When I was buying my 2023 Triglide in September of 2023, I did some hard research on the bike only to find out:

a. There was nothing in any of the magazines on any model year that was a full and proper review.
b. On the video website, Other than 1 vendor (one of our sponsors), all that was out there was point of views and guys masturbating to the sound of their own voice. There was nothing factual, nothing actual regarding the bike, the need or the experience. What was there was piecemeal and nothing that was end to end.

What I am trying to accomplish is a practical look at the Triglide experience. For those of you who know me, I am a very published magazine journalist having a column for years in an international music magazine and now I assist with the music gear ‘blue book’. Below is my combined passion of writing and motorcycles.

All below is COPYRIGHTED and may not be used, sold, repurposed or procured for any reason at any time as this is in violation of US law.

Ownership:
A Triglide is more of a need than a want. An overwhelming majority of owners have an ailment or injury that makes riding 2 wheels either impossible, impractical or dangerous. The other folks buying just want the ease and stability of a trike. Keep in mind the trike is not a bike and there are some major fundamental differences.

The riding differences are a few but all are important.
· Steering is not done by leaning, you steer the trike using the bars and the upper body is used. It takes about 100 miles to really get used to it.
· Braking is slower than on a bike. You have a bike and a half worth of weight and the same braking system more or less as an Ultra.
· Handling (more on this later), you need to scrub speed before a turn and SOMETIMES you accelerate out. Until you get used to a trike just take it easy
· In a turn or a sweeper, the bike feels like it is pulling to the downside of the bank of the turn. The throttle and brake application keeps you honest. It takes a little bit to master, but it’s easy.
· You ride in the middle of a lane. You have 3 points of contact. You can’t straddle roadkill or a pot hole
· Feet up at all times!
· Yes, you have reverse but was advised to use it at 5 second bursts as the reliability, well, it isn’t the best.
· You have a parking brake – Do not forget to apply it.

The riding experience was a bit of something to get used to. I sold a BMW R nine T and a Road Glide Special to buy the trike. Both bikes were good to great handlers and the BMW just hauled butt. The reason I bought the trike was because I have extreme sciatica and a back injury, and I could not hold a bike up and my leg buckles. I don’t want a hot touring sled laying on top of me.

The riding experience is unique. It’s not a bike. This thing is big, it is lumbering, BUT it is beyond comfortable, it is stable. Having my injury, I am piling on miles with total peace of mind. Rolling 2 up is a joy. My family LOVES being on it. You MUST and I stress this, you must get used to riding a trike. Somethings are counter intuitive, some things are new. These are big, heavy and do not respond the way a bike does.

Costs – Plain and simple, these things are EXPENSIVE. Used ones hold their value so well that I looked at getting a used unit. Some used units cost more than I paid for mine new. I paid MSRP and the MoCo surcharge. I didn’t pay any fees and received 500.00 in credit for the parts, accessories and clothing department. Granted I bought over a dozen bikes at the store over the years.

Modifications – Let’s face it, everyone mods their ride but on this one its good (not great) out of the crate. Here are a few I made and why. This is my priority order.

· The seat – if you are over 6 feet, the seat puts you too close to the tank and the rider’s box is squished. I went with a HD Tall Boy seat. I just love the seats’ positioning and comfort. If the rider’s box is ok, the stock seat is quite good.
· The rear suspension – I went with Legend Revo-A’s and a lift kit. I’ll be blunt, the stock suspension sucks, its livable but it sucks. The difference is night and day, you can thank me later.
· While they were there (the body has to come off anyway), I had Rinehart DBX 4.0s installed. The stock mufflers have a rumble, the volume is louder than you would expect but the tonal signature I found unpleasant. I also had an HD rear bumper installed.
· This was pure indulgence, I am having a Precision Power audio system installed. 4 speakers and the amp. I heard this side by side with the HD Rockford stage 2, it was hundreds less and destroyed the HD system. It was concert sound. I had the Stage 2 on my Roadglide and loved it, this is better.
· Yeah, I did a bunch of small stuff to make it mine and you will too.

Epilog – A year ago if you said in 16 months, you’re selling 2 near new bikes and buying a trike I would have said your nuts. No way… Then I had a dilemma – do I ride safely on a trike, or do I give it up? At the end of the day, I am really enjoying the trike. I haven’t received a single negative comment. My 2-up passengers love it. I cruised on I78 doing 90 and didn’t realize it. Wind protection is ideal, the ride is actually fun. You can fit a case of beer and a few sacks of groceries on it. The trunk and tour pack hold full face helmets. What’s not to like.

 

Nice write up and good information for both current owners and those looking ot buy their first trike. Thanks

 

​​​​@uncle kebo thankyou so much for this write up, Sir. It is an honest appraisal.

I am 49 and 11/12ths, a veteran and also a veteran of many stupid life decisions and pursuits. My left foot is borderline useless and my left knee decided to join in on the shenanigans recently (thankyou Army). I have recently (pre-knee) bought a new Low Rider ST to drop some weight off the combo with my wife on board who also has a hip that now gives her crap. Interestingly the Low Rider ST has the most pillion room of all the softails, when you fit a backrest, sundowner and footpegs on the stock mounts correctly (left where the pannier mounts, right into the threaded boss on the OEM exhaust mount) due to the different position of the Holdfast bosses compared to the Sport Glide and Heritage etc.

We had an Ultra (2016) I bought on a whim but I sold it- I could NOT get the wind management sorted out and it was simply too heavy. But it was brilliant for space and comfort two-up. As my wife is the same height as me (5/10"), on the Ultra seat she sits way higher than me and cops the full wind blast on the Ultra- that would need a lot of work to sort out if we went this way. Maybe a Tri-Glide will hit the wind different....

I rode a Frankentrike converted Softail recently and the ride was terrible- it had huge rear tyres, while it was a magazine centrefold (literally) it left a lot to be desired as a daily use vehicle. But I could ride it well, and got used to it pretty quickly.

So here I am, with a sub-3,000km motorcycle that I love riding but hurts me. Again.

This review tells me things that I have asked in another forum thread, there are not many (if any) real reviews of the RG3, Freewheeler and Tri-Glide out there. Video content makers mostly love the sound of their own voice but fail to seriously analyse the bikes, or compare trikes and models properly.

I guess I need to make a huge leap of faith (as you say, they're not cheap at all....) and make the life-call.

once again, thankyou so much.

 

Pretty much agree with this write up. My aging knees let me ride my 07 Electra Glide solo but at times it was hard to hold it up and two up riding got iffy at best. We decided to trial purchase a used 14 Tri Glide. 15000 miles and 2 years later we decided that a newer model with the bigger motor would be a wise purchase. Boy, was I right. I don’t regret it at all a month after. I am glad I did it. I just lack a few things to do like install my new 12” bars that are in the shop waiting pre wired and all. A new or different de-catted head pipe and Power vision. Than a paint protection of sorts. The 114” powertrain is smooth and pulls great unlike the103HO. Pulling a trailer in the mountains should be a bit easier.
If y’all are on the fence, do it if you can.

 

I'll tell ya, my left foot is also a frankenfoot that has had multiple surgeries and my left knee is demolished due to sciatica. I use a heel and toe and it works. One of my riding buddies has some sort of a hand shift/auto clutch on his. Ill tell ya, I was ready to give up but my wife urged me not to. Best money spent. Good luck.

 

You are correct on most of your assumptions except for the stopping distance. A trike will stop shorter than a two wheeler. The two large rear tires account for the shorter distances.

I encourage all trike riders and potential riders to take the MSF 3 wheel BRC. You will learn a lot about the handling differences in a trike and gain confidence in swerving, braking and cornering.
If you haven't taken the course you don't know what you don't know about riding a trike.

When was the last time you practiced swerving to avoid an object 15' ahead or forced yourself to make a tight perimeter turn? Most likely never. Those are just a few of the exercises you'll practice and master in the course.
It's your and the passengers life and health you are placing of your presumption that your trike riding abilities and knowledge are greater than what you can learn in a 3 wheel BRC course.

 

Just want to point some things out
* These are not assumptions, they are my opinions - An assumption implies it hasn't been experienced.
* Regarding stopping distance, Im not doubting you but I cant find any info on this regarding stopping distance of a Trike vs. a touring bike. Do you have a reference we can view.

 

Thanks for sharing.

 

One thing I can add is the braking system with even stock pads is way better than any Harley I’ve owned, I wonder how much better it will be with EBC double Sintered pads. I love the linked system.

 

Shortly after I got my 15 TG a truck decided to do a panic stop in front of me. Didn't think I would be able to stop, was just trying to figure out how far into the bed of the truck I would land.
When the rear wheels locked up the trike stopped a lot faster then I would have thought possible. The two car tires in the rear make a world of difference when you really stand on them.