free website stats program 883 men, stand up! | Harley Davidson Forums

883 men, stand up!

D

dfreshb

New Member
I am shopping for a bike. Havent ridden since my dirt bike days 20 years ago. I am looking for a bike to commute to and from work (20 mi/day) primarily. My main motivation is to save gas, and enjoy life a bit.

I started looking at Honda 750 shadows, Suzuki M50, etc...
But for the resale value and American quality, I think the 883 might be the way to go.

The problem is this....when I talk to the "Harley guys" I know, they all say the 883 is a girls bike. One even said the whole sporter line is for girls! The salesman at Sawgrass Harley in Sunrise Florida told be the 883 is "F**ing underpowered. You will get run over in traffic"

Im trying to sort through this info. I know there is alot of pride amongst you Harley guys. I just want a mid sized commuter bike that looks great, will hold value, is fun, and will last.

IS the 883 for girls?
IS it underpowered? Compared to other 750-900s, not compared to a 1400!
IS it a great bike?
AM I better of with a Shadow 750 in this displacement class?

Please help.

Doug

PS> great online community here.
 
I've heard the same comments about sportsters. My brother told me don't buy less then 1300 cc, then you can cruise at 80 mph and have plenty of power to spare. For me 60 is fast enough and I can always drop down a gear if I need more power to pass. Well I bought a used 883 for the same purpose, to commute to work and enjoy it on the weekends. I will not be riding two-up, and I will use my Vette for road trips not the bike. I rode a 750 Honda to Canada with my late wife on the back so I feel the 883 was the bike for my intended purpose, and you can't beat the sound of a good set of pipes on a Harley. I would be willing to accept donations if anyone would like to contribute, then I would buy a 1200 cc or larger to satisfy the big bore guys, in the mean time I'll enjoy my 883 that's paid for.
 
I ride a new 883 and love every second of it. Screw what anyone says. There's no such thing as a girls bike, unless a girl owns it. The 883 is NOT underpowered. There's plenty of torque there ;)

Just buy whatever bike you want. Forget what the "hardcore" bikers say. Screw 'em. Just ride.
 
I agree, Sportsters are not "girls bikes". They are HD's hotrods. Enjoy, and disregard uninformed comments.
 
Buy what you want, I am a proponent of used now, 1-2 yrs old. You'll get a bigger bike for the same price or less then what you would pay for a new 883 out the door. Got my dyna for under 10.
 
The 883 on its own merits is more than powerful enough for street riding. My 2003 is always ridden two-up and neither myself or wife are lightweights. We can easily outrun most passenger cars and even some sports cars too.

When compared to a big twin yes there is noticeably less “torque”. The torque you can feel. The main reason the HD sales guys say the Sportsters are underpowered is there is a heck more commission dollars paid on a big twin sales. Hey they gotta eat too.

When compared to an equivalent displacement jap bike there is noticeably less “power”. Power is a mathematical equation equaling torque x RPM and really does not come into play unless you are in a racing situation. Jap bikes have less torque, but rev to 18 kudzillion RPM so can make big horsepower numbers to print in the magazine specifications.

Harleys make their torque low in the RPM band which is great for street riding. The torque band drops off at about the same RPM most jap bikes start making power. Your 883 Sportster will actually “feel” more powerful because of the low-end torque. Just roll on the throttle and the bike pulls like a freight train. When riding a jap bike you would have to downshift three times, peg the tach, but then blow past the Sportster.

Riding is not racing, and you don’t ride a specification sheet. You have to buy a bike that fits your riding style.
 
I've never owned an 883, and was just given my 1200 last August for my b'day by my wife who felt I needed a new ride (my 27 year old Honda required regular attention every couple of weeks so I could continue to ride it to work).

I'm loving my HD1200 and started enjoying road riding with fellow HD enthusiasts from my office on weekends. I can out accellerate most of their bikes on the highway and I only have stage one installed (exhaust and air cleaner with a re-jet). I have more than enough power to satisfy my needs.

After decades of riding Hondas (since the 1960's), I can give the marque high marks for performance and reliablity. Even though I am now a die-hard HD fan, I will recommend that (if possible) ride the bikes in contention for your attention and bucks before you decide.

I will say that Sportsters are NOT just for girls. They were developed for high performance and handling and have kept that alive for decades. I greatly appreciate the cornering ability and power to weight ratio of my Sportster.

Good luck in your hunt!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top