Originally Posted by cajun1957a

Jeeper, How did you get into my head?

randy

Originally Posted by IronDel

I currently have two Harley's, a 2013 Iron 883 (my first), and a 2002 Road King Classic. Here are my thoughts on switching from the Sportster to a Road King.

I bought the Iron because I absolutely love the look of the bike, and I've always wanted a Sportster. To me, it's just a raw machine, meant to be ridden. I'm a bigger guy at 6'3" (plus a bit of excess mass), and my wife is 5'10". Two-up, the Sportster is just fine for power on our prairie highways (I'm in Manitoba as well). But, it's a really snug fit for the two of us for a full days riding.

Which is why I bought the Road King as a second ride. My wife and daughter are both far more comfortable on the back of the Road King than on the Sportster, my wife now has a bike of her own to ride, having taken over riding duty on the Iron, and I'm actually surprised how much more comfortable the Road King is for me to ride solo.

If you haven't ridden one before, the Road King will surprise you for how nimble it truly is. It is a big bike, but the weight is carried fairly low on it. You can also go from a full on touring setup to a classic cruiser in just minutes.

Being in Manitoba, I can tell you first hand that the insurance difference between the Road King and the Sportster is almost nil. It won't cost you much more for insurance to switch.

Now, reasons not to upgrade.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a Sportster. it's a fine motorcycle, and I still enjoy getting a ride in on it when I can. You can swap the seat, foot pegs, and add saddlebags and a windshield; pretty much the same as a Road King, just in a smaller frame.

Your Sportster may be paid off, and you may have to finance a new bike. If your Sportster is newer and financed, trading it in will likely involve rolling the difference between the trade-in value and what you still owe on it into the financing on the new bike. With our already VERY high cost of insurance here in Manitoba, that makes it really expensive to ride.

Edit:

I can't seem to send a PM right now, but I was going to recommend checking out both Manitoba dealerships, Harley-Davidson Winnipeg and Gaslight HD in Morden, before buying, should you choose to buy a new bike.

Originally Posted by SWMB

Thanks for the post its nice to hear from someone who owns both. I've been talking to 3 dealers Redline at Yorkton, Rudy at Gaslight and HD Winnipeg. I really liked the talk and visit I had with the Rudy at Gaslight. I live west of Brandon so all 3 of the mentioned dealers are roughly a 3 hour ride.