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Your other "non-Harley" Bike?

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  • brucefxdl
    brucefxdl
    3 months
    Quoting obisteve on 07 Nov 2025 11:27 AM

    Been 8 weeks since I broke a wrist, fractured an elbow, smacked a knee and head down hard onto concrete, no longer wearing the wrist brace most of the time, time to try a ride.

    Which bike, Sporty? High Ball? Sporty? High Ball? and so on. In the end took the Victory, the higher bars will challenge tha arms and shoulders a bit more, and the clutch friction point is a lot more predictable; the Sporty clutch has been very sudden and grabby since I replaced the spring plate in the centre of the pack with an extra 2 steel plates sandwiching an extra friction plate. Oh yeah, the High Ball has indicators too. Pulled the blanket off the Vic, it was filthy, dust that was growing mould, but I hadn't been dreaming of washing the bike, but riding.
    So only did a leisurely 140 kms down scenic back roads, nothing over the speed limit.
    Got home with aching arms and shoulders, that I know will hurt more tomorrow. But that's OK, it will be the feel of muscles.
     getting stronger.
    Fuck I needed to do that!

    20251107_151658.jpg
    i'm also hanging out for a ride...but still got 4-5 weeks to go.it will feel good on either bike.
  • Hilly
    Hilly
    3 months
    Quoting obisteve on 07 Nov 2025 11:27 AM

    Been 8 weeks since I broke a wrist, fractured an elbow, smacked a knee and head down hard onto concrete, no longer wearing the wrist brace most of the time, time to try a ride.

    Which bike, Sporty? High Ball? Sporty? High Ball? and so on. In the end took the Victory, the higher bars will challenge tha arms and shoulders a bit more, and the clutch friction point is a lot more predictable; the Sporty clutch has been very sudden and grabby since I replaced the spring plate in the centre of the pack with an extra 2 steel plates sandwiching an extra friction plate. Oh yeah, the High Ball has indicators too. Pulled the blanket off the Vic, it was filthy, dust that was growing mould, but I hadn't been dreaming of washing the bike, but riding.
    So only did a leisurely 140 kms down scenic back roads, nothing over the speed limit.
    Got home with aching arms and shoulders, that I know will hurt more tomorrow. But that's OK, it will be the feel of muscles.
     getting stronger.
    Fuck I needed to do that!

    20251107_151658.jpg
    Quoting brucefxdl on 09 Nov 2025 11:55 AM

    i'm also hanging out for a ride...but still got 4-5 weeks to go.it will feel good on either bike.

    +2, dunno when but soon hopefully 
  • obisteve
    obisteve
    3 months
    You'll get to that point fellas, it just seems to take forever.
  • obisteve
    obisteve
    8 days ago
    Went out for a wander round south west of the Bunya Mountains. Easy country to get lost in and I know a lot of small town garages are closing these days. A 180km fuel range tops could be cutting things a bit close out there so the Sporty stayed home. Was thinking of having lunch at the Quinalow pub, got there and found it had closed, looks like maybe a year ago. OK, on to Kaimkillenbun. Some how I got lost on tiny roads north of Maclagan and never found Kaimkillenbun. So went up and over the Bunyas and down to Maidenwell, good lunch and cold beer.
    Stopped for a pic at the Mt Mowbullan lookout, where I was 5 years ago, a week after I bought this bike.
    Pic is looking west, over a lot of very flat country.



    20260225_143544.jpg
  • speedzter
    speedzter
    7 days ago
    Random thought for the day, It's interesting the totally different direction Polaris went after they killed 
    off Victory and started the "new gen" Indian .
    The styling of the Victory range was very polarizing .

  • Stuart
    Stuart
    7 days ago
    Quoting speedzter on 25 Feb 2026 10:56 PM

    Random thought for the day, It's interesting the totally different direction Polaris went after they killed 
    off Victory and started the "new gen" Indian .
    The styling of the Victory range was very polarizing .

    Victory were - in my eyes - a real mixed bag of styles. I never really got into them, so I don't know most of the model names, but there were a couple that appealed at a certain level. The Victory Vision on the other hand was one ugly bike. But each to their own :-)
  • obisteve
    obisteve
    7 days ago
    Yeah, I'd look at their bikes at Rollies when I was there buying Andrews gears for the Sporty, shake my head and think they're trying too hard to look cool.
    Then my wife decided to try pillion. Neither of us are tiny people, it wasn't gonna work on the Sporty, so went looking for an Evo Road King. We'd riden them a couple of times and found them OK, bit cramped though. It was before the Project Rushmore changes that put more room there in later years.
    Then I called in to Brisbane Victory, looked at their baggers, sat on the seat of one, wife climbed on, lots of room, superbly comfortable seat. Looked at the luggage capacity, more than any other touring bike. I was starting to get impressed. Took one out for a test ride, rode a few curving backroads around Brisbane, shit it goes, handles and brakes well for a big girl. Superb long travel suspension. I was real impressed by then. Then I found they had a demo bagger with apes, matte black paint with matte red pinstripes, spoke wheels.
    Sold!
    Some bikes are best judged from the saddle, on the 3rd day of a 10 day ride.140,000 km later I'm still smiling.
    Functionally it's the best motorcycle I've ridden, faster and better handling than stock Harley tourers of that time.
    Best comment on looks I've had --- Thats as ugly as a hatfull of arseholes.
    They were selling Indians out of the same shop, I rode one, nice motor, but as cramped in the seating position as a Road King, rear suspension had shorter travel than the Vic, felt choppy. And they didn't have a hard bagger then without a full fairing so no Indian for this puppy.
    Still happy with it 12 years later. Hope to have it back down off the hoist and be riding it again in a few weeks.
    Victory's first marketing slogan was The New American Motorcycle. Their experience when selling beside the revived Indian brand in the same shops of Indian selling 5 bikes to every Victory sold showed that people didn't want new, they wanted pretend old.
    So the inevitable business decision was made.
    And the Vision is ugly? Maybe, but I've ridden one for a while at 150 kph sitting bolt upright in perfect comfort, open face helmet, absolutely no buffeting coming over the screen, it does what it's designed to do, go far and fast in perfect comfort. Good aerodynamics doesn't care about looks.
    It's not my style of bike, I prefer naked with apes.

  • Hilly
    Hilly
    7 days ago
    Does the job 👍
  • John.R
    John.R
    6 days ago
    Sold the ST last year and bought one of these. Brilliant bike. Nearly hit 5,000kms since getting it mid Dec!
    20260221_073621.jpg
  • obisteve
    obisteve
    6 days ago
    Quoting John.R on 26 Feb 2026 10:53 PMedited: 27 Feb 2026 01:02 AM

    Sold the ST last year and bought one of these. Brilliant bike. Nearly hit 5,000kms since getting it mid Dec!

    20260221_073621.jpg
    A good new bike that impresses you has that effect eh?
  • speedzter
    speedzter
    5 days ago
    Quoting John.R on 26 Feb 2026 10:53 PMedited: 27 Feb 2026 01:02 AM

    Sold the ST last year and bought one of these. Brilliant bike. Nearly hit 5,000kms since getting it mid Dec!

    20260221_073621.jpg
    Nice one, and you still have a licence 😮
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