Harley Fat Bob Fun

Some thoughts recorded while riding the latest Harley Softail Fat Bob.

Recorded with Forcite

A casual Sunday Morning ride with sample footage from the Forcite MK1S Smart Helmet:
 



Forcite MK1S Helmet Review

Here's a quick video run-down on the Forcite MK1S Helmet after 9 months of use. 
 
 

And here's a more considered and detailed analysis: 

I’ve been contributing to the motorcycle press for over 20 years and producing motorcycle and motorcycle test and product videos since 2004.

Over that time, I’ve had a number of top-of the range helmets supplied for my magazine work, and that’s a privilege I don’t take lightly, and to that end, Forcite supplied me with this helmet for evaluation, with no other requirements or stipulations other than for me to use it and publish a review. 

And use it I have. Extensively. 

Over the course of the last 9 months, I’ve ridden more than 6000km in a wide variety of conditions, on several different motorcycles, while wearing this helmet.

If you’d like the quick summary first, rather than the full drill down, here goes. 

I love it this hat! This is my favourite helmet – ever. In more than 50 years of motorcycle riding I’ve never had a helmet I liked more, and I have had some beauties.

The Forcite has made my motorcycling even more enjoyable, while still having all of the safety features that I covet. 

So, with that done, let me tell you the full reasons why.

Even if it wasn’t packed with all of its ‘smart’ features, it’s still a top-notch helmet.

It complies with ECE 22.05 safety standards (or DOT in the US), it’s light (even with all the tech it’s loaded with), it’s aerodynamic, I find it very comfortable, and very good looking. 


Construction


The shell is made from T-400 carbon fibre composite and Forcite calls it a “Unique Anti-Shock Construction” method. 

They achieve this by positioning the electronics in the chin section, “resulting in superior energy dispersion in the event of an impact”.

Not only does it look great – it’s tough.

It’s fastened by a traditional D-loop system that complies with track use and I found it easy to put on and take off, although the strap keeper tab can sometime be a bit fiddly, but that has become easier the more I wear it.

Visor


The visor’s quick release mechanism is similar in operation to Shoei’s system and really is as good as it gets. 

If you’ve ever sweated on changing visors or broken the side pods on other popular helmet brands, you’ll appreciate the Forcite system even more. 

Swapping between clear and smoked visors only takes a few stress-free seconds and there are iridium finish visors available as well.

The visors have an easily engaged locking switch for high speed (track) usage and they are Pinlock Max Vision 120 ready  - and an insert was included (depending on the current promotion.)

There are 4 distinct ratchet click positions for the visor opening and it will open slightly for ventilation and remain in place at moderate speeds.

There are two liner options available, the Standard Liner is made from sweat absorbent premium hex sports fabric and has emergency pull tags.

The Premium Liner (as supplied) has 3D formed foam throughout the cheek pads and crown liner for a contoured fit.

It also has a neck roll design with extendable chin curtain to create a tight seal around the neck. This reduces noise and provides better isolation for Audio performance. More on that later too.

This liner is made from premium sweat wick materials for durability, comfort and fit - and is designed for highway use.

I haven’t need to fit the Pinlock in the Queensland spring, but in cooler climates that option is important because the premium liner seals so well the visor does fog up easily - even with the effective 8-vent ventilation system wide open. 

It also has a UV rated retractable internal visor and this is the first helmet I’ve had with that option, and I wish I’d known how good they are sooner. There’s no need for sunglasses and deploying, or retracting it, is effortless. 

It also means that if I’m going to ride from daylight into the night-time, I can leave the clear outer visor on and still deal to the sunset with the internal. 

Alternately If it’s an all-day ride, I fit the smoked outer visor and then have options for riding with it up, down or use both shields. 

Noise


Which does bring us to wind noise from the helmet.

The premium liner does isolate road and mechanical noise quite effectively, but the Carbon Fibre construction means that the shell is less dense than other materials and therefore it does transmit some wind noise. 

Generally, I’ve also found that more vents in the helmet also equals more wind noise – and as noted the Forcite has 8. 

That said, it’s not a noisy helmet either. 

It’s significantly quieter than my Arai XD-4 Adventure helmet or my Bell Classic open face when I use them without ear plugs. 

In fact, the noise levels in the Forcite without ear plugs is similar to those two helmets with foamies or ear buds inserted. 

The base noise level is quite similar to my Biltwell Gringo S – and this helmet has no ventilation system - or other creature comforts at all. 

The upshot is that overall, I find this to be very comfortable helmet. The XL size fits my melon perfectly and it’s very functional.

And functional brings us to its tech and electronics.


The Ecosystem


Apart from the fact that it’s a quality motorcycle helmet in its own right, there is a very long list of additional features contained in its built-in tech. And I love ‘em. 

The Forcite ecosystem has three components: the helmet, the remote controller, and the phone app. 

The system supports Bluetooth 5.0 and the initial setup, connection and getting them talking to each other was all pretty straightforward. 

There’s even a walk through in the app setup that makes sense of it all. It took me a few rides to settle into the way everything works – and it is quite intuitive, but it did take a little while to get my head around – or inside – all of its capabilities. But after a few rides I was Forciting like a boss. 

Helmet functions. 


Firstly, my favourite of all the clever things this helmet does is its built in Harmon-Karden sound system. 

A pair of removable, high quality, 40mm speakers sit in cavities in the helmet liner. 

It’s all a long way removed from 1980 and my first attempt to get stereo in a helmet. 

Back then I hollowed out the foam in an open face helmet to accommodate the clunky headphones of the original Sony FM Walkman. 

That didn’t work very well at all, and I’ve tried many different solutions for playing music while riding ever since - with gradually better results as the tech improved and the devices got smaller over the ensuing 42 years.

Until now, where the sound *and convenience* of the Forcite system is excellent. 

The speakers have Velcro backed spacers to allow positioning adjacent the ears. When pumped right up they have sufficient volume to drown almost all of the wind noise at normal or legal speeds.

And there are no cords, cables or other encumbrances to get in the way of enjoying  crisp, dynamic sounds from my favourite playlists rocking inside my hat. 

For comparison, I find it’s a better sound quality, with more volume than using my favourite JBL ear buds in the Arai XD-4.

Or if you prefer – you can wear protective ear plugs to mitigate the wind noise - and the system is still quite audible and viable – although the trade-off is that sound fidelity is reduced. 

For the sake of protecting your hearing this is what I would recommend – but …

The music streams seamlessly to the helmet from your phone with play – pause – skip and rewind functions available via the handlebar mounted remote control. But more on that unit later too. 

I’d personally buy the helmet just for this function alone – but it does soooo much more. 


Camera Functions


If you are one of the subscribers to my You Tube channels (thank you) and hopefully you may have noticed that I’ve been working on - or trying to - optimise the quality, cinematography and production values of my motorcycle vlogs and on-board ramblings since 2006. 

As a solo operator that has its own challenges, but like the sound systems, camera tech has become smaller and more efficient over that time. 

To that end the 1080/60p camera that is built-in to the chin section of the Forcite helmet is proving to be a very useful addition to my video production arsenal. 

It can record at 30 or 60 frames per second from its ¼ inch Sony IMX sensor.

As a dash-cam system to record rides - for whatever reason - this feature is gold and has several modes – selectable from the app.

Auto-Record enables you to capture your ride without the need to use the app or controller. 

Just turn your helmet on, and recording starts automatically. The files are saved when you turn your helmet off.

Dashcam mode continuously records until you reach your SD card’s storage capacity, then it deletes the oldest footage on a loop so you can simply set and forget.

Or there are start and stop recording functions available via the remote – or the app if you have your phone mounted on the handlebars too – this is especially handy when you do come across that special piece of road and your mates have no desire to stop while you mess around with an action camera. 

The quality of the video is good for social media applications and it employs the H.264 compression algorithm, so the files it generates are quite manageable.

The 158-degree lens is wide enough to easily capture from handlebar mounted instruments and the road ahead - to the sky. 

What’s particularly notable is its low light and night-time capability is actually better than my expensive action cameras.


Cameras Compared 


So let’s compare cameras.

As one online sage noted – your best camera is the one you actually have with you - and that’s the case with the Forcite. 

Like the sound system – it’s very convenient and always ready to go – although it’s worth noting that how fast the camera boots up can vary. 

It’s much faster to start recording when the card SD card is empty – but it can take around 30 seconds to start recording if the card has other footage or files in its directories. 

What is handy though, is that there are voice and display prompts to let you know when recording has started - and stopped. 

Forcite says that the camera has Minor electronic vibration stabilisation – but the fact that it’s on your chin means that the camera points exactly where the rider is looking, so it needs a concerted effort to keep your head still while shooting. 

Lane checks, or even looking in the mirrors can affect the field of view and the smoothness of the footage. 

To be fair, that’s the case with helmet mounted action cameras too, and I can only speak to my own equipment, but the stabilised output, picture quality, frame rates and resolution from the latest batch of Go Pros is superior to the Forcite’s – particularly if they are chest or handlebar mounted.

But, that’s really not what the Forcite is trying to do – or be. The Go Pro won’t protect my head i9n an accident - or be as effortless and convenient.

It’s also worth noting that, at retail pricing, my current Vlogging rig - comprising a Hero 10 Black, Media Mod, Lens Mod, Volta Battery grip and set of Rode microphones actually cost more than the Forcite Helmet.

If I take the grip off the Go pro, the helmet has several hours longer recording time available than from a single Go Pro battery – subject to SD card’s capacity of course. 

Forcite claims 3-4 hours of runtime with consistent camera usage. With no video recording and the mobile app running in background “usage will exceed 7 hours”. 

I’ve done full-day, 400+km rides and my phone running the app ran out of battery before the helmet did. 

You may want to consider a power bank solution on touring or long-distance applications – but talk about a first world problems!

The other important advantage is that being integrated, the camera is approved for racetrack use – and all that entails for enthusiasts.

Talk to you


The quality of sound recording for vlogging from inside the helmet is also viable, considering how the mics are positioned – and the way they isolated for telecoms rather that hi-fi recording. But with some post-production and editing, voice recording works reasonably well.

The conclusion here is that the Forcite camera won’t replace my other systems for professional video applications, but for convenience, comfort, and ready availability - it’s an additional – and welcome - tool in my arsenal.

Talk to me


Taking and making phone calls from the helmet isn’t one of my priorities, but the calls I have received while on the move have worked well and the callers reported that the clarity of the call was OK and made comments like “I wouldn’t have realised you were on a motorcycle” or “It sounds fine.”

It has omni-directional dual microphones tuned for vocal clarity and wind reduction and is also operated by one button on the remote controller. 

For those looking for an intercom function with other riders, the helmet doesn’t have long-range Bluetooth comms or an app intercom function at this stage, although Forcite do state that and “In-app VOIP communication functionality is in the pipeline however.”

It’s another very useful feature. 

A heads up.


The helmet has a simple heads-up display (HUD) that employs a diffused LED array for “non-distracting peripheral alert animations” and it has ambient light sensors for dynamic brightness adjustment, so it doesn’t dazzle at night and is legible in bright sunshine.

Basically, it has an array of coloured lights that sit below the line of sight and combinations of these work with the Forcite app to display navigation prompts, warnings and other information that I found to be surprisingly useful. 

A voice prompt (with a selection of voices available) warns ‘Red light camera ahead’ and a red light flashes, ‘Police 300mtrs ahead’ and blue and red lights flash. ‘Turn left 200 metres, or destination 50 metres ahead’ and a green light flashes, debris on road or banked traffic ahead and a yellow light flashes. 

It’s all based on the waze app and I didn’t find it distracting or intrusive – just – as I say – surprisingly useful. 

Application me


Which brings me to the Forcite app. 

I have it installed on an iPhone 11 Pro and so far, it works exactly as it should.

Once the initial setup of Helmet, Controller and app is complete, pairing and operation is as simple as turning the devices on and launching the app. It all talks to each other seamlessly. 
Power levels, camera status and available storage can be viewed in real time.

Its navigation functions are some of the best I have used with the ability to plan a journey with waypoints and it has been accurate and reliable. 

The system uses Forcite Command - a cloud-based server and software system that is “always active and always learning” and it has the ability and share your route with other Forcite Riders.

The predictive alerting model provides real time updates on upcoming road conditions, taking into account your direction of travel, speed, and personalisations – all delivered to the helmet. You can easily change these settings in the app.

Media App


By connecting the Media Access Cable, you can view and manage video files inside the Forcite app, as well as trim and export clips up to 30 seconds in length.

Forcite says the system is “designed to simplify, built to evolve”.

Control me.


The remote controller is simple to mount and operate on 7/8” handlebars.

Mounting on inch and a quarter Harley bars required a little bit of innovation, but it worked well utilising some action camera hardware. 

The device has three outer buttons to start and stop the camera, engage navigation functions and the telephony. The centre button controls music playback and playlist functions. Volume up and down is on the side of the unit. 

I found it all worked well and the battery life of the unit is pleasing. It hardly used any charge on an all-day ride.

Support me


The level of engagement Forcite have with their growing customer base is also admirable and encouraging. There are several Facebook groups associated with the brand, some offer tech support – from the Forcite techs who administer the page - to groups with Forcite riders sharing footage, rides - and their enjoyment of the helmets. 

The company says it’s “striving to strengthen this bond, to bridge the gap between man and machine. Forcite technologies are designed to adapt seamlessly to your riding style, enhancing your situational awareness, and amplifying the essence of your unique riding experience.”

Conclude me.


That’s all working for me. I signed on to the Forcite Ambassador programme because I was intrigued by the possibility of what a ‘real’ smart helmet can do and because I’ve always been a motorcycling tech geek.

After a decent test period and from my engagements with the company, I’m very happy to endorse this Helmet. 

I think it’s outstanding on so many levels and can’t wait to see what they come up with next. 

This is still at the the Mark 1 Stage after all. 

The helmets are designed and assembled in Australia with the components made in Taiwan, and they are now moving into American and European markets. 

The product is a product of high standards and there’s no reason to think it won’t emulate its local success. 


If you want to find out more about the helmet – point your browser at forcitehelmets.com or ping me any questions in the comments section below. 

If you are interested in purchasing a Forcite Mk1S for yourself, use the code DAVE5 at checkout and you’ll receive a discount and some bonus goodies. 

Smile, me and my Forcite might see you out there.




The Facility

The Facility

Images from 2003 and our hangout under a downtown Auckland Office block.

I christened it 'The Facility'. 

The Thunderbird and the Trophy 1200 are mine.

The Ducks and the Japanese belong to Brian - the rest of the Triumphs belong to Chris.

I was in charge of the music and other sundry duties. 

A lot of the time I spent there, it was just me and Brian talking bikes and bull. Other nights there would be a dozen bike types doing the same and working on their rides in the well equipped ramp end. 

If it sounds idyllic - it was. Halcyon days.

Tiernan’s His and Hers Low Riders

Tiernan's Low Riders

Carl and Julie Tiernan have a pair of Low Riders built to handle. 

When Carl posted a pic of his FXLR Low Rider on the HEAVY DUTY Facebook page I thought it looked fast - and interesting, so we set up a meeting at Sunshine Coast H-D so I could find out more about the bike. 

When he unexpectedly arrived with his wife Julie on her modded 2020 Softail Low Rider S, we sat down on the benches out in front of the store to talk about this great looking pair of Harleys. 

I sat looking at the bikes parked next to us for a while, impressed, and eventually asked Carl to tell us what he’d done to his bike. 

HIS

“It’s a 2018 Low Rider that I bought from here (Sunshine Coast Harley) brand new, and it’s been through quite a chop since I’ve had it”, he began.

“It’s been built to ride, so it’s been lifted two inches, both front and rear. It has Ohlins forks up front and a Low Rider S shock at the rear, with seamless pre-load, which was actually out of Julie’s bike – to which I added a Bung King extension for the lift.

The Ohlins kit is standard, but extended with two-inch over fork tubes. I also upgraded the brakes with a Hard Case Performance 14” disc and fitted Goodrich HH pads and lines to the stock caliper.

The handlebars are H-D Street Slammers, with 2” LA Chopper extensions, the fairing is just a generic aftermarket that took a little bit of modification, but it fitted the look I was after really well and the fork covers are home made too.

The tank is stock Low Rider, but the gauges have been removed, the holes filed and smoothed, and the original speedo has been mounted on the handlebars for better visibility.”

“Was that a complicated process?” I asked.

“No, not really, I’m a Panel Beater by trade, so all that sort of stuff came naturally. It was just a few hours mucking about really. I also chopped the rear guard in length and depth, so it now finishes level with the fender struts rather than hang down below them, and the tail tidy is all built-in and welded into the guard with Coughlin LED Tail lights and a Custom Dynamics plate surround. 

The chainguard has been modified top and bottom and it’s got a Low Rider S seat.”

“Any engine mods?”

“The motor has been mostly blacked out and it’s running a CR480 cam, with high performance Feuling lifters, Cyclerama billet tappet cuffs, adjustable pushrods, and an oil pump from a 2020 Softail. It’s still a 107 cube, but it’s putting out 110 horsepower and 121ft lbs of torque. So it’s ‘pretty good’ for a 107, she goes pretty well!

It’s also running a Maximus tuner, Freedom Radical Radius Pipes and a Performance Machine Max HP Air intake which has been modified.”

The Paint and colour scheme is all Carls own work. “It’s a Nissan Grey Pearl and it has my custom work over the top - and the wheels are stock, painted to match.”

When asked if there are any further plans for the bike Carl grins, “There’s always plans! I’d like to lift the back a bit higher and put an Ohlins rear shock in there, to finish the suspension off … a 124 Cube is on the cards, with a bigger cam and a few other bits for some more power … and a twin disc front end is probably the most important thing I need, because even with the setup on it now, I still run out of brakes if I’m pushing it hard. And it will probably change paint again. 17” rims might be a nice conversion too.” He grins yet again. 

“Apart from that ride the wheels off it, that’s about it. And it does get ridden quite a lot, it’s got 63,000km on it now, it’s not a bike that just looks nice, it gets well-used, and between it and my other bike, an Indian FTR1200 Carbon, they are true everyday riders. And yeah, I like bikes that stop and go around corners.

And that’s what this bike is about. It’s very nice to ride actually, it’s a big improvement over a stock Low Rider, with better handling, and the cornering clearance is so good it very rarely scrapes any hard parts.”

HERS

Which seemed like a good time to ask Julie about her Low Rider S. 

“I’ll let Carl tell you about it.” She said, “He’s better at the mechanical aspects.”

And he beams. “Julie’s bike is a 2020 Low Rider S and we have fitted fork shims up front so we could lift it by an inch and a quarter. It’s got an Ohlins cartridge kit in the front, it also has an Ohlins HD505 rear shock with 1.5” lift and it’s fully adjustable. 

The tank is off a Breakout and it has a Street Bob dash and instruments, because like when you guys tested the LRS, she didn’t like the tank mounted instruments – so we moved them onto the handlebars. 

It’s got Thrashing Supply 6.5” pull back risers and Thrashing mid bend handlebars that go really well with the line of the bike. That’s also helped by the modified rear guard that’s been cut and had a Custom Dynamics plate holder set into it. 

Peformance-wise it’s pretty much stock. It does have the Performance Machine Max HP air filter, Radical Radius pipes and a maximus tuner.”

“So, Julie, what’s it like to ride?”

This time she smiles. “It’s really nice now that the suspension is on there. The Ohlins really made a huge difference to the way it handles. I don’t get to ride it as often as I’d like due to being a shift-working Nurse, but I didn’t want to be on the back of Carl’s bike anymore, so I do get out on it when I can.”

When asked if there’s any further plans for the bike, she notes, “The rear wheel is going to be … bigger.”

At which stage Carl adds, “Yes, we’re going to fit a 200-section rear tyre and the rims are going to be painted, along with the rest of the bodywork. I’ve just got to work out how to do it the way Julie wants it.”

At which stage I suggested that we should mount up and go and take some photos. 

“Before we do, Dave,” Carl said, “There is just one more thing I’d like to add, and that is to give big thanks to Brian Farrow and his crew at Farrow’s customs. I can do most of the work on these bikes myself, but when I have got stuck on something, Farrow’s have been a fantastic help, and nothing is too much bother. I highly recommend them.”

And with that sage advice we headed towards the hinterland and a photo shoot with Julie leading the way.

GUTS & BOLTS

CARL’S

Bike: 2018 FXLR Low Rider

Builder: Carl Tiernan

ENGINE

Type: 107Cube, Maximus Tuner , CR 480 cam, Feuling lifters & pushrods ,Cycle Rama billet tappetcuffs, 2020 8lobe oilpump ,110hp/121Nm,

Air Cleaner: Performance Machine Max HP

Exhaust: Freedom Sharp Radical Radius

Seat: FXLRS Low Rider S

WHEELS & TYRES

F Tyre: Avon cobra chrome

R Tyre: Avon cobra chrome

F Brake: Stock caliper, Goodridge h/h pads , Goodridge brake lines extended ,Hard Case Performance 14” disc

R Brake: stock

SUSPENSION

Front: Ohlins Nix 22 cartridge kit with 2’ lift 

Rear: FXLRS with Bung King extension

CONTROLS

Bars: HD Street Slammer with LA customs 2” riser extension and relocated speedo Grips/Levers/Change: Stock grips Custom gear change 

Footpegs/Forward Controls: stock mids with Burly MX pegs

Headlight: Stock / under perch front indicators

Taillight: Kodlin strut lights & Custom Dynamics 3-1 licence plate surround

GUARDS & TINWORK

R Guard: FLXR cut and chopped 

F Guard:stock

Trim: Stock tank with shaved top / flush filler

PAINT & FINISH;

Colour: Nissan stealth grey with custom airbrush graphics by owner


JULIE’S

GENERAL

Bike: 2020 FXLRS Low Rider S

Builder: Carl Tiernan / Julie Tiernan

ENGINE

Type: 114 cube with Maximus Tuner 

Air Cleaner: Performance Machine Max HP

Exhaust: Freedom Sharp Curve Radius

SUSPENSION

Front: Ohlins Tks 508 cartridge kit with hairy customs fork shims 1.5” lift 

Rear: Ohlins HD505 1.5” lift

CONTROLS

Bars: Thrashin supply mid bend

Grips/Levers/Change: Arlen Ness grips, Thrashin Supply gear peg 

Footpegs/Forward Controls: stock mids with Thrashin Supply pegs 

Risers: Thrashin supply 6.5 pull back with FXBB digital dash 

Headlight: stock, under perch indicators

Taillight: Alloy Art fender strut lights & custom dynamics 3-1 licence plate surround

GUARDS & TINWORK

R Guard: Shortened with Frenched licence plate 

F Guard: stock

Trim: Breakout fuel tank with Flush filler