Hi guys. Randall here. Mainer transplanted to SW Florida. Disability in my hands killed my music career a while back, and so I got into motorcycles again after 40 years. Last ride was hitting a steel cable on a dirt road on a 76 Honda XL250 dirt bike in 1979. Scared me off for a while.

But then I came across a 1982 Honda CM450 with stupid low miles and shiny like new. I rebuilt it from the engine up, fabbing some unobtainium in the process. Bike looks great and runs like a fine timepiece. But then it was finished, and I wanted more.

Then I found a 95 Sporty, also with under 5K miles. This one was sound enough under all the trailer park white trash ugly crap that had been done to it by an overeager ape who didn't know what a torque wrench is. Put it back to stock (no son, Sporty Huggers should not have forward mounted floorboards and tractor sized pedals). Put in a Hammer 1275 kit with Dynatech ignition, a real sized tank, and a general full going over. I would trust my life to this bike, it is that solid now. And then, it was also about finished.

Although my Sporty will rip and keep up just fine with the big twins, ( I have dusted one or two) it is a little squirrely on the interstate. Not going to be too much fun on a big road trip I am planning to Maine in a few months. So I typed Dyna into my local Craigslist, JUST TO SEE, and damn if it didn't happen again. A bike just leapt off the screen and grabbed me by the throat.

This one was a '96 FXD with 32K miles, and solid maintenance and upgrades. New Commander tires, brake jobs w/new braided fluid lines, bearings (greased, not replaced with sealed), Mustang seat, Andrews cam and bearing (not exactly sure about the details of this), adjustable push rods, forks rebuilt, Pingal petcock, all fresh oils (he changes at 2K like I do), bags and sissy bar. Clean title, no damage, and no other mods or custom stuff other than Kuryakin forward controls, which I do not like). $4000

I whistled all the way home (4 hrs). I immediately set about putting the controls back to mids, and upgrading the shifter rod. Then, I will ride it and see where to go from there. I am an older 150 lb rider, so hopefully I can handle the extra weight going up from a Sporty Hugger to a Dyna. It has no windshield or fairing, so I will be looking into that soon. I am an EVO guy all day long, so the transition from a 95 Sporty to a 96 Dyna should be pretty painless from the wrench's point of view. I have the HD shop manual, a solid tool box, and I'm capable. I grew up in an old school Italian garage. Literally. My first bike was a 60's Honda 50 Scout that my father and I got for $50 as a basket case and rebuilt when I was 11.

As I mentioned, it is all going to depend on whether I can handle the larger bike. This includes getting it on and off the HF lift table by myself. My Hugger Sporty scared me a couple of times trying to get it on there at first, but I am getting used to it. The higher heavier Dyna is going to be the test for me. If I can't manage the lift, I can't work on it, and thus, would have to get rid of it. I don't want that.

So, nice to be here, and looking forward to advice from you more experienced riders and wrenches. Let's ride!

And sorry, I don't have a single photo of it yet. I am working on it in an enclosed trailer at the moment. It's green.

 

Welcome to the HDFORUM.

 

Good find, have a '98 FXD Super Glide myself, did a lot of research before buying them and many said that the last '96 to '98 Dynas are the best of the Evo Dynas.

 

Welcome to the forum from New York.

 

Welcome to the forum from Virginia.

 

Welcome from Sydney Australia

 

Welcome

 

Welcome from Alamo City, SanAntonio, TX.

 

Hey Randall ... Welcome To The HDforums From Michigan, The Home Of Hell And The Greatest Of The Great Lake States ";>)

 

Welcome from Atlanta!