Well, my summer started off with a bang (my wife bought me a nightster, been waiting 20 years to finally get my bike!) Had a great summer on it and taught Mel how to ride....(: Didn't take long for her to get bitten, and she decided its now hers! It's all good though, we decided to pick up a 2012 Fat Boy Lo today. Seeing as winter is pretty much here, its staying at the dealer till spring, but its officially bought....(:

Of course I have a few questions. First, has anyone on here lowered a LO yet? Dealer is talking about dropping it an inch, I'm less than 5'2" with a very short inseam (26) and he says its not a big deal. I'd like opinions from anyone thats done it, apparently clearance is the same as a regular Fat Boy. Secondly, he also mentioned a super reduced seat, I'm stretching quite a bit to get to the bars, and even stretching a bit to get to the forwards. I was also thinking of some wild1 Chubbys, but the same dealer told me they will do it for me, but it will cost a small fortune in labour because they are wired internally. Has anyone bought these bars, and could they tell me labour time and cables needed? Finally, I'm going with V&H Big radius, and want to do intake. My question, stage 1 or heavy breather for intake? Thanks all! It's gonna suck waiting six months to go for a ride!

 

oh ya, a pic of course....

 

That is one way tooo high resolution pic.
Hahahaha!!!!!


I'm jus f*ckin wit ya.

 

I do not think you really need to lower it. The seat ought to be good enough. The Fatboy Lo is already an inch and a half lower than a standard fatboy. But you can lower it another inch without any real problems. As far as bars go, are you talking apes? Let me know what size you are thinking and I can tell you what length cables you will need. You can internally wire the bars yourself, they make kits that make the installation really easy. It only takes a few hours to do. If you have basic hand tools and somewhat mechanical knowledge you can do it yourself and save a whole bunch of money. Unless the new bike has ABS then you will at least have to have them bleed the ABS module.

 

The bars I was looking at were the Wild1 Chubby's WO560 drag bars. 14" of pullback. As far as mechanical knowledge, I'm a Millwright, and have been wrenching since I was 12, so it wouldn't be a problem, however, I was hoping to pick it up from the dealer done (its staying there till spring) But yeah, the bike has ABS.....):

 

Well if they are going to do the bars, they will know what length cables and stuff you will need. And if it has ABS you are better off letting them tackle it anyway since the ABS module has to be bled and can only be done with the computer. If you are really serious about lowering it, you might think about a shotgun shock system. DR V Twin (Drew), can hook you up with the shotgun set up and it is completely adjustable and you can adjust it to how you like it. It is pricey though but many say it is worth it.

 

Thanks, you've given me alot to think about. I will probably skip on the lowering then, and might skip on the bars too (I'll get a labour quote first). I'm thining if I go with the reach seat and the bars I'll be golden without lowering, seat is supposed to move you 2 1/2" forward, which is where I need it most. As of now, I am touching and my heels are only slightly off the ground, 1 inch lower from the seat, plus having my actual riding boots on should be fine.

Any opinions on an intake? I'm going with the V&H Big radius 2-2 and would like to do intake and re-map all at the same time.

 

I personally like the Arlen ness big sucker myself but it is basically the same as the screaming eagle kit. I use the stage 2 which is just a bigger filter. You can get the SE tuner from Harley or get a power commander for the tune. I use the PC on mine. I see you posted on the Lo thread too. That is a good place to get just about any info you need and it's a bunch of great guys that are more than willing to help out.

 

If you know how to wrench, then do the bars yourself. It's not that big a deal. H-D charges an arm and a leg to do it. Shoot, I found an indy who was willing to do it for under 2 bills and I still did it myself. Just do some research. There are plenty of good write-ups on this forum on how to do it.

I have the SE stage I A/C kit on my bike and that's the only type I would personally have. I don't like anything that obstructs the view of the power plant, but that's just me.

There are many ways to lower the bike. I skipped the bolt thing and progressive shocks and went straight for the Shotgun setup. Now that I have them, I think it's the ONLY way to roll, myself. There is a bolt kit you can buy for under $100 that doesn't involve that much labor (e.g. compressing the shocks to take them apart), but I forget the name of the company that sells them.

As far as the seat, I would get a Le Pera bare bones or something similar. It's more comfortable than the stock seat (imo) and will seat you down 2" more. Le Pera seats are better quality than H-Ds aftermarket seats and made in USA, if that matters to you.

Buy the bike at the dealer, and get as many freebies as you can at time of purchase. After that, it's a mistake (again, imo) to depend on the dealer for anything further. If you are indeed experienced with a wrench, as you say, then get yourself a "Bible" (read service manual) and get to work doing all maintenance, inspections, mods and repairs yourself. You'll be the better for it.

 

i have owned 2 fatboys a 98 and my current 03. like you I have a 26 inch inseem and have no problems with my current danny grey seat flat footing. my 98 was stock height. the o3 is lowered a inch so it fine even with the stock seat which I use for 2 up.