wasn't really intended as a question... sorry. they do handle a lot better, for whatever reason. I don't know about cost, you're talking about re-engineering and re-tooling the entire assembly line to change all this. Also when I was replacing shocks on the old Honda mono shocks and even a sport bike those babies were high dollar! The weight saving was something Harley did push on these bikes, 30-ish pounds lighter from the showroom floor. The softail does handle, and I believe (my opinon) they ride better than the touring bikes. I got rid of a 17 street glide for my 18 low rider and I feel like it defiantly rides better, I can only imagine the heritage is even better than that. I'll bet that the touring bikes follow with this in the next few years though. Minus the old school dyna guys that want to be stuborn it's been really well accepted.

 

The single shock vs. dual shock is one part of the equation. With the single shock, it's typically much larger (it is in this case) without a compromise on crowding the wheel and tire area or having the bike look ungainly. The travel is much greater as a result. The ability to triangulate the swingarm for side to side stiffness for side loads encountered in cornering is vastly improved. The spring and suspension loads are transmitted up the backbone of the frame to the steering neck rather than just to the rear of the frame and is substantially stiffer as a platform which is a huge advantage. Other more modern heavy weights in their touring platforms went to single shocks systems not because they were cheaper, they just worked better.

 

The single shock has to be larger, the good thing is that the larger only add to raw material cost over having to have 2. Subtract that out and you still see twice the cost for 2 shocks over one.. Stiffness is really dependent on the design. For instance, most Hondas don't use a triangulated swing arm like the softails. They use a simple H type with the shock mounted in front of the cross brace with links. The shock is mounted vertically.. The transmitting of forces up through the frame is not important unless the design can be utilized to reduce weight. The new low rider still weights 20 lbs more than a 2000 low rider.

The HD design is like the old Yamerhamer mono-shock of the early 70s.. It making a comeback one the newer bikes mainly because of styling. Yamaha wasn't the first by any means.. Vincents had it.. There were bikes in the 20s that had it.

 

It's interesting you quote the weight from a 2000 year model rather than what's most comparable which would be last years model (which has the larger stiffer front fork and the six speed with available ABS). Using last years model year, the Softail Low Rider is a few pounds lighter than the Dyna.

As you mention, there's certainly different ways to construct a swingarm to achieve stiffness. Harley's approach (even though they had certain styling restrictions) was an integrated clean sheet design. Could they have achieved comparable results in a dual shock setup? Not likely with the rubber mounted engine. Eliminating the rubber mounted engine/rear fork assembly is also what added significantly to the handling improvement. The Dyna, as it was, had issues with the same type of wobble going through bumpy sweeping turns as the touring platform. Sure, you can improve that with aftermarket frame braces (like I did on my Street Glide with the Bagger Brace), it still doesn't reach the level of frame stiffness of the new platform.

 

That's because the improvements on the dyna went down hill in 2006 when they made the frame and forks heavier ..

HD could have used 2 shocks but then they'ed be a copy of an Indian scout. They probably don't want to be accused of copying Indian.. As I understand it the Indian handles pretty well. With both HDs and Indian's solution you will likely need to rigid mount.. When doing so you are back to not being able to balance the motor at revs without them getting buzy. There was on frame maker that tried the same shock setup as the current M8 softails but rubber mounted back in the 90s. Didn't work very well.

My FXDX don't bobble at all in rough turns.. Needed better tires tho.. That is one place HD improved.

So we get back to cost..

Add:

I should qualify the use of 2 shock on the scouts.. They were laid down to achieve the same slope tail look as what HD was shooting for.. They pretty much work the same as HDs setup. They do work fine.. Mounting a vertical shock and using links like whats on a GW or CBR would add to the wheelbase which already too long. Nothing wrong with dual shocks except for cost.. Current touring bikes could use more travel for sure.

 

I've had the new M8 Street Bob for 2 weeks now, commute everyday with it.
For the first week it was all about the engine, it is so good and the response and pull is amazing (and addictive!)

But in the past week I have been focusing my attention on the handling, and boy is it tight as. Suspension is great, soaks up bumps well, and combined with the frame /chassis, handling is a no-thought process.
Just point it where you want to go, choose your speed and it just does what you want it to do!

Take one for a ride, but just be prepared to buy, because you won't want to give it back.

 

I have a Heritage 114. While I’ve owned 4 previous harley’s, the vast majority of my bikes have been Adventure, Sport Touring or Sportbikes.

I commute on the Heritage. About 1,500 miles so far. It always takes me a little bit to get used to a Harley, but less with this one. There are twisties, back roads, highways and stoplights on my commute. I have found this bike lacking in no respects.

I have inadvertently scraped hard bits a couple of times. Suprised me. I realized the new bike handles great and not just ‘great for a Harley’. But it ain’t no sportbike, when it comes to lean angle. But that only comes into the equation, because the bike handles so well. I don’t think most riders will scrape.

Go for a test ride. Ride a bunch of them.

 

Today I let one of my very best friends ride my 18 Heritage 114 today. He has an 03 Heritage Classic with a built 103. My bike's a standard stage 1 and now it's got 1600 miles. He was very impressed with how dramatic the improvement was in the bikes handling. The lean angle and quick turn in compared to his bike was commented on.

 

I actually have some pretty good twisty roads around me and find myself scraping quite a bit on my dyna. I tend to alternate between it and my car for getting to and from work so this is nice to hear.

From what everyone has described it sounds like any of the models should be a pretty good improvement for me.
Hoping to get some time for test rides at some point to really get a feel for the new bikes.

 

HD has been developing a rear monoshock for the better part of a decade, under the guise of Buell.

At any rate, the new Softails handle better than the old ones and the Dynas. One thing not mentioned is the weight reduction compared to the outgoing models, as much as 35lbs on some. That has a huge impact on handling, even picking the bike up off the side stand. The Fatboy impressed me the most; It looks solid and like it's bolted to the earth, yet its actually quite light on it's feet. Definitely worth a ride.