The Harley-Davidson Sportster was introduced in 1957 to compete against the best-selling British bikes that were invading the United States market. The 2018 Sportster range starts with the base model SuperLow, and then rises in price and specification to include the Iron 883, 1200 Custom, Roadster and Forty-Eight bikes.
The Harley-Davidson Sportster’s original 40 hp Ironhead V-twin engine gave a top speed of approximately 100 mph and stayed in production until 1985, when it was replaced with the 1986 Evolution motor.
There is a vast market for spare Sportster parts and accessories, and many owners transform their bikes into something else—whether a chopper, cafe racer, or scrambler.
In our extensive coverage of Sportster customs, you’ll find bikes that are tuned up (and dressed up) by the world’s top custom Harley builders. Dig in, and get inspiration right here for customizing your own Harley-Davidson Sportster.
Even though they require similar skills, the custom motorcycle and car worlds are vastly different. But they do sometimes meet. In the Czech Republic there’s a modest garage where Harley-Davidsons and Chevrolets stand side-by-side. Rusty Pistons Garage is a small workshop based in Chlumec nad Cidlinou, a town just east of Prague in the Czech…
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I didn’t see many motorcycles when I paid a brief visit to Dubai a few years ago. The streets were full of Toyota Landcruisers, growling supercars and Mercedes sedans with black tinted glass. But the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates has a thriving biker scene if you know where to look, and…
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In this week’s weekend roundup, we’re looking at a new CB350 from Honda, farewelling the Harley-Davidson Sportster, and casting an eye over a couple of slick new Yamaha customs. And did you know that Indian has just launched an electric bike?
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Custom motorcycles don’t always need to be practical… unless, of course, you need a purpose built machine that can handle a two week adventure ride across Australia. In that case, you’d want something like this tough Harley-Davidson Sportster. It’s the work of Tom Gilroy, at the aptly named Purpose Built Moto on Australia’s Gold Coast.…
Read more »Let’s all gawp at the latest oddity from Curtiss Motorcycles, and then drool over a fabulous retro kit for the Kawasaki Z900…
Read more »Technology moves at a relentless place—and the motorcycle industry can’t escape it. Just the other day I was riding an electric motorcycle…
Read more »We’ve got a Harley-heavy selection this week, with a cafe racer from Italy, a scrambler from Japan and a tracker from the…
Read more »Despite being steeped in the custom scene, Harley-Davidson doesn’t often donate bikes to custom builders. So this Sportster Iron 1200 from Prism…
Read more »Deus cracks the style code for a Sportster cafe racer. Plus a custom Ducati Paul Smart owned by the principal of a…
Read more »Harley’s global dealer custom competition launches with a fusillade of very tasty European builds. We’ve also got a Kawasaki KX450 with amazing…
Read more »Squeezing two Harley engines into one chassis is a special form of lunacy, most commonly found in the drag bike scene in…
Read more »Trends ebb and flow in the custom world. And with them, the fortunes of bike builders. It might be tough at the…
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