Yea I looked at those mainly because of cost, since they held far less of their value than Harleys. But the more I looked, the more I realized, not only did the Haley hold value better, it held up better (overall) and if something does break, dealer and aftermarket supply is nearly endless, That makes them VERY hard to beat,

In my opinion, other bikes run smoother, especially at low speeds, and seem more compliant, than the sportster, but in the end, they are just a machine. The sportster has its own personality. None of my jap bikes ever felt that way to me.

Have never ridden a big twin, I guess I need to at a demo day. Kinda afraid to, because I will probably end up wanting one. Lol

Also, for me 66 yrs old, at 5'7" and 180lbs the big cruiser bikes weight is a little intimidating. I seriously worry in my head about dropping one even on a demo. There are still times the sportsters weight is a little intimidating, to be truthful.

I sat on a 2014 Ultra in the showroom, and lifted it off the stand. That sucker felt heavy.. by comparison I sat on a big twin Yamahammer (no saddlebags) and was surprised how easily it came up off the stand. Now if I did the same on their big cruiser fully loaded it would probably be the same as the HD.