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[deaf1]

Well today was 60deg in Chgo,  so I figured I would take out my 2008 SERK around the corner.. Granted,  I have never ridden this bike before (I am coming off a crash from july 08).  I have spent all winter tricking her out.....

Before this,  all I have ridden were softails and I loved them.  But the opportunity came by for the SERK that I couldnt refuse... Well,  a Softail is NOT a SERK!!!  No counting the power differences,  I was happily (and non happily) surprised at a few things.

It shakes alot more (very cool)
It MOVES alot quicker (even cooler)
and many many more good things...

Things I dont like are:

My boot hardly fits under the break pedal.  Harley says there isnt any fix for this.

I have to raise my leg up quite a bit to get on top of the shifter.  Harley took off the heel shift,  and cranked the toe shift down a notch, which helped a little.  My heel rides along the side of the case and I just cant get a good angle on the shifter.

I almost feel like I am sitting to low on the bike (5"10)

Now dont get me wrong,  I LOVE this machine,  but its going to take a little getting used to (I also havent ridden in 7 months)... I was surprised that the stock windshield wasnt that bad!  I will change it anyways cause I dont like the tinted look...

All in all this thing rocks!  She is sitting at the dealer getting all the recall work done,  and just waiting for another sunny day in chgo! (could be a month or two) 

Scott

[Wrongway]

 Nice you could get some seat time. Not many east of the Miss. able to do that this week.

Get yourself some floorboard spacers! Mine moved the boards out about 3/4 inch. Helped a bunch for those concern's of yours.

[skreminegul07]

There are a number of extended brake pedals available.  EZ Brake is one and Kuryakyn has one.

[deaf1]

Nice you could get some seat time. Not many east of the Miss. able to do that this week.

Get yourself some floorboard spacers! Mine moved the boards out about 3/4 inch. Helped a bunch for those concern's of yours.

Hmm Floorboard spacers... Where do I find those??

[boerne free bird]

Go to the wheels/tires/brakes/suspension section and read the thread on floor board extensions. This will give you two source. I am installing mine tomorrow.

[Decano]

Hmm Floorboard spacers... Where do I find those??

Harleygoodies.com sells great spacers that move the floorboards out nearly one inch.  Doesn't sound like much, but it makes a big difference.

[Wrongway]

For me the Baker set was the way to go, his shop is 2 miles from home and I have known him for years.

[deaf1]

For me the Baker set was the way to go, his shop is 2 miles from home and I have known him for years.

They seem to be out of business?  Atleast their webpage is gone 

Stopped off at the dealer,  and the spacers are a must.... today is POURING! 3" of rain expected....

Oh yea another thing about the softail..... 110" is ALOT bigger then 88" ... Kinda noticed that when riding yesterday...

found the extended brake and also the shifter... I may try those....

I wanna ride today 

[TN]

once ya go fl, there is no turning back.



TN

[popper]

I did the same thing, going from a softail to a SERK. I still have my Softail with the intention of it being my fun bike and the SERK being the traveling bike. The Softail collected dust last year. The SERK is great, even just around town. Some softail friends I ride with are rethinking now. The floorboard spacers are also at J&P cycles too along with extended brake and shifters. I am about 45 minutes from their warehouse and showroom. Great bunch of guys. I'm gonna throw something else in here, J&P has an annual open house in June. It's big. They draw thousands of bikes, Quite a bunch of factory reps from their suppliers and free food. In fact, the whole thing is free. Back to the SERK. The first thing i noticed about mine besides the power was the ride, alot smoother! Just got mine back from warranty work and a new set of bars. The last day it was in the shop temps were 65. The first day home it rained and is still raining, go figure. So the rain days turned into waxing days. Now it's all ready at least for the wether. Keep your knees to the breeze. 

[Dan_Lockwood]

Well today was 60deg in Chgo,  so I figured I would take out my 2008 SERK around the corner.. Granted,  I have never ridden this bike before (I am coming off a crash from July 08).  I have spent all winter tricking her out.....

Before this,  all I have ridden were softails and I loved them.  But the opportunity came by for the SERK that I couldn't refuse... Well,  a Softail is NOT a SERK!!!  No counting the power differences,  I was happily (and non happily) surprised at a few things.

It shakes alot more (very cool)
It MOVES alot quicker (even cooler)
and many many more good things...

Things I don't like are:

My boot hardly fits under the break pedal.  Harley says there isn't any fix for this.


I have to raise my leg up quite a bit to get on top of the shifter.  Harley took off the heel shift,  and cranked the toe shift down a notch, which helped a little.  My heel rides along the side of the case and I just cant get a good angle on the shifter.


Scott

Scott, congratulations on the new addition to your family.

My ride before my '08 SERK was and still is on occasion, a '76 FLH shovelhead.  Talk about vibration.....

My SERK was a dream to ride.  Kind of like a Lazy-boy on wheels.  Yes at stop lights or just sitting there idling, the motor does bounce around a bit, but as soon as you let out the clutch and start moving all the vibration goes away.

Was your new SERK 'new' when you acquired it?  If not, someone took off the heel shifter, as I did on mine.  I found that with the very short throw of the shifter that just the toe was all I needed to use.  As far as the brake pedal, I wear size 13 boots and unlike my old FLH, where I actually cut my pedal in half and bent and lengthened it, I have no problem getting my big clodhopper under the brake pedal.  If this was a pre-owned bike, maybe someone changed a few items.


In this picture you can see the heel shifter as it was installed from the factory.  This picture was taken the day I brought it home.


Unlike my FLH that had the brake pedal just about straight up in the center of the running board, the new SERK has a very forward canted pedal with still lots of room to slide my toe under.




One wise but costly addition was the BSR running boards.  I opted for the adjustable mounts instead of the "T" shaped chrome standard mounts.  This allows for many variable angles and heights for the mounting and adjustment of the boards.  My wife is VERY happy with this addition.  But if you buy this crap at MSRP it adds up to over $625 for everything.

Again, enjoy the new ride.  My SERK is the best bike I've owned in many years.  Although if the SERK was NOT in my garage, a new SERG would be.  Man...... I love the looks of those things.

Good luck on your recovery to riding again and ride safely.

    

[SERK3]

Congrats on the SERK, Just get some seat time you will love the bike. I came off a 04 Low Rider kept it as (fun bike as well) parked in the garage for about 14 months put about 50 miles on it and finally sold it, theSERK rides and handles so much better. If they ever come out with another one i guess thats when i'll get a new bike.

[Talon]

The SERK sits an inch lower that the rest of the touring models, so that might be why you feel lower. This will also come in to play when you add floorboard extentions. I scrape in many corners now, myself, I wouldn't add the extentions, as it would cut the cornering even more. Like others have said ride it for a while see how you like it. You could go with the longer shocks to raise it up, then add the extentions. You'll still have the problem with the brake pedal being to high. I like the longer and lower pedals, like softbrake and others make but they aren't billet like your shifter is. You can find them on ebay often, for less.

https://www.softbrake.com/shop/products.asp?maingroup=Harley&secondgroup=Brake

[deaf1]

I do love her,  but thats what I get for doing a impulse buy with a broken leg!   

I needed something to do over the summer and winter to keep my mind from going crazy!  Figure that it cant be that bad of a ride since so many others own them.  I had the dealer take off the rear shifter,  as I hated it on every harley I have had.

The extensions are coming in,  as it is just too tight to sit on and quite uncomfortable.  i didnt know the bike was a inch lower (I would be curious the hight compared to a softail heritage)

What confuses me is all the break pedal I talk so say the pedal only extends a inch over stock??? (ezbrake etc)  So far the break pedal is the only thing that annoys me....

She is in the shop now getting the motolights and air-horn wired and all the other re-call goodies... I cant wait to show her off here once I get her back... The LED's are so damm bright,  that the dealer was impressed!!

scott

[Jbbrown73]

Harleygoodies.com sells great spacers that move the floorboards out nearly one inch.  Doesn't sound like much, but it makes a big difference.

Yes, these floorboard spacers are the way to go. They make a huge difference.