if you are gonna do it... do it right, when ever that is, only you know your priorities.

 

i know where everyone is coming from.. i keep er happy, she just got a new suburban and shes on cloud 9. Shes not demanding the kitchen, i just know she wants it and was lookin to see if anybody had done the stock rear to save money. But, when you already into the bike for 30g, whats another 1200....right? Well, i think im gonna go with the rims and tires (front and back) and do the bags and fender sometime down the road. Thanks for everyones reply. have a great day.

 

I did my front wheel first. I had to save for the rear. Once I did the rear wheel I was asked why I would put long bags on there to cover up the wheel? I think if you are going to do it, do it right and do both.

 

Rich-- sounds like a good plan. I would go in stages with the rims first. As FFeric says, you might just like more of that bling showing through and feel less guilty about covering it up.

 

I've tried keeping the wife happy and that cost more than the bike has, don't get me wrong I have a great wife who likes to ride her own bike but if I do something to mine it better be done to her bike too so I rarely tell her what I am doing any more so the bills don't double.

 

Bottom line is that it really is a cost issue. Like everything else on an HD you are paying for having the name. You can get 4 custom wheels and tires for a car for the same price as 2 wheels and tires on your bike. If you want to do it 'right' then you might want to save up for a little bit so that you can get matching wheels. I went through this same issue, and even though I could afford it, I decided to go with HD Reaper wheels because I thought the price for other setups was ludicrous compared to what I was used to on cars (CCW's for my GTO).

If you are like me then knowing you have the stocker in the rear will bother you.

 

It is kinda crazy how much more expensive aftermarket parts for Twin Cams are than comparable items in the car/truck side of things.

E.g., tires, wheels, exhaust.

On the car/truck side, you get far more product for your buck.

 

Richnakol, at the end of the day, the only opinion that matters is yours. IMO, the comments about something being "half azz" usually miss the point 'cause they usually refer to the compromises that on an individual basis are acceptable or unacceptable to the poster.

I'm not a "wheel guy" so a 21" front wheel and a stock rear wheel covered by bag extensions on someone else's bike is not "half azz" to me. Frankly, a 21" wheel while retaining the rivets in the OEM front fender would bug me. Ditto touring bikes with custom paint with rivets in the front fender. But there are tons of 21" front wheels under fenders with rivets, and lots of custom painted fenders with rivets. So, it's just a matter of personal taste, priorities, etc.

Having recently completed a re-paint of my bike, I'm familiar with the many choices and compromises involved in my project. For example, since all the painted parts are being removed, why not go all the way down to the frame and paint it as well? The fact that I didn't is arguably "half azz." For me, the time and effort of the teardown to the frame wasn't worth the cosmetic improvement at the time I made the decision. Shoot, six months from now I may kick myself in the butt for not doing it.

Or, with the bike apart, why not do a stretched gas tank? I'd loved to have done a stretched tank, but that would have also involved a new console and seat which weren't acceptable cost items when I made the decision. Again, I may kick myself in the butt six months from now for not doing it.

Since these bikes are never truly "done," I don't worry much about these choices. After all, many (but not all) of the choices can be "undone" later without significant extra expense compared to the original cost of doing it. Go with the front wheel and if the stock rear wheel bugs you, buy the matching rear wheel later.

Just my $.02. By the way, your wife may "love" her new Suburban but her female brain sees that vehicle as an extension of your control and your choice in her life. From personal experience I can tell you that $30K for a new kitchen carries far more bang for the buck than that new Suburban she's driving.

Good luck with whatever you choose.

 

I keep changing my mond about bags. I like that I can see my rear wheel. I think it did make a difference with them matching. I just wish someone would come out with 2in stretched bags. It would give it a slight different look and still show some chrome down there.

 

definatly a lot of opinions. I appreciate them all. harleypingman just for the record, she picked out the suburban, she is in love with heated seats, sunroof, dvd, and the car being black. (man thats a hard color to keep clean) i wanted to throw some black rims on it, NOPE, she wont have it. lol. its fine, its hers. Like i say, thanks for everyones thoughts. it helps to get an outside opinion some times. In the end, im going with i knew was right in the first place. I never would have been happy with a stock rear, just looking for someone to justify it for me i guess. That, and talk about it some with other ppl like myself who care about bags, rims, tires, and all the lil stuff no one else cares about