I started out with the same experience as you when I got my first bike in 2012. Before that day I only had dirt bike experience from my teens.

My first bike was a 2012 Sportster 48. I was a bit nervous about the 1200 never having been on anything larger than 450 cc's before but it was no problem. I took my time getting to know the bike and didn't push my abilities while I was learning. I never did drop or wreck that bike once.

Two years later I took the basic rider course and learned all of the things I was doing wrong over the firsr 2 years of riding. It was an invaluable course and taught me a ton and made me much more comfortable on my bike.

Starting on a Sportster is no issue for a beginning rider as long as you respect the bike and keep in mind your ability level. As others have already I recommend taking the basic rider course before getting out on the road. Don't do like I did....

Good luck with whatever you decide on. I would look at the 2016 Roadster 1200. Great and fun bike and handles pretty well.

 

where can I get a cheap sportster. I've been looking for a 1200 T or C. I'm in Tn. dealers want almost as much for a used one as a new one. I'm looking for a 2016 or newer.

 

My wife started riding 2 years ago on a 2003 883 Hugger, this year for Christmas I upgraded her to a 2019 48. She took the riders course through the dealership last year. And, if your a veteran, they give a good discount on the riders course through Harley. Good luck on your search.

 

Dang it should be free especially for veterans! The dealer here gives you a free course when you buy a bike from them. I took them up on that offer 2 years after I bought my first bike from them and they still honored it.

 

I took the course December 2016 as a birthday present to myself and bought a 2017 Forty-Eight (my one and only bike)the following month. Three years later it's still all good and being my only mode of transportation, I do ride it a lot. I did have an engine guard installed at the dealer just in case though!

I figured that, "I could own a thousand bikes before I bought a Harley and as soon as I did, still drop it!" Live your dream while you can!

 

My wife just took riding course a month ago, and wanted to go get a Sporty last week.. We got it after her test riding several different Sportsters, and falling in love with a 2017 1200 Custom. She doesn't want to have anything happen to it while she is getting some riding hours under her belt, so I bought her a 2016 Honda Rebel today so she can some riding confidence and skills around home. The Sporty will hang out in garage for a while until I see, and she feels, its time.

 

The whole point of starting on something smaller and cheaper is that you wont have as much of a loss if or when you drop it.

I am one of those who recommend a used an smaller bike to learn on.

How much dirt riding experience do you have? Are we talking once or twice on your cousin's bike or did you live out in the country, have your own dirt bike, and go riding every day?

Look for an older Sportster if you have a fair bit of dirt riding experience. You should be able to find a 2003 or older rigid mount Sportster for around $2,500 this time of year.

 

About 4 years ago the course was free for veterans. (I took advantage of that) Problem was too many people signed up for the free course then didn't show up. Now they charge $75 for veterans in the Harley riding academy around here.

 

Well, I bought a 883 as my first "big" bike. I rode a scoter for 2 years after I took my licence, after I sold it, I had no bike for 7 years, until last year, when I Bought my brand new 883.
The begining was hard, heavy bike. I droped the bike 2 times before 1k km , but now I'm more confident and my ride improve every day...

It's important to tell that the sportster model is a "sportive" bike if you compare with the others HD, his ride is diferent from a softail for ex. I bought because of the price and I dont regred it, but now that I know how is a ride a 883 is, probably I would chose a diferent Bike (Street Bob or maybe Low Ride S).

 

I would recommend taking the H-D Rider Academy course because it is taught on the Street 500. Consider it the best test ride of the Street series of bikes you are going to get without a license. Most other MSF courses will use much smaller bikes such as the Yamaha V Star 250 or Suzuki TU250X. Starting on a slightly bigger bike will make the transition to a mid-sized bike not so big of a step.

Immediately get your license and come back for some test rides while the experience of the MSF course is still fresh. Try to build up some seat time on a few small to mid-sized bikes to build your skills and confidence before test riding the bikes you are seriously considering. You may want to track your miles during this phase of things.

Start with the Street 750, even if you don't really want one. Except for having a little more guts, it's just like the Street 500 the course was taught on. Weight, balance, frame size and controls are identical. This means you should already be comfortable with the bike and can focus on getting accustomed to riding on public roads. Repeat at other shops in your area that have new or used Streets in stock. Again, you are just doing some building of skills and confidence and not seriously shopping for this model of bike, unless you take a shine to it.

Once you are comfortable with the Street on real streets, take test rides on other bikes or pay for weekend rentals on any bike you feel ready for, saving the Honda Shadow and Sportster until you are getting more comfortable and confident with your riding. That happens pretty quickly. Within a few weekends you should be able to decide for yourself if you are ready to jump right onto a Sportster or if you want an interim bike.

The current Sportster line up is pretty thin. I suspect 2020 or 2021 is the last year for them before being replace by the modular engine bikes.There are plenty of used ones out there, though.

The last couple of years H-D has run a deal on new and recent model year used Sportsters and Streets. Your purchase price is your guaranteed trade in price if you decide to trade bikes within a year. It's a good deal if you are paying cash or at least a large down payment. If you are mostly financing the bike you won't be in an equity position by that time.