January 17, 2012 1:36 AM PST
OK first of all who ever put that up had his head up his but and didn't have ALL the facts... just to point out a few:
28. is NOT an XLH-61 it is in fact the XLX (a bike I owned many years ago) you may think that's nit picking but this bike was marketing as the bare bones stripped down darling in the Sportster line at the time and it was dubbed the XLX I think the last X stood for least eXpensive but a great bike none the last, long live the iron head!
19. the picture is not of a 2006 model at all, it's the 1988 introduction Evo model, note the raised fender on the front and the lack of twin cam motor.
10. The new FXDWG did NOT reappear until 2010, not 2008... in fact in 2008 is when they had discontinued the FXDWG and attempted to replace it with the Dyna Fat Bob, pissed quite a few people off when they pulled that move along with straightening out the back fender in 2006 and the new version looks like they took an FXD frame and screwed with the rake... I've ridden a few of these and they're just an awkward machine to ride and kinda ugly to boot. You can put a flame job on anything you want but don't sell me an FXD with a wide glide on it I'm not that stupid.
7. Clearly covered the entire FXR family and they should have left it at that... great bike I owned the 87 FXLR still the bike that makes me kick myself for selling! Then they just got stupid with number 6
6. Is NOT an FXRS but an FXRT... did the person who put this together get in a hurry? The FXRS had a few variants the first model year came out with dual disk front brakes then the next year Harley got cheap and only put one disk on the front making it just an FXR but the few subtle extras made them name it the FXRS (don't ask me Harley tends to move in mysterious ways)
3. How the hell did this ugly red headed step chick make #3? That is one UGLY bike! Yeah it's an easter egg but that front fender screams "I don't belong on this model!!!"
1. If you're going to pick the best VROD that is marketed to the public this wouldn't even come close! The Street Rod was the best thing they ever built in that line up and NOBODY bought it because it had mid controls, higher suspension and could handle better than almost all the other big super bikes!
After looking this over seems to me that someone didn't do their homework:
top 5 that no one can deny:
5. The FXR line, started out as a Shovel head and became the test bed for the then new Evolution motor. The Evolution motor would have been introduced to the public in 1983 but because the rocker box started out with a 2 piece design all the techs and mechanics said "We are not going to pull the motor just to do a top end and customers will not stand for the cost incurred!" So they went back to the drawing board and came up with the 3 piece rocker box design to keep from doing a complete motor removal for doing top ends."
4. The 1965 Panhead-electric start, need I say more?
3. The 1980 FXWG-that bike was like the song Smoke on the Water, that is the bike that really made the custom bike market explode! Harley did an awesome job with that bike design from front to back and if you find one in factory condition and have the cash, buy it! You will NOT be sorry!
2. The K model 52 - 56, without those bikes there would be no Sportster, the Sportster is still their longest running model... sure there have been a lot of FL's but the XL is still the same as it ever was, it always had shocks its always had a short wheel base and it has always been a great bike!
1. The Softail- 84 to present, the Softail literally saved Harley's bacon and without it the motor company might have gone quietly into the night and been one of the last great motorcycle icons to go under.
That's my 2 cents anyway!
January 17, 2012 11:13 AM PST
lack9:
If we ever meet up remind me never, ever, to bet against you - You know your motorcycles.
Never paid a ton of attention to HD. Something about pairing the words "Glide" or "Soft" & "motorcycle" seemed a crime against nature
Just before starting to shave liked the K model & when coming of age wanted but could not afford a Sportster. Thought of getting one for my bucket ride. - Wish they would put it on a diet
Still have hopes for the V-Rod. Let's face it kids air cooled engines exist only due to the forbearance of the EPA. They are due to pull the plug at their pleasure.
Was not aware they had one w/ mid-controls. - Awfully spendy & would take up a lot of garage space
Considering " 1943 to 1945 WLA (interesting fact: The U.S. Army still has the ability to produce 60,000 more of these bikes as they kept everything that Harley Davidson sold them back then.)" - Might make at least a istsy-bitsy, timy dent in the nation debt if they built & auctioned them off. They are never going back to war.
January 17, 2012 11:24 AM PST
Have had a softail since 2001 and no way I would ever bet against them. They will flat out run anywhere you want them to go! Mine has been durable and far from an maintanence queen.
January 17, 2012 11:34 AM PST
Savage, some people call it a passion others call it an obsession... but I like to refer to it as livelihood. If you're going to work on it, ride em you better know what you're looking at! :-)
Also a HUGE Harley History buff... problem with that is: William Harley and Arthur Davidson NEVER dreamed that the motorcycle industry would become what it has become over the years. They didn't keep records for the most part and the claim that they were a company in 1903 is sort of a fallacy... I remember reading that they used to talk to the wives of the founders who made them build a separate garage... AWAY from the house to work on those 'noisy bicycles..." When asked, and I'm not sure which spouse it was, guessed that the company started in 1903 but they have been working on motorized bikes since around 1898 from some accounts, neighbors and friends... oddly enough Harley did NOT become an LLC until 1911. My favorite historical fact about Harley Davidson is that they were trying to build the quietest motorcycle and the first one they built was the "Old Gray Fellow" and that's how they advertised it, the Quietest Motorcycle made! MAN if I could find that add blow it up and put it in my garage! LOL
January 17, 2012 2:37 PM PST
Yeah, very sloppy article.
To add to the confusion, #15 is listed as the "first-ever" V-Rod introduced in 2001, designated as the VRSCDA. The original VSRC designation was used for the V-Rod in 2001. It also only came in silver or white, not black. VRSCD/A was the designation given to the Night Rod anniversary edition in 2008. So, that picture is a night rod not a 2001 V-Rod
January 18, 2012 6:24 AM PST
Good eye... VROD lover! LOL
