I hate when people say that if you buy a Sportster you're buying a starter bike, or an entry level Harley. Most, I think, say this because of it's engine size and the price. Well if I buy a Chevy Cruze instead of a Suburban am I buying a starter car? it's got a smaller engine and it cost less so it must be a starter car? I don't think so. I think you buy what you like for what you need it to do and at the price you want to pay. Why would I buy a Road King when all I do is local riding? Why would I buy a Suburban when a Cruze will do what I need it to for a lot less money and get a lot better MPG. Unless I planned on going cross country I don't need a big Harley just to say I have a big Harley.... just my 2 cents.
I just picked up a 04 1200 custom for the wife as a starter bike. She is tall but it fits her well. The term starter bike is all relative, to her it is easy to handle and ride and much less intimidating.
Not to mention, being able to find them in mint condition for a couple grand makes them much more appealing than some of the other alternatives.
This!
My wife had a rough start when she decided she wanted to ride her own bike. We were riding two up on a nearly new 2010 Heritage at the time and she went down riding a Buell Blast during the Basic Riders Edge course. Had her wrist in a cast for six weeks. At week seven she told me she wanted a beginner bike so we shopped around and came home with a '98 XL883 which we picked up for a song. I was a little concerned but she adapted to it very easily. Funny thing was I ended up riding it almost as much as she did. She passed her riding test easily and we sold the Sporty for something more "appropriate" for our group rides and she is still mad about that. I miss the damned thing, too. Great bikes for a lot of purposes, just not what you want on 120 + mile rides every weekend. Plus, we got almost all our money back when we sold it.
The options for starter bikes are pretty thin. We looked at the fury, bonneville and sportster. In the end the sporty was the least expensive so that was the ticket.
It was my starter street bike when I was 16. Rode the thing over a year. Then bought a lowrider. 40 years ago. Still have a lowrider, not the same one.
I think the different models of Sportsters gives you a wide range of riding options, from street cruising on a 48 or 72 to touring on a dressed up custom. It's plenty of bike adaptable to a wide variety of riding options. Ir might be a starter bike for some and too much bike for others.
Not sure how a 882 or a 1200 can be considered as a 'starter bike'
Starter Harley maybe.
But all I can say is I passed my test 6 weeks ago and went out and bought a Sportster 1200 Custom CB.
AND I LOVE IT!!
so ride what you want and what feels good for you.
It is about being yourself and feeling free
When I got back into riding in 2008, I bought an XL883. It was a fun bike to ride; it was light and easy to control. I never felt overwhelmed by the bike. It had plenty of power, even in the mountains. I never felt like I need more power than it could provide.
I did a lot of mods to make it ride better and fit better. I put 26+k on it in about fifteen months. Then I bought a 2009 Dyna Super Glide.
The Super Glide weights around 60 pounds more than the Sportster and it has a considerably longer wheelbase. It is a much more comfortable motorcycle to ride than the Sportster was. The Dyna is just as good on tight mountain roads and it has the same lean angle as my old full-height XL883.
The Dyna's longer wheelbase provides more directional stability and it can carve very smooth, controlled corners. Being a bigger bike, the Dyna is just more comfortable to ride around town or on the highway. The Sundowner seat on the Dyna is an order of magnitude more comfortable than the Mustang seat that I had on the Sportster. I can ride the Dyna for nine hours and not get off feeling like I can't walk right.
On highway runs, a Sporster is a bit too 'buzzy' for my tastes. Lacking a 6th gear, Sportsters just are not set up for running at 75 all day long. They will do it, mine did, but a sixth gear would make them a lot more tolerable at higher speeds.
The Harley did away with the full-height XL models in 2009 and replaced with with the 'low' model. The Sportster low was designed to bring more women into the showroom. It was low enough that women, or shorter men, could sit on the bike and put both feet firmly on the pavement.
Essentially what this did was to take a good handling bike and turn it into dog. If Harley ever did make a motorcycle and target it toward the female gender, it was the Sporster low.
I like Sportsters, they have a practically bulletproof motor and transmission. Would I ever give up my Dyna and go back to a Sportster - not on your life.
...The Sportster low was designed to bring more women into the showroom. It was low enough that women, or shorter men, could sit on the bike and put both feet firmly on the pavement...
I wonder why people feel the need to be able to sit on a motorcycle seat and have both feet flat on the pavement? Are they that unstable (or weak) that they can't hold it up leaned slightly on one foot? If so, they DO need a beginner bike, not a slammed 600 lb Sportster that won't corner without scraping things.
I can't plant both feet flat at a stop on mine, but at least it can be ridden like a real motorcycle...
My inseam is 30", but my bike is pretty tall compared to most newer Sportsters (Mine's a 1983 XLX). I'll bet my rear shocks are a bit longer than yours...:ride
Interesting. I usually wear boots when I ride, but just got back from a short ride wearing normal trail shoes and could still place both feet on the ground while stopped.
Who cares if some twit wants to call it a starter bike, i sure don't. I like riding a sportster because it is better suited to the type of riding I like to do. I like the maneuverability and quickness of the sportster and I am comfortable on it for the distances I ride.
Some people are all into themselves and think that if it's not right for them it's just wrong for everyone. To most of those guys it's more about how can I save my poor ole wore out butt rather than the feeling you get riding a real bike. They should just bite the bullet, admit it, and get a gold wing trike.
I like the looks of a lower bike, too, but the ride can be pretty harsh. When I get the urge, I do have some short shocks (and other various parts) that I can put on mine for the more "classic" look...and, I can put both feet flat on the road at a stop, with my knees bent...ha ha
qusa39. I have to take exception with the remark that Sportsters are only for local ridding. In 2011 I got myself a Sportster as my first bike. It was my 60th birthday present to myself. My 883 and I have been to Sturgis twice, the Dragons tail, up to the Great Lakes over the boarder through Canada and back to Texas through Wyoming, and have climbed Pikes Peak. Yes it is a nice bike for zipping around the Hill Country, but don't sell it short. Oh, let me just add that since Sept. of 2011 and now I have 45000 miles on my "Little Sproty". People always try to tell me I need a bigger bike for my kind of ridding, but I just flip my hair and tell them "At least I don't have to ask for help backing up"
FYI, I have ridden over 750,000 over the last 40+ years. I own a RKP, a Night Train, and a XR1200. The sporty is my foolin' around bike and anyone stupid enough to think it's a beginner bike is in for a rude awakening. Ride what works for you and don't worry about what others say. Keep it real and on the road.
For what it's worth, my starter bike was a KZ175, my 1st Harley 2weeks later was a 65 Harley Davidson Sprint, I only rode the KZ about 4 miles when I found the Sprint, it was about 3 months till I was offered a Shovelhead as payment for a job I did, it was almost a year of riding (about 200) miles or so when I got what I considered my starter bike, a 69 Sporty, I loved it, and finally understood what riding was all about. That was nearly 40 years ago, and I have had a lot of bikes since then. I currently ride an 13 Ultra and my wife rides an 05 Sporty (Her starter bike) but am looking into getting a Sporty for me again as a second bike for around town riding. I miss the fun and feeling my starter gave me. See, a starter bike is not always your 1st bike, it is the one you really learn to ride on and learn what riding is all about. As far as should it be someone's 1st bike, that depends on the rider. And as for that only think of a Sporty as a beginners bike, think again.
For what it's worth, my starter bike was a KZ175, my 1st Harley 2weeks later was a 65 Harley Davidson Sprint, I only rode the KZ about 4 miles when I found the Sprint, it was about 3 months till I was offered a Shovelhead as payment for a job I did, it was almost a year of riding (about 200) miles or so when I got what I considered my starter bike, a 69 Sporty, I loved it, and finally understood what riding was all about. That was nearly 40 years ago, and I have had a lot of bikes since then. I currently ride an 13 Ultra and my wife rides an 05 Sporty (Her starter bike) but am looking into getting a Sporty for me again as a second bike for around town riding. I miss the fun and feeling my starter gave me. See, a starter bike is not always your 1st bike, it is the one you really learn to ride on and learn what riding is all about. As far as should it be someone's 1st bike, that depends on the rider. And as for that only think of a Sporty as a beginners bike, think again.
I don't think it is only a starter bike but definitely think it suits a very large number of people to learn how to ride in a very inexpensive bike. It is my wife's starter bike at 115 lbs and she has no problem handling it. Who knows she may not ever outgrow it. For me personally it feels like a toy the 1200 has a bit of go but not nearly in the same class as the larger bikes
I own a few custom choppers/prostreets 100-124cubs etc etc , & a 1200 sporty with some 'work' done (frame/motor/suspension/brakes/weight) to it & straight pipes.
the sporty will outrun any of them to 80mph, outbrake , outwheelstand, outhandle & generally just be a bad ass, not to mention, as has been said here, sound better. I totally agree a hot shovel is the best sound. followed closely by a bad ass sporty !. the others look better & garner more attention at the lights & bullshitting with the boys by the sporty brings more smiles once the road gets windy, easy as that...
Everybody seems to have an opinion on what you ought to like and stories about how a friend of a friend said this or that. My XL1200L fits like a glove, doesn't exhibit any of the nasty things somebody's uncle's cousin says it does and I've been riding since 1966. Your experience may vary and that's fine with me. It's not my starter bike and at my age it may be my "ender" bike but whatever -- it's my bike.
Way back when, Harley had a promotion. If I remember correctly, if you purchased a Sportster and chose to upgrade to a bigger bike with the year, they would give you the full purchase price that you paid for the Sportster.
I believe this is where the whole starter bike issue came from. In general motorcycle riders are an amazing bunch of people. On one hand we don't like it when people tell us what to do, or what we should or shouldn't ride. But they have no problem telling others what to do or to ride.
I say purchase and ride what you want, and don't ever let anyone put you down for your choice in a motorcycle.
Actually, a Dyna would make a better starter bike than a Sportster. They have a lower seat height and a lower center of gravity. My Dyna is a much more docile handling bike than my Sportster was. A Sportster is only sixty or seventy pounds lighter than a Dyna. If memory serves me, they both have the same fork rake angle.
If my 2008 Sportster had a sixth gear, I'd probably still be riding it now.
Wife has had her 1200 out about 10 times now and really likes it, this is her first bike. It suits her well as a starter but I have a feeling she will be moving up to a Vegas 8 ball soon.
I think of a Japanese bike as a stater bike, then you move up to a Sportster, then you move up to a bigger Harley. So a Sportster would be the sophomore bike. When you're ready for your masters you buy a Softtail Deluxe
So I took the wife's bike out for a couple hours yesterday. I was pretty shocked, I don't understand how soo many of these bikes sell (other than the cheap price). It feels very rickety, unsure, and generally underpowered from what I would expect of a 1200. This beast will be vacating my shop soon as I find her a replacement.
:blahblah:If your fat Sportster is not for you!Perfect bike for the price and yes it's a real Harley!!Also very easy to ride!:mooning:
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