Getting such an expensive bike and not being an experienced rider is just plain ole silly!! Time in the "saddle" on a bike you are not going to worry about dumping is a good idea. One that is not too big is also not a bad idea as well. Harleys are nice to look at,way over priced,expensive to fix,and need more fixing it seems than the "rice burners". I personally own a Yamaha V-star Classic and I am a newer rider and it suits me just fine,including suiting me in the pocket book,looks,riding,and speed is up to par as well.Granted it is not as fast as my Yamaha Maxim was,but it works out nicely. Oh..Mr V-Rod my Boyfriends Yamaha FZR 1,000 would smoke your bike out off the road anyday!! Yee-Haw!!

Kristin  

frbock:
I agree, if you finance a 16K Harley, and your credit is good, you might get 7% for 60 months. That is $346 a month for the next 5 years, or $4152 per year (after taxes). If you are working full time (40 hrs a week), that's $2.00 per hour taken away from you, AFTER taxes are taken out.

And, as it was pointed out, that's the entrance fee. Most of my friends with Harleys tell me the average bill at the shop is about $500... every 3000 miles.

Great math.  How 'bout this concept.. Your bike is a luxury, a toy, if you don't own it you can't afford it!  Finance your house, your car.  SAVE for your bike, and purchase one you can afford.  The pure economics  of it will provide a natural progression from entry level machine to your ultimate choice after a few years riding.  
The repair quote sounds like pure "Harley envy" to me.  

Hey man, i would get a harley that you could afford.  When i first started riding i rode a wide glide after a few weeks and it was a peice of cake.It was no different than my 800, and i was riding with the wife on the back.  i wouldnt be scared of a bigger engine, just take it easy and take the MSF class.  after some practice and you get comfortable with the bike you decide on, let it rip!  

so bobt89..bet you never thought your question would stir up so much ***

If you're looking for a non sportster harley.  You might want to look at the low rider.  It's a big bike but not as big as some of the others and it has a relativley low seat height and center of gravity so it's easy to maneuver at slow speeds (not as easy as some smaller bikes but not bad at all).

A lot of Harley dealers will rent bikes.  It's not too expansive and you get to ride the bike for a day and see if you're comfortable on it  

so bobt89..bet you never thought your question would stir up so much crap!

If you're looking for a non sportster harley.  You might want to look at the low rider.  It's a big bike but not as big as some of the others and it has a relativley low seat height and center of gravity so it's easy to maneuver at slow speeds (not as easy as some smaller bikes but not bad at all).

A lot of Harley dealers will rent bikes.  It's not too expansive and you get to ride the bike for a day and see if you're comfortable on it  

gr8ital,

In a 1/4 mile your V-Rod would smoke my Strat. Just like any crotch rocket would. However, on a curvy road you wouldn't be able to read my license plate. If the race was over 100 miles, I'd win hands down as with that dinky gas tank you have, you'd have to stop for gas (LOL).
All kiding aside though, if the kid wants a Harley, he should go for it. The best lessons learned are the one we learn ourselves.

Otter  

I was in the same position with the exception of being 19.  I had never ridden a serious motorcycle.  The first step I took was to take a harley Rider' Edge class.  Best money I ever spent.  While in the class I started chatting with the instructor talking about what bike to get.  His advice was "Dedice what bike you want to be riding two years down the road".  If you get a Sportster because it's the smallest in the line and you think it would be a good bike to learn on, you will probably regret your decision in six months or so.  Anyway, after listining to his advice I decided on the Dyna Fat Bob.  When I rolled down the driveway the first time I seriously questioned my sanity, but it didn't take long to get comfortable on the big bike (700 pounds).  So that being said, I wouldn't discourage anyone from getting what is considered a big bike, or discourage anyone from getting a smaller bike.  What do you want to be riding in two years???????  

I was in the same position with the exception of being 19.  I had never ridden a serious motorcycle.  The first step I took was to take a harley Rider' Edge class.  Best money I ever spent.  While in the class I started chatting with the instructor talking about what bike to get.  His advice was "Decide what bike you want to be riding two years down the road".  If you get a Sportster because it's the smallest in the line and you think it would be a good bike to learn on, you will probably regret your decision in six months or so.  Anyway, after listining to his advice I decided on the Dyna Fat Bob.  When I rolled down the driveway the first time I seriously questioned my sanity, but it didn't take long to get comfortable on the big bike (700 pounds).  So that being said, I wouldn't discourage anyone from getting what is considered a big bike, or discourage anyone from getting a smaller bike.  What do you want to be riding in two years???????  

That Harley roadster 1200 with the larger tank sure looks like a great bike to me...  Does anyone here ride one?  Please chime in...  

we-brown, you just helped to answer my question. I have been looking at the smaller cc's (700 - 900 ranges) for learning. My fears are not that I would not be able to eventually flow into a larger cc bike, but that I would have to eventually trade or sell the smaller cc bike for the one I really wanted. I too was contemplating on getting an 883 or 1200 sportster if I were to buy a Harley and am also a fan of the Dyna series, but I have to consider other makes depending on my finances. Glad to hear you are happy with your new Harley (jealous) but best of cruising to you and enjoy!!!!  

Yes, move up to a Victory.  Best American bikes on the road, maybe the best altogether.  They look terrific and deliver the goods.

But a Harley is a Harley, and if the kid wants a Harley, he should get it.  

So much crap about HD's.  I have had metric bikes and I currently ride a HD Road King.  I like metric and HD's, but of the bikes I have ridden my preference is the HD.  Yeah, I paid more than I would have for a metric.  It came down to a Stratoliner, the RK, and a R3 Touring.  I ride a lot so range was big for me.  I have a 6 gallon tank and get about 42 MPG.  The Strat had a 4.5 gallon tank and at 1800 + cc's, I could not see the range being that great.  The R3 touring is another one I had questions about range.  Plus it has so many computerized gadgets that I can see some nightmare repairs down the road.  I like simplicity in my bike design.

My guess is a lot of you who hate on HD's have never owned one, some of you probably have.  I know friends that have had several issues with metric bikes too.  I don't know why people seem to think that HD's just break down more.  Anything mass produced items is going to have a percentage that come off the line defective.  I don't care who you are as a manufacturer.

The bike the original poster inquired about sounds like the 883 Sportster.  It is a fairly inexpensive bike and you can pick up a used one for a great price.  It will give him a little more than just a great sound.  That is about as uneducated of a statement that I have read here.  

There are bikes that will smoke my HD in the power and speed, but if I wanted that I would have purchased a sports bike.  At 1584 cc's, I get enough power, gas efficiency, and range for what I need it for.

Funny, I used to think that HD owners were all snobbish about bikes in general, but many metric riders are the same if not worse - they just chose to ignore that they are.  Not to say that some HD owners are not dicks, because there are a lion's share of those just like in any other group.  No group is "dick free."

I like all of them regardless of manufacturer.  Ride what you want as long as you think it is the bike for you and makes you happy.  Don't worry about what everybody else thinks.  Buy the Sportser if that is what you want.  

Oh, so I read the post wrong.  He doesn't want a Sporty.  In that case, he's going to spend a hell lot more money than a 19 year old should be spending for a bike.  My advice would to think about that kind of committment unless you have a steady job making good money unless you have a lot to put down.  Otherwise you're going to have a healthy payment - most 19 year olds are not going to get by with a payment like that.  You could be different than the average teenager, I don't know.  You need to think about it.  At the very least, look towards a used bike.

Still meant all of the things I said about HD's in the post above, but when you start talking about looking up from a Sporty, you are looking at a good jump in price.  If you are going to do it anyway, look at the Super Glide (FXD) it is the best priced option that is not a Sporty.  

I don't care what the *** riders say. Get the Harley you won't be sorry
I've had a lot of different bikes but theres nothing like riding a Harley  Get the Superglide for around $12000  

The truth of metric mantra about HD dates back a ways. Until the Evo engine (actually developed on AMF's watch, not Willey G - he bought the company just before the engine was released). Prior to that, the engine basically needed a major rebuild every 20k. The Evo stretched that out to 100k.
The other problem was that a lot of the engines are hard mounted to the frame. While it changes the ride and stiffens the frame, it also allowed vibration to loosen up the bolts of the very engine you are depending on.