Thanks for posting up the pics! Looks like there is a fair amount of flake in there and out in the sun, it's quite a bit lighter in color.
Exactly, however it's my first CVO and also the first vehicle I have with such a kind of paint, I never had anything that can be compared to that. It reminds me of long time friends that had an art gallery and were doing pictures of contemporary ceramics, some of them with shiny surfaces: it was very difficult for them to get pictures reflecting what was in front of our eyes. Anyway this is, at least in my 'cvo-newbie' condition, a high quality paint job.
Sorry for the digression but I can't refrain writing about the bike itself: it is a real pleasure to ride. The engine sound is very quiet, especially during break in, it starts to give a bit more sound when reaching the 3500 limit not to cross according to the manual but it is still very quiet. However I was never looking for loud pipes, I can do 1000km in a day, I have maybe still a couple of decades yet before starting to lose my hearing, and I will always prefer "real" music instead of an engine sound.
With hundreds of watts of speakers, I can always warn the cagers with music, I don't need loud pipes for this. At last, concerning sound, for a few months I returned living in a city (I just spent 15 years in the countryside), and during the summer season, Cannes attracts a lot of tourists, many of them with luxury sport cars or, of course, HD or sport bikes modified in a way or in another. When at 3:00 am an a**hole tries to impress his girl friend by pushing on the engine in a city street, or by revving a bit at a traffic light, we are probably hundreds to be woken up. I won't risk doing it myself ever again.
Compared to my previous 2013 FLHTK, the cycling part of the bike has improved a lot. I begin to retrieve sensations I had with one of the best bike I ever had, the R1100RT: sharp cornering and a twin engine always available. The FLHTK was much more heavier to rock from one side to the other. Slaloming between cars in slow motion traffic still require some physical work, but less than with the FLHTK. It is a bit early yet but I already feel that soon I will leave again t-max scooters far behind ;-)
The remote controlled locking mechanism of the saddles and top case is nice, like the small LED lights that turn on when you switch the bike off. However I can't believe that a 42K euro bike allows anyone to access to the fuel tank! I will probably find a cap with a lock...
Boom Audio ergonomics aren't perfect. I was so used to the old HK that I take some time to build new habits. The guy that decided to forbid accessing a keyboard to enter navigation data while riding, but to authorize its use, or the use of something similarly complex to locate a music title should take medications.
I miss oil temp info (I had the air temp gauge replaced by the oil temp). I don't understand why I can't see on BA what I got on my PV. During long rides, it is the kind of stupid gadget that helps passing time. TPMS should show its usefulness when sometimes I wonder if a loss of traction come from the road of from tire pressure.
That's my first HD water cooled. What a difference on a hot day in a city! However the way the vents are placed in the lower fairings push hot air on the feet when these rest on highway pegs. I didn't use these pegs more than a couple of minutes because of the break in requirements, maybe my position wasn't optimal, I'll try again later.
The backrest doesn't have the option to allow changing its inclination while riding. I'll see if it can be added. IMHO it should be factory fitted on a CVO...
Overall I'm extremely happy with the bike. I avoid thinking about the price ;-) but I'm lucky, in my case it is a corporate vehicle :-).
I've read that HD has lowered the volume of CVO they manufacture, I don't know if it is true, but if yes, then probably they are following the same track than luxury brands like Channel, LVMH, etc: limiting the volume insures to customers that the chance for one of them to meet another person with the same product is very low. And thus pricing can be based also on rarity.. I have the first one in France and I was able to look at the planning for the next months, there is about 5 more planned for whole France until the next round of CVO in summer 2018. My paint job is a rare one :-)
(End of digression!)