hey ya'll,

i'm looking to get an older sportster to hardtail and bob/chop it up. i was looking into any ironhead. i was looking for some things to inspect, check, test, before i purchased/traded for a bike (craigslist). i currently have a street bob and do all my own wrenching, i know most old ironheads will need constant repair/maintenence, i'm ready for this. so was looking for some more insite into this project, looking to keep this bike simple and to remove stuff that is not needed, legally, turnsignals/gauges/etc. i was toying with the idea of jockey shift, but will decide on this as the project moves along. any years to shy away from? parts of frame/engine to inspect? etc. etc.

thanks in advance.

 

Cracked cases and a legal and matching VIN (for frame numbered bikes) are what I would consider to be most critical.

 

+1 on GA's comment. The most impotant item is proper title. I am not expert on the problems with the cases but on some early years the tranny would blow out thru the case. Apparently it is not a problem if it was welded up well.

There are a bunch of us who will hate you if you chop up a good, unmolested ironhead frame. These are becoming more rare each year. Best to buy an aftermarket frame for your project. There are lots of choices.

Engines were 900 cc [actually 883 cc] up to about 1970 or so. There was a year and a half of early 1000 cc which are more difficult to work with; then from about late 72 or so to 85 they are all basically the same 1000 cc.

Sportster.org has a good history with correct details, dates, etc.

 

Not terribly rare yet, though. I salivated a little when I saw a dusty ironhead sporty on the side of the road in southern NH with a sign saying "$700 OBO". The guy I was with wasn't as interested as me, however, and decided it wasn't worth the time to turn around.

Good luck with the project, but I tend to agree that these are slowly fading classics.

- Al.

 

I hear ya ironmick... Id hate to chop anything h-d, especially a classic bike like this... I have been looking at frames and they are pretty reasonable, price wise.

So i guess i just waiting on the one bike to catch my eye. I've had a few trade offers. 79 sporty, 88 softie, 94 dyna, and some unknown shovel (still getting details). This shovel is very clean and looker. Im trying to keep this low budget, so most of my purchases will be swaps. Thanks for all the help guys!

 

Oh Mick you would kick my *** if you saw what I've done to the two frames I got.

 

if thats one of them in the sig pic... i really like it! thats what im after, all i'd need is a tank and a super small rear fender and i'd be about done, i guess i would "think" about painting it.

 

Yeah that's one of them. The other one I've welded a bunch of tabs on it.