2012 Victory Highball First Ride

Motorcycle USA’s Bryan Harley has gotten his hands on Victory Motorcycles’ newest take on the Dark Custom craze, the 2012 Highball.

His take on the engine:

The torquey low end is matched throughout the powerband and distribution is even throughout. There’s excellent response from the EFI with every release of the clutch cable and Victory’s Freedom 106 V-Twin in its Stage 2 state of tune is one of the bike’s strongest features. It doesn’t sign off early on the top end and the tranny can withstand winding out each gear before banging it up to the next. Gearing down, there’s a generous amount of engine braking.

2012 Victory High-Ball

Handling:

The straight roads around Daytona Beach had us clamoring to find a corner to test the High-Ball’s handling, but on the few turns we did find the High-Ball impressed us with its neutral turn in and stability when leaned over. Our primary grievance was its limited cornering clearance.

Well, it’s a cruiser. Cornering clearance will never be a strong suit.

The looks:

Victory has done an admirable job of injecting the High-Ball with vintage styling cues, from the way the white paint accentuates the recessed tank to the way the whitewalls make the chunkiness of the tires stand out. Spoked wheels stay true to the theme of the bike while its slim swingarm keeps the tail end open so you can enjoy an uncluttered view of the whitewalls. The few glimmers of white makes the blacked-out treatment of the engine, frame, bars, pipes, headlight bucket, triple trees, fender struts and cylinder head covers stand out that much more.

And, don’t forget the black mini-ape-hangers.

Overall, the new Victory seems like a neat addition to the Dark Custom world, with a powerful 106ci mill, smooth handling, and a price that won’t completely break the bank at $13,499.