The Vegas 8-Ball has a slight price advantage and a slim power advantage. If I had to compare the $12,999 Vegas 8-Ball to a Harley-Davidson, I guess I’d choose the Dyna Street Bob ($13,699) or Softail Slim ($14,899). Not nearly cool enough, and $1,000 more expensive anyway. If you wantĪBS, you have to get the regular Vegas – which only comes in Sunset Red. Single 300-mm discs at front and rear help haul the big bike down. The Vegas 8-Ball impresses most in a straight line, where all that torque on tap allows for quick bursts of speed. The blacked-out (of course) slash cut dual mufflers are set high enough on the right side not to interfere with clearance.
Peg feelers are the first parts to touch down in a tight curve, letting you know that you’re approaching the bike’s limits before it’s too late to ease up. A single hidden shock in the rear has pre-load adjustment and 3.0” of travel, so watch out for those potholes and bumps. Sportbike riders will find the Vegas 8-Ball completely confusing, and adventure bike riders will miss the option of standing on the pegs – they’re too far forward for that kind of action. The gentle reach to the bars and slightly forward foot controls combined with the low seat puts you into a comfortable seating position – not quite the La-Z-Boy stretch of some cruisers, but a slightly more assertive, knees slightly bent position. Riding the Vegas 8-Ball delivers the good news: Not only do you look cool on a Vegas, you feel cool, too. There’s no weather protection and no storage on the bike – though Victory would be happy to sell you a variety of add-ons from their parts catalog. A newly streamlined (and blacked out) headlight pod points the way, and a single multifunction gauge is mounted above the handlebars, tastefully dressed in chrome. The bike has a few plastic pieces that let it down upon close inspection, but it still has an overall shape and air that looks custom. The front fender is a narrow-style piece, and the rear fender is slightly bobbed, so that both wheels are on prominent display. A beautiful set of cast aluminum wheels (21” x 2.5” front/18” x 5.5” rear) is wrapped with Dunlop Elite 3 rubber (90-series front/180-series rear). The blacked-out handlebars have a slight pullback.
The Vegas 8-Ball comes out of the factory as a solo machine, with a sleek, low (25.2” off the ground) seat that flows smoothly with the lines of the sculpted 4.5-gallon gas tank.