Harley-Davidson Super Glide
HARLEY-DAVIDSON SUPER GLIDE
Cycle World Road Test
Like Geraldine Says: “What You See Is What You Get!"
IN CASE YOU have been out of the country lately, we are now firmly engrossed in the age of “funk.”
Funk? Define it as something indefinable. Explain it by example, not by definition. It expresses an age where things and people are not necessarily attractive or magnetic because of simple, plastic beauty. Albert King is funky. Tom Jones is not. Rex Reid is funky. And Johnny Carson would like to be, but is not. But his sidekick, Ed, is. Looking at funk in yet another way, we find that nobody laughs at types like Mama Cass or Janis Joplin, because their funkiness outweighs their excess weight.
Likewise, the only thing you can find truly laughable about the Super Glide is the name itself—straight out of the funny books, unsubtle, blatant. As for the rest of the bike, its concept is right at home in the age of funk. If it doesn’t embody the Big Mama Syndrome all over, then what on earth does?
In a way, the appearance of the Super Glide—a taut, lean, stripped-down beastie next to its more conventional relative, the FLH—is an institutional recognition of the chopper’s art. For those H-D buyers who plan to chop their machines anyway, it’s a lot easier to do it with the Super Glide than with a new or used dresser. One of H-D’s West Coast road men tells us that only a few Harley owners will leave their bikes in showroom trim for very long.
So, taken either for itself or as the basis for a 74-cu. in. chopper, the Super Glide comes off nicely. No doubt we’ll get mail from the purist camp saying that we have left our virtue behind us, and, oh God, whatever happened to our pristine, clean values like leanness, handling, and hair-trigger responsiveness?
Okay, okay, those virtues are great for those who dig them. We do, too, but can also appreciate that a large number of people are having fun on bikes in a different way, using different value systems and words like “Jamming” and “Scoot” and “Hardtail,” etc.
The Super Glide is a Sportster for those people who like Seventy-Fours. It’s big, heavy and somewhat archaic mechanically. And it’s not the jet that the lOOOcc Sportster is. Nor does it handle or stop as well.
But the Super Glide is as opulent as a night with Big Mama. It’s one hell of a road burner with tireless high speed cruising as its strong point. And it does have that venerable V-Twin engine, the biggest V that Harley makes, recognized to be one of the two or three most long-lived motorcycle engines in the world.
Its massive built-up crankshaft assembly, riding on roller bearings at each end, gives the impression that it must weigh a ton. In traditional V-Twin manner, to eliminate rocking couple, the rear connecting rod is forked to allow the front rod to ride in between the fork, on the same crankpin.
This arrangement keeps both cylinders directly in line, good for the least possible engine width, but not taking advantage of the possible cooling effect of slightly offset cylinders and side-by-side crankpin mounting. Many Harley owners fit a cooler heat range plug to the rear cylinder because it does run hotter, a measure not absolutely necessary, but of possible benefit in certain conditions.
There are no chains inside the H-D engine. Rather, gears set in the timing chest handle driving the single camshaft with four cam lobes to operate the valves, the double-gear oil pump, the crankcase breather and, eventually, the ignition contact point cam. Gears may be slightly noisier than a chain, but they rarely break!
To compensate for the “growth” of the extremely tall cast iron cylinders and the aluminum cylinder heads when the engine heats up, automotive-type hydraulic valve lifters are employed to maintain a no-lash condition over the long distance between the camshaft in the crankcase and the valves in the top of the engine. At the extreme, this “growth” can approach 0.040 in., but the hydraulic lifters help keep the Super Glide’s engine quiet mechanically.
Due to Harley-Davidson’s extreme care in cam grinding the pistons and then inserting a thin steel blade extending between the thin front and back sections of each piston, the clearance between the pistons and cylinder walls is held to a miniscule 0.001 to 0.0015 in. Considering its sheer size, the 74-cu. in. Harley-Davidson engine is one of the quietest air-cooled units we’ve had the pleasure not to hear. Such small clearances indicate that the 74 is built to last.
Oil to lubricate and cool the engine is circulated by the gear-type pump through the pinion gear shaft to the connecting rod bearings. Splash oil then lubricates the pistons, cylinder walls, main bearings and connecting rod top bushings. Normal operating oil pressure is about 40 psi, at which figure a check valve opens and directs surplus oil back into the gearcase.
Oil is routed through external oil lines to wet the valve gear and a special branch directs lubricant to the hydraulic lifters. It is a relatively simple system to be sure, but one which works reliably. Because of the largeness of the engine and the high heat developed, oil of heavy viscosity must be used.
Many of the old-time Harley riders flinched when H-D introduced the electric-starting Electra Glide. It had a kickstarter as well, and many people preferred it. The Super Glide doesn’t have a self starter. Back to manhood. Besides that, it doesn’t really need one. Once the starting technique is mastered, starting is a three-kick affair. Two kicks with the choke closed and the ignition off to prime the engine, and another kick with the ignition switch turned on would almost always bring the engine to life.
When the engine was hot, however, it was found best to turn the throttle open wide, turn on the ignition and give a good swift kick. Just one usually.
That may sound familiar to Harley riders, but the smoothness of carburetion won’t unless they’ve got a 1971 or later model. Our test bike had the latest Bendix/Zenith carburetor on it, which is vastly improved over the older models’ Tillotson unit. The Bendix carburetor features external adjustments for the idle mixture, idle speed and linkage for the accelerator pump which supplies additional fuel when the throttle is yanked open. Only the main jet is not accessible from the outside.
We received the Super Glide with fewer than 300 miles on the odometer and promptly rode it down to San Diego and back on the freeway. At speeds in the 70 mph region, the big Twin returned an astonishing 47 miles per gallon fuel consumption figure. In addition, the throttle responded to every whim of the rider’s hand, except that Harley-Davidson still insists on using the antiquated non-spring return type throttle that always seems to have a large amount of slop present. We would prefer to see a positive closing throttle.
In direct opposition to the pleasure we received from the engine’s mechanical silence, relatively quiet exhaust and well nigh perfect carburetion was the heavy vibration at almost any rpm. Although the vibration isn’t particularly annoying or painful because of its low frequency, it is bothersome and it made seeing much out of the rear view mirror practically impossible. While riding at night it was amusing to watch patterns caused by following cars’ headlights mystically appear in the mirror.
With gears the size of a Sherman tank, the transmission almost never gives any trouble. In fact, several riders of Sportster-based 160-mph fuel-burning dragsters are sawing the Sportster gearboxes off the engine and fitting a 74 gearbox to handle the power developed by their engines. But the transmission is loud. Gear lever travel is very long and stiff, and crunches occur between every shift, either up or down, unless the engine’s revs are allowed to drop or rise to meet the corresponding speed. In addition, the rider must lift his left foot from the footpegs to execute a shift in either direction. Too bad that the buttery smooth Sportster box can’t be used here.
Fortunately, the transmission doesn’t need to be shifted much because of the engine’s unbelievable low speed pulling power and ruler-flat torque band. At any speed over 35 mph the Super Glide will pull away in high gear like a freight train. If the rider likes to shift he’ll find the gear ratios ideally suited to the power characteristics, and engine sprockets of varying sizes are available to suit the tastes of just about anyone.
The clutch is difficult to fault. A dry multi-disc affair, it requires only medium lever pressure to disengage and could be held in at a stoplight without appearing to get hot and cause the machine to creep. It also took many vicious starts at the drag strip without a sign of protest. A double-row chin, which
rides over a nylon adjuster shoe, transmits the engine’s pulses through a compensation spring on the engine sprocket to the clutch itself. Simple, and very reliable.
When the styling department got through at their drawing boards they made several errors. First, the handlebars, which are rubber mounted to reduce engine vibration and road shocks to the rider, are the traditional H-D “sit-up-and-beg” variety which are very narrow (28 in.) for such a heavy machine and not particularly comfortable. Even if they are funky. The seat is in the contemporary styling vein. But it is uncomfortable for anything longer than a 30-min. trip up the road. It’s too narrow, too hard and has a curious depression in the middle in which the rider is forced to sit, unless he’s incredibly tiny or has arms seven feet long! Our rear seat passengers complained bitterly and one (a female, of course) threatened to walk home.
Of course, accessory seats are available for the less hearty and would push the comfort index way up in our estimation. The relationship between the seat, the handlebars and the footpegs could be quite good for riders to medium to large > stature, and the handlebar control levers are comfortable, although quite a distance out from the handlebars.
HARLEY-DAVIDSON
SUPER GLIDE
$2459
Other items in the control group were met with mixed emotions. The rear brake pedal resembles the one in an automobile and is located so high and far away from the footpeg that you’ve got to lift your foot to press it.
The horn button, headlight dipper switch and ignition cutout switches are conveniently close to the rider’s hands and the wiring is routed through the handlebars rather than taped or clamped outside.
An instrument cluster containing the speedometer, ignition and main light switch, choke control and a trio of instrument lights is located in the center forward portion of the gas tank. The speedometer is fairly easy to read, but the idiot lights are too far down and make it necessary for the rider to take his eyes off the road to see them.
Another gripe about the cosmetics: the aluminum shell which covers the headlight is highly polished and the instrument cluster in the gas tank is chrome-plated. This looks just dandy, but is annoying in that the sun’s rays are reflected up into the rider’s eyes.
Jazzing up the appearance of the front end is exactly what the slim Sportster forks do, but they leave something to be desired in the ride department. They are extremely softly sprung, bottom easily and don’t seem quite up to the job.
A 74 has never been considered a superb roadholder, and the Super Glide didn’t spoil the reputation. The rear suspension is overly soft on the low spring tension setting and helps make the machine wallow in turns. Part of this is due to the fact that the Super Glide shares the same frame as the Electra Glide. These frames feature thick, robust mounting lugs, thick-walled tubing and a general bulletproof appearance.
However, the rear suspension’s top mounting point is up under the rider’s portion of the seat, which puts the shocks at quite a slant and reduces the amount of travel the shock can go through while soaking up the bumps. This allows room for saddlebags for the touring rider and radio/emergency equipment for the police models.
With large, low pressure tires the Super Glide is particularly effective in ironing out small road irregularities, but the machine must be muscled through low speed turns. Even at speed the Super Glide takes some force to make it go where you want it, but straight line stability is excellent and the feeling is reassuring.
A low center of gravity aids the stability but the extreme width of the footpegs and the low side stand make it easy to drag things during enthusiastic cornering maneuvers.
A Super Glide is not a road racer, and the brakes tell you that too. The front unit is the same as the Sportster one and requires considerable lever pressure to get even a moderate amount of braking. It’s really too small for the machine, heats and fades rapidly and is hard to pull in. The rear brake, on the other hand, is hydraulically operated and quite powerful. However, the cast iron rear brake drum is without cooling fins or rings, heats up rapidly and holds the heat. The 1972 Electra Glide is available with a hydraulic disc front brake which works fine, but it isn’t available for the Super Glide.
Paintwork is rich, chrome-plating is generally very good and the polished aluminum is attractive. Most of the engine castings are left in a rough, as-cast state and have an air of masculinity and brutality about them. But here beauty is in the eye of the beholder. We would prefer to see the castings smoothed out a little more.
In general the electrics are excellent just like most American automobiles. Everything worked just fine, but the Super Glide needs a louder horn, just like most motorcycles. Although quite small, the headlight throws a wide beam and is satisfactory for any riding under 80 mph at night, and the taillight is easily visible to following traffic.
Looking at the Super Glide in terms of dollar value is a somewhat disappointing task. It lists for almost 25 big ones, and so outprices all but a few machines. The Sportster is, relatively speaking, a better value at about $2100.
If you are a sedate touring type, the Super Glide is an unlikely candidate for your first big road machine unless you are really into the Harley mystique and know what you are getting into. As is, the Super Glide works best as a surface street “jammer.”
Certainly Harley-Davidson has no shortage of enthusiastic customers, but if you’re not one of them, take a good look before you go the Super Glide route. Check your image. When ol’ Geraldine comes out with that what-you-see-is-what-youget line, she’s right, you know. [Ö]
