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Custom Vehicle Discussions => Screamin’ Eagle® Softail® Springer® => Topic started by: Air-Cooled on November 12, 2007, 09:52:49 PM
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Who has ridden BOTH the '07 and '08 CVO Springer. I'd be interested to know how the two front ends compare?
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What is the difference on them?
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The '08 has a smaller fatter front wheel. It is also centered more closely in the forks than the '07. I asked the question because, as a rule the large front wheels have historically handled better. On the '07, the front wheel is substantially shifted to the right to keep it in closer alignment with the rear wheel that is shifted right to accomodate its fatter profile. The '08 bike puts the front wheel back in the center of the forks (less alignment with rear wheel), but in cornering a fatter front keeps it more in alignment with the fat rear. Ultimately, it is a seat-of-the-pants conclusion as to which handles best. My guess is that there are very few people who have ridden both the '07 and the '08 springers — but I thought I'd ask. :)
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It is a very good question, and I wasn't thinking anything about the tire size.
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I have not ridden both, but a good friend of mine has a '08 and I have a '07. He sais his '08 front tire will grab at low speeds and almost dumped him. I do not have this problem. So there are some diffs! The brake rotor is on the opposite side also, for what that's worth.
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I also haven't ridden both, but did spend a month in NC riding the Tail of the Dragon, Blue Ridge Parkway and many hundreds of miles very twisting, steep graded road. I can say, I had to be careful not to scrape either side (pipes or jiffy stand) it handles suprisingly well. My former bike was a XL 1200C which handled pretty well. The fatter front tire also rides better on rougher roads.
Scott
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I haven't ridden both either, but it is my guess that the the '07 handles better.
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for what its worth, i have a 95 badboy with the 21" front wheel and just got my 08 and the 08 turns a lot easier and rides a little smoother than the 95, i know it might be apples :apple: to oranges :orange: but they are both fruit! just my two cents, Jamie
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Just a note:
I haven't had the opportunity to ride the 08, but my 07 with the 21" wheel came on with a violent shake @ 30MPH when I took my hands off to reset my gloves. Others have experienced this as well, even in older bikes. Hopefully this has been eliminated......
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My '08 handles perfect......I often scratch the bottom of the brake pedal :nixweiss:
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hey jack, i had the same shake in my 95 badbay, harley went nuts finding it, it was a tire pressuer issue, you gotta keep them dead on, the warm weather to cooler weather was enough to bring it on, so make sure on your pressure and if the tire is worn, check the balance, but hell if your gonna pull it to balance it you might replace it to be on the saft side
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for what its worth, i have a 95 badboy with the 21" front wheel and just got my 08 and the 08 turns a lot easier and rides a little smoother than the 95, i know it might be apples :apple: to oranges :orange: but they are both fruit! just my two cents, Jamie
I've ridden Springers from the 90s and the 21" front ends handled great. My '07 CVO is slightly heavier to steer at slow speeds than the 21" spoked wheel bikes. Maybe the '08 CVO handles best of all?
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You gotta think a wide 18" front tire is going to handle better than a tall,narrow 21" tire. You don't see any road racers runnin' 21's ;)
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This is an interesting discussion that probably will not be resolved unless one or more people have ridden each. Road racers ride on fat tires not because they "handle" better, but because they have better grip at extreme lean angles. In fact most agree that the skinny tires handle better than fat ones. The 16-inch tire is all but dead due to horrible handling characteristics. 17-inch is all the rage now in racing, but that could change.
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Having new tires put on as we converse here. At 8500 miles the front has started to cup.
I had amber light pods installed when new. Never worked. Took it back for first service to get it right and the jerk wrenched my rocker box. Pissed me off so much I found another HD shop to do the work. Now I'm gun shy with the tire replacement that has to be done. Revolver wheels are $2500 option for anyone else.......
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Best thing about 08 Springer wheels is that both are radial. This makes them much stronger on the walls thus not allowing the ballon of the wheel to have the tendency to give way when a lot of centrifugal and centripetal forces are exerted on the tires. This means they maintain their shape a lot better than normal ply bias wheels. All sports bikes "wear" them, so my guess is that the 08's should handle better. Have to check the alignment of the wheels, because I don't believe they come from the factory out of line; if so the bike would behave differently when taking right handers or lefthanders and I haven't noticed anything weird; still I've only done 500 miles so it is soon to tell :2vrolijk_21:
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Nice bike Spanish Flyerand a good shot of it. Good analogy on the front tire. I don't think the 2007 was thought of as a cornering machine at speed, kind of like a T-Bucket railer.
Well my bike has been done (tires) and is in winter storage there (50 miles). Waiting for the HORROR when I pick it up......S/F Jack
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Best thing about 08 Springer wheels is that both are radial. This makes them much stronger on the walls thus not allowing the ballon of the wheel to have the tendency to give way when a lot of centrifugal and centripetal forces are exerted on the tires.
I'm not trying to be a wise guy, but can you explain this a little more? And also, what do you mean by "ballon"? I looked it up in the dictionary, and the definition doesn't make sense to this application. Thanks.
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I'm not trying to be a wise guy, but can you explain this a little more? And also, what do you mean by "ballon"? I looked it up in the dictionary, and the definition doesn't make sense to this application. Thanks.
I believe he spelled "BALOON" wrong.... :coolblue:
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Thanks for the correction Deuce Bigelow, it seems we both got it wrongly spelled :oops:
Sorry folks I actually meant "BALLOON"
Here's a link from Michellin explaining the differences between both type of tires..
http://www.michelinag.com/agx/en-US/products/advantages/bias_radial/bias_radial.jsp
Spanish Flyer
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08 feels heavy in the front end to me, cornering i see no difference, 08 seems better in the loose roadways,they say it is better balanced? maybe i am used to my 07, still feels heavy in the front to me
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Cobra,
So far you are the only one who has ridden both. Interesting observations!
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As far as the cornering and radial tire explanation listed in the other posts, i can say that my 07 ran the Tail of the Dragon at speed and had no cornering issues.(except foot pegs grinding on the roadway) The 08 bikes do have an offset front to rear tire alignment. I considered buying an 08 but after driving it and the appeal to me is the 07 is a better looking bike anyway. So i am considering a SERK for this years purchase.
a lot of guys say the springers in general do not corner good and are too primative of a suspension, they are leary of the skinny front tire etc. I have no reservations at all about the springers in riding in a reasonable fashion. For sure it is not a crouch rocket suspension, but then again what Harley does?
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A 07 better looking than a 08?????? :soapbox: very funny ;D NO WAY! just looking at that front bicycle wheel of yours... :bananarock:
Now seriously, I believe the 08 is a better equilibrated bike since the difference in size between the front and rear tires is very much the same as any high performance road bike which are supossed to be the best handling bikes in tonw... But if we are going by the taste and the different opinions, you have the best looking bike and I also have the same; yours is 07 and mine 08...
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Maybe I'm just goofy but I don't see how Harley could build a bike with an offset front wheel. It wouldn't track right and the shops are always concerned about making sure the wheels are aligned when they adjust the belt or change out a tire.
FWIW
Regards, CVOMOE
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So far, only Cobra has ridden both. Everything else is just guessing.
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Maybe I'm just goofy but I don't see how Harley could build a bike with an offset front wheel. It wouldn't track right and the shops are always concerned about making sure the wheels are aligned when they adjust the belt or change out a tire.
FWIW
Regards, CVOMOE
Take a look at an '07 Springer front end. The wheel is not centered between the forks, it is moved to the right to keep it in line with the fat rear. Now look at the '08: the front tire is centered in the forks and nothing else is changed. According to the mechanics at our local shop, many Harleys over the years have not had their front and rear tires in the same plane. They tell me that the Dynas are generally the best aligned. I've never measured it so I don't know.
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I'll take a look this weekend, when I install the ThunderMax I will also check front to rear wheel alignment with my laser measuring device...Still, a couple of nylon fishing lines will do; I'll keep you informed, but to tell you the truth I'd be very very upset with Harley if the wheels are not aligned as they should...
Have a beer, I pay this round.
Spanish Flyer
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Good deal! Will look forward to hearing the results of the laser measurements.
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I'll take a look this weekend, when I install the ThunderMax I will also check front to rear wheel alignment with my laser measuring device...
Spanish Flyer
How did the wheels measure out?
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yeah you will have to let us know how far, if it is out of alignment
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Sorry guys,
Did the ThunderMax and enjoyed so much the ride, that forgot to check the wheel alignment. Will try and do it tomorrow :oops:
Spanish Flyer