Rode Rt. 66 last summer through CA and AZ. My buddy and I ran Road Stars. Both bikes ran flawlessly and there were more than a few H-D owners that were surprised that we were out there in the heat. They said they left their bikes in the garage until the weather cooled off. People that say that H-D is the best and slag other people's rides are merely ignorant assholes. Fortunately, the vast, vast, vast, majority of H-D rider's that I've met are great people, so that leads me to conclude that people that turn up their noses at other guys' rides are pathetic posers. All I say is "Ride what you like and like what you ride". Personally, I love the Stratoliner engine, but the price is creeping up there. I like the Victory Cross Country, but again, price is an issue to me. I'll be the first to admit that I bought my Road Star because it was cheap, reliable, and had tons of aftermarket support. But after riding it for the past two years, I can honestly sat that I love my cheap, reliable, bulletproof Road Star. But I might put an Electra Glide fairing on it; I'm not proud, I'll steal good ideas from anywhere I can find them. That's the American Way. Its combination polycarbonate and ABS construction tips the scales at only 16.5 lbs and is lightweight and well-balanced enough that it doesn’t inhibit steering much at all. Nestled cleanly in the recesses of the fairing are a pair of five-inch speakers that work in tandem with the audio control system mounted on the left handlebar above the control housing for the turn signals and horn. These thumb-operated controls are for the iPod port sitting in a small dugout compartment in the fairing below the shorty windscreen. Tunes while riding is always a good thing.With the Stratoliner Deluxe’s 4.5 gallon tank full of fuel, our journey began with a 45-mile romp down the 405 and I-5 along the Pacific coastline. I take advantage of the bags, which are wider and longer than the bags on the base Stratoliner, and stuff the large pull-out liners with spare clothes, cameras, and a computer. The locking hard sidebags are made of the same polycarbonate/ABS blend as the front fairing and has a claimed 13.7 gallons of storage space. The one-finger push button system works well enough with gloved fingers and snaps shut without hassle. The bags do prohibit easy access to the preload adjustable rear shock, but the factory settings on the suspension provided a stable ride for my 220-lb frame and lightly loaded saddlebags. Between the smooth ride provided by the well-sorted suspension and the comfort of the wide, cushy seat, highway miles are a pleasant experience aboard the 2010 Stratoliner Deluxe. The fact that with the Deluxe’s mill you can dispose of cars at will doesn’t hurt that experience either. With ample-sized floating floorboards at a good forward
The bags on the Stratoliner Deluxe are longer and wider than the standard Strat and hold a combined 13.7 gallons. The sound from the five-inch speakers was clean and an iPod port and little cubby hole allow you to bring your tunes along for the ride. stretch, ergos are tilted a touch forward, arms spread wide apart, and even after 200-plus miles in the saddle I didn’t feel like I had been wrestling a big bike all day
The bags on the Stratoliner Deluxe are longer and wider than the standard Strat and hold a combined 13.7 gallons. The sound from the five-inch speakers was clean and an iPod port and little cubby hole allow you to bring your tunes along for the ride. stretch, ergos are tilted a touch forward, arms spread wide apart, and even after 200-plus miles in the saddle I didn’t feel like I had been wrestling a big bike all day
Love it or hate it, there's a place for the metric market to drive competition and give you a better Harley in the end. You cannot argue that capatialism is what drives companies. The fact that they are an American company, well, the three Chevys parked in my driveway has done more for the economy than any motorcycle will. Heck, our own US Government selling our nation's debt to China at an alarming rate in exchange for importing cheap quality tools made of who knows what products should be a lot more concern than any metric motorcycle.
