Is an 883 enough bike?

[Dirt Hill]

Originally Posted by tyreguy25

Not in Kansas...I am lucky to find an 883 for under $4000, 1200s are $5000+

I'd spend the extra $1k for a 1200 if I were you. A stock 883 put's out about 46 hp, a stock 1200 puts out about 63 hp. 883's are still a great and fun bike (I bought a used 883), but you'll want more power in a matter of days. Trust me...you'll end up spending more than that price difference for new jugs, head porting and new cams....then you'll probably end up wanting to change to 1200 gearing. If you bite the bullet financially now, you'll be happier longer. In the future, if you want more power you can drop in some new cams, and you'll have better heads (stock 1200 heads) to work with. My 2 cents.

[tyreguy25]

NRHS and Hammer both offer 1200 kits, the Hammer being $485. Their kit requires that you send in your jugs to them to be bored and they send it back, with gasket kit and assembled relatively quick. Can someone tell me what the 1200 plate is? If it adds flow to the CV carb, it sounds like a good idea, along with a high flowing intake, jetting and pipes.

[AsSeenOnTV]

Is an 883 enough bike?


Depends on how small of a penis you have. The smaller ones tend to think they need a bigger bike!

[gdixon61]

Run the numbers...
883 less initial purchase cost, usually enough of a savings to do a 1200 conversion and still be ahead.

The biggest savings is Insurance

Run the numbers and call your insurance agent asking about the difference between insuring an 883 over a 1200. Best thing is they never need know it will be or has been converted to `1200 since all they go by is the VIN

[Banksy]

I'm 6'2'' and some where near 220lb and i've done over 21000 miles on my Iron now and not felt the need to go bigger with the motor yet...

[Big Rob]

883nis fine but if ur considering doin a 1200 or 1250 kit in the future do the 883 then when you up grade you can play with compression and stuff get more bang for your buck than just a stock 1200...just a thought i have a 1200 kit in mine butthe fun has worn off or according to as seen on tv my penis must be shrinking cause cause id like to do a 1250 kit with 11-1 comp cams and some headwork if alittle is good to much is best right !!!

[Speedfreak]

You are looking opinions..... best bet is for you to go ride an 883 and 1200 and decide for yourself.
My first sportster was an 883 custom i bought used.I felt like it needed more power right off the bat but I was also coming off of a cbr954rr...
Better to have power you will not use than to wish you had more power right away.
Will an 883 work?Yes it will go 100mph and get you around but for two up id say 1200 minimum

[wagoneer12]

883 with stage 1....had it for 8 years and 50K plus miles. yeah, I'm gonna do the 1250 and heads/cams thing..someday.

I can cruise 75-80 all day.

I weight 200 lbs, AND take my wife on a weekend trip once a year. If I was doing a lot of long distance two up...then yeah, 1200 would be nice.

Just downshift and rev it up...you will be fine.

[2007xl1200r]

The summer of 1973, I rode my 1972 Honda CB750 all over the Western States. I hauled gear and occasionally a girl... I was weighing about 185 Lbs then...that was a long time and many pounds ago.

The point is this, that an 883 is more than enough to tour around on. I don't look at an 883 as a "beginner's bike" (a beginner's bike to me is something like a 250cc bike or so). An 883 is a big bike comparably.

I know that we can't always buy the bike we want (money restraints) so buy the bike you like and can afford. See how it goes.

I love Sportsters. I sold my 2007 Ultra Glide Classic and bought a XL1200R. I have had more fun on that bike than I have had in a 3 decades of owning various Harleys... I would ride my Sporty anywhere in the world.

What you will have to get through are those occasional ignorant comments about a "girls bike", "half a Harley", "You'll want a real Harley in a year or so...", etc. Learn that some of that is just in jest and the others are just plain stupid...

I think a 883 will be a more than enough for you and is a great bike for the cost. As others have stated...you can always upgrade later or buy another bike.

[DWilliam]

If it's your first bike, then an 883 may very well give you all you want for quite some time, and you always have the option of upgrading to 1200+ if you want to.
What are you used to driving on 4 wheels, and how do you drive it? I think that if you're just starting with motorcycles, that might make a big difference. I drive a Ford Ranger. I'm generally used to similar small trucks, and started riding last year. At first, I never pushed the bike hard enough to realize what it could do. When I first did, I was pretty damn surprised and didn't know what to do with it. Now, after a bit over a year, I'm enjoying the hell out of it and looking at possible upgrades I could afford, but definitely not feeling disappointed.
I think that a lot of it depends on what you're used to and what you're expecting. If you drive fast cars, you'll probably enjoy the quickness of almost any motorcycle for a little while, then wish that it could go faster. If you're used to pretty tame cars, etc. an 883 might be perfect.

I think that the bottom line is what you are looking for. Taking a glance back at your original post, running 70-75 on an 883 is no problem at all. You won't (we can't?) accelerate as quickly from that speed, but it's still a pretty comfortable speed with room to move around.

As far as any replies along the lines of "nobody with a 1200 wants to know how to convert to an 883", that's true, but there are plenty of us with 883s who are making our daily rides, having fun, and not regretting getting a smaller engine.

Even if you decide you don't need 1200ccs, though, don't rule it out. All else being equal, take the 1200. If you get a good deal, go for the 883. If you're riding solo, without heavy baggage, it should be plenty, as you say, to learn on, and you may end up being happy with it. If you aren't, you can upgrade it, even beyond the stock 1200 if you want to.

Just a disclaimer: You said you wanted to know what the experts said on this. I've been riding a little over a year on an 883. I rode it a lot august and later last year, but this year it's almost replaced my ranger, aside from when I need to carry anything that doesn't fit in a backpack sized space. Still, at just over a year, I'm no expert.
All I can say is that I was just starting out too a year ago, and that now mine is my main ride (until the snow starts falling). So, considering your original post, where commuting seems to be the main issue, an 883 may very well be fine for you and will most likely be way more fun.

Just for disclosure, this is coming from someone who loves driving and still enjoys the hell out of driving his 97 ranger even after owning a sportster that gets a lot more use when Vermont weather allows. I like to open it up every now and then, but as far as fun on the bike goes, I get way more grins out of the little back roads where I can barely get up to 60 than going 90+ down a straight road.

Like I said, it's all in what you want. From your original post, I'd say don't spend much extra to start off with a 1200. An 883 can make a great commuter, and that sounded like the main concern of your question. If you want keep getting faster on the side, just compare the price of converting an 883 and how far you would go when comparing them to 1200s. Hammer and NRHS both have some pretty decent deals that include more than just getting the extra displacement to your engine.

From my personal experience,though, 883 is fun as hell, and if you want a little more power out of it, there' still a bit of room to open it up. If you want even more, the conversions are out there and I've never heard of anyone regretting them.