Go Sportsters

[skysailor]

Originally Posted by Nadgett

Firm.

I wore a pair of bicycle shorts, and had a bit of sheepskin on the seat. You can see it better here:



They helped a lot. We did 5 450km days.

I was thinking of picking up a fresh one here:

You look very short in the first pic. How do you touch the ground?
Lyle

[83XLX]

Originally Posted by TheOtherBart

So I'm starting to eyeball some Sportsters, just sort of idle window shopping. If I were to pull the trigger my idea would be to slowly build something of a streettracker. I raced flattrack way back when and the style just appeals to me. Anyway, I know the easy way is to get the Storz catalog and go nuts, but it looks like their stuff only fits bikes back to 1986, and to get into a price range that I'd want to swing for the initial purchase I'd probably be looking at something older that that. Are the differences between pre- and post-1986 that significant? Any huge red flags with a '70s era Sportster in general?

A lot of the Storz stuff that is listed for '86 and newer will fit the '82-'85 Ironhead, too, as they had basically the same frame and front end. The Ironheads made in the last half of '84 and all the '85 models had the same alternator setup as the first Evo motors, which could be trouble-prone. Before that, Ironheads had a generator charging system.

I own an '83 Ironhead (and have had it for 22 years), and they aren't the junk many people seem to think they are. Sure, if you buy an abused one, one that hasn't been maintained, and/or one that had been "customized", you can have a mess on your hands. Find a good one, though, and it will be no more troublesome than any older bike. They have solid lifters, so the pushrods do require periodic adjustments, and the drive and primary chains need adjustment, too, but that's about all the extra care they require. The later ones had a decent electronic ignition, too, so none of that points & condenser crap.

If you want to build in some real performance, though, an Evo is probably the way to go. There's a lot more go-fast stuff available for them, and they can make better power than a similarly-modified Ironhead because of the better head design and better cooling. Ironheads are cool, though...

[AZbiker]

Originally Posted by 83xlx

nice!!!

[theKite]

I know that I have been told before, but I'm old and I forget.
So how do I attach an image from my own computer?
Rob

[AZbiker]

Originally Posted by theKite

I know that I have been told before, but I'm old and I forget.
So how do I attach an image from my own computer?
Rob

You don't.

You need to upload it to a photo hosting site like Smugmug, picasa, or photobucket.

After uploading the image to the hosting site, you can link to it here, or on any other site for that matter.

[TheOtherBart]

Originally Posted by 83XLX

A lot of the Storz stuff that is listed for '86 and newer will fit the '82-'85 Ironhead, too, as they had basically the same frame and front end. The Ironheads made in the last half of '84 and all the '85 models had the same alternator setup as the first Evo motors, which could be trouble-prone. Before that, Ironheads had a generator charging system.

I own an '83 Ironhead (and have had it for 22 years), and they aren't the junk many people seem to think they are. Sure, if you buy an abused one, one that hasn't been maintained, and/or one that had been "customized", you can have a mess on your hands. Find a good one, though, and it will be no more troublesome than any older bike. They have solid lifters, so the pushrods do require periodic adjustments, and the drive and primary chains need adjustment, too, but that's about all the extra care they require. The later ones had a decent electronic ignition, too, so none of that points & condenser crap.

If you want to build in some real performance, though, an Evo is probably the way to go. There's a lot more go-fast stuff available for them, and they can make better power than a similarly-modified Ironhead because of the better head design and better cooling. Ironheads are cool, though.

Great info and a beautiful bike. I missed out on a good looking '78 Ironhead in my neighborhood because I was dithering about spending the money. Kicking myself about that today. The performance thing is irrelevant to me. Yeah it would be cool to have some fire breathing monster, but the way I ride it would just be wasted.

[gus]

Just bought this '74 XLCH. Its as close to new as you can get without going back in time 38 years. Its so nice I almost hate to ride it. I am the third owner. It was bought new in Oakland CA. The original owner had the motor gone through and other parts redone in 1997 at Sonny Bargers Motorcycle Shop and some work done at Sportster Tony's A-1 Motorcycle Repair in Oakland (I have the reciepts). The guy sold it to his Brother and the bike was stripped down and restored (not 100% original). Less than 500 miles on it since all the work was done. It came with the original owners manual and shop manual and a box of extra parts and the original take offs including the original rims. The mags are OEM factory options. It's niiiice.

[gus]

Another Veiw

[sargev55]

Originally Posted by gus

Just bought this '74 XLCH. Its as close to new as you can get without going back in time 38 years. Its so nice I almost hate to ride it. I am the third owner. It was bought new in Oakland CA. The original owner had the motor gone through and other parts redone in 1997 at Sonny Bargers Motorcycle Shop and some work done at Sportster Tony's A-1 Motorcycle Repair in Oakland (I have the reciepts). The guy sold it to his Brother and the bike was stripped down and restored (not 100% original). Less than 500 miles on it since all the work was done. It came with the original owners manual and shop manual and a box of extra parts and the original take offs including the original rims. The mags are OEM factory options. It's niiiice.

i would suggest riding it.

a bike ridden often is much better than a bike that sits. that goes for you, or the next owner. letting anything automotive sit neglected is a bad idea.

[davevv]

Sweet! That is a beautiful bike. Hope you enjoy it.

[EetsOK]

Originally Posted by Nadgett

Harley's....sheep....theres a joke in there somewhere........

[vtwin]

Originally Posted by sargev55

i would suggest riding it.

a bike ridden often is much better than a bike that sits. that goes for you, or the next owner. letting anything automotive sit neglected is a bad idea.

+1, it's like marrying a super model and not touching her so you can save her for the next guy.

[sargev55]

Originally Posted by EetsOK

Harley's....sheep....theres a joke in there somewhere........

and the ATGATT rider thats never tried anything even somewhat risky and that waited for the sheep to cross, instead of just crossing the minor ditch and riding on.

[kraven]

Originally Posted by sargev55

and the ATGATT rider thats never tried anything even somewhat risky and that waited for the sheep to cross, instead of just crossing the minor ditch and riding on.

Minimizing risk is how you keep your deductibles down and maximize your return on investment! ATGATT won't protect you from an investment degrading series of grass stains.

[131unlimited]

Originally Posted by gus

Another Veiw

If that was a 74, then they removed all the linkage to switch the shift lever and the rear brake around. 74 was the first year that HD sporty's switched over to meet the mandate that all bikes in the US would have the shifter for the left foot and the rear brake for the right foot. I only remember this because mine was a 74 XLCH and I kept all of that funky linkage when I built it up from a basket case. After riding enduros and dirt bikes for so many years, I did not want to relearn just to ride the sporty comfortably.

Regardless, it is a awesome looking sporty and I really like the mags on it. Hope you enjoy the hell out of it.