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Ongoing 2019 Tri Glide Build-Out w/ lots of photos, videos and observations
Mary and I have been perfectly happy with our 2014 TG. In the almost 5 years we’ve had it we have added bits and pieces to get it just how we wanted it.
We’ve traveled almost every State and all thru British Columbia, Canada on our ‘14. (we went to Alaska on our ‘11)
See a couple of our Ride Reports some of the fantastic memories we’ve made on it-
LINK to 11,000 mile Canada Trip with lots of photo's
LINK to Amazing Rides west of the Mississippi with lots of photo's
See two different threads where we outlined all the mods we’ve done to it-
MODS LINK with lots of photo's
Project Tri Glide LINK with lots of photo's
As the time was drawing near to renew/extend our warranty I had three major threads of thought running through the process-
1. The ‘14 is exactly how we want it. It is more comfortable than my office chairs, there’s nothing more to be done to get it running comfortably, safely, reliably and powerfully. Any future issues could easily be paid for with the extended warranty and/or money saved by not purchasing a newer model.
2. We use our personal bikes as test beds for product development and testing. But there is nothing really new on the ‘19 Tri Glides that is not there on our ‘14 Tri Glide..with the exception of the M8 engine and some suspension improvements. (also the infotainment, ABS and traction control, none of which we see ourselves adding to)
We already have spent hundreds of hours with different M8 engines and do not need another one to work on for R&D.
We have already spent dozens of hours on the ‘19 suspension and the suspension upgrades on the ‘14 provide a much better ride than the factory ‘19 suspension.
So, there is no need for a newer model for R&D.
3. There have been more than a few folks that have verbalized to me (which means more that have thought it, but not said anything to me) that I really don’t know how “good” the ‘19 is because I have not spent the time on them like I have my ‘11 and ‘14 Tri Glide.
No amount of time that I’ve spent on M8 bikes and ‘19 Trikes seemed to bridge that “credibility gap”.
And...maybe there is something I could learn riding a ‘19 day after day across country that I have not experienced in my local riding.
There is also the M8 itch that I can only scratch riding the M8 Softail that Dwayne has at the shop.
But, it still does not seem worth it to give up our 2014 that is set-up perfectly!
So, I decided to give three dealerships a call and make a ridiculous low-ball offer on a ‘19 with the ‘14 as a trade-in. Also, part of my offer was that I would remove the majority of upgrades from the ‘14 before trading it in.
The chance of them doing the deal was slim and none, but I figured if it was to be, it would happen.
Sure enough, they all said NO WAY!
Good! I want to keep the ‘14. I do not want to spend the money, time and effort setting up another bike perfectly. Would rather ride during any extra time I may have.
THEN...one of them called back. They said they would do the deal, and even sweetened it a bit.
No, I don’t know why, other than it was meant to be.
So, Devin and I spent a day removing a ton of parts from the 2014 Tri Glide. See video below-
And now we have a 2019 to outfit, exactly as we see fit for the Best-
Performance/Power
Longevity/Reliability
Rider/Passenger Comfort
Handling
Safety/Security
We’re going to take our time, going step-by-step. Documenting it all with video and photo’s, and who knows...we may develop a few more products along the way.
It is a bone stock 2019 Tri Glide.
Wicked Red & Baracuda Silver
Build date of November 2018
With the 114 M8 Engine
The very first thing I will be doing with the 2019 is Ceramic Coating the paint.
I will also be Coating the Aluminum Wheels, in hopes that it protects them from brake dust, road grime and keeps them looking new with minimum effort.
Finally, I will also be using the Fast Metal Polish, hoping that it gives the chrome a good shine and protective coating, again, making it easier to keep clean.
Since we left my Custom Made handlebars on the 2014, we’ve already made another set of bars. They are at powder coat right now.
Handlebars tacked up-
Welded up, right before going to powder-
Once we get them back I’ll be taking it back to the dealership for them to install them (it was part of the deal). That way the warranty stays in effect for all the controls, which have always been a weak point in the past.
I am going to take my time putting all the Performance, Reliability, Comfort, Handling, & Safety items back on the 2019. Taking it a step at a time and getting to know the stock “feel” before adding an items, so I can accurately assess any differences.
Besides “seat of the pants”, I will be using the bump recorder to measure suspension performance, I will be using an infrared temperature gun, a PV temp monitor, and oil temp gauge to get to know all the temps. Of course, none of that can be done prior to the Trike being fully broken in, so as to get apples to apples comparisons.
I have already ordered some black Mighty-Mites from Zook off his buylovejugs.com site, and I plan on getting this Rake Kit from him too. Never have run a rake kit before, so that will be interesting.
It’s gonna be a bit of a long project, with plenty of photo’s, video’s and my impressions along the way. The only thing I see interrupting it is if HD comes out with a totally new Tri Glide in 2020...If that happens, I may very well be starting all over Again in 6-8 months!
Hope you enjoy!
Kevin
on the new Tri Glide. Looking forward to following your progression.
Originally Posted by ShapeShifter
, glad you got the deal you would be happy with. Can't wait until the reports come in and pics on what you do to the 2019, always look forward to your posts. I would imagine you kept the power vision off the 2014 for the 2019 and just have to pay the $200 to get a license for the 2019, wished I would have kept my power vision off the 2016 but I let it go with it. 
