If riding under 3000 rpm was a problem there would be broken down Harleys all over the country.

 

Well stated

 

Tachs are NOT necessary on any vehicle outside of redline racers who actually watch it. Its no big deal for me to shift out of 4th great at 70mph or cruise in 6th at 2300 or above. Listen to the bike it tells you what it likes.

 

Thanks to the EPA, we have Fuel Injection on a Harley. Emission regulations have been tightening down and air/fuel ratios have given us very lean conditions to live with. 07 and newer Hartley's don't really "wake up" till around 4000 RPM. So the aftermarket jumps right in with expensive controllers to richen up the A/F ratio. Since the newer bikes really don't have a lot of power at LOW RPMs, some Einstein started saying YOU ARE LUGGING YOUR ENGINE!!!! I switched to a CV-40 and a stand alone ignition on my 07 Dyna. You would not believe all of the low end torque that is there. Now factor in a SE-255 bagger torque cam. I'm in 6th gear around town at 40 mph. Just twist the throttle and it pulls like a locomotive. With a carburetor, it idles and sounds like a Harley, not a sewing machine on steroids. For the naysayers out there . . . I have over 96,000 miles on it with no mechanical issues.

 

Methinks the OP's Indie has a couple of kids he's looking to put through college... give me a break! Look at the torque curve of the twin cam, you hit max torque {or very close to it} at around 2500 and the torque curve remains relatively static right up to about 4K +. If you are cruising at max torque or anywhere near it you are NOT lugging squat. Run a hundred miles at 3,500 and then do the return trip at 2,500 and tell me you don't see a huge difference in mileage {not that everyone cares}. I cruise my 2010 Dyna SG 96 ci TC at around 2,500 most of the time though I never hesitate to run it up to 4K merging and passing. Run at 5K all day if that gives you a woodie but all you are doing is burning extra fuel and attracting law enforcement.

As always... Opiniopns and YMMV.

 

Too many variables to know if OP is lugging or not but I see and hear a lot of folks lugging their bikes.

Tach or not, I use the seat of my pants to judge shift points. The load on the engine determines whether you are lugging or not at a certain rpm. jmo

 

Old thread, but seeing people ride their bikes under 2500 is insane to me. My bike is smooth as butter between 2800-3000. Then a twist of the throttle sends me flying.
Under 2500 it just shakes and feels anemic when I twist the throttle

 

This is easier on a Softail than the rubber mounted models. They tend to run smoother around 3000 and you can feel it. Much less than about 2700 I can feel vibration in my floorboards. That tells me it’s lugging just a bit. As far as what a couple of guys have said about cruising below 2700 in 6th, I wouldn’t do it but that’s just me. My bike is a lot more responsive at 3000 than it is at 2500 and below. If I’m cruising at 3000 and need a sudden burst of speed it’s there for me. Below 2700 it really isn’t. You can cruise at 2500 in 6th all day long and not hurt a thing as long as you give it steady throttle and don’t go up any steep hills. Otherwise you’re better off to leave it in 5th.

 

The owners manual for my 07 says to upshift at 15,25,35,45,55mph. I do that on level ground and when I'm not in a hurry and the engine sounds fine to me. I can't say the rpms but I'd guess them at the "it sounds like a Harley" rpm. lol
Good luck

 

I concur with dgwv, above. Here's the owner's manual for my 2018 FLHCS (Heritage 114):


I do not shift by what the tach says, but by feel. When I shift normally, it's very close to the recommendations above when I take a glance a the tach.