Great video! Just watched it for the fourth time. I bought my '86 FXR in 1991 for $8k. Since then I watch my buddys trade in their Softails for Electrial Glides, then go with Street Glides or Road Glides-a new bike every 3 or 4 years. I kept my FXR and upgraded to a pro clutch, Jim's transmission, adjustable Dyna front end, Legend shocks and performance S&S engine. Now it's the perfect motorcycle.

Nothing feels like an FXR. It’s not just the handling, it’s the way the frame sends the engine feedback to the rider. It’s the most involving satisfying motorcycle I’ve ever ridden in 40 years on two wheels. Neither of these bikes are fast, but they are fast enough. A carbed Evo FXR is the only one for me. Just went from ATL to CT on mine in two days. Around 1300 miles with back roads, but also a few hours on the 81 hitting 90mph regularly. It can be set up for comfort, performance and reliability.

"A Harley with no noise is like a woman with no Boobs"

No contest. FXR all the way for handling and the sound of the EVO is the best of the best

My FXR just puts a smile on my face every-time I rid it. It’s got some light engine work pistons, cam.. gives me what I need. I am on the hunt for an FXDX because of that 70 in 5th gear feeling you mentioned.

I would disagree on reliability. Depending on the year of twin cam I think the evo is more reliable. As long as the evo has been maintained

Nice comparison. I've got the 2005 fxdc version of your Dyna. Done 50,000 miles and no major problems. Cam chain tensioners minimal wear, and mechanic thinks they are the original ones.

I laughed out loud at the super nonchalant abrupt explosion after the "back in the building".

Great comparison video from someone with heavy miles on both. That’s definitely a good situation to be in for sure. Thanks for breaking things down. I kinda want an early dyna now, to roundout the collection, but garage space is already at a premium 😂

I can’t afford either. FXRs have been the bike to have since before the dyna was discontinued. I loved how my 98 sporty felt.

Owned both. I agree. Did a lot of upgrades to my fxr to get it on par with newer drivetrain as with my 2001 dyna. Believe it or not my favorite drivetrain is my current build 2011 fat bob( lots of work done to make it the best it can be). It cruises highway and fun in town. They are plentiful, cheap and reliable. As always great Channel.

Cool comparison! I am going to be soon buying my first Harley Davidson FXDL, it’s a 2003, in pretty nice shape, 41,XXX miles on it, will be taking a look at the cam chain tensioners first thing before I go for any serious rides on it.

FXR all day. No matter what bike you're going to have to pay the "harley tax" (upgrades). Might as well go with the better handling. Evo motor does need high compression and Cam or drop a v111 in there, but it beats having the dyna death wobble after 100mph+. Scary riding behind my dyna buddies and watching them wobble, while I ride on rails.

I got a 07 super glide fxd got a stage 1 going club style slowly but surely..coo video thanks man

I ride a 98 1200s. It's the fxdx of the Sportsters. It has adjustable front and rear suspension, dual disc front brakes, dual spark plug heads, 10:1 compression pistons, single fire ignition, and a performance cam. All from the factory. It's one of the fastest Sportsters HD made. Easily the fastest ridgid mount Sportster from the factory.

I have a 2012 FXDF, upgrade from a 1979 883, and I love the difference in ride.

I got both ...prefer the FXR 😊

This is a really helpful video. Sounds like the Dyna can be the reliable bike (first and main) and the FXR can be the fun project bike (secondary and for fun)

I built a 105hp hammer performance 1275 sportster, full suspension, T-bars, saddlemen seat, road warrior fairing. Basically everything you can do is done. It out runs and out handles built dynas, stage 2 m8's. I'd like to see you review and ride a fully built sportster!

I've had both bikes, and I'm in a large 1%er club, reason I mentioned this is I've ridden across the country and even Mexico. My conclusion is the FXDX/XT is by far and still is my favorite motorcycle. FXDXT bags, 14 inch piggy backs, fairing, risers, and freeway pegs and I can go anywhere. I even prefer it over my Lowrider S, reason is it feels lighter, I can hop curves and center dividers, I hit the bar and hop the bike on the sidewalk and park it on the side of the wall, and most of all reliability.

I like the "6" Speed Dyna , bigger swingarm bolt , bigger axels , 17" rear wheel .

If you want something simple to mod, easy to set up and easy to ride get a dyna. I have an fxr, fxdx and an fxbb. They’re all great, for different reasons.

Fellow fxr owner/nerd here and I will say only get the fxr if you’re an fxr guy or you want to get good at spinning wrenches. To make the dyna great it only really needs the Sputhe kit and it’s fine. Love my fxr and it eats dynas in corners but let’s be real- they’re called fixxers for a reason. So path of least resistance is def the dyna especially with a Sputhe kit. FXRs are a rite of passage for Harley guys/dyna bros but I’d only reccomend holding onto it if you’re a fxr guy or it’s not your main bike.

My 99 twin cam FLHR has needed TONS of work. I've spent 6 months and thousands of dollars getting it on the road. It's hard to believe the simplicity of the EVO is more expensive to work on.

Either way the 2 best bikes Harley-Davidson ever made.

Did a new Softail Low Rider, then a Road Glide Special, now I'm stepping back to an 03 Anniversary FXD-"X-T". Ready to see what it's about.

I think it really comes down to if you plan to spend money on it, get the fxr.

that Indian Larry bike is heirloom quality. You are blessed my friend,

Gotta be careful with a low mile FXR. The bike has probably been sitting a LONG time. I have a 1990 FXR that i bought with about 6k miles on it, within a year of having it I had many issues that came from it just sitting unmaintained for so long. Here is a non-comprehensive list but most things. 1 of my head gaskets blew from being dried out (both replaced), both base gaskets blew again dried out, one push rod gasket blew again dried out. Those all happened at once, but it had been riding good before that for about 500 miles or better. Once those were all fixed by a family friend who owned a v-twin shop for 40+ years (cost $800 but that was family and friends pricing) I also had the pick-up and timer go out, this took me hours of diagnosing to figure out and I would not have figured it out without that family friend. Once that was fixed I ran into a hydro-locking issue with my fuel. For those that do not know that is when the tank becomes pressurized and does not allow fuel out because it cannot get air in. This was due to the valve in the gas tank cap. After a little googling I found that this is a simply fix of just drilling a small hole in the little ball inside the cap that was seized. I was also plagued with carb problems that started with the fact that it had not been re-jetted when the previous owner straight piped it, followed by the fact it had sat so long that crap got into the gas tank and would gum up the carb. The fix to this was simply putting an in-line filter into the fuel line between the tank and the carb. Lastly, the bike needs a paint job since the clear is peeling from sitting for so long and poor quality paint back in 1990. Like I said not a comprehensive list but just a few things to think about.

Nice

What's the FXR like when riding 2 up? Great topic thou🤘🛵

The tank isn’t bigger in the fxdx. The evo is a 100% a better motor than a twin cam. Easy to work on and will last longer most times and no cam chain tensioners to deal with.

Have a 91 FXR bought it bran new I will never get rid of it never heard of a FDX Trying to send s picture not working

The blue one is the FXR! Both of those bikes are bitchin!

You know bro back in the day the FXR was the bike of choice for a certain 1% club that ran hard miles from coast to coast. Nimble and with some hp upgrades what else do you need. Plus big twins are 100k motors and EVO’s go much farther and easy to work on.

Only thing I would add about the early twin cams is that a cam chain follower being made of plastic, are definitely a ticking time bomb. They could randomly grenade stop up oil flow and ruin an engine really at any moment. You can get that fixed for around $500 if you do the work yourself ideally when installing cams.

Got both of them but it doesn't matter how much I upgrade my DX my FXR runs alot better through turns. That frame is amazing but that's probably the only thing that's good stock. The engine is under powered, brakes are poor at it's best and the suspension suck. When all that's upgraded it's solid. The DX have a bit more grunt, better brakes and better suspension out the box but most of us will upgrade them anyway.

Dyna or FXR. how about Dyna and FXR

Good review 👍

One of each... or more!

With what paint is this engine painted and was it painted out of the frame ?

Never seen anyone riding one fast in the twisties. I have , but I’ve never seen anyone else doing it. I had a 2009 Dyna.

The Evo motor is by far a much better motor than a Twinkie. They run hot as a heat pump. My fxr will cruise dead smooth riding 2 at 80 mph. I owned a dyna fxr is by far the best of the 2

I picked an FXDWG... They just look cooler.

ill stick to with my FXR with a 113 evo, DX front end, 2 into 1, bars , risers and some good rear shocks. I agree the 80 evo is underpowered even with a few mods.

Change the back sprocket/belt pulley,it will run down the freeway 100mph all day long no problem..(just a lil gearing change)so I was told by Fxr legend Joekid

Love the panel job.. just can't with the painted windscreen.. I don't care about visibility. It's just a nope for me. ... and you forgot time! If you have the time! For wrenching lol

This is a Dyna superglide? I thought it was a Dyna lowrider S

Can't imagine "crushing highway miles" at 70-75mph with a 5 speed is rewarding.

What headlights are those?

FXR was an awesome bike for its time, so why is it not still in production.

The twin cam more reliable than the evo comment is going to make some heads explode

Thinking of trading my truck for an '02 FXDL. I currently ride a '96 Sportster 1200, not sure if you've spent lots of time on them, but i'd love to hear what you have to say on them and the differences between the FXDL and the Sportster 1200. Obviously they're very different, but what do you think are the biggest differences? Thanks!

Man you know I'm FXR ALL DAY!

M8 Softail! Nah anything with two wheels is ok in my book

Just get a softail...

DEFINE “Better”.

FXR all day Unless you are just going to do stunts. Then the Dyna.

Evo forever

Both bikes are full winners... DX motor =more power. fxr = better handling. Those ore brass taxes

I ride a Dyna FXDL Low Rider. I through better cams in it and it actually hauls ass. I have a mukuni carb on it as well. Rides fine better than most. Have no problems with it at all! I run vance n hines long shot staggard too, I am not into those 2 nto 1 exhaust systems. I'm old school though.

Someone here in Australia wants $30,000 for an fxr. Crazy.

Fxr had a better frame,rear shock angle wasn't the greatest but way better frame, dyna is ok 02 03 twin cam has a better lower end, frame change on the 06? Dyna I believe?? I had a 82 FXR never should have sold it! 60 thousand miles on it an never been apart weak link on the early FXRs was the inner primary would crack,hence the toque plate to lock in both sides of the driver train an engine,

When is the next FXR event

what about a twin cam fxr? is that the best of both worlds?

FXR>SOFTAIL>DYNA

Look the same to me....

Just like you I have both an FXR and an FXDX, they are both very different bikes. I can't choose haha so i keep both 😂 There was a moment however when I thought to put the Twin Cam powertrain in my FXR frame, but I feel that it doesn't make the bike more reliable. (it's just the vibrations+rubbermount that makes me lose bolts etc) I have updated the clutch master with a Hydraulic one and dual disc brake in the front 👍 You better not sell either one because you ride the Lowrider ST now, just kidding (not kidding) I like your videos

You might just be wrenching on yours a lot cause it’s a terd haha. Most Evos are super reliable

Late model dyna is the best, far superior to the fxr.

I keep seeing people say/post the fxr is the best handling bike ever by Harley.. I am not buying I to that. lighter ? and easier to ride for a smaller person…if that’s what people mean .. then ok..it’s easier to ride and to learn on..but for a experienced rider I’m goin with the current Softail models… sorry

It’s so sad people look at an FXR for “handling.” Unfortunately if you want real handling you need to go to a different brand all together. Or if you truly want the best handling Harley; you’ll have to buy the new softail M8. Or better yet the new sportster s. Just admit you like the older bikes and quit justifying by saying you want better handling.

I got a FXDC and fuckin love it

Typical dyna bro question here but what bar/riser setup are you using on your FXDX?

man i want me one of those swingarm stickers funny as shit🤣

Evo is for the win hands down what tc reliability are you talking about 😂😂😂😂😂