Bronson--->I agree that he should get rid of the 21". So given you forgot to type that, I retract.

OP--->
1st, a SG comes from the factory lowered an inch in the back. If you had raised it an inch in the back when you bought the bike it would've then been sitting even. So in other words your SG has been riding around lowered 2" in the back compared to the other touring models. So raising the front is extra bad for you. Center of gravity is at least as important as the bike sitting level. Likely more. So now that you have raised the front not only are you further from level but you have raised the center of gravity.

2nd, Your stock tire was a MT90B16. That translates to a 130/90/16, which has a diameter of 25.22".
---If you put on a 140/70/21 (not likely) that is 28.72". Which is 3.5" more diameter. Half that means the bike is riding 1.75" higher than it was on the stock tire. So you would need to lower the bike 1.75". I wouldn't want to lower a bike more than an inch.

---If you put on a 120/70/21 (very likely) that is 27.62". Which means you would have to lower the front 1.2" to be back to stock height in the front. Most people lower 1" and don't sweat the bike being 2 tenths higher.

3rd, is that bigger wheels usually mean less sidewall on your tires. Bumps are smoothed out by your suspension as well as the give in the sidewalls.
Stock was 117mm, the 140 would be 98mm and the 120 would be 84mm. So not only are you loosing bump absorption in your suspension (by lowering) but you are loosing bump absorption in your tires.

If you are height challenged larger wheels aren't really your friend.
Buy a lower seat or have it redone by a place like Mean City. Mean City will ask the right questions to get you the right seat. C&C, Danny Grey, Corbin, and Mustang will all customize a seat for your needs. Buying off the shelf is hard to advise. Everybody's a$$ is different and everybody has an opinion. I think Harley dealers are still doing the seat demo program. You can go in and try out every seat Harley makes and your own bike and decide for yourself. I've even heard some dealers let you try out other brands if they have them. One guy on the Forum said he got to try out a Danny Grey Airhawk the dealer had in stock.

Thicker soles on your shoes is a great idea too.

Lastly, if you are considering a new ride, any touring bike '09 and after (new frame), you can purchase a drop seat kit that'll drop your seat 3+ inches without affecting ride or the height of the bike.

Best of luck to ya...

 

Drop the front a bit... You'll be fine Dude. The sun will come up and life will go on... And the sled will fit your stature.

 

Very very well said! All of you guys had really good input. That is why this is My place to get the skinny! Thanks for all of you help guys. Now I have a better idea of what I need to do.
Thanks,

 

Sorry, I'm a little confused here. The stock front tire on his SG was a 16? That doesn't sound right. My 2010 SG has a stock 130/70 B18 on the front. I know this has changed since 2006, but I thought only the Road King had 16" front and rear tires. Am I missing something here, or am I way off the mark?

 

It should be known that Street Glide shocks (aka: Profile Low shocks) lower the rear 3/4 inch, not 1 inch.

 

I did a quick search and several sights concurred. Here is a link to one of them:
http://www.motorcycle.com/specs/harl...e-tm/base.html
Wheel sizes grow. I think it was 16 till '08, then '09 was 17" and '10 went to 18". CVO SG is 19".

 

Thanks for the link…I never knew that the SG had a 16" front wheel

 

I had a lowered bike (Road King Custom, 1" lower in rear than 'stock' RK). I liked the looks (form). But the ride (function) suffered from the lessened shock-travel in the rear.

Personally, I had to get through the phase of wanting the bike to look a certain way, to get to the place I am now--most interested in a comfortable, good-handling bike.

If it were me, I'd revert to the stock front wheel; raise the rear end back up; compensate for added height with combination of seat/boots (if you get a narrow seat at the 'tongue', that will get your legs a little more vertical and give you some added reach).

I frequently ride 200 to 300 miles at a time. The added comfort (and ground clearance) is noticeable. If you typically go on short rides, the deficiency in these things won't be as noticeable.

So, look at how you plan to use the bike. If it's for short hops, you could go with form. For longer rides, and for better handling/function in general, go with function would be my advice...

Alan

 

Lots of guys lower their bikes and are fine with it. Some even brag about how much better it rides and/or handles? Either they don't have a clue about ride and/or handling or they just don't care about it? The fact is harleys have a very low performance level in all areas. Ride and handling are just a couple. I raised my sporty up and still hit the frame in the twistys. Had a RG with extended bags and 12" front and scraped the bags at stock height. Bought my last RK lowered 1", Raised it back to stock. Even in my old age I scrape the boards on my stock height EG. Not to mention Harley suspension is crap to begin with and removing travel just makes it worse. After going through a few different style Harleys, plus other standard/sport/dirt bikes, ride and handling are more important than looks to me. All that said low bikes do look kool. I just have no desire to ride one.

 

Well... I am form over function when it comes to HD. They are not performance machines by design. They are artwork IMO!

If I wanna drag a knee and hit twisties like a bat outta hell, I will go back to rockets.

To each their own. When I look at my bike, I wanna say "Damn, that is one pretty b!tch!" not, "Damn, that is one pretty comfortable b!tch!"

I have slammed my Street Bob, my Street Glide and now, my Blackline.

That's the beauty of HD. You can mod it to fit your own style.