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Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2017
Posts: 7,322
Likes: 11,725
From: Omaha,NE
Generally, I think Laidlaw's reviews are pretty good. Generally informative and his opinions are balanced. As for the Sportster, I do agree with his assessment. My first Harley was a brand-new 2003 Anniversary XL1200C. It was an awesome bike. But it wasn't a highway bike. At all. Cool for various reasons, but limited in scope. I traded it for a Fat Boy after less than a year of ownership.
I have ridden the newer iterations. I thought my '03 was better. The '22 Sportster S was horrible, IMHO.
Bottom line is there are so many better bikes out there, and for less money. I have no brand loyalty. I have different brands with different personalities. Variety is good.
I have ridden the newer iterations. I thought my '03 was better. The '22 Sportster S was horrible, IMHO.
Bottom line is there are so many better bikes out there, and for less money. I have no brand loyalty. I have different brands with different personalities. Variety is good.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2017
Posts: 7,524
Likes: 12,108
From: Indianapolis
Love 'em or hate 'em, they pretty much are aren't they? Harley Davidson is so well known they don't even have to put their name on their products, the bar & shield logo is known around the world.
Last edited by firehawk6; Apr 19, 2023 at 08:35 PM.
Thread Starter
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Tourer
Joined: Apr 2023
Posts: 251
Likes: 72
From: New Orleans
You nailed it, and I feel like Laidlaw is right. Back in the 60s a Sportster was a performance-oriented machine when compared to other bikes of the era.
Then came the 70s and the Japanese bikes. Honda CBs, Kawasaki KZs and the like simply just outperformed the Sportster in almost every way. And as the metric bikes evolved, they got faster, lighter, better suspensions, better brakes, and cutting-edge technology. The Sportster stayed the same.
Take a brand-new metric bike and compare it to its predecessor form the 70s. The difference is night and day. Now take a Sporty and do the same. You won't find a lot of change. It's basically a tractor motor in a motorcycle frame.
Now don't get me wrong, I love Sportsters, but if I wanted a performance bike, I would buy a metric bike with 3 times the performance at half the price of a Sportster.
Then came the 70s and the Japanese bikes. Honda CBs, Kawasaki KZs and the like simply just outperformed the Sportster in almost every way. And as the metric bikes evolved, they got faster, lighter, better suspensions, better brakes, and cutting-edge technology. The Sportster stayed the same.
Take a brand-new metric bike and compare it to its predecessor form the 70s. The difference is night and day. Now take a Sporty and do the same. You won't find a lot of change. It's basically a tractor motor in a motorcycle frame.
Now don't get me wrong, I love Sportsters, but if I wanted a performance bike, I would buy a metric bike with 3 times the performance at half the price of a Sportster.
I've owned several motorcycles & I like the Sportster more than any of them.
Thread Starter
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Tourer
Joined: Apr 2023
Posts: 251
Likes: 72
From: New Orleans
You nailed it, and I feel like Laidlaw is right. Back in the 60s a Sportster was a performance-oriented machine when compared to other bikes of the era.
Then came the 70s and the Japanese bikes. Honda CBs, Kawasaki KZs and the like simply just outperformed the Sportster in almost every way. And as the metric bikes evolved, they got faster, lighter, better suspensions, better brakes, and cutting-edge technology. The Sportster stayed the same.
Take a brand-new metric bike and compare it to its predecessor form the 70s. The difference is night and day. Now take a Sporty and do the same. You won't find a lot of change. It's basically a tractor motor in a motorcycle frame.
Now don't get me wrong, I love Sportsters, but if I wanted a performance bike, I would buy a metric bike with 3 times the performance at half the price of a Sportster.
Then came the 70s and the Japanese bikes. Honda CBs, Kawasaki KZs and the like simply just outperformed the Sportster in almost every way. And as the metric bikes evolved, they got faster, lighter, better suspensions, better brakes, and cutting-edge technology. The Sportster stayed the same.
Take a brand-new metric bike and compare it to its predecessor form the 70s. The difference is night and day. Now take a Sporty and do the same. You won't find a lot of change. It's basically a tractor motor in a motorcycle frame.
Now don't get me wrong, I love Sportsters, but if I wanted a performance bike, I would buy a metric bike with 3 times the performance at half the price of a Sportster.
I've owned several motorcycles & I like the Spirtster more than any of them
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 20,944
Likes: 19,046
From: The Wasteland
BTW, I've owned 2 Sportsters and I am currently looking to buy #3.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2023
Posts: 4,360
Likes: 1,344
From: Westland, Michigan
To say a sportster isn't a highway bike is to say all the other brands have it wrong. There's very little you can't do with a sportster and that includes turning it into a dirt bike.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2023
Posts: 4,360
Likes: 1,344
From: Westland, Michigan
The 1200 isn't even a challenge but the 883 can use some gearing and it isn't even that expansive to do. We have this mind set that the 883 is just to small of an engine when guys used to ride 750 and 650 Honda's and Triumphs all over the place. It isn't geared the same as a 1200.
Last edited by Garry Sr; Apr 20, 2023 at 09:32 AM.
Road Warrior
Joined: Apr 2022
Posts: 1,514
Likes: 1,822
From: Omaha
yep to this, HD is like Glock in the gun world, some people love them and some hate them but everybody knows the name.