Hi all

new here and also new to the HD i wanted to ask what everyone thinks of the sporster vs the soft-tail as my first harley, having come from a yamaha 650. i really love the sportser, have fallen in love with it really, but i hear all this "its a girls bike" rubbish. would i be biting off more than i can chew with a soft tail, i am a very tall big built bloke so weight etc not an issue. or are the people that bag out sportsters non harley riders haha

 

Look forward to getting to know everyone here

Get what you want mate.
I reckon The 40 and 72 are sweet as though.
Lot you can do to them to.

Yes... Sportsters are girls bikes!

maybe but a vagdyna of a softcock. Test ride a few then decide

^ What he said, test ride a few, otherwise you'll never know.

If your a big bloke don't get a sporty IMHO

There is nothing I like better than riding my sportster to the local wine bar for a Chardy and a slice of Quiche. Just have time while there to post to all my besties on facebook how much I hate the messy hair caused by wearing a helmet before heading home to watch Love actually again on the tele.

 

If your tall big built I would buy a dyna or softail, sporties are a great bike, ride one and see if your to big for the bike to be comfortable

Road King if your a big bloke.

Must be a full moon

If you're a big bloke, you'll eventually find the Sportster a bit small. Yes, they cop all sorts of shit but they're also lighter than the big models which is good if you want performance. Their performance pedigree is impeccable. The Sportster's roots go all the way back to the 1929 DL. On the other hand, you will cop jibes like Shirley-Davidson and Skirtster. If you have a sense of humour this won't be a problem. Everyone gives shit and everyone cops shit and this is the way it should be. Be precious and you will be targeted mercilessly. Finally, remember a Sportster is not a hog, so don't try to make it into one. If you want a hog, buy one.

Larger Harleys. Twin-Cam, Evo, Shovel, Pan, Knuckle, UL. If you try to make a Sportster look like a larger model Harley, by putting fatbob tanks and full guards on it for example, it looks like a kid wearing his dad's clothes. A Sportster is a Sportster and doesn't need to be anything else.

If your over 6' tall and weight a fair bit then the Sporty may be too small for your body type and you could end up looking silly.

I would go to a dealer and test ride both bikes, to see what one you like (get a mate to come along and take pics as well)

Neither bike comes close to an FXR but thats a whole different story.

1st 0ne for the year

Get on a few demo bikes that cosmetically do it for you, then ride the heck out of it and make a final decision on geometry - there's no point buying a bike just because it looks good and then you can't ride the bastard.

I rode each model on the ride day a couple years back.

The Softail didn't handle well for me and felt like alot of work with alot of throttle twisting. A good tuning mod changes everything however.

Sporty was the best for me at 5 foot 11 and i weigh 89kgs. I've modded by sporty and after pipes, air cleaner and a good tune it's a totally different bike. Has snap and kick in all the right places.

Consider a dyna as well. In years to come a wide glide will be parked next to the sporty - I can only dream for now..

Test ride some and get a feel for what kind of bike you like. At the end of the day, no matter which type of bike you get, someone will give you grief about what type of bike you ride. Good mates should give you more grief.

If you settle on a sportster; get one. I'm over 6'3" and I look like a damn giant on my Sportster but I simply enjoy riding that model of bike. Harley's aren't gender restricted to certain models.

At 6'3" no one is going to give you a hard time either!....lol

I'm fortunate to have a big twin which I use for longer rides but my sporty handles brilliantly and is great for shorter rider.

Whatever floats your boat - I cope sh!t from all my mates with fatboys about my dyna - all part of the fun