My first bike was the Fatboy that I'm on now - third summer & I love it!

 

I'm a new rider and personally, nothing but a fatboy is big enough! im 6'6', 280 lbs, I don't know if I could go any smaller and be comfortable, my knees already sit above parts of the tank!

 

imho, its a bit much for a first. I think the biggest factor is the weight,
I dont notice it anymore but I remember when I first got mine it was a little intimidating. I think my history with dirt bikes, then a Honda Shadow (yes a Honda but it was cheap) and a few others were a nice transition for me.

 

07 XL 1200L is my first bike; rode it for 2 months I did not like the way it handle. Trade in for 07 Fatboy. Been ridden for 2 months now and love it. To answer to your question, If I were you, I definitely get the fatboy. Take the MSF course first and then get the bike.
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07 Fatboy
V&H longshot

Anger is the feeling that makes your mouth work faster than your mind.
- Evan Esar

 

A little history from a 5'10' 135lbs guy: started on a 50cc Piaggio Vespa the European way in my teens, never been on a bike again for 15 years except of once riding 10km on a friend's fatboy (the time I fell in love with Harleys) and finally convinced the wife to get a 07 deluxe. Took the safe rider course here in California in a rush, had to let the dealer deliver the deluxe to my house as I had not gotten the permit yet and just put on the first 1k miles on it last week. Trade-off for convincing the wife to the 20k$ investment was to stop smoking though.. The beauty is at the shop now, getting some Rinehart slip-ons and some breathing room.

Bottom line: still weighing only 135lbs, never regretted that I got the deluxe as my first real bike, only dropped it once (yeah, yeah, at slower-than-walking speed u-turn uphill - don't do that, watching a Harley fall in slow-mo is not pretty) and still love the deluxe.

Just be happy that the DMV doesn't force you into getting a smaller bike for your first year (the way the law is made in my home country Germany...)

Picture to follow once I have custumized it a bit more - still pretty much stock.

 

I know this is a repeat of many previous posts but this is what I think. You presumably want a fatboy and will not be 100% happy until you get the bike you truly want. If you take the safety course and learn some things you should have no problem. It is a lot of bike but if you are careful and watch yourself youll do fine. I bought an 07 standard with the 96er as my first bike and am glad i did not go with the sportster like a buddy of mine did. He is getting a dyna next year. I coul dnot be more happy with my bike and am comfortable with it after about 200 miles. So you might as well do it right the first time, and get what you want to. Plus i hate waiting

 

No. A fatty is not too much bike.. No such thing as too much bike in any of these bikes.. My first bike was a 90 Heritage... Once I learned to ride (on a little Yamaha v-twin in a church parking lot) I got the heritage on the road and loved it.. took the BRC course and was a better rider in two days than I was in two years... Harleys make great first bikes because they're predictable, the v-twins are easy to drive.. They coast great, accelarate great (but don't jump out from under you), they brake eh.. ok, they handle ok for a heavy cruiser and they keep your respect as you know it's not a bike to throw around twisties and act silly with. Plus, I felt and still feel more planted to the road on a fat front tire bike like the FL's, rather than the skinny 21's like standard softails.. But that's personal preference of course. If a new rider goes with too small a bike for a first bike... They'll find out quickly that they've outgrown their little 250 shadow.. plus in today's traffic, you better have some umph when you need it to avoid getting plowed over.

Keep your fatboy shiney side up! Take the course! Worth the time and cash... For sure!

 

My wife bought a Fatboy custom as her first bike. She has been riding it for 3 months without any problems. She may be a born rider being married to me and all. She is Bike PSYCHO, won't stay off the darn thing!!! SHe did take the riders course after she bought the bike.

 

True any idiot can hurt themselves on a bike. Oh and I soooo did not recommend a sport bike. Here are some thoughts on what you said.....

-- Coming from a smaller bike I can tell you the power to weight ratiowas much different between my 650 and my 1450. Though alot of it can depend on how you ride.

-- The thing is...I did ride when I was when I was younger, ***** out no fear...Getting on a bike 20 years later wasnotjust like riding yesterday...I had to relearn some of the basics...though shifting was natural balance was not (ask hubby about me dropping his VTX on the ground while walking it in a parking lot). You also find you are very aware of your mortality when your older.

-- Even just a few years ago no one in thier right mind would have recommended a newbie run out and buy even a 1200 cycle as thier first bike because those bikes were considered huge.

-- If you know how to ride it does not takea "decent amount of strength" to ride any bike the size of the bike becomes illrelevent. My little Honda 250 in the garage is soooo much easier to handle then my Deluxe, due to physical size and weight....though I would be a bit cramped if I rode for long distances. My 100 lb daughter could not handle the Yamaha because it was too heavy for her small frame if it got off balance for learning...the 250 is just about right. She looks and feels way more comfortable...after a few months I am sure she could handlea 650 or more with no issues. BTW, The guy I described dying in my last post was not a small guy....he could man handle the bike...but did not have enough experience to handle the bike.

-- A very wise Harley safty instructor warned me off a Harely as my first bike in 20 years...he said "Why in the hell would you want to by a 20k bike as your first bike so you can throw it on the ground, find riding is not for you (yes it does happen), or find they 20k bike you bought turns out to be the wrong one for your riding style."....I actually may be on the 3rd issue but more due to health issues.

-- It is a myth that you will lose a bucket of money buying a smaller used bike. If you buiy a decent late model bike for a reasonable price (used not new)...based on the popularityof riding right now...you will most likely not lose more then a few hundred if that. I bought a '03 Yamaha 650 for $3500 in Sept of '05 and sold it for $3500 in May of '06 All I lost was the money I had put into floor boards, the engine guards, and the tax/license...about $300.

A lot will depend on the person, but why buy a $20k bike out of the gate when it can be such a bad move.

 

Tell ya a story about the myth of heavy bikes being bad for beginners. I sold a guy at work a 750 shadow ACE last year when I got my new fatboy. Recently I rode it for awhile one afternoon when we went on a 200 mile trip together and switched bikes for awhile, and the thing flat scared me to death compared to my fatboy. Sure it was lighter, to the tune of about 180 lbs, but handling wise there was no comparison. I found the thing downright squirrely compared to my fatboy, especially at low speeds, where I could get the front end of it into some kind of oscillation with the frame at will. Turning it , I felt like I had to force it into a turn, which came naturally on the fatboy. My friends comments after riding the fatboy for 40 miles or so included," boy that thing just feels so natural, it just sits right there and goes where I want it to without thinking".I'd much rather turn a beginner loose on a fatboy than that shadow any day.

People buy kids 650 Katana's and think nothing of it. Compared to a Harley, thats a suicide machine. Power to weight wise, those things would smoke any Harley ever built. I know gals who weigh maybe 120 soaking wet who ride softails regularly , some of them with very little riding experience, and have no trouble with them. You can kill yourself on any bike if you ride above your comfort and experience level, which a lotta people, especially on poker runs and things like that, will tend to do. Ride your own ride, and to hell with what someone else does, or thinks you should do, and you'll be fine, no matter what you ride.

I alsoknow Harley riders who stop at every bar in their path, think they can ride drunk, and sometimes they get away with it. I've also followed some of them , and it just ain't pretty, don't care if they've been riding 50 yrs and have a million miles under their belt.