Originally Posted by agmetal

I'm curious - has anyone else here had the chance to rideboth a DL-1, and an earlier roadster? My friend/coworker, inspired by how much I like my 1937 Tourist, picked up a 1980 step-through DL-1, primarily for his girlfriend (although he'll probably ride it a lot more than she will). He brought it to the shop yesterday, and we compared both bikes side-by-side, and took them both out for a short ride near the shop, switching bikes partway through. It was a really interesting experience, and left both of us somewhat confused as to how they could feel as different as they do, and I'd be interested to hear from other people if they've had similar experiences.

My friend's bike feels lighter and quicker than mine, but I didn't have the saddlebag particularly heavily loaded. The gearing is near identical, so that's not a factor. Also, the handling on the DL-1 felt somewhat more immediate, and the bike was more trackstand-able (which I haven't quite been able to nail on my own roadster yet, while it was quite easy on his bike). His brakes, unsurprisingly, are smoother and more responsive than mine, but there's a 43 year age gap between the bikes, and his looks practically brand new, while my wheels are a bit lumpy and it doesn't have a matched set of brake pads.

The only thing I can think of as a possible explanation for the difference in handling is that my bike's fork may have become increasingly raked over the years, but we didn't take any detailed measurements or anything.