Hey guys/girls, new member here on the forums. My wife and I were referred to this forum by a friend who has nothing but good things to say about everyone on here. Anyway the reason I signed up is we are looking to buy a Harley and both of us are new to the Harley world. I grew up riding crotch rockets and needles to say after getting married and having a couple kids the wife an I would really just like a different bike to hop on and just go for a cruise. One problem though, I don't know what models would fit us best. We are looking for something comfortable for both of us obviously but would still like something sportier and possibly something with a wider frame/tank. I really like the street glides but as of right now that's just a bit out of our budget as we would like to stay below $10,000 for right now. I know I have seen wider stanced Harleys before that literally almost broke my neck when I turned to look at them but unfortunately I couldn't tell you what models or year ranges they were. Anyway if you guys/girls could help us out we would really appreciate it and I look forward to any input you can offer to help us with our search.

 

If you grew up with crotch rockets I don't know if would be happy with a touring bike.
My wife rides with my about 1/3 of the time and she is very comfy on my dyna superglide. I have been tempted to go touring but I just can't give up the fun of the lighter more nimble dyna.

The only way you will know is to go ride all of them. I know my dealer will let me take anything I want right off the showroom to try out. Before I ever bought anything from them they let me out on a 28K CVO Fat bob, took it right off the showroom floor and told me to go try it. I bought a bike a year later from the same guy.

Nobody here can tell you what bike you will like the best....but try anything in the dyna line and go from there

 

I think something in the Dyna family would best satisfy your need. It is sportiest big twin motorcycles Harley makes. Go to a Harley dealership and check the entire line up and see which Dyna fits you and your lady best.

 

First of all we are all ********.

Okay, just me and all those on my ignore list.

If you are looking for a comfy bike for you and her for 10K, good luck unless you find a garage queen owner that is not aware of what they have. Watch craigslist daily. You ain't gonna find what you need for that price. Save your money and get the bike you want.

 

Use the dealerships in your area to test ride models your interested in.


Don't get hung up on the thought you need a bagger to ride two up distance. Aftermarket seats will solve the comfort issue in most cases.
Pack lite and enjoy the ride.
You can't go wrong if you pick something with a springer

ETA I saw a nice 96 road king with 17k miles sale for $6800. 3 weeks ago. Patience and lots of searching is the key to buying used.

 

might help to know how big you both are...you know- height, approx weight etc. if you're both under say 5'5 and 130-140 you could run a 1200 Sporty no problem. If you're in the 6' 180# and over group you definitely need a road king or better to be really comfortable. Dyna would be ok for local stuff and maybe a long trip now and then but I really wish I had looked harder and saved for a touring chassis when I bought my WG.

 

Go to a dealership. Test drive the ones you like and decide. And with $10k, you're going to get an older bike with a lot of miles. Good Luck with your search.

 

I ride a 2011 Nightster. I take my girl out on it all the time. It's a fun bike. Fast in the world of stock Harley. Nimble. Threw some rear pegs on it and a two up badlander seat and it works great for me and my girl. Btw, I'm 6ft tall 185lbs and my girl is 5"7 130lbs and we are plenty comfortable on it. Coming from the world of sport bikes you might want to try a Nightster. Used you can get one in your price range all day. I actually bought mine new earlier this year, it was sitting in the HD dealer in Columbia TN new since 2011, it was marked down to only $8800. It's a pretty big dealership so they have a bunch of new bikes that are a year or two old for marked down prices. It was worth the 7 hour drive for that deal to me. Best of luck to you. Have fun, ride safe.

 

Agreed, don't rule out the Sportster if you and your wife are "less than large" people. My wife and I are about the same size as Barebones and his girl (me at 6' 190 and her at 5'1 130) and I can confirm that a Sporty will handle 2-up just fine so long as you're not looking to cross the country or anything. One catch though is that you will almost certainly want better shocks in back (probably taller) and a better seat; so be sure to budget $500 or so for upgrades.

I also come from a sportbike background and I can tell you right now, the only Harley I've ridden that really satisfys me is the Sportster. I took a Dyna out last year and the LAZY character of the big twin (slow reving, no top end power) about lulled me to sleep. I hated it.

10g's can get you a darn nice Sporty (possibly even brand new), even with the required seat/shock upgrades (seriously, you will want to do it).
My suggestion would be to look for a Sportster 1200R (roadster- not the XR1200-that's a whole different animal). The 1200R differs fro the reg. Sporty in that it has dual discs up front, taller suspension and more cornering clearance. Coming from a sportbike I think you'll like it and it'll most certainly stay WELL under your budget.

Another option would be a used Vrod. 10G should net you a pretty nice one on the used market.

 

First of all, I don't even own a Deluxe, but it still gets my vote. Classic HD lines, but still with the ability to be made to look sporty enough.

(Or you can just get a Deuce like I have in my sig. Best HD of all, of course.)



My Deuce:




Anyway you go though, you can really make it yours. If you find something you like but it doesn't have the wheels you want, the paint, headlight, etc, etc... you can pretty much mod them to get whatever look you want out of them.