2 thousand to 45 hundred RPM...oops, started backfiring. Started monkeying around with the timing...could not get rid of the backfires when backing off. Hmmm! Went back to the carburetor looking for trouble...rebuilt same. Backfires still there. Don't know where I got the idea, but figured out that it was time for a single fire system. After hacking one together and figuring out how to mount coils on stock FLT frame so they wouldn't show, I lost my backfire. Idles good, runs up through the RPMs smooth as melted chocolate pours, backs off with no sputtering, spitting, or popping. (All this happened over about 3 years and 40K miles of figuring stuff out). My conclusion is that the 45 degree V-twin is particularly touchy once you start changing stuff...otherwise there would probably not be much aftermarket for HD single fire kits. Ed

That makes absolute sense. I was told that my '83 Nighthawk had a waste fire. I wonder what it's firing is like? 180 degrees? That would basically elminate such a problem.

Ed, on the 883 I only plan on adding the SE air cleaner kit, SE slip-ons and changing out for a differnt seat than the single stocker. I will be able to only spend little amounts of money here and there for quite sometime. Hey, how reliable are H-D's with evo motors, I've been getting a lot of "horror stories" from riders of H-D and others?? I must have a reliable bike, that's the most important factor for me, the brand is secondary as I really hate being left on the side of the road! I can't seem to get a "honest answer" on how much down time the evo riders experiance over time and longer distances. I'd really appreciate if you and Dave would fill me in on the low down maintance wise, thanks BJ Ondo

I would think (I've ridden an EVO Sporty 1200) that the biggest reliability problem with an EVO would be the vibes. First, you have to tighten alot of nuts and bolts to keep things from falling off, and the other question is how do you engineer a machine to be reliable when it shakes that much? But I've heard nothing but good about EVOs. Still, there's a whole lotta shakin' going on.

Jon You are a Truimph owner you should know the answer! LOCTITE! (and crinkle washers, and nyloc nuts, and tab washers and locking wire and casle nuts and when all else fails WELD!)

I agree Shebee and Jon--making sure stuff is tight is the only maintenance headache. The motors are solid, and properly maintianed, should run 100,000 without trouble. BJ, if you change out your mufflers and aircleaner, you must rejet the carb. If you don't, you will run too lean and potentially damage the pistons. Lean mixtures burn slow and hot. The stock setup is at the limit of lean to begin with, and the extra air flow will take you into the danger zone. It's not a high-cost item, but very necessary, especially if you want the bike to run well. I would say don't put on the aircleaner and pipes until you are ready to rejet. Shake, but don't bake!

Hey BJ, why not spring for a 1200? I mean, an 883 is going to be cramped for you, and last I checked (about 3 years ago, admittedly) the 1200s were only about $1000 more. And SheBee, I'm not a Triumph owner yet--I'm sure I'll learn. Had to do that with my old XS650, though.

You can easily convert an 883 to a 1200 for well under $1,000. The size of the bike frame is the same, although the 883 has is a tiny bit lower in the seat. When you're bored, bore out!

Uner $1000 for everything (labor included)? You can bore an 883 to 1200? Geez! What's that do to reliability?

Nothing, Jon. The right shop/dealer can save you money on that one. What about the '98 Sportster Sport? $8400, looks like they finally got it right!

Nothing as far as I know Jon. They make a kit just for that purpose. There is a guy here at the office that's looking into it. It's pretty common. There is a time and a kit for every purpose under Heaven

First of BJ, welcome...good to see you here. Just about everyone I know with an EVO, whether in the Sportster version, or the 80 cubic incher has very little maintenance problem...oh, every now and then, there is the loose this or that, but overall, not too bad. That doesn't mean you can ignore the routine stuff that any ride needs. What will change the axiom is high revs...the stock Harleys don't do well at the higher RPMs. Ed

Jon, didn't do a 1200 as the price is $7,610 before the 8.5% dealer mark up (figured from the difference between MSRP on the 883 and dealers price). So the 883 is in the budget for "no payments", the 1200 isn't. Plus dealer prep and freight is "$695.00" I have a limit of $7,000 dollars and with the new seat and windshield Iam right at that point with the 883. The BMW is MSRP at $7,400 but it's a leftover 97 and he will drop it down to 6,800 so with tax, prep, freight and bmw hardbags ($660.00) he's worked it out to $7,300 which is the extreeme limit I can go. Brad is right, infact the dealer recommends to do the "conversion" instead of buying a 1200 model to save money. Tailwinds, BJ

BJ I know you were after a Harley for some time now, good that you found a way in! Just don't look too long at the Accessories catalog, you may be cryin' more than ridin'!

BJ, you made a good choice, and I know you'll enjoy it. Just do yourself a favor and try to maintain some control when the new parts catalog comes to your door! hehe BJ--a real Sporty guy! ;-)

Hee, Frank and I are sharing brain waves this morning! BEEP BEEP!!!

BJ, you made a good choice, and I know you'll enjoy it. Just do yourself a favor and try to maintain some control when the new parts catalog comes to your door! hehe BJ--a real Sporty guy! ;-)

My friend gets 2 copies of all the Harley catalogs, one for him and the 2nd which he says to me "That's your copy", like *HintHint*pickupsomethingforme*. I'd love to give some of the stuff as gifts but man, Expensive. Plus it's a personal thing to pick yer own, no?

What's up with harley? Do folks love/hate it? Is Harley going down hill? Has Honda passed them by again?

What do we do (folks)? Kidnap Paul, dressed in leather outfits and drag him around with us each in groups of 3 let's say? Kind of apprenticeship? Harley guys last on line? (o; Harley is probably one of *the* most successful businesses in the world which has motorcycles as the product. People love it *and hate it. Honda & Harley really don't run together at all, I think.