Comments by "Comm0ut" (@Comm0ut) on "Harley Davidson MELTDOWN After Sean Strickland Calls Out Woke CEO! Locks Down Twitter \u0026 In Hiding!" video.

  1. There are really four Harley subcultures. One is the straitlaced men with money (which is why HD sold special Shrine models) who are the touring market. Another is blue collar bikers who were never patch holders and wanted a machine they could service anywhere (including the human mutual support network old motorcycles made necessary before the internet) . They bought the Super Glides and Low Riders which copied what the same people did to used big twins to shed weight, bulk and maintenance obstacles. The fewest by far are the (real) 1%ers who are famous but too small to influence sales volume. The key one is the independent mechanic/manufacturing/restoration subculture including speed and repair parts makers like S&S, Baker, Ultima, Paughco etc. If the other subcultures die the last will remain because it's self-contained and doesn't care what Milwaukee thinks. As models fade from factory support most vehicles become more difficult to support but HDs become easier. One can build a stronger, faster, and more specialized to owner preference hotrod Twin Cam, Evo, Shovelhead, Panhead, Knucklehead without using a single HD nut, bolt or washer. HD engineering through the classic and most of the Twin Cam era is simple but intentionally so by fierce customer demand. The sound basics are frequently undermined by product cheapening since the Twin Cam era but TCs are still easy to work on though I don't care enough to add one to my fleet. Their 1936-1999 basic engine design was engineered for simplicity of manufacture on manual machine tools which makes aftermarket parts far less expensive than otherwise. The impact of that choice cannot be overestimated but few besides mechanics think to notice. What made HDs successful over time was their durable, easily rebuildable crankshafts which along with their vertically split crankcases, individual removable single cylinders and heads made it possible to overhaul an engine to what they call "zero time" in aviation. It made it easy to cannibalize the many useful parts from any worn out or blown engine. That's why my Panhead had '48 and a '58 cylinder heads and was easy to turn into an ~84" cubic inch stroker to keep up with modern traffic using a recent set of cylinders and a stroker crank. Do THAT with any other bike that ancient. That 1936 basicdesign was so reliable the Timken output shaft bearing was downgraded by the "new HD" to a roller when they went to semi-automated assembly for Twin Cam. (Now the same bearing is an expensive upgrade!) While the non-unit big twin primary and final drive sprocket arrangement has been obsolete since the smaller K Model introduced right-side drive (carried on by Sportsters through the Evo) in 1952, it also confines damage to three separate areas, the engine, the primary drive, and the transmission/final drive. That engineering choice makes Harleys like two-wheeled Legos. It's why my Panhead has a 1990s five speed Softail gearbox and excellent electric starter connected by an aftermarket belt drive. The ability to mix components and parts from 1936 to 2000 is unmatched (Royal Enfields older models being the closest). HDs were practical to ride for many decades which is why there are far more 1950s Harleys than there are Triumphs or Nortons. The unique aftermarket support and ease of overhaul mean classic HDs easily last generations like my '48 "Panhead Of Theseus". 😁 The vintage HD culture will remain just like the vintage Britbike, Indian, Japanese and other cultures none of which need the modern companies bearing their name. I won't miss the Wokely-Pervertson company should it come to grief, but I'll laugh at them.
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  2.  @TS1207-g9y  Check used Livewire prices. They're hilarious unless one owns one.
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  3.  @pranc236  Most of them are much less. I detest the company but MSRP for entry level big twins (in CONSTANT) dollars has changed little since the 1980s. The high end baggers are for the bored rich (who sell them cheap in a few years when they're too old to ride).
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  4. Most long time family dealerships were killed off decades ago when the first dealership requirements begat all the Taj Mahal buildings you see today. That was when they also tried to kill independent shops using "Harley" in their name. An example was Harley Haven in Columbia, SC, which X'ed out the Harley name on their shop front becoming The Haven. Tim regained the "Harley" part when he bought a dealer franchise years later. The Motor Company IMO deserves to fade away. I was also alive when some dealers wouldn't sell parts when you rode in on a chopper. HD management have long distanced themselves from the people who are the reason they have a company in the first place. No loss since the aftermarket provides and there are more than enough HDs for everyone if they never sold another.
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  5. They do now and I make sure every biker I know is informed because it's hilarious! We wrench and ride the classics so the fate of Wokely-Pervertson is not our concern
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  6. Independence would be in 2000 for big twins and 2003 for Sporsters for most owner mechanics, though a serious enthusiast can easily overhaul a Twin Cam axle to axle.
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