Hey all. I am in the proces of ordering my first harley. Now my predicament is i cant decide for the life of me what i want. I have driven the heritage softail classic and the flhx which i thought both were great. My buddy told me i look big on the heritage. I am 6 foot 220 lbs. I really like the look of the deluxe (nostalgic) but again was told by many people i am to big for it. I did find the seat on the deluxe is uncomfortable, but thats an easy fix. I also find the deluxe has nicer signals, tailamp, forks and whitewalls. now here are my questions

1 what is the rise on the classics bars
2 how do you bigger fellows feel on the deluxe
3 how do you bigger fellows feel on the classic
4 if i wanted to put 12.5 or 16 inch apes on the classic what is required
5 what seat (solo) do you guys recommend for the deluxe to move me back.
6 i would want whitewall tires, 12.5 or 16 inch apes, bags for longer trips only, backrest and passenger seat for wife a few times a year, tombstone taillamp, the smaller signals, and windshield for longer trips. which would be the cheapest route to take. modify classic or modify deluxe.

any opinions would be great. thanks. oh ya flhx is awesome hands down. i am just not sure if i need a touring yet.

 

I have a deluxe, but I am only 5'8". the seat would need to be switched out for you.
If you what bags and a windshield, the heritage is the bike for you. you would just add the white walls. other than that the main difference is that the deluxe sits lower [24.5 in]
the heritage will handle a bigger person from the get go.
Hope it helps

 

Find a dealer that you are comfortable with and ask to sit on the bikes. Explain your situation to a salesperson. I am 6 ft 0 myself and about 210. I bought an 05 deluxe about 3 weeks ago. I will probably change bars and get floorboard extentions, but that's about it. Don't worry what your buddy thinks, worry about what you are comfortable on. I have a friend that has an 06 heritage and he's a little shorter than me, and went with 12 inch apes and loves it. He thinks stock hd bars aren't very comfortable.

I can still ride for a couple hours without problems. It's nice to get off and stretch about then anyway. I would suggest looking at a more comfortable seat. I have the sundowner and I really don't know if it moves you back. More comfortable for sure.

As far as saving money, there are many used on the market due to lots of folks wanting the 07's. Bought mine used local and saved a bunch, bags shield motor upgrades. Still under warranty.

Good Luck

 

I've got a buddy who's about 6'2", not fat but not a skinny guy either. He rides a Deluxe and I never thought he looked too big on it. Pretty sure it's mostly stock - at least the seat, floorboards, controls & handlebars. He loves the bike.

If you're dead set on a tombstone taillight... get the Deluxe. Putting one on a Heritage requires body work/repaint on the fender, at least I couldn't find one for my heritage that just bolts up.

I prefer the factory bars (8.5" mini-apes I believe) on the Heritage for long distance comfort. But that's a personal thing. Also like the big bags & windshield. Also, unlike most, I like the slightly higher ride height of the Heritage for the ground clearance.

Swapping out to high apes on either bike will most likely involve replacing the cables too - figure about $300 on the cheap side - and that's if you do the work yourself.

I'm like you, like the retro look of the Deluxe but like std. equipment and some other things more about the Heritage. So, I bought a used heritage (only 1360 miles) and modded it to my taste with a retro feel... all for WAY under the cost of a new Heritage from a stealer. You can check it out in my photo gallery.

Wide whitewalls are the next add. Just priced them today at the local dealer... $375 installed for both. Think I'm gonna take it down tomorrow and have them put on.

Also, I've got the passenger pilon & sissy bar in the garage, take me about 15 minutes to put 'em back on when I wanna ride 2-up.

Dave

 

I'm 6'2 ~300lbs with a size 13 boot and ride a deluxe.

I had the seat modified by an upholstery shop to move me back and down. Cost about $120 and took a couple hours between me trying it out, and him adjusting. I liked the look of the seat and didn't want to change it.

Highway pegs on my engine guard for stretching, and I am just fine. I can ride 12 hours in relative comfort, just getting off for gas or food every 120-140 miles for 10 minutes.

Just got bags from Leatherworks for about $650 and they are big but fit with my stock exhaust.

I have stock bars, stock location of floorboards, and stock controls. Someday i will switch to extended brake and shifter levers, but more because I think it will give me even more comfort options than because I need to.

Engine guard depending on what model you pick ~$300
Pegs and mounting kit and bolt kit (don't forget the friggin bolt kit) again depending ~$70-$120
Backrest, Pad, QD hardware and lock if you want it ~300-350
Don't buy the Deluxe bags from HD. Nothing but trouble and really small. Bags will run between $400 and $1000 depending on what you want out of them.

I think I fit my bike well and I sit much farther back and relaxed than I do on an Eglide. Much lower than on a Road King.

 

The deluxe is one of the lowest sitting bikes from ground to seat. One of the reasons for this is the shocks. If you look in the acc book the lowering shocks will not work on the deluxe reason being its already low. You may be able to change shocks and get higher. As far as which bike to get I say get the one you like to many times guys are buying what there buddies like instead of what they like its your money so you have to want it. I think with a few small mods you will be very happy with the deluxe there are now plenty of bags available not like when i bought mine in 05 all they had were the Harley bags. take your time thing it over and get the one you like

 

I agree with the buy what you like comments....remember your the one that is paying for it.

I'm 5' 8" but have a 32 1/2" inseam...I was concerned about legroom on the Deluxe but I had my seat modified to sit me back 2 inches and added some highway pegs for comfort. Just spent 8 days on the bike with about 7 hours my longest run and no problems.

The Deluxe will cost you more to accessorize but you can outfit it the way you like rather then take the stock setups on the Heritage. Both bikes are great so it's a win either way.

 

Who cares what you "look like on it". For me it is all about the feel. I don't ever see myself on it except in pictures, and I think I look pretty cool. Like others said, I bought for me, not my friend so I bought what I wanted. Good luck. There really isn't a bad choice.

 

remember the Heritage has all them damn spots.
Spots drive me nuts!!!

well not really, but I don't want em on my bike and that was the biggest factor in not choosing that bike for me.

The deluxe is faster becaue it has those pointy turn signals instead of the big hockey pucks!

Oya, if you buy the heritage, change the tires before delivery. most dealers will only charge the difference in price between the tires.

 

I'm 6' 1"/210lbs and I fit fine.

1. Ditch the stock seat. I have a mustang wide vintage which raises me 2" and back 2" +.

2. Many bags out there but you will need to change pipes (lower) to put on bags of decent size.

3. Get a "secret" credit card that you wife won't discover.