Harley Iron 1200

What does the first ride on a Harley feel like? Mike gets good vibrations.

IWORDSM:

was enjoying a relaxing half-hour in the back garden with a coffee and a magazine, when the silence was broken by one of the most uniquely signature sounds in the world, a sound refined over the decades and bringing to mind that truism: 'You hear a Harley before you see it:

It is, of course, all down to the design of that superb V-Twin two-cylinder engine, which turns on its head the conventional design of a motorbike's pistons timed to fire alternately. For fear of preaching to the converted, traditionally, a crankshaft has two pins 180 degrees apart to which both pistons are connected. By contrast, Harley's V-Twin engine has cylinders arranged in a 45-degree 'V' configuration attached to a single-pin

There'sa time and placefor every bike.Mikereckons now and here is where the Iron1200 belongs

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crankshaft. The arrangement causes the cylinders to fire at uneven intervals, and as a result you are left with the choppy, uneven, 'pop-pop' sound, which has grown to become such an integral element of these machines.

Extraordinarily, such was the sound's popularity that back in February 1994 Harley filed a sound trademark application ... 'The mark consists of the exhaust sound of applicant's motorcycles, produced by V-twin, common crankpin motorcycle engines when the goods are in It was that unmistakably distinctive, throaty sound rumbling up the road to my property which caught my attention.

And then there it was, the Iron 1200, sitting on my driveway. The Harley mystique turned into reality; a

established1962

bad-ass reputations, leaving carnage in their wake as they roamed California's highways and byways on their stripped-down H-Ds. Youmight have seen the extraordinary images captured by Andrew Shaylor in his coffee-table book, Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, or read the king of gonzo journalism, Hunter S Thompson's seminal work Hell's Angels, which proved to be a universal hit prior to him heading off to hunt elk and breed Doberman Pinschers in Woody Creek, Colorado, suffering amoebic dysentery and culture shock.

All this was swirling around my head as I headed vacantly across the Lincolnshire Wolds for a photoshoot northeast of Louth. Yes,I know it doesn't conjure up those expected images of canyons and long stretches oflonely, open road, although I hardly saw another vehicle as this was just post-lockdown. Neither was I setting out to enforce a brand image, although riding this machine, I somehow felt different, but why, I don't know, but needed to find out. I wanted to be objective, not rendered helpless by drip-feeding nostalgia into my brain, believing I was something that I was not, and doubtless never would be.

So whilst being pragmatic, let's generalise for a moment about

Barleys and a few of what people comment are their negative talking points. Weight, image and average performance spring to mind. As this was my first time on a Harley, I'll take each of those in turn. Yes,the Iron is a hefty lump, weighing in at around 256kg, and yet it looks slim, and elegant, and as a rider, you tend to sit in it, as opposed to on it. That's down to the 735mm height seat, so it's easy to flatfoot at standstill, and smaller riders will appreciate that. And then there are those semi-ape bars, which proved to be extremely comfortable and as a result I soon found myself relaxing into the ride.

Image-wise, the Iron is a definite looker. If you like an edgy, factorycustom chopper, then this is the bike for you. Its bold, throwback styling works beautifully with the blackedout profile, enhanced in this case with the authentic 1970s-inspired custom tank graphic.

What surprised me most was the amount oflow-down torque it offered. Just a twist of the wrist brought smooth, ample power, and much of the time I found myself edging my way across the Wolds in third. This bike is certainly no adrenalin junkie, but it will sit there happily offering bucketloads of pleasure. Neither is it going to wear you out after a long ride, and you know what, I can't help but think how damn cool it is. That's because it's

12.5 litres (2.7 imperial gallons)

Fuel economy: 4Bmpg (est.)