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(mortgage + tuition = tight budget)
I don't want to highjack the thread, but am I just splitting hairs here or is this a better idea than getting an HD right out of the gate?
No body but YOU... can make that decision.....there's nothing wrong with learning on a metric.... heck there's nothing wrong with riding one for as long as you wish.
this IS a H-D forum... and we tend to be partical towards them..... but I'd rather rider 500 miles alongside a metric, than park at a bar, with a dozen HD's...
it's all about what works for YOU..... it's your money... not theirs... Better to ride.... than to sit at home, and WISH you could ride (oh.... and take a rider's class...... before you purchase....)
Those Honda Rebels have a good reputation and following around here. I think they had a couple for the MSF course I took to get My Wv motorcycle endorsement. As for the dealer using a Honda to sell Harleys, whatever works to keep Your lights on I say, economy sucks and He has payrole to meet. WVleo
The dealer here on the north side of Indy sells Harley's and Honda's. The building is labeled as Harley but on the inside it's Harley on one side and Honda's on the other.
The old Harley dealership here sold Honda and only had them on the show room floor in the early and mid 90's when you had to order and wait 6 months to a year for a Harley
We have 2 HD dealerships near me that sell metric. The Harley dealership in Salina, KS sells Honda while the dealership in Junction City, KS sells Kawasaki and Suzuki.
I have a buddy that had never owned a street bike and wanted to get into a new bike cheap to see if he would enjoy it. The guy is 6'4 300+ lbs so a Rebel would not have worked for him in his case. He bought a brand new Honda VTX at a deep discount at the Salina dealership.
Of course, now when he goes into that dealership he is not looking at the Honda's. He goes straight to the HD's to check them out and dream. In fact, I have never heard him say I can't wait to get a new Honda, but he sure loves to dream about an HD. I guarentee his next bike will be a Street Glide once he can get the funds together.
So from this perspective the HD dealerships are selling metric bikes, but also getting people in the door to look at HD's in the process. So that business model is not all bad IMO.
I started on a honda cb900c, moved up/down to a virago 700 and then finally bought my first Harley, a 1200 sporty. Now I traded to a Dyna... I do a lot of my own maintenance and the jap bikes were a major learning experience, which actually carried over to the harleys.
Looking for a 450 rebel or 535 virago for my wife to learn on...wish they still made them.
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