It's been nearly a month since I purchased this thing, but my new Fat Bob rolled up to the house today on the back of a trailer. I bought it Denim Black with a black Rinehart 2-1 pipe and the 103" Stage IV engine right off the bat. Never did even ride it home after my initial demo ride on the bike at the dealer.

I love the look of this thing. A friend of mine (non-biker) just came over for something else and he started smiling immediately. He was searching for an adjective to describe it, but all he could say was "badass." He told me he never really liked my old bike (2003 Road King Classic, Pearl White), but there's a lot I like about that old bike. Still, I wanted something more stripped down just for local riding, something with a bit of attitude.

The new bike has more attitude than I expected from the Rinehart pipe. It's loud, damn loud. I love the deep, wicked sound, but I'm generally more considerate of my neighbors. I expected the Rineharts to be louder than the SE slip-ons with my RKC, but this was still a lot louder than I anticipated. Those pipes definitely push out the exhaust, too. I could use this thing as a leaf blower.

The guy who dropped it off advised me to let the thing warm up for a few minutes before riding it cold, or else he said I'd start sputtering to a stop at the end of the street. The first ride was at lunch time, so I wasn't going to wake up the neighbors. Maybe annoy the ones who weren't at work, but they'd like be awake.

Once I could feel some heat in the heads, I started out of the drive way. The first thing I noticed was how this thing pulled quite a bit harder at the start than the RKC. The initial roll out and switch to second were pulling a bit too much, but it wasn't a problem to adjust after that. The other thing I noticed is that the stock mirrors really suck. I saw more of myself than the road behind me. Once I got moving down the road a bit, there was more ghosting than on my TC Mirrors on the RKC.

The Fat Bob is pretty light and nimble compared to the Road King, so I had no problems rolling around the corners. The brakes still needed to break-in a bit, but I didn't miss any stops.

The next thing was trying to get used to forward foot pegs instead of middle floorboards. I'm 6'3" and sat on a bike with the mid controls before I bought, but they cramped up my thighs and weren't really an option for me. I'm used to having a bit more room, but I'll have to learn how to keep my right foot placed so I'm not always stomping on the brake pedal.

Other folks here have complained about the air cleaner hitting their knee, and I really noticed that on this ride. I liked the looks of the Heavy Breather, but it doesn't have any performance benefits and I was concerned about the sudden rainstorms here in Florida honking up the air flow, so I stuck with the standard high flow AC. Now I'm wondering if it may have been worthwhile to get it just for the knee room.

The engine seemed to have a bit of a dip in power on acceleration in part of the curve, but it sort of worked itself out somewhat on the ride. Likewise, there was a sensation of something slightly choking the bike (spark plug, air flow?), but that also seemed to subside after riding. It was only a 12 mile ride on some nice back roads with a few curves, though. With only 32 miles on the bike now, I'm paying attention to issues, but trying not to obsess on issues that may resolve themselves with the break-in process.

Overall, I'm happy. It definitely has the look I wanted. I think it'll be a good performer after the break-in, since I can feel it pull out when I shift gears, but I won't know until I get a few hundred miles on it.

Just thought I'd share. Feel free to comment, question, or just flip me the bird.

 

I have the heavy breather and my leg never touches it, if that helps you decide if you want it. Hope you like the bike, I love mine!

 

+1 on the heavy breather! I just put mine on the other day not only does it give you more knee room it adds to the "badass" look.

 

First off I love my Fat Bob. I have noticed some issues with thought. I am with you on the breaks. The forwards seem to make it a little difficult to reach the brake and shift levers. No other real issues and no deal breakers for sure. I haven't noticed any performance issues but then again I may not be as performance savvy/obsessive as some. Hope you enjoy it and congrats on gettin her home.

 

I'm curious about something from those of you who own the Heavy Breather. Ever been caught in a downpour without the little rain sock? If so, any issues or problems?

I hate to go back and drop another $300 for an air cleaner. I'll ride the thing for a while longer to see if I can adjust to the stock cover. If not, I may do it just for the room. The cover on my Road King was never a problem, but that's a different ride.

 

i dont plan on taking the sock off for any reason.

 

just get a round cover and that will solve the knee hitting the breather cover. I had the same issue on my 06 and I got a small round coverworked great.

 

Now that sounds like a winning idea and much less expensive than going to the Heavy Breather. Thanks.

 

Love that new Harley smell!

 

Dont know how ppl have trouble with their knees hitting the heavy breather.. Mine doesnt even come close to it.. I am 5'10" and have all the room in the world on this bike.. how tall are you?? Anyway i love my breather deff was a great investment i noticed the throtle reaction right off the bat.. Post some pics of your bike BTW..