If you are willing to make the jump to a big twin, then I'd take a look at a Softail Slim. If you are not wanting to make that big of a jump, then I'd recommend taking a look at a Sportster Forty-Eight. With a Stage 1 install, a 48 can haul some ***...

I went from a 48 to a Slim with zero regrets. But it all comes down to what type of riding you are going to do, what kind of riding position you prefer, how much $$$ you are willing to form out, etc.

So get out there and do some test riding before you make a decision!!!

 

This is not so much my "advice" as it is my "experience". You asked for seasoned riders opinions, well, I've been riding since the mid-1960s, and I've had close to 50 different motorcycles. I've owned four touring bikes (2 Electraglides, a Road King, and a StreetGlide), a Heritage Softail, 3 Sportsters, and three Dynas (2 SuperGlides, and currently a new Low Rider). IMHO, go with any bike from the DYNA family. After owning baggers for awhile, I got tired of the weight, and bulk of them. Didn't care for all the "gadgets" (radio, CD player, cruise control, etc.) Lost the "motorcycle" feeling for me. Sure, they can do anything you want, but it just felt like riding them for PLEASURE, was like driving a big camper. They're great "tools", but not much FUN. My brother-in-law owns a bagger, but he tours with my sister on the back constantly. From northern Ohio to Key West Florida, three times to Sturgis, a trip to the west coast ,and several "Run to The Wall" rides in D.C. He has over 68,000 miles on a four year old motorcycle, so he NEEDS a bagger. My buddies jokingly called my ElectraGlide "the Winnebago"! If you're NOT constantly touring, or riding 2-up with someone, save yourself a bunch of $$$ and bypass the touring rigs. Don't let anyone talk you into a bagger just because "you'll eventually end up on one". That's bunk. I had four of them, and they're not the "be all, end all" motorcycle, trust me. They're the "in" Harley right now, that's all. Everybody thinks you haven't "arrived" at Harley Heaven until you own a bagger. I get a chuckle out of going to the local dealership on a Saturday and watching all the guys ride in on their loaded down $25,000 baggers, with every HD accessory in the book on them, and checking out the odometers to find they're riding a 3 year old bike with only 3500 miles on it! Most of them never ride more than 50 miles at a time. But they sure do impress their pals! I say, if you need all that stuff, just get a nice convertible!

Then, I absolutely HATED the Softail. Of all the bikes I've owned, it was the motorcycle I owned for the least amount of time (less than 6 months) because I just did not like it at all, mainly because of the "B" counter balanced engine.

IMHO, the Dynas are the BEST do-it-all motorcycles HD builds. As I said, I owned two Super Glides before this Low Rider, and everytime I sold my dyna, I regretted it later on. I found that they're, for me, just about the perfect motorcycle. They're certainly capable (and comfortable) enough with a windshield and some throw over bags, to take off on a cross country trip, yet still fun if you wanna hot rod them, commute on them, or just cruise through the country on them. I got rid of all my bagger's "baggage", sold my Street Glide, bought a new Low Rider, and couldn't be happier. And just a side note, the difference between a Dyna and the rest of the HD family is anywhere from 4-10,000+ dollars. That's a huge chunk of change! Just my thoughts.

 

he wants to know how big you are???? Lol.
But seriously, buy what you like ! I mean damn make up your own fn mind!!!!

 

As many have and will suggest, "try out a few" and see what you like.

That said, this post right here:

,,, is quite a helpful one IMHO.

A Sportster seems to have a high COG relative to some full sized models, like the Dyna for instance. The transition to one of these heavier but low COG rides may therefore be surprisingly easy. Some of these full sized models also have significantly longer wheelbases too, so I'd suggest you cut back on cornering speeds for the first little while till you get used to the new turning radius.

By all means though, don't restrict yourself based on suggestions you read here. Demo days were made for guys like you.

I just read hd4evr2008's post and though I don't have anywhere near his experience, what he says certainly resonates with me and my limited experiences thus far.

 

Well, I made a similar transition year before last -- went from my Sportster to a Softail (Fat Boy). I've never regretted it. The Fat Boy is more stable on the highway and has a lower center of gravity and is better balanced, making it much easier to handle for road riding. Can't say enough good things about Softails.

I don't have anything like the experience of the fellow who has owned 50 motorcycles (wow!) but I agree with him that Dynas are also very nice. If I did not own a Softail I would probably have gone with the Dyna Low Rider, so long as I could have found one with ABS.

Nothing against Road Kings or tourers, but that is a lot of weight for the kind of riding that I do. YMMV.

 

In the end and after all has been said your opinion is the only one that matters. Go to a dealer explain what you want to do and take all and any bikes out for a demo ride. Then you decide which one you like and post back on which one you bought.

 

I love my Dyna and can't imagine not having it. But, I really want to do more touring and I am starting to save up to get a Road King.

Depending on what you want to do with the bike I would choose between those two. I wish I had loads of cash. Because I would buy this tomorrow:

 

Wow! I did not expect to get this many comments, especially this fast! First of all i just want to say thank you to yall, for all of the advice and sharing your experience with me. It really helps! Im going to try and answer all in this post. And im going to tell you why i posted this in the first place asking for yals help.
For one i want to help weeding out what i know i won't want.
For example i know that i don't want a bagger/touring bike.. I can't see while im writing this, who posted about the weight of the bike while not going on long trips. Thats a great point and i appreciate that. That helped me weed out the baggers.
Another example to help me weed out the heard. Knowing what i know now about the 06 sporty, i would not have bought that year model. Not that its a bad bike. But there were alot of big changes that year for the sporty, so interchangeable parts were harder to come by, plus it was the last year carb. Could have gotten a year later and got the FI. For around the same price. my fault for not doing my research before buying, i was new and excited. Now i know.
So reasons why year "A" is better then year "B" because of so and so reason is also very helpful to me.

Thats why im asking for experience, yal rode them, so yal know the ends and outs better than some sellsman thats never rode said specific bikes and year models of the bikes... And if they did, they sure as hell didn't let me in on the info!

Now to answer some questions, if i miss something i will go back and re look at the comments and post again.

Im a fireman weighing about 200 lbs of mostly muscle. So Im needing bigger. Also my girl wants to ride on the back with me and my 200 plus her 130... im pushing it on that sporty... I let her go around the block with me a couple of times and you could feel the sporty struggling to stay afloat.

I do not plan on making any long trips on my bike, just cruising. If i ever want to ride my bike in the mountains of colorado ( im in the south end of Texas, thats a long trip) I'd hook up a trailer and ride up there in the RAM.

money wise I dont have alot to spend up front. I'll have about 2 or 3k spend plus the money i get of my sporty which im hopeing to get about 3500 for. Remember im a full time fireman. We dont make much.
I probably could save more but i just cant let much more go than that. I got bills to pay and could use that money for alot of other things we could use... of course I've spaced it out to make sure me and my girl
Live comfortably, as in not living paycheck to paycheck. (Been there). I just wouldn't feel right spending much more money at one time knowing "things" happens, i can use all the money in the bank i can for "just in case" hiccups. I do not mind buying a bike a little beat up and fixing it up little at a time.
Which is one of the reasons i want to see yals bikes. To really look at it and see what i can turn it into.

And just to recap i know at the end of the day im going to have to ride a few diffrent bikes to see which one is the right feel for me, but I also want to make the smart decision and know im getting exactly what i want or that i can make it into exactly what i want, and know exactly what im in for before shelling out my hard earned cash.

Last thing, i really want a bike thats going to last and keep me contempt. Not in the sense of i want the biggest baddest bike out there. But one with a nice bit of room for upgrades and customization.

Again thank you all for taking the time to help me out, I really appreciate it, keep posting yals bikes up fpr me, very inspiring!

 

I know how you feel! Im working on winning the lotto right now!

 

About 6k. A little beat up is ok. I do not mind putting in some work.