Hammer owners,

I was wondering what you kind of bike you rode prior to your Hammer, and what you like or dislike about the handling. What do you like or dislike about the bike in general...

Routine maintenance requirements...what do you find easy or difficult to perform (for those that service their own bikes).

Battery or electrical panel access...well thought out and easy to get to, or a royal pain in the a**....

Brake performance and pad wear....

Tire wear and longevity....

Tech23

Not an owner, but as a Victory mechanic I have ridden a bunch of them.

Dislikes in handling........
Very heavy feeling in slow speed turns[parking lot]
Requires more "counter steer" then most bikes to keep it in a turn

Likes....
Dual disk front will shed speed like a sport bike
Once you are used to it the bike is very agile in the twisties, and you can really pour it on coming off an apex

Service
Pop off left cover, and you are at the battery for inspection
Add a 10mm wrench, and the battery is on the ground in minutes

Pop off the right cover, ands you are at the fuse box

One drain plug does it all. Engine, primary, and trans all live in a common case

Oil filter is easy access, and does not drain on any part of the bike when you pull it

My Jackpot is my first bike. I never understood all the talk about the wide tire handling until I got on a buddies Vegas and almost flopped over turning right! Being his first time on a wide tire bike he went into the opposing traffic lane. Luckily no cars were coming. LOL We immediately switched back to our own bikes!

Brake pad wear is up to your style of riding. Most complain about the short life of Vic pads and switch to Lyndall's. They last 15k +!

Tire wear is up to your style of riding.

These bikes are a breeze to do the maintenance on.

Not an owner, but as a Victory mechanic I have ridden a bunch of them.

Dislikes in handling........
Very heavy feeling in slow speed turns[parking lot]
Requires more "counter steer" then most bikes to keep it in a turn

Likes....
Dual disk front will shed speed like a sport bike
Once you are used to it the bike is very agile in the twisties, and you can really pour it on coming off an apex

Service
Pop off left cover, and you are at the battery for inspection
Add a 10mm wrench, and the battery is on the ground in minutes

Pop off the right cover, ands you are at the fuse box

One drain plug does it all. Engine, primary, and trans all live in a common case

Oil filter is easy access, and does not drain on any part of the bike when you pull it

kevinx...Thanks for the reply,

I just demo rode a Jackpot the other day, I own a 2000 Dyna Wide Glide and of course that is what I am used to. I felt like the bike resisted efforts to turn...in other words it wanted to be upright and go straight. How does the Hammer compare to the Jackpot in handling? Does the 18" front wheel make a noticeable difference compared to the 21" on the Jackpot in overcoming the rear tires influence on handling?

I had a Hammer blow by me on a stretch of twisties not long ago so I believe what you tell me about it's agility once used to it. Thats the thing with test rides, most often than not they are not long enough to adapt to a 250mm tire if you are used to the way a 140mm tire handles. I use countersteer all the time especially in twisties on my bike, however I never get the sensation the bars are fighting me. I guess the big rear tire equals more countersteer effort than what I am used to huh?

Also it looks like an internal transmission failure will require complete top end removal to split the cases to gain access to the transmission....right? Do you see any transmission issues or any consequential damage that may be caused by debris circulated throughout the common case?

Is the Victory put together using all metric fasteners? I noticed you said add a 10mm wrench. I have to ask...what brand and model bike do you ride?

Tech23

My Jackpot is my first bike. I never understood all the talk about the wide tire handling until I got on a buddies Vegas and almost flopped over turning right! Being his first time on a wide tire bike he went into the opposing traffic lane. Luckily no cars were coming. LOL We immediately switched back to our own bikes!

Brake pad wear is up to your style of riding. Most complain about the short life of Vic pads and switch to Lyndall's. They last 15k +!

Tire wear is up to your style of riding.

These bikes are a breeze to do the maintenance on.

Thanks for the input...I know how your buddy feels...LOL. When the brake pads are worn out are the inner and outer pads worn evenly? My Wide Glide has left me with collection of worn out inner pads and the outer pads are only 1/2 worn.....non floating calipers and rotors. Also the inner and outer pads are not interchangable.

Tech23

A little more counter steer then you use now will make the Hammer settle right into a line through turns. Like I said it just takes getting used to. Until pushed the JP, and Hammer feel about the same, in hard turns, and heavy breaking the dual disk, and 18" wheel really show themselves
With the exception of 99-00 these bikes have proven to be about bullet proof, There is no "debris" that you have to worry about. The bikes run a gear to gear primary that simply does not fail, and the transmission is built more like a car transmission. As with anything failures happen, but they are very rare. That includes bikes with modified motors

I currently ride an 06 KP that has a 5 degree rake kit, 21x3.5 wheel,Corbin bags, 11.0:1 pistons, S3 cams, PMRT intake, VFC2 fuel controller. In full street trim it puts 104HP, and 116FtLb to the tire. Runs a 12.0 1/4 with me on it

My hot rod is an 03CC that has been trimmed to 590#, 100" with 11.0, ported heads, VM2 cams, RPW 2-1 pipe,S&S intake, and VFC2 . Does 114/119 to the tire, and runs an 11.4. Prolly gonna put NOS on it, and see if I can get a 10.9

I would hop on either of these bikes, and ride cross country. The bike I traded on my KP was a 03TC that made 101/106 out of 92", and weighed 820#, but was still good for a 12.7. Ran the balls off of that bike for almost 80K miles before I traded, and the new owner is still happily riding it

Oh, and lest I forget. Victory like anything else in America designed from a clean sheet. Is required to use metric fastners since the modified metric act of 1978.
HD, and it's clones have dragged out the SAE fastner for all this time because of an exemption granted HD; that allowed manufacturers to not change on things that were "evolved". This was done to keep retooling costs down. That is why the V-Rod is metric

My OEM pads wore evenly but were pretty much gone at 3500 miles. My Lyndalls, have over 15,000 on them and look to have at least 50% left!! On top of that the Lyndall's are less expensive than the Vic pads.

A little more counter steer then you use now will make the Hammer settle right into a line through turns. Like I said it just takes getting used to. Until pushed the JP, and Hammer feel about the same, in hard turns, and heavy breaking the dual disk, and 18" wheel really show themselves
With the exception of 99-00 these bikes have proven to be about bullet proof, There is no "debris" that you have to worry about. The bikes run a gear to gear primary that simply does not fail, and the transmission is built more like a car transmission. As with anything failures happen, but they are very rare. That includes bikes with modified motors

I currently ride an 06 KP that has a 5 degree rake kit, 21x3.5 wheel,Corbin bags, 11.0:1 pistons, S3 cams, PMRT intake, VFC2 fuel controller. In full street trim it puts 104HP, and 116FtLb to the tire. Runs a 12.0 1/4 with me on it

My hot rod is an 03CC that has been trimmed to 590#, 100" with 11.0, ported heads, VM2 cams, RPW 2-1 pipe,S&S intake, and VFC2 . Does 114/119 to the tire, and runs an 11.4. Prolly gonna put NOS on it, and see if I can get a 10.9

I would hop on either of these bikes, and ride cross country. The bike I traded on my KP was a 03TC that made 101/106 out of 92", and weighed 820#, but was still good for a 12.7. Ran the balls off of that bike for almost 80K miles before I traded, and the new owner is still happily riding it

Oh, and lest I forget. Victory like anything else in America designed from a clean sheet. Is required to use metric fastners since the modified metric act of 1978.
HD, and it's clones have dragged out the SAE fastner for all this time because of an exemption granted HD; that allowed manufacturers to not change on things that were "evolved". This was done to keep retooling costs down. That is why the V-Rod is metric



In your first reply...I took it to mean that you did not own a Victory. I'm glad I had an opportunity to speak to a Tech to get the low down on these bikes. They have come a long way since I had seen my first Victory. Metric works for me...99.9% of my tool box is metric (28 years @ VW dealers), thats the only reason I asked. I will have more tools to service a Victory than what I currently ride.

I have owned ATC 3 wheelers, dirt bikes, and quads (all at the same time), and have switched off riding them frequently over the years. I always allowed some time to adapt to the significantly different handling characteristics and the different techniques required by each to ride safe & effectively....before wicking it up. I guess this is just one more machine that requires a different style....Thats what I liked about all my off road equipment.

Tech23

My OEM pads wore evenly but were pretty much gone at 3500 miles. My Lyndalls, have over 15,000 on them and look to have at least 50% left!! On top of that the Lyndall's are less expensive than the Vic pads.

3,500 miles with even wear or 6,100 miles with one pad worn and the other 1/2 worn...which is worse....I'll take even wear every time...it sucks having to remove a pad with 1/2 the material left...especially when you can't move it to the other side of the rotor because it won't fit. I switched to EBC sintered metallic pads on my Wide Glide and get better mileage out of a set of pads....not even wear though. Thanks for the info.

Tech23

3500 miles of even wear. Meaning the pads were evenly worn and had to be changed at 3500 miles. The Vic pads suck.

As I stated go with the Lyndall's.

Working at a dealer gives me the chance to ride many bikes. I have ridden the hammer and Vegas along with all the Harley's. The 240 rear tire does make it harder to turn in. But it is still more fun then the BRP Spyder that rides like a snowmobile with wheels.

Working at a dealer gives me the chance to ride many bikes. I have ridden the hammer and Vegas along with all the Harley's. The 240 rear tire does make it harder to turn in. But it is still more fun then the BRP Spyder that rides like a snowmobile with wheels.

240, Is that a mistype? The Hammer and JP have a 250.

Seems I gave one number and not two. That is 240 on the HD Rocker-C and 250 on the Victory Hammer. Both bikes have to be muscled around the turn to some degree. I say this because if you take the exact bike and change one thing you can change the way it feels. Take the V-Rod for example You have the standard wide tire v-Rod and the Night Rod Special. Both bikes are set up for the taller crowd.
Depending on your height and reach if you are average height for a guy say 5"10" 180 Lbs. Most say the standard V-Rod is easy to handle. That comes from mechanical advantage . You sit upright with the bars coming back to you. The night rod you sit forward a little more forward, reaching to the bars. It gives you that feeling that the center of gravity is off just a little bit. Some people are ok with the second one. But if you give them the choice after a back to back test ride must like the standard. Now that is based on people that like cruisers not crotch rockets.

Many people, including myself, find that the Metzler 880 rear 260 rear tire improves handling over the Dunlop. To me there is a big difference and those that have switched will stick with the Metz.

One thing that I noticed and it may be because I switched to the metzlers at the same time but when I went to the 280 on the 18x10.5 rim my bike seems to handle better and turn easier.

One thing that I noticed and it may be because I switched to the metzlers at the same time but when I went to the 280 on the 18x10.5 rim my bike seems to handle better and turn easier.

i totaly agree with diamond, when the dunlops came off the h.d. i replaced them with metzlers, and that was before the marathon, the 21 " lazer handled better than dunlop, however the marathon 21 " and 140 rear handled super, neutral steer and did not follow the rain gutter.


steve

Does that Metz 260 fit the stock wheel? I know you need to go up to the 10 1/2 inch wheel for the 280.

Does that Metz 260 fit the stock wheel? I know you need to go up to the 10 1/2 inch wheel for the 280.


Yes it does. Actually, the Metz looks smaller than the Dunlop. Different ways of measuring, I guess.

Yes it does. Actually, the Metz looks smaller than the Dunlop. Different ways of measuring, I guess.

+1 thumb up

The Hammer is my second bike. My first was a Suzuki VS800, a 800cc cruiser. The Suzuki handled well but the Hammer handles better.

I'm just offering this to encourage anyone considering the Hammer to test one before being discouraged by critics of its handling.

My first bike was a '96 Suzuki BAndit 600

I've put about 1500 miles on my Hammer and I am just now learning to counter-steer. When coming to a stop sign I can just about completely stop without putting my feet down. The real problem I'm still having is slow speed turns like the parking lot, or trying to jump into traffic while turning right.

I wouldn't trade it for anything though!

I think slow speed turn are a problem for everyone. I have to remind myself to not look down but keep looking well ahead of the turn.

Good luck.

I traded in my 2006 Honda Sabre 1100 on the Hammer


I was worried about all the talk of poor handling before my test drive and was completely surprised when the Hammer seemed to handle BETTER than my Sabre.....I slipped right into turns and didn't feel like I had to muscle it at all....

I think the Hammer has a much lower center of gravity, making it a lot easier to handle....maybe its just me though

I agree with you. The Hammer is very stable in the curves. I'm taking corner much faster than I did with my Suzuki VS800.

My only problem was with the original handlebars. The we're the chrome V-bars and they were too wide and too far of a reach.

I rode an '06 Concours before my hammer 8 ball (i know - are there two more different bikes?). I had little to no trouble "adapting" to the wide tire. It takes a little deliberation in slow turns, but is absolutely no problem. If you want to turn sharper, lean more and accelerate gently, just like any bike. Leaning at speed, you can feel when the wide tire goes from the "middle" tread to the "side" tread. The first time this happens it will be a new sensation, but not to worry - the tire hangs on just fine. You'll just have to ride more until it becomes old hat (tough job, but someone's gotta do it). I love my hammer. I am 6'1" and 225lbs.

Bikes I have owned:
2004 HD Sportster, 2006 BMW K1200S, 2006 Honda VTX 1800N, 2009 Victory Hammer S

I switched from the BMW to the Honda (in 2008) for my wife since she was not very comfortable. The VTX was just to conservative and kinda boring for me so I traded up to the Victory. I put a lot of miles on my machines, and my wife likes the Vic the most so far.

For handling, the Hammer is solid, I ride long and in all weather. The stability the wide rear end gives you in heavy winds is golden. In my case more that compensates for the tougher tip in.

08 ZX14 (still have it) before that a 00 turbo hayabusa and 01 gsxr 1000, before that a 07 honda xx blackbird and lastly suzuki 1400 intruder.