The Honda Fury is in many ways the ultimate Bad-Boy Metric Cruiser. It has the retro-chopper look, shiny chrome and a sleek design. It exudes attitude in a way no "rice burner" had ever achieved. Even Harley owners respect it and admit it's a nice looking bike. But Honda also makes several other models that feature the same engine and much of the same looks but in a slightly different package for about the same price. It's easy to look at these models and ask: what's the difference?

There are 3 main differences between the Fury and the Stateline:

1. Instrumentation: the Fury has a plastic speedometer on the handle bars. The Stateline has a chrome speedometer on the gas tank. The Stateline also has lights for neutral, high beam, low oil pressure, high engine temperature, low fuel and left and right turn signals. 
2. The handlebars on the Fury are higher up and narrower. The handlebars on the Stateline are wide and low. 
3. The wheels and the tires on them are the biggest difference between these 2 models. The Fury features ribbon-thin tires on large rims. The Statelines tires are more traditional thick tires. The Fury has a tall 21" front tire that is only 90mm wide. This gives the rider a smoother ride as long as the pavement is not too rough. The Stateline has a 17" front tire that is 130mm wide. This shorter fatter front tire will give the rider a bumpier ride on most well-paved roads. The advantages of the short, fat front tire are traction and control if driving conditions fall below ideal. Whenever the rider encounters loose gravel, slippery roads, potholes and especially uneven pavement the wider front tire provides more control and better traction. If the roads you're riding on are very well maintained you may never appreciate this. If the roads you're riding on are in bad condition or often covered with gravel or sand you will really appreciate the front tire on the Stateline. The Fury has an 18" back tire that is 200mm wide. The Stateline has a 15" rear tire that is 170mm wide. The tires on the Stateline are better for cornering but remember these cruisers are not generally well-suited to cornering aggressively regardless of the tires on them.

Conclusion: for flat out looks the Fury is the prettiest metric cruiser on the road. It has a bad-boy look and feel that exudes attitude in every way. The Stateline is a beautiful bike just the same but will give you more control if the roads in your area are in poor condition. Neither of these bikes are a Harley. Both will turn heads and get you lots of stares and compliments. They cost the same and have the same engine. In terms of performance the only difference is greater traction from the larger front tire on the Stateline. I've ridden both and loved both. I felt I had more control on the Stateline riding on rough roads, especially uneven pavement and large potholes that are quite common in the big cities of the USA. With roads being so unpredictable and traffic so fierce and dangerous I personally prefer the added control and stability of the Stateline but the Fury is a very comfortable bike. If I lived in an area where the roads were in better condition I just may prefer the Fury. I also prefer the chrome instruments filled with lights found on the Stateline to the plastic speedometer on the Fury which features only one light (I cannot remember what the light was). Both of these bikes are beautiful.

As far as performance goes both feature an engine with plenty of low-end torque. They have a mid-band powerband and almost nothing above that. The engine itself is not the smoothest engine i've owned. It produces quite strong vibrations. It's not as bad as a Harley on the vibrations but it's halfway there. If you back off the gas the engine will slow the bike quite well. It does not corner all that well. It's a comfortable bike on the main roads but on a windy country road it feels almost bulky and clanky. Parking lots are challenging. The turning radius is very wide on these bikes. These are not your country road bikes. These bikes are better suited to the interstate and main roadways. 

I feel the suspension on them is quite stiff suited for heavy riders. For lighter riders under 200 lbs they can become a back-breaking ride if your roads are not in top shape. You can adjust the suspension and I personally adjusted mine to as soft as I could get it and wanted it to go even softer. As far as I'm concerned the suspension even on its softest setting is way too stiff for anyone not weighing well over 200 lbs. 

I shift into 2nd at 25mph, 3rd at 40 and 4th at 60 and it's taching around 4 or 5 when I shift. Those are comfortable speeds. If you wind it out hard you can hit 40 in 1st, 60 in 2nd and 90 in 3rd (i'm not going above that). It gets up to 60 from a dead start in less than 3 seconds. I'd say it can hit 90 in under 5 seconds from a dead start. These bikes are faster than i'd ever realistically need to go. 

Driving in crazy big-city traffic is actually quite comfortable on these bikes. They are large and powerful and seem to command the respect of other vehicles as much as can be expected. I do not feel like I have to push them at all to keep up with traffic. Staying ahead of the SUVs that do 90 mph in parking lots is not hard at all on these bikes. They'll pretty nuch blow away anything on 4 wheels not running nitrate. I've ridden 750s - even sportbikes with high-revving engines that were a workout to stay ahead of fast-moving traffic. These bikes can keep up with the fastest of cars without pushing them at all. If you do push them even a little you'll blow away the traffic (except for other motorcycles). 

For big-city driving I prefer the Stateline. For small-town driving I prefer the Fury. For terrible roads you want the Stateline. For roads in good condition you want the Fury.