As I said new to me Fatboy. It is a 2001 painted I assume aftermarket as it is a great metallic black/charcoal. Seems to have had some motor work Fuel controller, big bore kit, and cams at least. I purchased it from the second owner and trying to find original owner. Bike was/is from Chicago Illinois area. Pic was a quickie before work.If you recognize the bike from forums facebook , etc. Please let me know. I also know this is a long shot.
HD customer service will tell you original dealer bike was sold at. Dealer may or may not tell you who they sold it to. VIN number at MV sometimes will and sometimes not give up original owners info. HD 414-343-4056.
Just wanted to know what if anything was done in the motor. Simple as that. Seems as at least a cam was swapped , really would like to know if cam chain tensioners need to be checked or were they replaced. Hate to waste the time to open it up if it doesn't need it. Bike runs great and will be with me for a while. Going to the dealer tomorrow with another bike and see if they can check the vin. The dealer can see what other HD dealers service was performed. May or may not tell me anything. Frankly if someone who bought one of my old bikes ever wanted to ask what was done I would have no problem with it. Heck there is one I would offer to buy back. I also assumed that if someone recognized it from forums, facebook ,etc a simple pm with a few questions would be no big deal.
Without finding the owner, you seem to be on the right track to get answers to your questions.
Here's another thing you could try to see if it has a cam....
If you know someone with a PowerVision tuner, you can use it to get the ECM info off your bike. Then check the tune Calibration ID or number.
You can tell if it's a Harley calibration number, and check to see if it's an OEM, Stage I, Stage II or Stage III calibration. If it's a non-Harley calibration, that will tell it was modded and might tell what mods were done. Most of the DynoJet flash tunes have a number system so you can tell what mods they are for.
For an example;
I worked on a Friend's bike. He "thought" it was stage I. I pulled his ECM info with my PowerVision tuner, which showed an "ECU Cal Id: 32725-04".
#32725-04 comes back to "1450 Stage I Legal", or an 88" engine, Stage I, EPA legal tune. It also shows it was downloaded by a dealer's Digital Tech II computer, not the self installed cartridge.
The bike has been out of his hands for years... He'd have no idea what the next owner(s) did.. Once I sell a bike (and always with a clear conscience), I dont care if the new owner pushes off a cliff and Its no longer a part of my life. Not speaking for all but many of us think this way and just dont want to be contacted...
Used is used, too many variables involved trying to decipher what maintenance was or wasn't performed. Also, if and when and under what circumstances. It's best to pull the cover and check the cam tensioners yourself. It gives much better peace of mind, if you see for yourself.
I used to give permission for customers to call me about a previously owned bike of mine. No more. Had a guy call me, and I answered as truthfully as I could. The guy didn't know that I was friendly with the salesman, so he tried to con them into giving him a discount. I decided then, that once a bike is sold - it has been deleted from my memory banks, as far as the next owner is concerned.
You have a really nice bike. A little maintenance at your comfort level will truly make it yours!
As far as prior owner contact, I'm in the camp of "leave me alone"...
As much as I like talking Harleys and am willing to help anyone, I will not discuss one of my old bikes with a new owner after the sale.
I keep an extensive maintenance, repair, and modification log on all my bikes. I give a .pdf copy to any new owner (or to the dealer the one time I traded a bike in). If they read that log, they will know as much about the bike as I do.
If a new owner of one of my bikes tries to contact me, he is not looking for information on my bike, or he's too lazy to read the log I gave him. I've got nothing to say to him, and can't think of anything he has to say that I want to hear...
PS- funny note. The one bike I traded in, with the log, was at a dealer an hour away from my house. I went back to that dealer, four years after that trade-in, to look at another used bike they were offering. The sales manager approached me on the sales floor. He recognized me from my trade-in, four years before. He told me that he bought the bike I traded in because of it's condition and the maintenance log. He had just recently sold it because he & his wife were having a baby. He commended me on how well I maintained that bike and how much he loved it... That was a cool conversation...
That's a fantastic-looking Fatboy! I'm envious of whoever put the labor into the polished rims. Damn nice!
If you don't get very far with your digging for info. Just go to it and learn your bike - she's a keeper!
UPDATE took my Road Glide into my local dealer for a tire and while I was there had the service writer look up by the vin. After a couple of minutes he started laughing and told me he knows the OG owner and the second owner and facilitated the sale when he worked for another shop. I was told when I bought it that he had bought from the original owner , wrong he was the third owner. So all good and I learned a lot about the bike and that the first 2 guys took really good care of it. Second guy only had it less than a year. I am a happy guy.
09-11-2024, 01:21 PM
New to me Fatboy. Trying to find previous owner
