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Fat Boy for Touring?

25K views 25 replies 21 participants last post by  shinisou73 
#1 ·
Hi all, lookign for advice/experiences on the fat Boy as a touring bike.

I'm not asking for a comparison tot he Road King or Ultra, or any of the actual touring bikes. I freely acknowledge that they will be better for touring.

What I want to know is: Have any of you used the Fat Boy for long distance touring? How comfortable was it? What did you do to make it more comfortable?

The main issue that keeps me from the touring bikes is their standover height. I'm 5'7" and have short legs even for my height so my standover is really more like someone who is 5'5".

I'm looking at a used fat boy low that I could add fairing to and maybe a better eat and use it for long distance touring.

I'm wiling to make upgrade the suspension, invest a decent chunk in super nice seating, and I plan to get a fairing... with these things will the fatboy be up for comfortable touring?

By way of reference, I currently ride a sportster and I am comfortable for hours in that saddle, no problem... the ole lady however, gets a backache which causes a strange whining sound to emit from her mouth. I can't stand that noise so I need to increase her comfort level.
 
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#3 ·
I am 5'6". 2012 FLSTFB. You can do a lot of touring on a softtail.

I can do well over 500 miles a day. Wife is only good for 325 or so.

I put a sundowner on it and we use Airhawk seat pads. No suspension changes other than adjusting preload.

Detachable windshield and saddle bags. Also have floor boards for passenger.

I made a tour platform from oak the attaches to my detachable luggage rack and sissy bar.

Best mod for me was the Xied I added to rich it up a little. Since it was hot enough on long drives to catch the wife on fire. (She actually did good until I asked her to wait to put it out until I got a video)

Wife doing "this girl is on fire" was not good.

Cooltec Cooler for little 250 mile runs



FLSTFB world renowned for dual sport ability. 1200r fears the fat boy Lo





International touring



Touring







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Anyway you will love it.
 
#4 ·
Can't argue with that at all! ^^^
But I am 5'5" and I handle my 13 ultra limited just fine! And it is at factory ride hight. .. yes I tippy toe. But I Have no problems backing it up (on flat ground) or anything else. Whatever you choose to get personalize it to fit you and you will be happy. There are people that put those kind of miles of miles that bbally does on there sportster or dyna. It is all in what is comfortable for you. And what you get use to best of luck and happy and safe riding
 
#5 ·
I have had Rk's Eg's and a n 07 FB.
I took the FB on a tour from SC up and around Toronto and it was not nearly as comfortable as any of the touring bikes I have had.
I bought this and hopped it up when the wife pretty much quit riding... I did not like the way it handeld compared to the others. The factory offset to accomodate the big rear tire really cut down on the quality of cornering. That long in the saddle, the solid mount buzz really came through.

I did add a windshield, some nice bags and a backrest/rack to allow for gear, but if I had it to do over, I would stick with an RK or EG.
JMO
 

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#7 ·
I had the FatboyLo to start with. As good as I could get it by adding larger pillion, etc., the wife was not too happy. Changed to the SG and she was way more comfortable even with the stock seat. Added all the comforts to the SG and she is good to go for as long as I want to.

Have you looked at the New Ultra Low? I would think you could handle that bike with your height disadvantage, and you wife will LOVE it.

But hey, if you think the Fatboy will fit your needs, then go for it. You can always trade up later (which I believe you will do eventually if you tour much).
 
#9 ·
I have taken my super glide on an 1100 mile weekend. Added detachable bags, was pretty comfortable. The faring should help a lot. Wind beat me up over the windshield I have on her.
 
#11 ·
I bought my 2012 FB right when they arrived to the dealership in I think September 2011.
Stock seat OK for me, but passenger pillion not good for the little lady. I put a Mustang touring seat on it, and also extended passenger foot pegs for the wife. Already had the detachable luggage rack and passenger backrest. Seat and pegs made her a lot more comfortable.

I have a windshield, engine guards and highway pegs. Also put 13-1/2" Flanders apes on it. Have done 400 to 500 mile days with no problem.
 
#14 ·
Go ride a FATBOY see how it feels. My B-Motor is nice and smooth. Hardly knows its running at 65-70 mph. Get some minor buzz at 80 plus. I do get the buzz as motor pulls up to 4K plus going thru the gears at WOT. Since I rarely run it up that high or cruise at a sustained 80+ have no issues. Good Luck
 
#15 ·
I had a 2005 Fat Boy with the 88" engine and I toured all over the place with it. I had removable leather saddle bags, a passenger backrest and a luggage rack with a T-bag on the bags. Plenty of storage space. And with the Sundowner seat, I thought it was quite comfortable. I would adjust the shocks depending on the load and if I was by myself or if the wife was along. And like someone said above, I could go 150-200 miles further in a day than my wife could, about one extra tank of gas. She would usually tap out before me. I had a quick detachable windshield, HD mustache bars with highway pegs and I changed the handle bars out to the HD Narrow Beach Bars with Kury Iso grips. I loved it. I love my Ultra Limited even more for touring, but I loved that Fat Boy for over 45,000 miles.
:bikerguy:
 
#16 ·
Oh...and I had a sheepskin covered, gel / memory foam seat pad for the wife, and passenger floorboards. That added some extra miles on to our day cause she stayed comfortable longer.
 

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#19 ·
Personal experience. The bike i had before was not comfortable for the wife. It was great for me as it sat a little lower and I felt I was "down in" the bike. But every time i wanted to go somewhere I had to fight to take the bike, she would always say "let's take the truck". I bought an Ultra last march and now roles are somewhat reversed. She is the one that says let's take the bike.

The Harley doesn't have the rider comforts that the Road Star had, but with the wife being happy and comfortable my ride time has increased 4 fold!
 
#20 ·
Great pics, bbally. Love riding like that. I smiled when I saw that you pack the same way as I do. Thanks for the post.

I did this on a custom EVO. Got a bit ill with her when she kept breaking shock bolts. Was getting this repaired at Amarillo H-D and fell in love with a Fat Boy on the floor. I would have bought it, but the salesman wasn't in the mood. Something about taking care of his locals first.

Am looking again and FB is definitely on the short list.
 
#21 ·
The fatboy is pretty close to the Heritage only comes without the windshield and saddle bags. The Heritage handle bars are more comfortable for me.

If you already have the fat boy, then add the windshield and saddlebags and you will have a good touring set up.

The RK is supposed to be more comfortable for touring, but I have never been on one. Coming from a Sportster, I was very pleased with the Heritage. I was going to get the FatBoy and add the windshield and bags until the dealer got a new Heritage and put it on the floor. It was a no brainer. The Heritage was less expensive than a new FatBoy plus the additions.

I wouldn't have any reservations about touring on a FatBoy (if I ever had enough days off in a row)
 
#22 ·
Rode a friend of mines 93 Fat Boy to Daytona for bike week last year. It really made me appreciate the RK for distance riding! After 6 hours in that FB saddle I was ready for my Panasonic massage chair. That's the last time I'll try a stunt like that.
 
#23 ·
I second JPR's comments , the Fat Boy is basically a stripped down Heritage.

You can customize it so many ways , I had a Mustang seat on my Deuce that made an all day ride pleasant. A Fatboy would look good with an aftermarket fairing if you wanted a stereo , you can get adapter brackets to mount touring hard bags , thats the great thing about Harleys there are so many ways to customize for your personal preferences.

On the same token you can customize a touring bike to fit you too, while I sit almost flat footed with tennis shoes on my SG I'm sending my seat to Mean City Cycles to have it narrowed and lowered to get me a little closer to the ground.
 
#24 ·
There's a pic in readers rides of a fat boy setup to tour in the latest issue of Bagger magazine.
 
#25 · (Edited)
Personally my fatboy works fine for me for long trips. But then again I have never had a bike with a windshield,fuel injection and a 6 speed either. So you might not want to take my word but I have ridden it across country more than once and a few 700 mile plus days. There were a few times that I wished for a full touring bike, like in the Wyoming cold or when I had to ride through the edge of a hurricane, but it was still doable.
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