first 100 miles

[dewjantim]

Can any of you answer this? I have had many, many new motorcycles and always use the hard and fast way to break them in. With the exception of a Honda 750, bought new in 1979. I broke it in as per the manual and it took almost 3000 miles to seal the rings! I don't have any trouble with any of my machines wearing out fast or not running good. Usually they run a lot better than other machines broken in the slow way. My RE runs fantastic, is easy to start, and has been very dependable. It will also run an indicated 93-95 mph on top, which is much better than most. I change my oil religiously and keep my bike in top tune. The RE is a much tougher machine than all of you give it credit for, if it wasn't it would have not survived all these years. In India they receive much more abuse than here. They are plodded around in high temps at low RPMs every day and survive for decades. Now I do agree with Kevin that high temps will ruin any engine , particularly a new one of any type. I don't run my engines hot, period. The one exception to that is my Ironhead sportster which seems to run hot all the time as did all the others I have owned. It even has an oil cooler and the heat really radiates from the engine, must be those big iron heads. And hey Prof Stack, I bet my RE runs better, faster, and gets better gas mileage than yours. It will probably last longer also........Dew.

[dan_h]

It seems from dewjantim"s reply that the Classic models could be used as everyday commuters on the freeway.  How about the drum brakes, are they good enough for freeway use?

[prof_stack]

The RE was built for top sustained speeds of 55-60, not the US Interstate (or German autobahn!).  Some units, perhaps like dewjantim's, might be exceptions as there always are.  But he changes oil frequently and watches the tuning carefully.  Those two things surely go a long way in making it work for him.

[DaveG297]

Hey Dew, maybe your speedo is off............just joshing......dg