Is limited lean angle posing a safety risk?

With the 18/21 wheel upgrade I get about 0.65 more inches of clearance/height. This equates to about an additional 2 degrees lean angle.

By also not having the little foot peg (pins) I pick up another roughly 1 degree. (Assuming 28 inches apart and 1/4 inches long, just guessing).

In total I am up just over 3 degrees of lean angle over stock. That is a 10% increase.
 
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quduoheng said:
What does this lamping collar do?

Do you find the TC model much heavier on the handlebar compare to the nake R18?
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They are meant to be installed on the engine bars where the bars would touch the ground when the bike falls. They'll work as sliders taking the damage and increasing the clearance between other hard parts of the bike and the ground.

I was absolutely surprised as to how much EASIER the TC is to ride than the Base model. Yes, it's heavier off of the kickstand but the geometry changes and the different handlebar makes for a much easier steering/handling bike. It also has more lean than the Base model.
This made me realize how much of a looker the Base model was meant to be. Lots of compromises to make it absolutely stunning.
 
Vyk said:
They are meant to be installed on the engine bars where the bars would touch the ground when the bike falls. They'll work as sliders taking the damage and increasing the clearance between other hard parts of the bike and the ground.

I was absolutely surprised as to how much EASIER the TC is to ride than the Base model. Yes, it's heavier off of the kickstand but the geometry changes and the different handlebar makes for a much easier steering/handling bike. It also has more lean than the Base model.
This made me realize how much of a looker the Base model was meant to be. Lots of compromises to make it absolutely stunning.
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Yes now we have rings to guard the guards that guard the bike.
 
Rufus said:
I use a heavy duty front chock (that’s bolted to the floor) to park the bike upright and then slide one of these liftmaster scissor jacks under the bike to lift the rear wheel off the floor and take the weight. Place the two cups under the rear frame. Works an absolute treat. Pic below of the one I bought. Regarding the low pegs I just ride within the capability of the bike and enjoy it for what it is.
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I only park my bike in the backyard so it can be under the sun during the day and under the stars at night.
About a month ago I purchased a small Zeppelin from ZeppelinsForeverybody.com that can lift up to 1,200lbs 15 feet in the air and hold it there for two weeks at the time.
I have to check the air pressure once a week to make sure it stays between the normal range but other than that it is very low maintenance.
I anchored the Zeppelin itself to the fence so it's safe and sound during windy days. One day I kept staring at the bike suspended up in the air and a provocative thought crossed my mind.
I bought a trampoline from Swimming Pools Accessories Inc. that I mounted by the swimming pool, so now every time I feel like jumping on the saddle and go hee haw up in the air I can do that.
I am happy for the whole experience but I feel especially blessed for not making the bike suffer the effect of gravity on its fragile body.
One other thing. To either raise or lower the Zeppelin you have to download the app on the Google store that works with both, Android and Apple. The app is called Up&Down , short for Up and Down With Ease from the Comfort of Your Backyard.
Have a blessed Zeppelin day!
 
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Calboy said:
I only park my bike in the backyard so it can be under the sun during the day and under the stars at night.
About a month ago I purchased a small Zeppelin from ZeppelinsForeverybody.com that can lift up to 1,200lbs 15 feet in the air and hold it there for two weeks at the time.
I have to check the air pressure once a week to make sure it stays between the normal range but other than that it is very low maintenance.
I anchored the Zeppelin itself to the fence so it's safe and sound during windy days. One day I kept staring at the bike suspended up in the air and a provocative thought crossed my mind.
I bought a trampoline from Swimming Pools Accessories Inc. that I mounted by the swimming pool, so now every time I feel like jumping on the saddle and go hee haw up in the air I can do that.
I am happy for the whole experience but I feel especially blessed for not making the bike suffer the effect of gravity on its fragile body.
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Now how cool would that be. So easy to move around.
 
Easy solution, jack up the front! I’ve added +2” tubes to a lot of the harleys I’ve owned, ground clearance no longer becomes a problem and and extra 2” at the front really doesn’t affect handling at all.

Biggest issue I found, you start to ride off the edge of the tyres, cruiser tyres just don’t have the profile that allow heavy cornering
 

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Mr.Mow said:
Easy solution, jack up the front! I’ve added +2” tubes to a lot of the harleys I’ve owned, ground clearance no longer becomes a problem and and extra 2” at the front really doesn’t affect handling at all.

Biggest issue I found, you start to ride off the edge of the tyres, cruiser tyres just don’t have the profile that allow heavy cornering
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As I noted above. Increasing to 2” bigger wheel/tire option front AND rear increases the overalll ground clearance in the middle of the wheel base by 0.65 inches. Yes it does help; adds about 2 degrees of lean.

Never a good idea on any bike to increase or decrease the front or back without the same change on the other end. Unless you don’t care at all about reasonable handling. If that is the case, do what ever you want.
 
Vyk said:
They are meant to be installed on the engine bars where the bars would touch the ground when the bike falls. They'll work as sliders taking the damage and increasing the clearance between other hard parts of the bike and the ground.

I was absolutely surprised as to how much EASIER the TC is to ride than the Base model. Yes, it's heavier off of the kickstand but the geometry changes and the different handlebar makes for a much easier steering/handling bike. It also has more lean than the Base model.
This made me realize how much of a looker the Base model was meant to be. Lots of compromises to make it absolutely stunning.
Click to expand...
“…I was absolutely surprised as to how much EASIER the TC is to ride than the Base model. Yes, it's heavier off of the kickstand but the geometry changes and the different handlebar makes for a much easier steering/handling bike. It also has more lean than the Base model. This made me realize how much of a looker the Base model was meant to be. Lots of compromises to make it absolutely stunning…”

I wonder if that means the Bagger is likewise easier to ride then the Base model and maybe akin to how the TC handles?

Dam, it is post like this that worry me about having ordered the base R18FE even though it is a drop dead beautiful bike. I would hate myself for spending another 6k to move to a Bagger though have to ask myself if I am headed for a ‘buy once, stay happy’ vs ‘got Base model then had to trade up later to be happy’ moment. I am so certain my dealer would not be happy if I changed a 3rd time and upgraded to a Bagger. Though that mystic color combination would then be calling my name if I moved to a Bagger.
 
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motoring said:
“…I was absolutely surprised as to how much EASIER the TC is to ride than the Base model. Yes, it's heavier off of the kickstand but the geometry changes and the different handlebar makes for a much easier steering/handling bike. It also has more lean than the Base model. This made me realize how much of a looker the Base model was meant to be. Lots of compromises to make it absolutely stunning…”

I wonder if that means the Bagger is likewise easier to ride then the Base model and maybe akin to how the TC handles?

Dam, it is post like this that worry me about having ordered the base R18FE even though it is a drop dead beautiful bike. I would hate myself for spending another 6k to move to a Bagger though have to ask myself if I am headed for a ‘buy once, stay happy’ vs ‘got Base model then had to trade up later to be happy’ moment. I am so certain my dealer would not be happy if I changed a 3rd time and upgraded to a Bagger. Though that mystic color combination would then be calling my name if I moved to a Bagger.
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Get the classic. Seriously.

A side note, I still have the front wheel if you don’t want the fatty.
 
motoring said:
“…I was absolutely surprised as to how much EASIER the TC is to ride than the Base model. Yes, it's heavier off of the kickstand but the geometry changes and the different handlebar makes for a much easier steering/handling bike. It also has more lean than the Base model. This made me realize how much of a looker the Base model was meant to be. Lots of compromises to make it absolutely stunning…”

I wonder if that means the Bagger is likewise easier to ride then the Base model.

Dam, it is post like this that worry me about having ordered the base R18FE even though it is a drop dead beautiful bike. Even though I would hate myself for spending another 6k one has to wonder if it could be a case of ‘buy once, stay happy’ vs ‘but to save then trade up later cause one is unhappy’.
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I'm sure the Bagger handles virtually the same as the TC. Probably better as it's lighter.

I think it'll really depends on you.

For me it was the case and I moved on to the TC. But I have another naked bike, I wanted a super easy highway bike to eat miles and I am a rather easily distracted by the new shiny thing that catches my eyes.

Out of four bikes in my garage, three are less than a year old. I also have a friend who encouraged me to try new things by telling me that bike purchases are two way decisions. One can always go back albeit with some monetary loss. I'm certain you won't lose as much as me if you decide to move on as I basically bought a Base FE when it came out. You won't truly know until you try it. And I do have to say... I absolutely loved my Base FE. If I had the means I would have kept that bike too.
 
Gr8adv said:
As I noted above. Increasing to 2” bigger wheel/tire option front AND rear increases the overalll ground clearance in the middle of the wheel base by 0.65 inches. Yes it does help; adds about 2 degrees of lean.

Never a good idea on any bike to increase or decrease the front or back without the same change on the other end. Unless you don’t care at all about reasonable handling. If that is the case, do what ever you want.
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On big slushy cruisers the handling is so soft anyway, I’ve found it makes very very little difference, if anything the Wideglide handled much better, more stable at speed, lost that 160kmh ‘Dyna wiggle’.
The softail was a bag of junk handling wise anyway, 1” drop at rear, 2” lift at front, was no different after.

My R18 is still inbound so I haven’t looked at the fork setup, not sure how generic the tubes are but a quick photoshop job shows the bike looks mean as hell raised a little at the front and dropped a little at the rear, the handling it pretty frisky on them anyway, I can’t imagine it would hurt at all
 
ok you are talking HD and handling; all bets are off for me. For any bike of nominal performance, say a gs, swapping only the front to a 21 is very detrimental.
 
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