2020 Softail Slim

2020 Harley Davidson Softail Slim

Project: Savannah

The Story Behind the Build

I’ve mentioned in other posts that I have this uncanny knack for finding unicorns. I don’t know if it’s a gift or a sickness. Whenever I’m bored, you’ll usually find me scrolling through Cycle Trader, Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace—you name it—hunting for motorcycles. Actually, not just motorcycles… old trucks, vintage British sports cars, anything with character. It’s like therapy for me—some guys do yoga, I search for rare bikes.

So, one morning, I was phone surfing and checked out a broker out there who occasionally lists bikes. One listing stopped me cold: a 2020 Softail Slim. Now if you know the Slim, you know it’s the minimalist of the Softail family—bare bones, stripped-down, and yes, “slim” on features. No chrome rocker box covers, no heel shift – toe only, single seater, satin faux horse shoe oil tank covers and so on. Just a lean, mean tiny FL machine. Not something I normally would blink at as its just not me, but wait for it…

As much as she loved her Fat Boy, I’d still occasionally hear complaints about the heat from that Twin Cam 103 engine. Maybe that’s on me. I probably shouldn’t have done the stage one upgrade—but I just can’t help myself. I want the bike to breathe, not be choked out because some bureaucrats over at the California Air Resources Board feel the need to impose their will on the rest of us and keep Harley under their thumb.
And that… well, that’s what led to this.

Now, normally, I wouldn’t even bring up a bike like this to my wife. She’s a hardcore fully loaded FL rider—Fat Boys, Road Kings—you know, the “big girl” bikes. But this Slim caught my eye for a reason: it was four years old with only 43 miles on it. That’s not a typo. Forty-three. Like, the thing had been ridden home from the dealership new never to see sunlight again..

So I called the broker. He said, “I’m not selling it just yet—gonna wait till riding season.” I begged him: “Come on, man, let me at least look at it.” He finally gave in, so I drove down to check it out.

The bike had been sitting so long the battery was deader than disco. Wouldn’t even crank. I asked for the backstory and the broker said, “Honestly? I think the guy was scared of it.” Rode it around the block a few times, parked it in the garage, and never touched it again. Probably just wanted to look cool around his neighbors without actually riding it. I like to call these finds pavement princess or garage queen.

He gave me a price—it was a little high for a Slim—but he said, “This’ll move once riding season hits,” and he wasn’t wrong. Low-mileage bikes like that don’t sit around long. And this one… it had potential.

I could already tell my wife was falling in love with it. The Slim has the lowest seat height of any Softail, foot floorboards, FL front end… basically, it gives off that heavyweight Harley vibe without the heat and heft of a 103. We dropped a battery in from another bike, fired it up, and she took it for a spin. The smile on her face said it all. “I want this one,” she said.

If you’ve read my other write-ups, you’ll know I had a bit of a Harley hoarding phase—five or six at one point: my ‘09 Heritage, the ‘87 Softail Custom, her Fat Boy, the anniversary bike, Sandy’s Dyna… I might be mixing up the order, but at one point we were practically running a dealership out of the garage. Sometimes, when you stumble across something you just can’t pass up, there’s that moment where you know—something else has to go. Unfortunately, it was my Heritage that took the hit and sold first. But in the end, it all worked out for the best. That’s a story for another time. The Slim was coming home with us that day.

So yeah, I made the deal, brought the Slim home. But of course, I can’t leave any bike stock. I asked my wife what she wanted to do with it. Her only request? “Make it two-up capable.” The Slim is a solo setup from the factory, but she gave me free rein beyond that.

So I went to work—pipes, air cleaner, pushed the rear signals back to make room for the pillion seat, sissy bar, luggage rack, the usual suspects. I blacked out a few parts like the transmission, timing covers, primary + derby as well as coil cover with a gloss black version. She didn’t want chrome rocker box covers—said she liked that mellow satin finish. I gave the bike a clean, stealthy, personalized look.

And you know what? She loves that bike. Like, it might be the bike she rides until she’s done riding altogether and just wants to hop on the back with me again.

The funny part? Every time we’re out on a trip and stop at a hotel, we unload the bikes—and when we need to run out for snacks or dinner, she’s like, “Let’s take my bike.” We double up on it like it’s our grocery-getter. At least twice we’ve been stopped in parking lots by guys asking, “What model Harley is that?” When I tell them it’s a Slim, they look stunned. “No way, that’s not a Slim.”

But it is. I just took a bare-bones Softail and turned it into something comfy, capable, and totally hers.

Hope you enjoy the photos and video. It’s not the flashiest build I’ve done, but it turned out great—and more importantly, she’s thrilled. And that’s what really matters.