2013–2017 · Cruiser · Buyer's Guide
Factory Custom With Real Bite
The Fat Bob is the Dyna that stopped pretending to be subtle. A 1690 cc air-cooled 45-degree V-twin sits in the frame with nothing hiding it, making 78 hp up top and 100 lb-ft of torque down at 3,500 rpm through a six-speed box. The torque figure is the one that matters here, because it arrives early and shapes how the whole bike moves. Twin headlights, a fat 130/90-16 front tire and a 180/70-16 rear give it a stance nothing else in the Dyna family has. It's a factory custom in the honest sense: the shape was the point, and the engineering follows it.
It carries its weight better than the number implies. At 705 lb wet with a 27.1-inch seat, it feels big at a standstill and settles the moment you're rolling, and it stays genuinely composed when the road opens up. Age is what you check. The rubber engine mounts soften over the years, the drive belt wants correct alignment, and ABS was an option on this model rather than standard equipment. Buy it for the shape, the sound, and the way an ordinary Saturday ride turns into an occasion. Look elsewhere if you want a quiet, sterile machine.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 78 hp (58 kW) @ 5,010 rpm |
|---|---|
| Torque | 100 lb-ft (136 Nm) @ 3,500 rpm |
| Displacement | 1690 cc |
| Engine | 45° V-twin |
| Cooling | Air-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Fork | Telescopic |
| Front tire | 130/90-16 |
| Rear tire | 180/70-16 |
| Seat height | 27.1 in (688 mm) |
| Wet weight | 705 lb (320 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 5.0 gal (18.9 L) |
Equipment check
Safety
Hit the starter and the whole bike rocks on its mounts before it drops into that lopsided idle you feel in the pegs and through the grips. The texture never fully goes away, and it isn't supposed to. You sit upright and wide, feet forward, with the 27.1-inch seat putting both boots flat at a light. Roll away and the mass you felt while walking it backward out of a parking spot simply disappears. The sound is what stays with you after the first hour: deep and loafing at a steady pace, harder and flatter when you open it up, always there without shouting over your own thoughts. At real road speed it feels dense and settled rather than nervous, and the wide bar gives your hands a fine, clear read of what the front tire is doing.
Misaligned drive belt
Drive belt misalignment can cause premature wear and noise, typically noticed during routine inspection.
Front brake clunk/knock when cold
Some owners report a clunk or crack noise from the front end when the front brake is applied while the bike is cold; often remedied by steering head bearing adjustment.
Engine mount wear
Rubber engine mounts can wear out over time, leading to increased vibration and potential alignment issues.
Where this Harley-Davidson Dyna Fat Bob FXDF pulls ahead of — or falls behind — its rivals on the numbers, and the typical bike in its class on character.
Power
Torque
Displacement
Wet weight
Seat height
Forget spec-sheet bragging. Here's who the Dyna Fat Bob FXDF is actually built for.
This is a rally bike in the truest sense. It has the stance, the sound, and the presence that crowd reads instantly, and it holds a steady highway pace all day to get you there.
Made for A1A — Florida Atlantic Coast · Black Hills / Sturgis Rally Hub · Daytona Main Street / Bike Week
Small towns and unhurried two-lane roads suit it well. It's bigger and louder than the classic style you may have pictured, so sit on one before you commit to it as your road-trip bike.
Made for Acadia National Park · Austin / Handbuilt Motorcycle Show · Blue Ridge Parkway
It covers distance and stays settled at speed, but there's no weather protection or factory luggage here. Loaded and two-up across the country, you'd be asking it to do a job it wasn't built for.
Made for Beartooth Highway · Blue Ridge Parkway · Going-to-the-Sun Road
If you're cross-shopping the older generation, here's what changed.
Previous generation · 2009–2012
All Attitude, All Custom
Compare to the previous model →If this one isn't quite the fit, these are the bikes worth riding back-to-back against it.
Any price note compares both bikes at the same age — the youngest age both have on the used market — against this Harley-Davidson Dyna Fat Bob FXDF. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
