I rode a Softail Deluxe for two years. For me, the Street Glide is far better in curves, handling uneven surfaces and being smoother at highway speeds. The brakes are considerably better and stopping straight is quick and easy. I no longer drag my floorboards turning a corner.

My bike came from dealer without any air in shocks. I weigh 140, added 10 lbs of air and I'm always pleasantly surprised to barely feel bumps I go over. The more I ride this bike, the more I love it and would not go back to a softail.

But as mentioned already, you need to ride one and decide if it is what you like.

 

The SG ride is fine 'til you hit a bump, and if it's big enough you're butt will kiss your Adam's apple. Normal EG's and RK's have 13" shocks, which translates into about 3" of suspension travel, and that's usually sufficient for a decent ride. Subtract an inch and you have only 2" of travel, and it doesn't take much to bottom the suspension.

I found the ride unacceptable for any serious riding (like touring) and bought some 12½" Progressive 440's, which helped greatly and although not gone completely bottoming is no longer a big problem. If you don't mind the 1" increase in rear height, which means maybe 1/2" at the seat, you might consider replacing the stock shocks with something longer. There are numerous aftermarket options and you can always buy some 13" air shocks on Ebay, sometimes available for $50 or less.

Another option is to buy some 13" shocks and install a lowering kit, like Burly Brand, which worked very well on my old '96 RK to lower it 1". I didn't have ride or bottoming issues with that bike and it rode better than the SG did in stock form. Some of these kits are available on Ebay, but I wouldn't lower the bike more than 1" (same as stock SG). Some claim to not reduce suspension travel, so I can only surmise that this means the tire will move further up into the wheel well. Recent FLH's have wiring secured directly under the wheel well and I've heard that lowering the bike too much can cause clearance problems.

 

My wife put 27000 on her 06, and last year put 12000 on her 08. She loves it and I never heard a complaint yet about the ride.

 

They ride good.

My 09 is better than my 07 was (they upgraded the shocks in 09)

My 07 rode good, but seemed to bottom out over certain types of bumps. Could never seem to get enough air in the shocks to keep it from bottoming, without also making it ride too stiff. In the end, I replaced the low profile shocks with 13" units ($50 on ebay) and added lowering blocks ($60) to keep the lowered look. Improved it a good deal.

Although, I think in general they ride fine. Just pointing out that if you like the SG, don't NOT buy one over fears of the lowered shocks, its easy and cheap to fix if you decide you need to. Most people seem to be fine with the ride as is. (Im just picky)

The 09s are big step up in ride quality, IMHO. I have no plans at this time to change from the stock (low profile) shocks on my 09. Rides better than my 07 did even AFTER I changed the shocks on it (the 07)

 

I can only compare mine to the heritage softail I used to have. It rides and handles as good or better in all conditions.

I weight 240 and my wife weighs 150. We ride on alot of poorly maintained back roads as well as interstate travel. We have no complaints about the suspension. I guess I must not know what a good, smooth ride is, because I can't see it getting much better.

At the moment, I can only remember bottoming out once and it was front and rear at the same time. I was going too fast on an unfamiliar country road, went over some railroad tracks and found out there was a very steep downgrade on the other side of the tracks. I went airborne and dropped a couple feet down to the road. I had my guardian bell hanging from my front fork brace at the time. The front compressed enough to smash my bell and dent my front fender.

But as far as normal riding goes, I am very happy with the suspension.

Dennis

 

Thanks for that info. I didn't know that.

I think this is an important point that I should've mentioned in my previous post. Changing or altering shocks is not a complex procedure, nor does it need to be expensive (though it can be!).

 

Just do yourself a favor and change out the stock fork oil with the SE Heavy Oil 15wgt.

If not, the bike will nose dive on moderate to heavy braking.

Did mine and took it out for the first time last Sunday. No more nose diving and a more firm, controlled ride. I'm satisfied.....

 

My '09 rides great. You have to play with the air in the shocks to get it just right for you. A little air makes a big difference. I have bottomed out a couple of times but I think I would have bottomed out anything other than a MX bike on the bump and dip I didn't see. Its a great handling bike. Last weekend my buddy who was following me through some sweepers at about 90 on his heritage talked about how he was bouncing in the corners in spots. My bike was smooth as silk. I would bet you will need to change the seat and the windshield right off the bat. I have several 500+ mile days with an 800 miler in there with no complaints. Its a very comfortable bike.

 

imagine your best girl you dated in highschool then you hookup again 5-years later and she gets better and about the same weight with no kids and money.

 

I'm not sure where the negative comments are coming from.

Mine rides great! I feel bumps much less on my 09 Street Glide than I do on my BMW Sport Tourer.

Go find one to ride and you will see how great it is!