2018 HARLEY-DAVIDSON SOFTAILS
FIRST TEST
P106
III FAT BOB IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
The Fat Bob is the other bike of
the new Softails that doesn't try
to replicate the model that came
before, but rather, redefine it. The
prior Fat Bob copped a rough
and tumble attitude and had
pretensions of being the per-
former in the old Dyna line. This
one doesn't play around. While
the other models have tuned
cartridge-style forks, this one has
a charged inverted racing fork.
It's also the only one with dual
disc brakes. A thick seat puts the
rider up and forward, which puts
the small forward controls in a
more aggressive position. A flat
taper-style handlebar (like on a
motocross bike) controls the front
end. The whole thing has a very
post-apocalyptic vibe, like it could
show up in the next Mad Max
movie unchanged and you might
not notice. The list of details (like
the oval LED light set into the
forks, or bronzed patina on the
exhaust pipes, or the "Harley-
Davidson" scrawled on the inside
of the rim) just goes on, it was ob-
vious this was a labor of love from
H-D's design department.
And it works almost as good as
it looks. The riding position puts
the rider in the perfect position to
be a hooligan, and the equipment
will back that stance up. The bike
turns quickly and predictably,
and holds a line through corners.
The high forward controls stay off
of the ground quite well, mean-
ing you can push this one pretty
hard. The front is a little soft, but
the high-end fork should be inter-
nally adjustable. The rear shock
is externally adjustable via a hand
crank, a feature shared with the
wide tire Softails (Fat Boy and
Breakout).
There is an old saying about
saving the best for last, and I
managed that trick. This is the
perfect merger of attitude and
performance. On the other
Softails, I liked the bad boys, but
didn't want to ride them very hard
or far; while the more respectable
bikes just didn't feel like me, or
handle the way I'd like. This one
does it all, and I wouldn't change
a thing. Except maybe opt for the
114.
