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I have a 2009 Ultra SE that I just purchased and it has a 21" front wheel with stock suspension.  So I went to HD Dealer to have the 1" lowering  front springs put in and now the bike rides level which is good, but the problem is if I ride over a manhole cover raised 2" or a driveway curb raised or any sharp rise in the road the front end feels like it bottoms out and bike jumps.
When I first picked up the bike after having the work done I ran over a manhole cover and noticed it right away and then another, so back to the dealer I went.  They said that's the effects of lowering the front the 1" and having a 21" tire. 
Is that right?
Any suggestions on what I can do?
One more thing, I measured in the garage the cowbell travel with me pushing in the handle bars as hard as possible and I get 1" of travel.
Thanks.

[CVODON]

If this were true, which its not, why didn't dealer tell you prior to charging you to lower the bike?

[Road Dad]

Lowering your suspension always destroys the handling of your bike. Bad choice. Swap back to a normal size tire. Stock travel suspension riding and life will get better.

If you actually like to ride the bike that's the route to go.

On the other hand. If you like to trailer your bike and are more concerned with looks the this is what you get.

[grc]

I have a 2009 Ultra SE that I just purchased and it has a 21" front wheel with stock suspension.  So I went to HD Dealer to have the 1" lowering  front springs put in and now the bike rides level which is good, but the problem is if I ride over a manhole cover raised 2" or a driveway curb raised or any sharp rise in the road the front end feels like it bottoms out and bike jumps.When I first picked up the bike after having the work done I ran over a manhole cover and noticed it right away and then another, so back to the dealer I went.  They said that's the effects of lowering the front the 1" and having a 21" tire. 
Is that right?
Any suggestions on what I can do?
One more thing, I measured in the garage the cowbell travel with me pushing in the handle bars as hard as possible and I get 1" of travel.
Thanks.

So if I read that correctly, you bought a bike that the previous owner installed a 21" front wheel and tire on, and didn't like the fact that the bike didn't sit level.  So your answer to the problem was to use shorter springs in the forks to lower the bike.  Here's my dumb question for the day:  Why not fix what caused the bike to sit higher in the front, instead of screwing up the suspension?  The stock Harley front suspension in '09 was a long way from being good in the first place, and I think if you were to hit that 2" above the road surface manhole cover even with a stock front end you would be jolted pretty hard.  Putting a lowering kit in just made it worse.

When people make changes to the chassis and suspension just for looks, like this current trend of ever larger diameter wheels and tires up front or the tail dragger look in the rear, they screw up the dynamics of the bike.  For those who think looking cool is more important than maintaining proper function, it's their bike and if they are willing to live with the result it's fine with me.  Unfortunately the next owner who thought that stuff looked cool before he bought it often finds it's not so great, as in this case.  If it were mine, I'd go back to standard rims and tires and a standard height suspension.  There are aftermarket solutions that will improve the front end, btw.  The best ones of course are quite expensive.  Maybe you could sell that front wheel and tire and use what's left over after you buy the proper size parts to buy a better front suspension.

JMHO - Jerry

[2014WtGld]

I have a 21 on my 15 RGU and I've lowered it one inch. I live on a less than perfect road and often travel some pretty rough roads. I haven't really noticed much ride difference since the lowering kit was installed as appossed to before lowering. Nor the 21 from the stock 19. But to each their own. It does how ever ride like a 900 pd bike when you hit deep holes or raised spots in the road.

[Puzzled]

I have a 2009 Ultra SE that I just purchased and it has a 21" front wheel with stock suspension.  So I went to HD Dealer to have the 1" lowering  front springs put in and now the bike rides level which is good, but the problem is if I ride over a manhole cover raised 2" or a driveway curb raised or any sharp rise in the road the front end feels like it bottoms out and bike jumps.
When I first picked up the bike after having the work done I ran over a manhole cover and noticed it right away and then another, so back to the dealer I went.  They said that's the effects of lowering the front the 1" and having a 21" tire. 
Is that right?
Any suggestions on what I can do?
One more thing, I measured in the garage the cowbell travel with me pushing in the handle bars as hard as possible and I get 1" of travel.
Thanks.

Pushing on the bike with the brake applied is not going to show you your suspension travel. Lowering springs are progressively wound and they get harder to compress the more you compress them.  IMO the 21" isn't your problem (been there done that, I currently run a 26" without issue). Question, how did the bike ride with the 21" and stock suspension? If your change in ride came only after the lowering kit that is where I'd be looking. Who's lowering kit was used? The kits that have you cut your own pre load spacers have some room for error.

2" of raised anything is going to jolt any combination. I wouldn't want to hit that in my truck.