Old/Young Shovel Owner

[ScRaTcH®]

Hadnt poster here yet thought this would be a good time to do so.I am the proud owner of my first harley davidson.Some people would probably ask me why I bought such an older bike (82 shovel in a 76 Paughco rigid frame with parts from god knows what).Well bottom line is I didnt want to just ride I wanted to learn everything about it,how this works and so on and that motor looks and sounds bad ass.I used to race dirt bikes but that is about the extent of my bike riding.I had wanted a bike for years but my finacial and family obligations wouldnt allow me to do it till now.I also wanted to say that this forum has been a wealth of knowledge and it is hands down the best I have seen in my quest for information.I have a ton of questions to ask but I will save that for later.I am 36 years old and wanted to help keep a tradition alive and to one day be able to contribute to it in the way that you guys do.Soon as I figure out how to post pictures of the bike which is in pieces in my garage, I will.

More than anything this post is to thanks all of you guys even though you haven spoken to me directly for being so willing to give up information.

Thanks a bunch
Mike

[newultraclassic]

Originally Posted by ScRaTcH®

Hadnt poster here yet thought this would be a good time to do so.I am the proud owner of my first harley davidson.Some people would probably ask me why I bought such an older bike (82 shovel in a 76 Paughco rigid frame with parts from god knows what).Well bottom line is I didnt want to just ride I wanted to learn everything about it,how this works and so on and that motor looks and sounds bad ass.I used to race dirt bikes but that is about the extent of my bike riding.I had wanted a bike for years but my finacial and family obligations wouldnt allow me to do it till now.I also wanted to say that this forum has been a wealth of knowledge and it is hands down the best I have seen in my quest for information.I have a ton of questions to ask but I will save that for later.I am 36 years old and wanted to help keep a tradition alive and to one day be able to contribute to it in the way that you guys do.Soon as I figure out how to post pictures of the bike which is in pieces in my garage, I will.

More than anything this post is to thanks all of you guys even though you haven spoken to me directly for being so willing to give up information.

Thanks a bunch
Mike

....to Shovelhood. Certainly if you want to learn to be a mechanic, there is no finer vehicle to teach you than the genus Shovelheadicus, HD. It's really astonishing all of the things that can go wrong with one. I found them all one at a time. Once you learn the ins and outs, you will have a dependable machine.

For the first year, I would advise carrying a good set of tools and limit your riding to a 100 mile radius so you can get back on the same day if something goes wrong. And, I guarantee, something will go wrong every time for the first few outings. Then things tend to get better and, after a while, once you have experienced the failures, you will begin to have a bike upon which you can rely.

There is nothing so satisfying as finding and rooting out a problem or a potential problem in your bike. It beats anything else in motorcycling as far as I can see.

Good luck. Welcome again to the forum!

[shovelsled]

Congrats on owning a Shovel! I love mine to death. I started out on a rigid framed '71 XLCH, mag and all! I've got the knee injury to prove it. Like Newultraclassic said, you'll learn how to spot trouble before it happens after a while, and you'll love you're bike. There's just something magic about Shovels and Pans. Buy a FACTORY manual, and study it cover-to-cover. That'll really help when something arises.
Corey