Harley Fat Bob

harley fat bob Video Review

I took delivery of my 2010 Harley-Davidson Fat Bob on November 20, 2009. Thanks goes to Black...

Dodgy paint job aside, Harley-Davidsons Seventy-Two is great fun

Ever wonder what Harley-Davidson engineers do? After all, almost all their new models are just variations of a common theme. A Wide Glide and a Street Bob may look nothing alike but strip away the wheels, petrol tank, and handlebar and, underneath the skin, they are identical Dynas. It's the same with the Fat Bob and new Softail Slim (both are Softails) as well as the SuperLow and the new Seventy-Two (both Sportsters).

So what do Harley engineers do with their time? Well, read this quote from the press release about the new Seventy-Two concerning a new paint technology - some hue it's calling Hard Candy Big Red - that the company has just started applying to that new bike's "peanut" petrol tank.

According to Harley, Big Red (the paint) is differentiated from other metallic finishes by "hexagon-shaped flakes that are more than seven times the diameter of metal flake used in typical production paint. Each flake is coated with a thin aluminium film and then tinted red. Four applications of clear coat, combined with hand sanding, create a smooth finish over the flakes." Phew! Lamborghinis wish their exteriors were treated with so much attention.