Any Harley XR1200 riders out there?

batrider

batrider

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I am thinking about getting one of these - 2009 or later. I sat on one and it felt pretty good and my feet can touch the ground. Looks like it would be at home on Commando type country roads. There appear to be a number of these out there with very low miles. Not sure why -- seems like a pretty good bike according to what I've read so far. Any input from people who own one?
 
That's why H-D killed it - there's no 2013 model.

I rode a 2009 when they first came out - similar ergos to a Commando, modern brakes and suspension. Bike is a bit heavier than a Commando, but feels similar in performance (except braking - they've made improvements in the last 35 years).

Its the only Harley I've been tempted to buy, except for an XR750 or a first-decade Sportster.
 
Yes, - I`ve wondered about that too, perhaps the H-D hive-mind perceive them as being too off-beat, like the Cafe-type Sportster back in the `70s..
 
Any Harley XR1200 riders out there?
:?

XLR 1000
Any Harley XR1200 riders out there?


Heads are same part No as

XR750
Any Harley XR1200 riders out there?


If youre after a old croc. / or a ' builder ' there maybe something suitable about , if youre wanting to play Cal Raybourne .

or is it just a ' scooter ' required . Looks like a few things could fall off that 1200 , to get the weight down a bit .
And of couse , Twin Carbs ve gotta be the GO . . . 8) if you dont mind tyre smoke . :)
 
Matt Spencer said:
Heads are same part No as XR750
Click to expand...

That seems a dubious claim ? - carb inlets and exhaust outlets positions are completely different places....
 
oppsie . should check the Captions ! . :)

Tiss actually a XR1000 I am thinking of .Thus.
Any Harley XR1200 riders out there?



1985 dunger , couldnt give em away . They all dropped valves .

Any Harley XR1200 riders out there?


Had ' stretch ' in Melbourne try'n say ' Sombody in America ' had rung & offered $5000 for a pair . After ' We ' had checked the Casting Numbers .
Had a valve head through the seat & a few dings in the chamber , when it ' Fell Off ' . ( the head fell off the stem ) . Had hoped to get the pair
for 300 , If they wernt knackered . :lol: :wink: mightve gone to 500 .

My humble theory being as the racers ( XR 750s ) are howling along at 7.000 rpms , the Oiling may need reviseing . Unless you tend to ride rather quickly .
One might consider guide / stem clearances & Cyl Head oil feed / flow rates .


But , they seem to go for a few bob these days . Getting one that hadnt chewed itself up , or a pair of heads , would be a good start , anyway . You could
pretend to be Evil Kninevel then.If you didnt have a Triumph 650 trackmaster . :p
 
Any Harley XR1200 riders out there?


Should have put the pic in my original post. This is the type I'm looking at. Thanks for the ride report BillT.

I like most everything about the looks except the miniature headlight.

Russ
 
I was, repeat was going to use the wife's 20% discount to get one in a few years.
Just like Buell, HD has canned yet another of the very few bikes they make I would actually buy.
Now only the V-rod is left on my HD list.
I have never purchased a NEW bike before, but when the time comes, the XR was on the top of the list.
Oh well, just means i'll save a bunch and find a nice used one.
 
Just re read the report in the ' Two wheels ' Mag. ( Aus ) . They seem bulletproof .

It was the British HD 1200 race champ machine . :shock: :? :lol:

twin carbon can Exhaust system gains 10 HP to 95 odd . Specs are tight . dunno if they did ' a chip '
Has new fork cartridges , 2 1/4 longer Ohlins shocks to aise arse . Some adjustable triple clamps .
whop de do . ( Is a 2 - 1 - 2 Ex so is a ' system ' . )
Brembo rotors Fr.
& a smidgen shaved of under the foot brake lever . ( to clear the deck ) .

Seems they dont make externally lubricated or self ventilateing motorcycles these days .
The word get round . So this thing gets carved round a race track with a few bolt ons .

The ones I forgot to mention , being 17 in Marvic rims ( for the Race Avons ) .Hence the variable rake triple clamps .

The Pilot had no complaints , bar stock gearing a bit short for the track . S O , a few update bits are freely available through the ' STOCK ' ( nearly all of it is ) race class supplyers .

Let us know how you run . :p :D
 
one of my best friends has one. Pretty nice bikes. exhaust is a bit quiet but has a half decent sound when opened up. Has a bigger top end than my '01 bonneville (not stock anymore) and fairs really well on twisty back roads for what would typically be expected of a harley. Oiled cooled heads and the oil cooler is nice, though the placement is a bit odd. My friend has dropped it once or twice, its landed on the cooler side but the thing never broke or seemed to take any real damage. I think its a pretty nifty bike
 
Funny that H-D have dropped it from their line-up, just when 'street-trackers' are getting popular.
I note that Triumph is going to market another of their endless Bonneville iterations as a 'street-tracker', now.
 
Funny how the world turns..coincidence-wise.
I dragged the old RD/H2 out for a bit of a battery re-juice ride yesterday pm, it being a pleasant sunny sunday..& encountered one of those rare XR 1200s, ridden by a sporty bloke, he`d hammered his plastic on the screaming eagle catalogue, even had the corporate race orange/black matching jacket & helmet.
He was up for a stoplight contest too, good on him, & they get off the line quite smartly, but I swept on by in 2nd..
Again unusually for an H-D rider, he asked about my bike at the next light, & looked crest-fallen when I said it was an RD 350,- that was a bit mean of me, I suppose...
 
Recent cycle rag article was about end of the line of Sportster based bikes with an example with extra XR flat tracker stuff and style added on, they just couldn't resist its bad ass looks to praise it to live on it in King of the Road sensations - except admitting it was essentially all looks and sound as rather slow and heavy to heave around and not worth reving past 5000 rpm. This is not to say a really built HD engine can't more than hold its own in drag racing sprints or other wild events, just not anything you can buy from the factory. Factory HD's are more about short brusts of torque not long draw out hp pull. 850 factory Nortons strike me that way too. HD's with some good lean clearance can really dice the turns though - so its not innately a bad handler like say a factory H2.

A good friend has a spiffed up moderately hot rod 1200 Sportster but can't ride it but in some climate conditons as heats up and missfires in summer and runs too rich and fouls up in winter plus hurts his neck with the low bars and feet forward controls. Its sure looks and sounds desirable though.
 
there is a long thread over at advrider with lots of good info, very mixed reviews IIRC
 
Lots of good reading matter over on advrider. Thanks bluto - couldn't even get through it all. Dunno. I kind of fall in love with a vehicle and then only hear what I want to hear... I have been looking but in no huge rush. I may head down to the dealer and annoy them some more over the holidays.
 
Batrider, I bought a second hand 1995 883 Sportster earlier this year and after putting some sensible handlebars and fresh tyres on it I enjoyed the ride, not a million miles away from a 1970s British bike in feel. Lots of people pour scorn on Harleys but I think they make a decent bike and you can get a really good deal on second hand ones these days.
 
Not an XR1200, but just bought this XL1200R a few weeks ago. Somewhat similar to my '72 Commando roadster as far as sitting position and feel. Note both are called "roadster".



Any Harley XR1200 riders out there?
 
That's a really nice one illf8ed! Good luck with it.

Well I called the salesman and I'm headed down to have a second look at the 2009 orange bike in the picture I posted - either tomorrow or Monday depending on snow. Supposed to be end of year deals...blow-out sale...yada yada. The thing has been sitting there for over a month. Been like 25 yrs since I've bought a bike of any sort.

Russ
 
Hi Russ

From the list of classic bikes you own....you need one new one :) Have fun.
 
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