Was at the local Harley dealership this afternoon and they had 3 Thunder Mountain motorcycles in as they mentioned they are considering stocking them and selling them as a custom bike that is 85% Harley built. Basically it's composed of mostly Harley parts, but specially customized beyond anything you could get from HD factory. Things like the paint jobs and so forth are supposed to be 100% unique per bike, etc.

The sales manager said they would range from about $24-60K.

We took a look at the Spitfire (smallest one), the Firestone (mid level) and the Keystone (higher end)


http://www.thundermountaincustoms.com

Anyways, I thought it was pretty interesting because the nice thing is being a custom HD based bike, you can get a chopper style bike and still be able to use the HD dealer for service and such.

So I was curiuos if anyone else had any knowledge, experience with Thunder Mountain? My father has a brand new Rocker and he was really eyeballing the Firestone. According to the dealer, he said they ride like a dream with a balanced engine and so on.

First time I ever heard of or saw these bikes in person...

 

They are some nice bikes that due to the HD based drivetrain you can get the warranty. I had seen them when I lived in CO and when I traveled to St Paul, MN for work. If you wanted a custom look and still be able to get parts and support they would be worth looking at.

 

The original owner of my Fat Boy, traded it for a Thunder Mountain bike. I was fairly sure they were made in Loveland,CO., but the link says they are made in Fort Collins,WY. I don't know if they moved or I am just confused.
It sounds like a pretty good setup, if that is the type bike you want. The biggest problem would be trading or selling it, when you want to move on. The majority of custom built bikes lose their value a lot faster then factory bikes.
Tom

 

I think that they are a little pricy for what you are getting, but they are nice bikes. As stated above you get a stock HD 103 motor (SE motor prior to 2007) that you can get worked on at any HD dealership. So if you want a new style chopper, with a warrenty that you can get worked on anywhere they are the ticket.

 

Yea they are definitely a premium jacked up price for what you get, but that's the price you pay for something custom and don't have the means to do it yourself.

I'm more than likely not going to get one, I'm happy with my Street Bob and I'm pretty sure my dad won't pony up and trade his Rocker for one unless he could get a hell of a deal he couldn't pass up.

I was just more curious if people had heard about these yet and what the general thoughts on them were. I wouldn't be surprise if we start seeing more factory HD models more chopped out than the Rocker in the next few years...

 

They have been out for a few years. I think they are fairly good quality, but pretty pricey. The owners of Thunder Mountain bought our local dealer last year and are buying 3 of Bruce Rossmeyer's shops this year. They also own shops, I believe, in Houston, Colorado and are part of the Earl Small's ownership in Atlanta.

 

I've seen them at Orlando HD, they look good, but I don't know anyone with one.