I only read your post, no responses, but I will say, whatever the reputation of the BMW, they have been and always be the ugliest bike on the road. Please do not take that as an insult and it is not intended as such but that is my opinion. Now I will read the responses. Best of luck, whatever your reason for posting here.....

 

Yeah I also say go with the one that touches your soul and captivates your eyes because you gonna spend a lot of time with her and you don't want something around the house you don't want after a few weeks of fun!

 

You SICKBAGGER! He's talkin' motorcycles, not women!

 

Funny, the bike you pick has a lot to do with the women you attract

 

Thanks guys for contributing!

I've only been riding motorcycles for three years and never really sat down and tried to pin-point the kind of bike that I really need. My wife and I are still not at a point where we can take off on long trips, so most of my riding is around town, afternoon rides in the country and that's just about it.

To me, a bike like that BMW is only suited for long trips out on the super slab. A one purpose motorcycle.

If I can narrow it down to one bike that can do what I do 99% of the time, ie: country rides, buzzing around town and the odd weekend getaway, I can't seem to find a better bike then the Road King or Road King Classic. It can do long-hauls ok but is good for everything else too.

What I like about the Road King is that it does all of the above very well and is a real looker too! I took a couple of these out on HD demo days and felt right at home. The thing that I like about the RK is that the windshield is quickly removed and it's like getting a second bike at no extra cost. ;^)

 

The K1200LT was on my list, you can see from my signature what I went with. In "full boat" tourers for me it came down to the Wing, BMW and Ultra. The price point on all 3 is pretty close, and the HD (for now) has the best long term value on trade. Honda lost me when they started covering the bikes in bodywork, and it would not have made any difference if it was steel instead of plastic. At least my GL1200 looked like a motorcycle. The Utra just fits me best, I've done back to back to back 500+ mile days and was ready for more. I've got friends on both and they enjoy theirs as much as I do mine. Bottom line, find a bike and get out and ride it!

 

Well, you've got your mind in the right place with the Road King Classic. The RKs are great and easy slow speed handlers, superb long distance travelers, sweet lookers, and, as you note, like two bikes for the price of one. Go for it! You will not regret it. Good luck.

 

BurstBuster,
I hope that you find your dream bike. I did read on another thread that you thought that HD had hydrolic lifters since the 90's. Nope here a paste from the HD web sight......
1948: New features are added to the 61 and 74 overhead valve engines, including aluminum heads and hydraulic valve lifters. Also new are the one piece, chrome plated rocker covers shaped like cake pans. The nickname "Panhead" only seemed logical.

Now ride your new RK or used if you can afford one. You might look for a former rental as they can be cheaper and have a warrenty also. There is no better low speed handling bike then a FL framed Harley. NONE..........

 

If I said in a previous post that 90s Harleys had hydraulic self-adjusting lifters, I must have been drinking and it was a misprint.

From what I know, the 2003 models were the first ones to have the hydraulic self-adjusting lifters. That's correct isn't it?

 

BTW, here's a link to a 2006 Road King for sale in my local area:

http://halifax.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehi...AdIdZ185466206

I should point out that the price listed is in Canadian currency, so that's appx. $14,513 USD. Around here, that's actually pretty good, what do you guys think?

This particular fellow selling this bike has many many Harleys for sale, a lot of them seem to be bikes that he's picked up stateside and brought back up here to Canada to resell and make a few bucks on his flip.

This bike only has 13,028 Kilometers on it (next to nothing!) but that might be miles instead of kilometers if it's a USA bike, he usually points that out in his adds, so he's either forgotten to mention it on this bike or it is a Canadian bike. Either way, it's got nothing on it for mileage.

Is there anything to watch out for here with these bikes?