touring
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 4,584
Likes: 918
From: coast to coast
I know I’ve chimed in a lot here, but the 114 Heritage has the perfect amount of thump to me without being vibey or buzzy. Way diffferent than the older Softail.The whole tone of the thread is about the OP wanting “smooth”....that’s a very specific desire.
My Heritage is not as “smooth” as my Dyna at highway speeds, but it feels BETTER to me. My hands don’t go numb either, but the pulse of the engine is a great feeling at any speed imo. The Dyna (and the touring bikes) lose this almost completely with their rubber mounts. I wouldn’t hesitate to tour on any of the new Softails, or old ones for that matter...you can “tour” on anything it’s just a matter of what’s important to you.
Some guys are all about “smooth” no matter what. I don’t get it personally, but I can tell where it rates between the models.
ADM is on a 114 Fatbob to answer your question.
Last edited by Thingfish; Aug 24, 2019 at 10:33 AM.
Road Master
Joined: Aug 2018
Posts: 965
Likes: 297
From: NoVa
So I ended up taking my Harley instead. What really struck me was how smooth the bike was in comparison. Now I know that comparing to an old super-sport / drag-strip king isn't fair, but the new Harley is really quite "gentlemanly." That feels weird to say, because that's what I used to say about my BMW boxer twin, but the new Softails are incredibly nice bikes without sounding and feeling like sewing machines. I just needed to ride one of my old favorites (the 1100 Suzook) to realize what refined bikes these new Softails are.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2018
Posts: 4,607
Likes: 3,312
From: Virginia
Question for those that might know .. I like smooth and they tell me the new softails are a smoother to ride bike than my dyna low rider .. So which one the sports glide or the heritage classic , are they far apart or the same , since they have the same new frame is there a big difference in them
I did a dealer demo day a few weeks ago. Road the 107 Heritage Classic, the 107 Sport Glide, a 114 Road King Special and a 114 Road Glide Ultra. (also tried the Tri Glide but that's a completely different beast) I purposely tried to hit every bump and pothole on the route.
I thought the Heritage Classic was by far the smoothest riding of the bunch, it was smoother than the two "Touring" bikes.
Road Warrior
Joined: Nov 2018
Posts: 1,302
Likes: 865
From: SW Ohio
I did a dealer demo day a few weeks ago. Road the 107 Heritage Classic, the 107 Sport Glide, a 114 Road King Special and a 114 Road Glide Ultra. (also tried the Tri Glide but that's a completely different beast) I purposely tried to hit every bump and pothole on the route.
I thought the Heritage Classic was by far the smoothest riding of the bunch, it was smoother than the two "Touring" bikes.
I thought the Heritage Classic was by far the smoothest riding of the bunch, it was smoother than the two "Touring" bikes.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 4,584
Likes: 918
From: coast to coast
I did a dealer demo day a few weeks ago. Road the 107 Heritage Classic, the 107 Sport Glide, a 114 Road King Special and a 114 Road Glide Ultra. (also tried the Tri Glide but that's a completely different beast) I purposely tried to hit every bump and pothole on the route.
I thought the Heritage Classic was by far the smoothest riding of the bunch, it was smoother than the two "Touring" bikes.
I thought the Heritage Classic was by far the smoothest riding of the bunch, it was smoother than the two "Touring" bikes.
the Heritage has the best suspension and rides the smoothest, the Touring models and Dynas run smoother due to the motor being rubber mounted. They all feel good to me, just different.
Cruiser
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 118
Likes: 34
From: Texas
I just did a 2600 mile trip on my Sport Glide, and am getting ready to do another 1800 miles one in a few weeks. I like the looks of the SG more than the Heritage, plus the bags are a little bigger. Other than that, ride them all and buy what you like.
HD Forum Stories
The Best of Harley-Davidson for Lifelong Riders
7 Times Harley-Davidson Chucked Tradition Out the Window
Verdad Gallardo
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Verdad Gallardo
8 Best Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Worst Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
Killer Custom's Jail Break Is The Breakout That Refused to Blend In
Verdad Gallardo
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Verdad Gallardo
Harley-Davidson Reveals Super Cool Cafe Racer Concept
Verdad Gallardo
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Verdad Gallardo
10 Motorcycles You Should Never Buy
Joe Kucinski
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jan 2017
Posts: 3,837
Likes: 1,430
From: NJ
Ha! I totally get it. 80mph is my sweet spot too, but after a few thousand miles I just adjusted. At 17,000 miles I dont notice it at all anymore.
The vibes on my Heritage dont bother me, but switching to my wifes Road King Special on our last trip it was remarkably smoother...so is my 09 Dyna at freeway speeds.
The Softail line has always been partly about the classic HD look. They engineered 100% of the vibes out and test riders complained it didnt feel like a Harley, so they dialed a bit back in....cant make everyone happy I guess.
The vibes on my Heritage dont bother me, but switching to my wifes Road King Special on our last trip it was remarkably smoother...so is my 09 Dyna at freeway speeds.
The Softail line has always been partly about the classic HD look. They engineered 100% of the vibes out and test riders complained it didnt feel like a Harley, so they dialed a bit back in....cant make everyone happy I guess.
The op needs to try the bikes for himself because we are never going to all agree on what feels smooth and what feels vibey. I've ridden several twin balancer Softails and none of them feel smooth to me. I'm shaking my hands out every ride. It's not as bad as some but there are much smoother rides out there if that is your main concern.
I'll be renting a few models and ripping through some serious miles before I decide. Thanks all!!
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Jan 2017
Posts: 3,837
Likes: 1,430
From: NJ
Ha! I totally get it. 80mph is my sweet spot too, but after a few thousand miles I just adjusted. At 17,000 miles I dont notice it at all anymore.
The vibes on my Heritage dont bother me, but switching to my wifes Road King Special on our last trip it was remarkably smoother...so is my 09 Dyna at freeway speeds.
The Softail line has always been partly about the classic HD look. They engineered 100% of the vibes out and test riders complained it didnt feel like a Harley, so they dialed a bit back in....cant make everyone happy I guess.
The vibes on my Heritage dont bother me, but switching to my wifes Road King Special on our last trip it was remarkably smoother...so is my 09 Dyna at freeway speeds.
The Softail line has always been partly about the classic HD look. They engineered 100% of the vibes out and test riders complained it didnt feel like a Harley, so they dialed a bit back in....cant make everyone happy I guess.
The op needs to try the bikes for himself because we are never going to all agree on what feels smooth and what feels vibey. I've ridden several twin balancer Softails and none of them feel smooth to me. I'm shaking my hands out every ride. It's not as bad as some but there are much smoother rides out there if that is your main concern.
I'll be renting a few models and ripping through some serious miles before I decide. Thanks all!!