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1990 HARLEY DAVIDSON FLSTF Fat Boy
Shift Bespoke Automotive offers this This one-owner 1990 Harley-Davidson Fatboy was purchased new in 1989. It is one of 250 Gray Frame examples. Always garaged and taken care of, it has 500 miles on a new top end. Speedo was changed and shows 5500 miles but total mileage is 58500. For your convenience we took a complete library of photos. Please feel free to contact us at 949-891-Cars (2277) FOR QUESTIONS, SCHEDULE TEST DRIVES OR INSPECTIONS. Inspections are welcome and encouraged if you have any reservations.
1990 HARLEY DAVIDSON FLSTF Fat Boy History
'The evolutionary retro-revolution produced a chubby new member of the species in 1990, the Fat Boy. Genetically engineered with components from the Softail Custom and Heritage Softail Classic, the portly FLSTF was an instant crowd pleaser.' – Todd Rafferty, 'The Complete Harley-Davidson Encyclopedia'.
For 1990 Harley-Davidson introduced a new model based on the successful Softail, the FLSTF Fat Boy, that has remained a popular fixture of the range ever since - only Harley could get away with giving one of its bikes such a seemingly derogatory name. Introduced immediately after Harley had freed itself from AMF ownership, the Softail had featured a cleverly disguised tail looking like that of a pre-war 'rigid'-framed Harley but was, in fact, sprung. But whereas the original Softail came with a girder-type front fork to create the look die-hard Harley traditionalists had been waiting for, the Fat Boy was an entirely different animal.
The Fat Boy's most striking feature was its solid 16" disc wheels, with the silver paint finish – complemented by a series of bright yellow accents – coming a close second. More sci-fi than retro, the love-it-or-loathe-it styling was the work of company founder's son Willie G Davidson, and earned the Fat Boy a starring role in the motion picture 'Terminator II', starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as the eponymous cyborg. Along with the rest of the range, the FLSTF received all the engine and drive train engineering improvements introduced for 1990. The so called 'Grey Ghost' finish was applied only to machines built for the 1990 model year, of which 4,440 were made, and today these first-of-the-line Fat Boys are among the most collectible of modern Harleys.
1990 HARLEY DAVIDSON FLSTF Fat Boy Myth/Story
Not very many people know the history of a first edition 1990 FLSTF Silver Fatboy. The name is reminiscent of the atomic bombs named “Fatman” and “LittleBoy” that were dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. The naming of the bike was not meant to offend, rather, it was done as a tribute to a certain period in time. If you notice the Fatboy’s gas-tank emblem it somewhat resembles a U.S.A.F. wing emblem. The bombs had distinctive yellow rings painted on them. The motorcycle has seven yellow rings painted throughout the bike – one on the ignition ring, one on the primary inspection cover, two on the tank, one on the cam cover and two on the head covers. You definitely do not want to change the gun metal gray on the tank and fenders or frame on this first edition collector. With little advertising of the purpose behind this color scheme, the bike is now a very collectible item, not so much dollar wise, but more for what it represents. the value of the 1990 FLSTF Fatboy “Gray Ghost” has jumped immensely proving it to be very collectible investment . Since I originally posted this article in 1999 many websites and motorcycle forums have bantered and disputed the story. So called myth busting sites like Snopes.com http://www.snopes.com/business/market/fatboy.asp have even tried to say it was pure urban myth. But they also didn’t prove anything or give evidence to the contrary. Some have said on different forums that Willie G himself said it was exactly what the myth represents, but you’d be hard pressed to get an official version from the Motor Co., after all…myths and legends are good business. For those that say the company would never do anything to offend the Japanese market, we need to go back to history and remember that at the outbreak of WWII Japan reneged on all patent and licensing agreements and marketed Harley-Davidson under their own brand Rikuo and did for many years afterwards. In the 60’s and 70’s the Japanese motorcycle industry set out to dominate the north american market and was instrumental in the downward trend of heavyweight motorcycles such as Harley-Davidson. With the eventual buyout and rebirth of Harley-Davidson the company set out to do things their way and part of that was a different styling concept. At the time large disk wheels made famous by Centerline had already become a trademark of drag racing and street rodding. The concept then was big fat tires, Centerlines, and a solid single color usually dark or flat gave the impression of a bad ass machine. Harley-Davidson conveyed that image to the motorcycle. A styling coup if you will. At the same time, the company was also telling the government it no longer needed protection from the japanese manufactures by way of steep import tarifs that really did little to hold the tide back. So yes, the company has been thumbing their noses at the Japanese manufacturers for a while, and for good reason. Is this proof the 1990 FLSTF Grey Ghost was a marketing virtual middle finger? Certainly not, it’s only conjecture, at this point, the story is still a myth, and Harley-Davidson is still silent….all the way to the bank.
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