Then go buy a Goldwing and pound sand!

 

I agree, probably 80% of Harley owners never ride their bikes aggressively enough to experience the wallowing that the rubber mounted engine / trans. mounted swing arm design causes. Let's face it, most people buy a Harley for it's looks not because it's the best handling bike. That's one of the main reasons that good handling Harleys like the FXDX and FXR didn't sell well enough to stay in production. Like any bike you have to know your Harleys limitations. They are fun to ride in the twisties, but you're not going to hang with the sport bikes. The same could be said for the cruiser models of most any make.

 

I do not know what it is but, every time I ride my Dyna FXD. I beat the sh^t out of it. Handles just fine for me.

2010 Dyna FXD

 

Hey Duke as you can tell by the comments it is like you called their kid a gimp/handicap, or said their wife looks bad in a wet T shirt. Truth be known I don't think anyone knows why. I know I like how mine rides. I also like how she looks wet!

 

It does seem like the folks here take ready defense to anything deemed negative about their bike. Any questions or opinions challenging their status quo are viewed as deservant of ridicule.

It's like asking a punk kid why he wears his pants below his butt. If his peers think it makes him look cool, that's enough reason for him. You won't get an intelligent answer in either situation.

I applaud you for your interest in a Dyna, they are the best handling of the big twins. As mentioned, your question of why the swingarm isn't mounted to the frame is best answered by the engineering department at Harley, but the origin of that design probably predates their current staff's employment.

The only suggestion I have is to install a True-Track and eliminate this perceived flaw.

There have been people go down with this exact design. My cousin lost his beautiful wife on a ride when a longitudinal crack in the road caught her tires. Might have happened in any bike, but it's a good idea to make your own bike as good as you possibly can.

Thanks for bringing this up. Might just make me want to investigate making improvements to my Dyna.

Just last night I was checking out True-Track and wondering how I could possibly make the front one fit with my current oil cooler and fan, or if I could just buy the rear one separate.

 

All of my Dynas have handled well too. Even the 16 year old Wide Glide I recently sold. I have felt the wallow that people speak of on a few occasions though. It was never enough to really scare me. Still, you're just not going to be able to take the same curve as fast as a sport bike. They have better suspension, better tires, and better lean angles and ground clearance. I'm just trying to get it across to the OP that Dyna's aren't designed with that kind of riding in mind. It's a cruiser.

 

I've ridden older Dyna's (mostly Evo's) but I thought they handled really well. Not a (huge) fan of the 21" frt wheel on the WG, but still think they handle!!

I want to ride a FatBob. Those look cool. I'll bet w/that lesser rake and that big frt tire those handle !!!

Don't (all) rubber mount Harley's (including the FXR) have the swingarm/trans mnt to the frame?

Do they really even NEED a stabalizer?

 

On the touring bikes, Harley uses a counterbalanced motor (internal rotating counterbalance) to reduce vibrations. On the Dyna's, the motor has no counterbalance and, instead,the entire motor/trans unit is rubber-mounted, to reduce vibrations. In order to enable close tolerances and precise belt tension and alignment, the swingarm assembly pivots directly off the trans, assuring exact alignment geometry. The elimination of the counterbalance simplifies the Dyna's motor, makes it lighter and more efficient. The rubber-mounted motor is free to shake, at idle speeds, but smooths out almost the instant it comes off idle. The Dyna approach has been well proven over the last couple decades, and works well in practice.

 

No, on FXR and touring models the swing arm is mounted in the frame not to the trans. like on a Dyna.

Whether they NEED a stabalizer or not really depends on how hard you ride IMHO. I've never felt they needed it badly enough to buy one for one of my bikes.




Actually that's not true Lo-Rider. Touring bikes are unbalanced motors and rubber mounted just like a Dyna. The difference is that the swing arm on the touring bike is mounted in the frame and not to the transmission.

 

Thanks Joe, thought it was all the touring bikes and Softails.