Sportster FOR SALE

Do to a broken leg (not motorcycle related) I have decided to sell the Sportster. I can't stand another season of it sitting in the garage and not being out on the road. If you are interested in this 2008 Harledy-Davidson XL1200 Custom you should check out my FOR SALE blog. If you've any questions let me know and I'll update the Frequently Asked Questions on the FOR SALE blog.

Thanks, -David

Working on the Sportster

A big part of buying a Harley-Davidson is the heritage. The Motor Company goes way back and the Sportster line started in 1957. The heritage shows up in design and the classic V-Twin engines. Harley-Davidson has never been about cutting-edge, delivering on a fairly consistent motorcycling experience. This is not to say technologies have not changed and that the mechanics have not improved over time but the pace has been slow and steady. 

This slow pace of change, or commitment to the past, is evident in much of the add-on parts available for the Sportster. I’ve worked on cars for a living, and worked on Suzuki and BMW motorcycles as a hobby more recently and I can tell you that the German and Japanese manufacturers take a very different approach to the mechanics of their accessories. This includes everything from the directions to the fit and finish. More importantly, it was obvious that the majority of accessories from Suzuki and BMW had been thought of at the time of bike design. The electrical harness has plugs available for accessories to plug into. Parts fit extremely well with no adjustments required. 

The Sportie, however, is a different beast. Adding the Harley-Davidson tachometer and garage door opener kits requires splicing into the existing harness, adding ground wires, and a lot of work that you don’t encounter when working on other brands. I also found that the directions while not outright wrong do not necessarily provide the most practical guidance on how to install the factory items. 

A lot of this probably has to do with the age of the design. When creating the add-on parts the engineers seemed to go for obvious choices, or maybe the only choices, when they were creating the instructions. The other issue is that many of the parts are multi-purpose, they work on several different Harley-Davidson models and you have to carefully follow the directions to get the right configuration for your bike.

Harley-Davidson would do their customers a service by:

1. Updating their specifications and instructions based on the current models
   
2. Designing with the idea of factory accessories in mind
   
3. Providing model specific kits
   

Reddit It | Digg This | Add to del.icio.us

Back on the road

After the electrical problems I spent some time going over the Sporster checking all the work I had done. The installation of the tachometer, garage door opener, and performance management system did require modifications to the electrical system. Everything checked out okay, all the connections were solid.

I took the battery down to the Harley-Davidson dealership where they plugged it into their “deep cycle” charger and told me to come back the next day. The next day at the dealer they told me the battery took a charge and passed all the tests. I installed the freshly charged battery in the Sportster and bike fired right up – no sign of a problem. 

Now this did not make me feel real comfortable with the reliability of the Sportster – I’d have preferred to have had a dead battery instead of a battery that had been fully drained while on a ride. I checked out the voltage going to the battery and this came in at 13 plus volts, so the charging system was working but maybe not creating enough amperage to charge the battery.

So the Sportster with its suspect charging system sat in the garage until I could coordinate getting it down to the dealer to have the electrical system checked out. Finally, after several months I fired up the Sporty, the battery held the charge, and rode down to the dealer. After a few days in the shop I got the call that the charging system checked out and that the problem had to do with the bolts that attach the battery cables to the battery, apparently my 2008 Sportster Custom had “the old bolts”. The dealer replaced the bolts, no charge, and everything is good.

Since then, I’ve been out on a short two hour ride, no problems encountered, but I have to say my confidence is about 80 percent. 

Reddit It | Digg This | Add to del.icio.us

Windscreen for the Sportster

I recently received a comment on a previous helmet post requesting information on my windscreen. I originally purchased the Harley-Davidson clip-on windscreen, with the light grey tint.

First, the mounting hardware and screen are quality products. I was and continue to be very impressed with the ease of installation. The windscreen is attached and removed using four clips. The clips are very nice chrome pieces and when the windscreen is removed there is nothing left on the bike. The clips attach to the top of the forks, between the triple trees. One point to note, there is really no room for adjustment on the Sportster as the space between the triple trees is about the distance between the windscreen clamps.

The windscreen itself is pretty large and tall. It does a good job of keeping the air off your torso. I did notice a lot of buffeting around my head. Wearing the full face helmet reduced the audible impact of the buffeting. Over the summer I decided to look into smaller windscreens. I pulled the Harley screen and road most of the summer in the open, something I found really enjoyable.

I did purchase a Memphis Shades Del Rey primarily because I wanted the smaller size and clearance for future lighting. A call to Memphis Shades confirmed this was the windscreen I was looking for. I purchased the black fade screen and attachment hardware from Somerset Motorsports, a shop where I've found some great deals and great customer service.

As mentioned I've gone all summer without a windscreen and finally got around to installing the Del Rey this afternoon. The Memphis Shades kit is high quality and well engineered. The clamps attach to the forks but, unlike the Harley kit, they require unbolting to remove. The windscreen clips onto the clamps so it can be easily removed.

I really like the look of the new windscreen and will get a test ride over the next couple of days to assess how it handles the wind and turbulance. I'll get some picture posted soon so you can see how it looks on the Sportster.

Both the Harley-Windscreen and the Memphis Shades Del Rey are quality kits. The Harley screen has more of a big bike feel to me - it appears less sporty - while the Del Rey is a great size for the look of the Sportster Custom.

Reddit It |  Digg This | Add to del.icio.us

Installing the Harley Davidson Layback License Plate and Turn Signal Relocation Kit

Well before I ever wrenched on a motorcycle I worked on cars, there was a time when I even did that as a profession. I've always been pretty good at applying a strong dose of common sense to the job and figuring out when things just don't seem right.

Having previously owned BMW and Suzuki motorcycles I became accustomed to working on those machines and following the instructions provided by the manufacturers. Both manufacturers provide clear, concise instructions that are every bit as precise as their products. Anyone who could follow instructions and could tell the difference between a Phillips and Flat head screwdriver could do many straight forward tasks and fit most accessories.

With the Harley Davidson products I've learned that there is room for interpretation and that the ability sense when things aren't quite right are required for successful, or at least less frustrating, projects. I may be spoiled by the Germans and the Japanese, but it seems to me the good folks in Milwaukee like to leave out some useful bits of information, likely to make the jobs more interesting.

When installing the layback license plate and turn signal relocation kit (PN 60215-06) on my 2008 Sportster XL1200C Custom I found that most of the directions were accurate but there were certain pieces of information left out that would have been nice to have had. First of all, the Sportster Custom is low enough that unless you have pretty small hands your going to need to lift the bike to get underneath the rear fender and loosen the original license plate mounting hardware. Fortunately for me, I've hands suited for getting into tight spots.

Removing the original turn signals from the fender support required a little extra common sense as removing the parts specified in the kit instructions does not suffice. Rather, the outer chrome cover must be completely removed by loosening all of the torx bolts. At that time the nut head for the "stud" running through the turn signal mount can be accessed.

Also, when running the turn signal wires through the new, cylindrical mount on the license plate frame it is required to remove the original shrink tubing as the internal diameter of the mount is not sufficient. I had some small diameter shrink tubing on hand and once I ran the wires through the mount covered the exposed portions in the new tubing.

Finally, the kit provides instructions for removing the original connectors from the wire ends, and new connectors to attach once the wires are routed through the mount. Again, the diameter is too narrow to run the original connectors through. Problem is, attaching the new connectors can be an issue if you don't have a crimping tool sufficient to the task. I did have a tool that with a bit of care worked for me. If you're not comfortable with this than use the original connectors and instead splice the wires. If you cut back about 2-3 inches you will have plenty of room to run the wires through the mount and then solder the ends back on. Don't forget to slip the new shrink tube over the wires before you attach the ends and use a heat sink to keep from inadvertently shrinking the tubing.

Finally, once you've successfully installed the layback license plate and turn signal relocation kit you will have two holes on each side of the rear fender support chrome cover. The instructions provide part numbers for the hole plugs. What I found that worked are 2 of PN 53377-04 for the front holes and 2 of PN 68446-00 for the rear. Funny (ha ha) thing is that the 53377 hole plugs are $5.95 each while the latter are only $0.95 a piece. Go figure.

For the rest of the install, follow the Harley-Davidson instructions. Overall, it's a good kit that adds to the looks of the Sportster and get's the turn signals relocated in preparation of saddle bags.