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UKLaruen, you made that exact switch, from Heritage to Fatboy... what is your opinion?
Having not ridden a Fat Boy, I do very much enjoy my buddy's Heritage. And given the pricing, this year Harley made the Heritage a tough one to pass up, it comes stock with a lot of items, saddlebags, pillion, backrest (I think) and windshield that will set you back $1000+ if you want those items on a Fat Boy.
That Teal & White is a great combo too. Now this is blasphemy in the Softail forum but I'd be hard pressed to buy anything but a Road King next time. I like the bigger bike for highway riding which is mostly what I do.
That said Lauren has a tough looking FB so I'll appreciate her opinion.
For me i like the styling of the Fatboy. Its very bold and modern looking compaired to the Heritage. If they tweeked the styling of the Heritage and cleaned it up i would like a lot more. Get rid of all those stupid chrome dots all over the seat and bags. And freakin tassels. Lol.. geesh.
My Fatboy Lo had the best stock suspension so far out of all the bikes I owned. I actually miss how soft it was. My SGS is like riding a wagon.
Give it a year you'll be getting another Fatboy. Lol. I traded my Lo in for a CVO Road King (touring bike) and seemed like a no brainer trade. And yes i did test ride the King before buying but test rides can be missleading as well. I always say you have to use and live with something for awhile before you know if its the right fit. That King was super top heavy all 822lbs was all up top. Had a real fip floppy heavy feel that i never got use too. The Fat boy is such an amazing balanced bike and for its weight it feels and handles like a much lighter bike. Trust me after awhile on that touring bike your going to hear the call of the Softail in the wind calling like a beatiful siren. Your going to want to have and hold it again and stair at its sexy lines. Get deep and low into it again. The Softness..Wait i think im still talking about bike .. lol
As far as the Slim. I just think it looks out of proportion. The rear is just way to skinny. Plus its a much harsher ride as far as hitting bumps with the lowered suspension. It does handle and feel lighter with the skinner rear tho. But not enough for me to pick it over the Fatboy.
I miss the larger bags of the Heritage, I put on smaller bags on the Fat Boy because larger bags were not available if I wanted HD. I added a windshield too, and sissy bar. So I kinda turned it into a Heritage.
There is no doubt the Lo has less lean angle than a regular FLSTF or FLSTC, I also notice that the wind whips you around more so with the Fat Boy solid wheel, even with the bigger bullet holes I have been sideswiped on the highway.
I think I prefer the Fat Boy handlebars over the Heritage bars, not noticing any shoulder ache or numbness which I would get occasionally on my Heritage. The Fat Boy seat sucks IMO whereas I always liked the Heritage seat.
But overall there's not much in it. I love how the blacked out Fat Boy S looks and I get more comments about the bike that I did with the Heritage. Suspension is about the same, handling very similar.
The Heritage is a great bike that is ready for 2 up riding and touring, you will spend more if you buy a Fat Boy if you want a windshield and sissy bar. I think it's basically down to looks.
Give it a year you'll be getting another Fatboy. Lol. I traded my Lo in for a CVO Road King (touring bike) and seemed like a no brainer trade. And yes i did test ride the King before buying but test rides can be missleading as well. I always say you have to use and live with something for awhile before you know if its the right fit. That King was super top heavy all 822lbs was all up top. Had a real fip floppy heavy feel that i never got use too. The Fat boy is such an amazing balanced bike and for its weight it feels and handles like a much lighter bike. Trust me after awhile on that touring bike your going to hear the call of the Softail in the wind calling like a beatiful siren. Your going to want to have and hold it again and stair at its sexy lines. Get deep and low into it again. The Softness..Wait i think im still talking about bike .. lol
This is the ultimate Softail (Fat Boy) versus Road King post. Summarizes it perfectly.
UKLauren, in another post above, makes some great points. I determined that I did not want sidebags, and I do NOT like the looks of the sidebags on the stock heritage. The studs just don't do it for me, and all the Heritage sidebags that I've seen look pretty bad and saggy after about a year. But she is right; the Heritage is basically a Fat Boy that comes standard with the windshield, sidebags, big front headlight system, and the spoked wheels. Personally I love the iconic Fat Boy solid wheel and have had zero issues with wind buffeting; not even on the 85+ MPH South Orange County 405 Freeway. Love the looks, and so easy to clean. Had spokes once. Never again.
Last edited by Redlegvzv; Apr 9, 2016 at 10:45 AM.
I've ridden Lo's, Slims, Slim-S's and Heritages. Ended up going with the Heritage because out of the box, it was set up for some nice 2-up riding for me and the girl. I've since added the Sundowner Deep Bucket seat. It sits me a hair lower and forward, which is good because I'm a short bastard. It's definitely more comfortable than the stocker, and sometimes I forget how long I've even been on the bike.
The spokes/whitewalls can be a pain, but I consider it a labor of love...plus when she's clean, she sure is purdy.
Those bikes are very similar. Handlebars, seat and ride height are easily adjusted/replaced on Softails. I'm on my second pair of bars and (after riding a buddy's bike) decided on Wild One Dresser bars to replace the Street Fighter bars on the Fatboy now.
I think HD sets the preload on the Lo shocks for 80 lb girls. Maybe they do it so the bike looks more lower profile on the showroom floor. After I had the stealership turn them up to 220 lb preload, my Lo rides really comfy. Better yet, I'm not scraping the frame and chewing on my *** cheeks when I hit a dip. Have yet to grind a floorboard in a turn either since I had those shocks adjusted.
What sold me on the Lo though are two giant tires. I spent years drifting through intersection turns on a Suzuki GS750E and slipping on pine straw and gravel because of the slim rear tire on a heavy bike. On the front end, I was sick and tired of the thin tire dropping down into grooves of stripped road and gratings. All those problems are gone on my Lo. More surface contact on the pavement the better and safer.
The only problem I have with the Lo now are the stock handlebars, just not enough leverage in the slow turns. Oh yea, the stock seat is trash. May as well throw it in the dumpster.
Fatboys, miss mine, '05 Gold Badge Anniversary Edition, 95CI
Made for puttin around, although it would romp quickly for the first 1/8 mile hit 90 and top out a lil over 100, liked to cruise 65-70 on the interstate but hated crosswinds.
Last edited by Tampa Fatboy; Sep 22, 2016 at 05:51 PM.
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Slideshow: The bar-and-shield logo shows up on far more than motorcycles, some of the company's most unexpected products have nothing to do with riding.
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Slideshow: A standard cruiser becomes an intricate metal canvas in the hands of a Swiss custom house known for pushing Harley-Davidson platforms far beyond their factory brief.
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