Quote:


A Savage is smaller than an 883 Sportster Superlow. So if an 883 is a "girl Harley" in your opinion, a Savage  bobber probably isn't what you're looking for.

Depends on the moment,, if its on top & youre sliding down the road at 30 MPH, its HUGE!

justin_o_guy2 wrote on 08/14/13 at 16:50:23:


LOL

But seriously, the size and weight of the Savage is one of it's redeeming features and people here generally like the maneuverability and handling it gives over a cumbersome 'bigmans harley'  

It is about the same size as a Honda 305 Dream from the mid 1960s. But a lot more user friendly, more like a 248/305 Scrambler. Or KZ440. Elsinore 250 maybe?

It's little. Monkey F'n a football little... unless you have a fairly short inseam, then it isn't too bad. Mine runs 15" rise apes and a raised seat, plus half moon floorboards shoved as far forward as possible on modified stock peg guts. 34" inseam, so it is still a bit cramped.

But, I have owned and been cutting on it for 15 years, that says something about the machine. I left a 1957 rigid with springer Panhead behind when I moved a couple years ago.

Well,, heres the deal,, YOu sit on one & see if it suits ya,, decide based on how it feels to you, decide if you want to ride a heavier bike,, The bikes low seat & generally small stature was what grabbed me, I mean Come ON,, Its a 650,, & its not huge & cumbersome, I can handle it..Its got power, looks good, easy to handle, easy to work on, I can pick it up w/o worrying about a hernia,,

When its my turn to die, no one will want to do that for me.
Right now, its my turn to live & I am NOT givin anyone the power to decide for me how I do it,.If someone wanted me to have a bigger bike AND I wanted one,,, they can spring for it,,

There was a kid in school who was givin me grief over my clothes,,
I told him to meet me at what was then a popular store in Odessa after school. I think at first he thot I intended to fight him, shoulda seen his face when I told him if he didnt like my clothes he was free to buy me whatever he thot would look better,,That was the last he ever said to me,

I'm a firm believer in if it sits good and feels right, ride it.  If it feels funny, too small, too big, balance isn't right for you, or many other things, look for something else.  My old CB350 feels larger than this bike but has nowhere near the power.

It can be made into just about anything you want.  There are extended controls sets, seat mods, different bars, many things that can be done. But, that's more work and money.  You've gotta want to do it and make the bike fit.

HD 883:  85.8" long, 59.8" wheel base, 553 lbs
HD 1200:  87.4: long, 59.9" wheel base, 553 lbs
Savage/S40:  85.8" long, 58.3 wheel base, 352-381 lbs

As far as overall dimensions, there is no difference.
The HD's are about 200 lbs heavier.
So it just depends on what you want.

Because of the 2 cylinder engine the HD looks to be MORE, but its just more weight.
Performance is not that much more, and with a few tweaks/mods the Savage is more than competitive in performance.
HD's cost more, the Savage is much less.
The HD's weight makes it harder to move around, while the Savage is light enough to pickup and move rather easily.
HD parts Cost $$$$$; the Savage parts $.
Ease of maintenance on the Savage is SIMPLE, while the HD is NOT SO.

With that said, I own a modified '96/'05/'86 Savage ('96 engine, '05 front end & wiring, '86 frame), an '09 S40, and an '05 HD 1200C.
I like them all for different reasons.  My favorite is the mod'd '96.

So it all depends on what you want.
Does it matter what others think of what you ride ? ?
If so, it shouldn't.