Always owned swingarm bikes....I have a custom shovel...looking to buy a touring bike for me and the old lady....The cruisers sit too high for my liking, other than that they are great touring bikes. My question is to anyone who has had a touring bike and also a softail...heritage in particular....how do they compare as far as two-up highway riding?

 

my 0.02- put more than a few miles on abagger before moving to a heritage. I reckon they are difficult to compare if you are touring. The stock bagger wins hands down as theyhave the ground clearance and comfort, particularly if you are doing 2-up. I am now looking at putting in adjustable air shocks to give me the comfort and clearance of a bagger + (ultimately) progressives on front + a touring ( fat !) pillion seat. So I will end up on a comfortable city cruiser ,that will easily adapt to 2-uptouring. the only other thing which i have been resisting has been addition of h'way pegs on the heritage ..... haven't found anything yet that suits ( ie butt ugly )
grzly

 

I can only tell you my Heritage rides like a million bucks. The road king is a great bike. It just did not fit me. The heritage fits me perfect . My windshield is way to tall.i ordered another 15 inches tall. 60.00 for it . Let the bike pick you, you will know it when you sit on it,and when you look at it. Good luck in your quest .

 

Just bought my first Heritage (an 07). I have had a number of the rubber mount baggers since 1981. THe best of 'em all is the 2005 Road Glide that I have now. I love the Hertiage for the nostalgic look and the relaxing feel I get when I ride it. For long distance all-weather touring I still have to take the RG though.

 

I think it really depends on what type of touring you want to do.

I have a Heritage and love it. It is great for the rides we take which do not include a lot of 60+mph. Mine is a 5 speed, so at freeway speeds, there is a little buzziness that would get old if I were going cross country. The newer 6 speed bikes should be better at freeway speeds. Friends with Softails that put a 6 speed on their older bikes enjoy freeway cruising.

If I were going to be on the freeway all of the time with a passenger, I would like the air adjustable suspension, dual front brakes, rubber mounted engine, cruise control and stereo. If you're hitting a lot of corners, the increased lean angle of a touring bike is nice, but it comes at the cost of higher seat height.

Someday, I'd like one of each.

 

I rented an Ultra Classic for a few days before I made the decision on the Heritage. I was also coming back to Harley after riding metrics for 10 years or so. The two bikes I owned before my Heritage were a Gold Wing and a Star Roadliner , so my idea of what a good touring bike would do was already a bit tainted. I have to say that the Heritage has been a good choice, though it does scrape the floorboards when I'm 2-up. The Ultra was my 2nd choice, and the only reason I didn't go with it was that I didn't want a full time tourer right now. So the Heritage seemed to fit the bill perfectly.

Two things I found worth noting on comparing a tourer (full bagger) with the Heritage. The saddlebags on the Heritage are okay, but they don't have ANY security to them. With the Gold Wing both saddle bags and trunk locked (electronic), which was great when you didn't want to worry as much at each pitstop. On the Roadliner I had LeatherLyke bags, which did lock. I'd be tempted to replace my Heritage bags with LeatherLyke if (and when) they get too bad, but for now the look and feel of the leather keeps me happy with the Heritage.

Second thing is ride and comfort. The Gold Wing was HOT (those dang cylinders sticking out on each side super heat your feet), so coming over to the Heritage wasn't that big of a deal when it comes to the heat issue. In fact, I love the V-Twin setup more for touring simply because you can get more air up and around you. But the Heritage oil tank is right under your seat, and on a hot day you'll feel it on your thighs. For me the heat issue is something I'd rather not have, but then again I wouldn't have a bigger motor or the feeling I get on my Heritage. So it's a worthwhile tradeoff for now.

As for ride, both the Ultra and Gold Wing were a lot more comfortable off the showroom floor. The seats on both are already pretty good. I actually like the Ultra's fit a little more than the Gold Wing. As for the Heritage, the seat is acceptable and I'm going to make a couple small changes. I just ordered a FireHouse Customs backrest which I'll install for long trips. I hope to have it by Thursday since I'm hitting the road again on Friday, but if not there's always the next trip.

Finally, the Ultra handle bars seemed a bit more comfortable for me as well. I still have the mini-apes on the Heritage but I'm thinking of swapping them pretty soon for some bars I bought from a member. They had been on a Fatboy, if I recall, and they are lower, but before I make the swap I want to decide on some hand grips. For now, though, I've moved the mini-apes back a bit toward me so that the reach is shorter (not really needed) and the height is lower (what I'm looking for). Some, though, seem to prefer the mini-apes, so like a lot of things on bikes it all depends on what you like personally.