Hey guys, first post on this forum.

Hi Mike,

It’s surprising how great these bikes are when you ride them and get an appreciation for what they can do, for a big heavy cruiser. (Sorry this reply got longer than I intended.)

Point 1) Firstly like most bikes, it’s not really the amount of K’s that count but how it’s been treated/looked after.
When I purchased my 2015 Muscle (VRSCF) about a year ago I test rode a Night Rod Special before the one I purchased. They were from the same dealer. The advert for the Night Rod read “2016 model, 9,000ish K’s, new tyres, slip on cans, etc. etc.”
When I got there, after ringing the day before to confirm a test ride, I was greeted by a bike that had a flat battery, no fobs, and had clearly been left out in the weather. Anything alloy, like the foot pegs and some brackets had obviously been left with water sitting on them and had earlier signs of corrosion. The Matte black paint had patches of “off colour”, again I believe due to exposure to the elements.
I had already read somewhere else that one might expect to get around 15,000 to 20,000 K’s out of the standard tyres on these things, so I was curious as to why it would have “new tyres front and rear” at 9,000. I inspected the rear wheel arch and you guessed it, sign of rubber left under the guard from burnouts. There was no service history, the dealer could tell me anything about the bike, (bought at auctions two weeks before hand) and the clutch up take felt funny too.
I still persisted to have a test ride, as soon as I rode it away from the dealer I could feel a harsh vibration in the engine, nearly like a slight misfire, that was not present in another V rod I had ridden.
After 30 minutes on this thing I returned to the deal and just shook my head at him.
I then test rode the only other V rod he had, a 2015 Muscle with stand pipes, 22,500 K’s, new tyres, one owner, (perfect) service history and the reason the owner had traded was to buy a brand new “Muscle” exactly the same, but the last (most recent) model due to them being discontinued.

Sorry this was quite long winded but I just wanted to accurately articulate my point.
I also have a buddy who has a 2012 VRSCF who has been drag racing it since 60,000 K’s.
He now has just over 100,000 K’s on it, with SE stage 2 cams, higher comp pistons, custom tuned length exhaust and a bucket load of cash and time invested in t proper tune for the mods/intended use. It has a stand bottom end and regularly sees 10,000 rpm when on the strip. He religiously changes oil and filter at 5,000K’s, with good quality mineral oil, (Penrite). This thing will likely go another 100,000 K’s before it needs a rebuild.

Point 2) I frequently ride to work, which used to be a 40 minute ride, but is now only 20 minutes due to moving closer. But I have also ridden it interstate on three separate occasions, racking up between 500-600 k’s per day, without be any more stiff or sore than I would on any bike. Main down side is they do chew the juice unless babied. So you’ll be stopping for fuel every 200-220 k’s. Also they do consume a bit of oil, particularly if ridden how they make you want to ride them, E.I. frequently in the higher end of the tacho. My bike goes through about 300 ml over the three day interstate trip of approximately 1500 K’s. This is with a mix of trundling through towns at 50 k/h, highway “cruising” at about a $1.30 and the occasional squirt to …… faster than I care to put in print. LOL. This is a well-documented thing with the ‘Rods and nothing to be concerned about, just be aware of it.

Good on you H76. That's a great, informative and helpful answer for a new member.. Good man.

Thank you so much for the very informative reply. Really appreciated!