2012 Honda Shadow 750 Spirit C2 Candy Orange Flame

by Gina Richey
(Alabaster, AL)

I love my 2012 Honda Shadow Spirit 750!! I named her "Sweet Tater". It is the 2nd brand new Honda 750 Shadow Spirit I have owned. I also had a bright yellow 2002 Spirit which was bought new, which I had named "JuicyFruit". This is a great bike for ladies!! For me, the best part is the weight is perfectly centered right underneath you & it is not front end heavy at all. Just perfectly weight balanced, which makes for easy maneuvering & handles curves smoothly. It has a low seat height of only 25.8" which is great for smaller ladies & short legs. I am only 5'3' and flat-foot it with ease. The '02 model Spirit I had was chain driven. It was geared very high from factory & I had vibration at higher (60 mph) highway speeds, so I changed out the rear sprocket from the 42 tooth to a 38 tooth sprocket which lowered the gear ratio and I didn't have to shift so quickly anymore. OR be reaching for another gear when there wasn't one left. HA! I also had it jetted & added Cobra 2" drag pipes. She sounded awesome!! Many confused my shadow with a Harley until they got a closer look. The new 2012 Shadows are now Shaft Drive which makes for a much smoother ride. The 2012's are also fuel injected, so there is no more reserve fuel switch to mess with. I also love having the wide gas tank. When I went to purchase my new bike I was going back & forth between the Harley 883 or the Honda Shadow 750 Spirit. For me the Shadow just fit & felt better under me than the Harley 883. The Harley felt tall & very skinny & I felt as if I was sitting on top of a 2x4 turned up on it's side. I preferred the width & feel of the Honda. To me brand wasn't so much an issue... but I felt Harley was more buying the name brand while I got more bang for my buck with Honda. It's all just personal preference... Don't matter what you ride....Just Ride!!! :)