Sportster

2001 Sportster Fix

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From Banged-Up to Hot Rod with S&S, Pingel and Suspension Technologies This story started in the ‘60s when Zack tried to buy his first Harley, a Knucklehead with his dad. Zack, still a teenager was already roaming the streets looking for action. He knew a chopper had to be a major portion of the picture. He found a guy, who said he had a basket case for cheap. Zack was pumped, but his dad went along for morale support. They entered this old biker’s garage on the east side of Detroit, and his dad immediately spotted piles of junk parts. The garage was scattered with parts and pieces. It was a mess, when the old coot led them to a dark area under a stairwell, where a bunch of parts and pieces were stacked under an oil-soaked canvas tarp. READ THIS ARTICLE ON BIKERNET – CLICK HERE Join the Cantina – Subscribe Now https://www.bikernet.com/pages/custom/subscription.aspx

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1984 Harley-Davidson XR1000 Street Tracker Up for Grabs

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by Mircea Panait from https://www.autoevolution.com/ Even though the Sportster line goes back to the 1957, Harley-Davidson treated the world to a rather special model in 1983 in the guise of the XR1000. Alternatively spelled XR-1000, the “street tracker” isn’t only rare but it combines XL Sportster parts with XR750 go-faster goodies. You can think of the 1984 model year XR1000 as the best of both worlds. A “backroom special” is how Mecum Auctions describes it, and this fellow here is an unaltered example with the original paint and no mods whatsoever since it left the factory. And yes, it’s also looking for a new owner. Only 1,018 units have been produced for ’84, featuring 36-millimeter carburetors on the right side of the motorcycle and dirt track-style exhausts swept high on the left side. Tipping the scales at 490 pounds (222 kilograms; dry), the XR1000 can easily shoot to 125 miles per hour (201 kph). When new, the XR1000 used to cost $6,995 or $18,499 in today’s money based on a cumulative inflation of 164.46 percent. Iron cylinders reduced by half an inch, Jerry Branch aluminum SR heads, aluminum pushrods, and a 9:1 compression ratio are also worthy of note. With 71 horsepower on tap and capable of pulling away from as low as 1,500 revs in top gear, the bike shipped as standard with an electric starter and a rather small fuel tank. Obviously enough, one of the many quirks of riding the XR1000 is the exhaust system. Not only does it weigh the bike to the left, but the headers could burn through the rider’s jeans. The suspension is another annoyance when riding on anything other than smooth asphalt because the forks are underdamped and softly sprung while the shocks don’t offer much travel. Nevertheless, it’s one of the

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Harley-Davidson Emperor Is a “Chopperized” 1995 Sportster

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by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com Harley-Davidson called the custom bike build competition for its international dealers King of Kings, but one shop from Germany wanted to top that, so they named their project Emperor. Chosen at the end of April, the King of Kings winner was crowned a Sportster-based Mexican creation by the name of Apex Predator. Over the past two weeks, we’ve talked at length about some of the other participants as well, because each had its own something unique to bring to the table. The Emperor we’re talking about today is of German origin, and has been designed by a Harley dealer called Thunderbike. It boasts, perhaps, the most radical changes compared to the base bike, which is a 1995 H-D Sportster. We’ve talked about Thunderbike before, and we know these guys are not messing around when it comes to customizing motorcycles or building their own frames. The same happened here. The Emperor probably boasts the most changes from all the 15 entries in the competition. It has been gutted and had some of the parts removed, some of them replaced, and the whole thing gifted with a very long list of custom parts, ranging from the wheels to the exhaust. The fork, handlebar, tank, oil tank, seat, fender, struts, exhaust and shifter, all have been added to the bike in custom form to give it this distinctive look, a more chopper-like appearance than Harley originally had in mind for the Sportster. Thunderbike went a little further than its competitors did, and even revised the stock engine of the motorcycle a bit, fitting it with an automatic clutch. In the end, the German Emperor, even in this extreme, chopperized form, did not manage to win the King Kings competition. Yet, given the budget limits imposed by Harley for

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Apex Predator Is One Sportster Harley-Davidson Should Start Making

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by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com At the beginning of April, Harley-Davidson announced the winner of this year’s King of Kings competition, a mashup of the best 15 previous winners of the Battle of the Kings. Its name is Apex Predator, and with it we’re kicking off a series that will bring to light over the following days all the participants. Known in the industry as BOTK, Battle of the Kings kicked off in 2015 as a custom build competition for Harley dealers worldwide. It is, if you like, a competition of ideas Harley itself was incapable of having, but recognized by the bike maker as possibly game changing for the custom industry. The rules of the competition are simple: the base motorcycle needs to be a Harley-Davidson bike, the customization must not cost over €6,000 ($6,500) and must have at least half of the parts used taken from the Harley inventory, and the final bike must be road legal. Over the years many competed in the Battle of Kings, but in April 2020 Harley crowned one of them ruler of the pack. And as fate would have it, that King of Kings is the Apex Predator. Built by a dealer in Mexico called Harley-Davidson Queretaro, the Apex is based on the Sportster XR1200 with the stock engine, and it is supposed to be a “retro-futuristic XR-based track monster meets street fighter.” Featuring custom parts like front fork covers, dual air intakes, and wave-style brake rotors, the bike does not shy away from making use of materials not often used in the motorcycle industry, like the Alcantara on the seat. Aside from the visual upgrades made to it, the Sportster also got a full color TFT Bluetooth instrument panel, and a hand built 2-1-2 exhaust system. As for the Sportster line,

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Restored 1st Gen Harley-Davidson Sportster Up for Grabs

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by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com In the entire history of Harley-Davidson, which is over a century, the longest-running nameplate has been the Sportster. It was introduced back in 1957 as a successor to the Model K, and it is presently one of the most appreciate bikes in the world. When they first hit the market, these bikes were a sight to behold, despite the fact they shared much with the Ks that preceded them, from frame to fenders, and the large gas tank and front suspension in between. Powered by a flat-head engine fitted directly on the frame, it proved to be quite a challenge for riders in terms of vibration. This doesn’t seem to have been such an issue, though, as the bikes were made in this configuration for years, well until 2003 when rubber isolation mounts and tie links were fitted to reduce the vibration felt by the riders. Because there were so many of them made for so long, finding a Sportster on the open market is a breeze. It might not be so easy finding a Sportster from the very first production year, though, especially one in what seems to be very good condition. Exactly such a bike popped up on the list of vehicles that went under the hammer last week during the Mecum Glendale auction in Arizona. For reasons unknown, it failed to sell, so it is still up for grabs. The seller of the bike claims this is a complete restoration of a 1957 Sportster, but provides no actual details on the work that has been done to it. With the gas tank and fenders painted red, chrome on the handlebars, parts of the engine and exhaust, and skim tires, this Sportster sure is a sight to behold, especially for those with a

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Bike Feature — Hard Rock Cafe SportsterBy Game Over Cycles

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Hang on for the latest Game Over Cycles (Poland) Cafe Racer customized for Hard Rock Cafe restaurant and it’s a bike combining motorcycle world with the world of music. The concept is expressed in construction containing parts, which look like instruments and music gear, but are also fully operational elements of the motorcycle. Read more here.

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Barnett Clutch Kit For 2017 Harley Davidson FL Touring models

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One of the latest additions to the long line of Harley Davidson clutch kits by Barnett is the direct-fit upgrade clutch kit for the 2017 Harley Davidson FL Touring models. This kit features Barnett’s segmented Kevlar friction plates which are designed for more oil flow, longer life and smoother clutch operation. Also included are a set of tempered steel drive plates and a set of three heavy duty clutch springs. All kits are quality checked for exact stack height prior to packaging to guarantee proper fit and optimal performance. These kits are made in-house and in the USA by Barnett. To order, contact your dealer or go to www.barnettclutches.com to order online. Part #303-30-10019 MSRP: $227.10 Advertisement

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You Get To Decide Who Will Be Crowned Harley-Davidson’s Custom King

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Harley-Davidson has invited dealers to showcase their individuality in the Custom Kings Customization Contest. Dealers from all over the country turned a Sportster motorcycle into a “Custom of One” work of art – earlier today the top 64 creations were revealed for fans to help choose the ‘king’ in a bracket-style competition at www.H-D.com/CustomKings. Initial entries were scored by the  Harley-Davidson styling team based on criteria including quality of customization and build, fit and finish, use of paint, design, technique and how teams utilized Harley-Davidson Genuine Parts &Accessories. “Customization is one of the biggest ways riders showcase and celebrate their individuality,” said Dino Bernacchi, director of U.S. marketing at Harley-Davidson. “Custom Kings brings that forward by redefining performance through the expertise and ingenuity of Harley-Davidson dealers throughout the country. All of the competitors have put in months of planning, building and straight-up creative thinking into each of the bikes featured in the contest.” The entries with the most votes in each match-up will move on to the next round of the competition. Fans will select the final winner after six rounds of bike-to-bike battles. Fans can view all of the bike builds by following #HDCustomKings or H-D.com/CustomKings for more information and to cast their vote today.

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