Words: Jeff Ware Photos: HMC Photography

Each model in the HD Softail range has plenty of strengths and very few weaknesses, and with years of development under the wheels, the current models are highly evolved and refined. The Softail Slim is no exception. In fact, after spending a fortnight living with the Slim, I reckon it’s the smoothest and easiest ride of the Softail range, the Standard a close second.

In short, it’s 107 M8 powered, has the cut-back guards and hugger, small forward positioned footboards, dragster-style pipes, narrow rear end, Hollywood handlebars and Beer Can fork covers, with fat 16in blacked out wheels, minimal chrome, and a solo seat.

On paper the Slim is a bike that I personally find appealing. It has fun geometry by cruiser standards, decent performance from the 107 M8, good quality suspension, no maps or ride modes and has a good fuel range for a bike this style, with 18.9L on hand from the large, stylish tank, enabling a potential of over 300km riding between fuel fills, much more than some non-touring Harley’s in the range.

Don’t let the weight of the bike, 304kg ready to rock and roll, put you off, even if you are new to cruisers or recently got your full licence. The Softail Slim carries it’s weight long and low and you won’t find the weight at all intimidating when moving the bike around, parking it or riding at low speed.

That accessible seat height, the wide handlebars and low centre of gravity make life easy. And I was seriously happy about that as I am still recovering from knee injuries and surgeries, and this year I’ve been averaging 5000km-plus per month testing, so heavy bikes are inflaming old wounds. Not the Slim.

Commuting, using as general transport or just as a recreational rider, or all of the above, the Softail Slim handles it all and is an easy going two-wheeled companion, and the chassis and sweet 107 motor make a great combination. Out of town the Slim is equally as capable and engaging. The SHOWA Dual Bending 49mm forks are well damped and sprung for a broad variety of conditions and situations.

The forks support the bike well under braking, which is never going to be forceful given the brakes (more on that later), offering a progressive action through the stroke. The compression damping rates are great, no sudden bone jarring hits over the high-speed bumps and control over the low speed (rate not km/h) stuff….

Nothing unusual to complain about at the back, the normal 86mm of travel for a low Softail model is always going to be a compromise over the bumpier roads and the Slim in not immune to some tailbone jarring hits, which can get uncomfortable given the tiny seat and the way the back of it digs into your tailbone if your legs, like mine, prevent you sitting forward enough to actually get in the saddle section.

The rear suspension action is well tuned for a variety of conditions and only limited by that travel, so on smooth roads it is particularly good, and combined with the narrow 150-section rear hoop, the back-end of the Slim really helps make the bike fun and flickable through the twisties. The big tyres offer some extra cushioning against road irregularities also, which helps give the Slim a fairly smooth and comfy ride for the most part.

The steering is light and stays that way from a crawl in first gear, where some heavy cruisers get super hard to steer, to high-speed riding, all while maintaining rock solid stability, no easy feat with a 16in tyre but a scenario Harley are experts at by now. The Hollywood ‘bars are such a comfy bend, and they look fantastic. They can easily be rolled forward or back, but I didn’t feel the need.

Like the handlebars, the levers are in a natural spot and are the usual chunky Harley items, which I am not a huge fan of. Clutch action is heavy, but this is a huge engine, and the clutch is cable actuation. Engagement, though, is smooth and easy. It’s a two finger for shifting or slipping but four fingers for holding in kinda clutch. The overall gearbox action is smooth and neutral easy to click.

Braking-wise, the single front 300mm rotor and four-piston caliper, backed up by a 292mm rear rotor and two-piston floating rear caliper, the Softail Slim pulls up but it takes a fair bit of work to stop in a hurry. The positive is the soft initial bite and power will be great for newer riders and makes the braking process really easy in the rain, but for harder braking it needs both brakes fully applied. Personally, a dual disc front-end is on my Softail Slim wish list. They do the job but don’t stand out as exceptional.

Rev that M8 off the corners and give the rear Dunlop a hard time and you will have a blast. No point revving it too far, ride that peak torque and shift up at around 3500rpm to 4500rpm and enjoy the ride. This particular engine was a tad flatter up top than the previous 107 I had testing, in the Softail Standard, but it was still a great motor.

Acceleration won’t stretch your arms, and the Slim has a slight weight disadvantage over the Standard (despite the name), but you will still have a big grin! It is linear and smooth with mountains of torque on tap from 1250rpm onwards. You can be lazy with the gearbox and for medium speed work fourth gear will do the trick all day long. A great engine.

At the end of the fortnight, I was undecided on whether I prefer the Softail Slim to the Softail Standard as the two main 107 M8 powered street bikes, styling aside, with the Heritage Classic 107 in a class of its own (full review on the way). With a price tag of $26,495 RA, the Slim is $5000 more than the Standard and $2500 more than the Street Bob 114, which has the big donk. I absolutely love the styling of the Slim over the other Softail range models but for me, I’d have to go with the Standard or the SB 114 within that price range, but that is just me and if it’s a Bobber you want, the Slim is ready and waiting for you and you won’t regret the choice…

2021 Harley-Davidson Softail Slim Specifications

Price: From $26,495 Ride-Away (Vivid Black)Warranty: two-years unlimited km

Colours: Vivid Black, Billiard Red (extra $345), River Rock Grey Denim/Black Denim (extra $695) and Midnight Crimson/Stone Washed White Pearl (extra $695).

Claimed Power: N/A

Claimed Torque: 144Nm[107ft-lbs]@3250rpm

Wet Weight: 304kg

Fuel capacity: 18.9L

Service: First 1600km every 8000km thereafter

Engine: Milwaukee-Eight 107 V-Twin, 1746cc, 100 x 111mm bore x stroke, 10.0:1 compression ratio, ESPFI, 2-into-2 shotgun; catalyst in muffler

Gearbox: Six-speed, Chain Primary 34/46, Final belt drive 32/66

Fuel Consumption: 5.5L/100km

Chassis: Mild steel tubular frame, rectangular section backbone, stamped – cast and forged junctions, MiG welded, alloy fender supports.

Rake: 30° Trail: 147mm

Suspension: Non-adjustable Showa Dual Bending 49mm Valve fork, 130mm travel, Spring-preload adjustable shock 43mm stroke, 86mm travel.

Brakes: Four-piston fixed front 300mm disc and two-piston floating 292mm rear disc

Wheels & Tyres: Black Steel Laced, Dunlop D401, 130/90 – 16, 150/80 – 16

Dimensions:
Wheelbase: 1630mm
Seat height: 660mm
Ground clearance: 120mm
Overall Length: 2310mm
Overall Width: 990mm
Overall Height: 1095mm
Lean angle: 28.5º

Instruments: 5-inch analog speedometer with digital gear, odometer, fuel level, clock, trip, range and tachometer indication.

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