Finally Found Someone to Take Up for the Hardley Riders, er... Owners.

Q :What does a jap bike and a disposable diaper have in common?
A: they"re made of plastic, loaded wih shit, and hazardous waste once they are disposed of.
Brand X

This is a good example because it has no basis in truth whatsoever.

1) Jap bikes (and German and Brit and Italian and probably even Korean and Chinese) are miles ahead of Hardley in quality except for what matters to Hardley owners - chrome plated shiny bits. There are no Hardleys out there with 100,000 miles without having at least having the heads pulled.

2) Sportbikes do carry much plastic body work (as Buells) to keep your ass on the bike at triple digit speeds, but Jap bikes built for a comparable purpose to a Hardley carry none. I recently went riding with Frank who rides a RoadStar 1700. We stopped at a gas station and a fella came over to look at his bike. He owned a Hardley (was he riding it?, of course not) and asked Frank if his fenders were plastic. ???? The Roadstar is a superior machine to any of Hardley's "big" bikes anyway you slice it. Hardley owners simply don't know any better.

3) Loaded with shit. Yeah, if 'shit' means 'THE Shit' as in horsepower and torque, titanium valves and brakes to stop a battleship. Hardley components are 1970's era technology. Remember Ford Pinto's, AMC Gremlin's, Chevrolet Vega's?? You get the picture. Single solid rotor front disc brakes: Hardley admits they don't put good brakes on their bikes 'cause it would scare first time riders. There are Jap 600cc bikes out there with DOUBLE the horsepower of 1200cc and bigger Hardleys that are bulletproof reliable.

4) I see alot of Hardleys for sale with ridiculous asking prices. They don't get 'em. Pick up any Cycle Trader type sale magazine. There are 50 pages of Hardleys in there no one will buy. Go price a good used GoldWing, FJR1300, Hayabusa,CBR1100XX, ST1100, ST1300, VFR800.. You get the picture.

In conclusion these guys simply don't know any better. Most are old fat men who still think it is 1965 when Hardley made 'big power' compared to Triumph and Norton; maybe 30HP in race trim. A new 50cc Vespa would outrun 'em. They're better now; some even have 60HP! %0 years of R&D and the got a whopping 30 HP to show for it. Of course, a Kawasaki ZX6R (600cc) pushes 110HP. Hmmmmmmmmmmm. Earth calling the braindead!

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