Yeah I wasn't sure about the getting feet on the ground issue for you...but I completely agree that solid, flat, feet on the ground position is VERY important. As I am only 5'9" myself I have issues in that area on certain bikes as well. Whatever you need to do to get a solid base when stopped, and a comfortable grip on your bars and controls should definitely be done. Sorry If I sounded discouraging....I was only trying to suggest a way to save some $$$ if you could.

I will say to really insist on getting the original parts, in case adjusting back to one or more seems like it would put you in an even better position. Good luck with it and please make sure you post some pics for all of us to see.

 

USMAMule - how do you like the fit on your DWG? I'm 5'8, and when I sat on one at the motorcycle show I noticed the air cleaner really got in the way of my right knee and pushed my foot out - seemed it would be a problem keeping my foot on the forward controls on that bike

(the model bike was in a stand so it was upright and I had both feet on the controls)

thanks

 

I ended up with a Fat Bob, but I looked at the Wide Glide too. When I looked at the Fat Bob, I could barely touch the forward controls at all. Those had to go. I could get my feet flat on the ground, but not comfortably. I like a significant bend in the knee.

I'm 5'5", and I absolutely love the Fat Bob. As modified, it fits me better than any bike I've ever owned -- and you can flip it around like a bike half its size. One review called it a Sportster on steroids. That's a pretty good description.

Here's what I changed to make it fit me:

Mid controls
Le Pera Up-Front seat (About two inches lower, and they claim it puts you 4 inches farther forward.)
11" Progressive shocks
One-piece, pull-back Buffalo T-Bars

You probably don't need to get that radical, and could easily get by with the stock seat.

To each his own, but for whatever it's worth, motorcycle.com rates the Fat Bob as #3 out of 65 cruisers. The only ones above it were both Triumphs, which I didn't consider. Here's the link: http://www.motorcycle.com/specs/harl...e/fat-bob.html

 

thanks - also considering the FB and SB, but the WG really caught my attention. I think part of it is getting used to the forward controls having never ridden a bike like that....I may look for a used SB with mids to save some money and get used to cruisers

 

I had forward controls on my Nightster and loved them -- but I'm just too short to reach the forward controls on the Fat Bob. Until this year, you could pick between forward controls and mid controls on the FB, but now they only offer it stock with forward controls. They are so far forward that, at 5'5", I think I'd be taking my life in my hands if I even tried to ride the bike that way.

The nice thing about Harleys is there is so much after-market stuff that you can pretty much pick the bike that appeals to you and, with a few modifications, make it work.

FWIW, now that I have the mids, I appreciate them. They don't look as cool, but it's easier to get your butt off the seat when you need to.

That said, as long as you can comfortably reach the controls, it's no harder adapting to forward controls than mid controls.

 

I also am 5'5" and recently bought a Fat Bob with forward controls. I had never ridden at that point and felt unsafe having to reach for the controls. Put the reach seat on there and felt much better. Been riding and feel very comfortable and can reach everything.

 

Well, crap. Maybe I should have stuck with the forward controls. The thing is, I made all the modifications at once. The dealer had to order most of them, and if I'd tried one thing at a time, it could have taken forever.

If things are working for you with the Reach seat, they should certainly work with the Le Pera Up-Front, which, I think, puts you a couple of inches closer to the bars and an inch closer to the ground than the Reach.

I do think resale values are likely to be higher with the forward controls.

 

Is this this picture of the stock seat or a aftermarket seat. Just wondering if this is the reach seat or not.

 

Definite aftermarket seat.

 

That's a LePera Bare Bones seat in the picture. While it will put you closer to the ground, it will also put you farther away from the handlebars than most seats.

I have a LePera Bare Bones Up-Front, which puts you 2.5 inches closer to the handlebars. It has worked well for me. Here's a link: http://www.lepera.com/seat_pgs/v3_So...l.php?SEATID=6