Harley's latest is a bike you'd drive in circles for sheer pleasure, says Tom Robert
I HAVE, AFTER some thought, figured out how to make my fortune. Not my previous plan of pinching my own bum as I bent over the photocopier, then suing myself for sexual harassment.
I would then make a fortune by cross-examining myself at the subsequent trial, and settle out of court for half the difference. Sadly, this failed to work after I refused to testify against myself because I enjoyed the harassment too much for it to be harassment.
My new scheme, you'll be glad to hear, is much simpler. I'm just going to sue Harley under the trade descriptions act for describing their latest middleweight addition to the Dyna range as a Fat Bob. The name has been around since the 1970s, because the original Bobs had fat double-petrol tanks and a wide rear mudguard.
But compared to real monsters like the Electra Glide and even the venerable Road King, the newest incarnation of the Bob is comparatively sleek.
All right, it may have slightly thicker hand-grips and that trademark wide rear mudguard, and Harley may have stuck a plump 130mm front tyre on, but the back remains a piffling 180mm compared with the 240mm on some of the marque's other models.
In terms of handling, that fatter front wheel takes away the tendency of bikes like the otherwise superb Dynaglide to surgically attach itself to tramlines, and the balance between the front and back wheels, combined with a 28-degree fork angle, a low seat position and a slightly shorter wheelbase than the rest of the Dynas, makes the Bob possibly the most stable Harley and flingable Harley I've ever ridden.
To the extent that only half an hour after picking it up from the dealers, I'd gone around the same roundabout three times just to see how long I could keep the heel of my boot gently scraping the tarmac. I know, I'm very sad, but you had to be there.
But fat? I don't think so. I'd say muscular, particularly on a stripped down bike with the same fuel-injected, rubber-mounted, 1584cc twin-cam engine Harley wheeled out for 2007 for the Dynas.
Smooth and powerful, it's linked to a clutch and gearbox which is light years away from the agricultural specimens that once came out of Milwaukee.
What that means, allied with the impeccable handling, is remarkable low speed steering and that feeling, as you power out of a corner and twist the throttle open wide, of the visceral thunder of a V-twin that you get from no other bike, and possibly no other manufacturer.
Particularly with a set of aftermarket pipes which may have meant that my chances of sneaking up on anyone were approximately zero, but created a synergy of sensation which added up to feeling like a master of the universe as I soared through bends and roared down straights.
Put it this way. This is a bike you take out even when you have nowhere to go.
Faults? Anyone with larger hands will find their gloves catching on the mirrors at first, the sidestand is also awkward to find at first, and the pillion is, er, minimal. At prolonged high speed in windy conditions, I also found myself wishing that Harley offered an alternative to the standard front position for footpegs and controls, the way they do in the States. You can get an aftermarket centre fitting this side of the pond, but it'll cost you.
But on a fine sunny day, when you're rolling down the road with a V-twin thundering beneath you, these are minor details which would hardly trouble your average master of the universe.
Factfile
Engine:1584cc air-cooled, fuel-injected, twin cam 96, V-twin, two overhead valves per cylinder. Bore and stroke: 95.3 x 111.1mm. Torque: 127 Nm/94 ft lbs at 3,000 rpm
Transmission:six-speed, nine-plate wet clutch, toothed belt final drive
Performance:top speed 110mph estimated
Average fuel economy:41mpg
Dimensions:Length 2330mm, wheelbase 1620mm, seat height 663mm
Dry weight:305kg
Fuel capacity: 19.3 litres
Brakes:front 300mm dual four-piston, rear 292mm two-piston torque-free caliper
Price:€16,270. Dublin dealers: Dublin Harley-Davidson, Red Cow Retail Centre, Ballymount, 01-464 2211, dublinharley-davidson.comm, harley.ie
Price in Northern Ireland £10,525. Test bike supplied by Provincewide Harley - Davidson, Kilbegs Business Park, Antrim, 028-944 66999, provincewide.com