My Ole lady is 5'0' She rides a low rider....we did have to change out the seat to a corbin to lower her down a bit, and put pullback risers on the bars, but she has over 40,000 under her butt with no problems. A friend of our ole lady is about the same size, she rides a heritage, and handles it well. My best advice, tell her to go rent a couple of different models, and see which one she feels the most comfortable on, knowing that modifications can be made.
the back of mine , i like'em short . j/k. have here try out a lowrider or a deluxe. i know a few women that swear it is the perfect handling bike for a women. but i would just take her to the dealer and let her fit up a few and maybe rent it for a day. jackyl
__________________ 2006 StreetBoB
Wdg Frt End/21" Frt wheel/Duece Solid Rear Wheel,V&H Stagg./Chrome Sliders/Corbin Dual Tour Seat/Linby Highway Bar/14.5 ApeHangers/Diamond Back Cables/2 Inch Tank Lift/Chrome Rockers & More
my wife is also 5' 2" with a very short inseam length. the softail deluxe i believe has the lowest listed seat height according to hd, but that is deceiving. my wife started riding on a 883 hugger and loved it. it had been lowered in the rear suspension as low as it would go. with a custom seat that moved her slightly forward, and was narrower in the thigh area and lower to the ground, she could get both feet firmly on the ground. the sportster was light and very easy to maneuver - she loved it. went from that to a low-rider with both the front and rear suspensions lowered as much as possible. with the same type of seat that moves her forward and downward, with some narrowing between the thigh area, she can get both feet flat on the ground with the low-rider as well. the low-rider is a heavier bike than the sportster, and she has some difficulty when trying to maneuver it at very slow speeds, or pushing it backward, etc. she sat on a softail deluxe but did not like it at all. it seemed much wider in the mid-frame area than the low-rider and made her legs go outward moreso, making it actually a little further to the ground even with a technically lower seat height. it seemed to be a heavier bike to maneuver and manage at slow speeds.
my wife would recommend the low-rider if you lower it enough to allow for both feet to be placed flat on the ground. that is very important. any extra weight will provide an additional obstacle. the hugger was ideal for a first bike for my wife, because she would ride it a lot since it was easy to maneuver and handle. once she got accustomed to handling that bikes weight, she was comfortable moving up to the low-rider. if she had started on the low-rider, i do not believe she would have ridden it as much early on - she would have waited for someone to ride with her in case she needed help pushing it backward, or moving it around before riding, etc. with the sportster, she just got on and went whenever she wanted to. if the truth were known, i would bet she would pick a sportster again if she had no bike at all today and could buy a bike again.
My wife started on a lowered iron head Sporty.............moved to an 06 St Bob and loved it right from the start.........she's 5'4" with a short inseam................flat footed and no probs at all, very well balanced bike.
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"Troll"
Patriot Guard Riders
Ride Captain
Massachusetts Region 1
Massachusetts Justice of the Peace
Best Harley for my 5'2" Wife?
, i like'em short 
. j/k. have here try out a lowrider or a deluxe. i know a few women that swear it is the perfect handling bike for a women. but i would just take her to the dealer and let her fit up a few and maybe rent it for a day. jackyl
