Originally Posted by WH1_T-type

Useless without pics.

Originally Posted by rauchman

I'll say it this way...

I LOVED LOVED LOVED riding the M8 RK. The smile on my face and the laughing out loud said it all.

The stock M8 motor blows away any stock variant of the TC. Lots of grunt off the bottom and the top doesn't run out as fast as the TC. I've seen some dyno's from Fuel Moto with their 222 cam and the power pretty much matches the HD Stage III.

Forgetting about the motor, the RK is really surprisingly nimble for a bike that's 100lbs heavier than mine. Really, I never once noticed the weight. Even in that blip of a moment when I couldn't find the engagement zone of the hydraulic clutch (my only gripe with the RK, or any of the new bikes is the clutch engages all the way at the end of the travel), and I thought the bike was going to drop in the parking lot of the dealer, it came together at the last microsecond and ......phew, just made it. I had a big smile and was laughing during the test ride. The new suspension is very noteworthy as well. While not up to par against Ohlins, Hagon Nitros, Works, etc., it is A LOT better than what came on my bike. As an aside, I had test ridden the SGS and RGS, both with the same exact stock suspension components. The SGS had close to 1k on it and it was, dare I say it, plush and very controllable, whereas the RGS was new and it felt very jarring and every road imperfection was felt in a non pleasant way.
Again, was really surprised by how well the RK rode. Since that test ride, my wife says I've been obsessing. I call it Road King curious.
Comparing it to the faired bikes, while having the gauges up high and the radio is cool on the SG(S) / RG(S) / Ultras, I like having full visibility in front of me. More than anything though, I like the look of the Road King. It's like a supersized version of the Switchback that's more refined. When I close my eyes and picture doing the cross country trip, riding through the desert, etc., the view from the RK cockpit is what I envision.