Morning All,

so as promised I am looking to start my project in the next 6-12 months or so; being either an entire restoration OR brand new build of a Harley Davidson.

Some may ask why; well I do have an affinity for restoring something old and beautiful and I don't always subscribe to the modern mantra of disposable, so a Harley comes under the classification of something beautiful that should always be looked after.

However in another aspect I do want to get another bike; but I'm in no hurry, nor in any position to get loans aplenty to have a Harley, so I would simply buy every part, slowly make my own bike. Which ultimately would be incredibly satisfying to be able to look at my ride and say "I made her from scratch and she's perfect".

Probably the the first hurdle is which bike (parts availability and so on) but also whether to buy a complete engine and transmission off eBay, of if there is another way. About the only thing I would consider getting assembled that hadn't been put together by myself was the engine, otherwise I would prefer to buy all the components and assemble.

As far as models I have been looking at the sportster 1200, as I'm actually a fan of the Iron 883 aesthetic. But a fat boy is always going to tug at my heartstrings.

 

Seems to me you already made up your mind.

 

Not necessarily, beyond eBay and classifieds I don't know where else to turn for other than HD themselves. Searching eBay yielded a few restored engine/transmission combos in Australia which were 1200 varieties.

the problem with my selection is that it's limited to what I know (and I know very little, mechanically or otherwise about HD) and the ones I've chosen aren't exactly easy to come by (iron 883 is an exception but I haven't called HD yet to get a price on individual components)

 

Ahhh I didnt notice you are down under. I was gonna say if ya got a ride and some cash just start searching till ya find a really good and be patient. Finda one with a good engine and trany and go from there depending on what the bike needs. But where your at I aint got no clue of the market.

 

You can see US dollar prices for the components that make up most Harleys on one of the on-line parts websites, which will give you a ball-park figure. There may be Oz taxes and import duties to add, which you should be able to find easily enough. For Harley accessories prices simply check the Shop tab on The Australian H-D website.

 

thats what I'm thinking, if I was going to assemble one new I'll just import most of the parts or get HD Aust to bring them in for me - like I said time really isn't an issue for me, it's more about picking a method.

New model - easy to source and new parts
older model - possibly harder to source, fixing possible broken parts/areas

 

I've owned my 1990 Glide from new. While some parts are no longer available I haven't yet had any problems modifying and maintaining it, however I have wandered far further away from stock than most other owners. It depends more on what you plan to do that with your project bike on selecting which age range is the better choice. The further from stock you plan on going, such as a wider rear wheel, the easier it is to do with a recent bike, simply because the kits (and a whole lot more) are out there. If you are ace at fabricating stuff I guess you wouldn't be in here asking your question!

 

fair to decent point and I am inclined to agree; however because I don't have any or all of my tools and minimal space to work with, I would rather assemble rather than start any form of ad-hoc work. Based on the registration and licensing laws here (Brisbane) you really need to be 100% spot on when it comes to new registrations (you can get some lenient roadworthy assessments but better safe than sorry). So for starters I'll be happy to have assembled my own bike, then the modifications can be made afterwards (while it's registered go bananas).

Just on what you're saying I think I'll still with an 883 sportster, probably a question for the sportster forum as to what the differences are in the range (bar displacement).

 

The majority of Sportsters you will see have all-alloy engines, but are either solid mount or rubber mount (the more recent ones) in the frame. As a long-standing Harley owner I never could get on with the solid mounts (others in here love 'em!) whereas the rubber mounts are wonderful things IMHO. So your first decision I suggest is to select one of those two options.

To be blunt, assembling your own bike from parts, especially on the other side of the World from the USA (as I also am) is not a good starting point. Buy yourself a whole bike, either new or secondhand, that way you know everything fits and works! A lot of overseas punters buy secondhand bikes from the USA and I'm sure you will find plenty of Oz companies happy to do that for you, if you can't find a suitable starter bike.

 

haha I'm absolutely positive I will be getting rubber mounts, I've had some experience with a loveable (albeit a live-hate relationship) with a TL1000r......and it's earlier variant, so vibration and just general handling is a factor.

What youre saying is an option however I know it would annoy the living bejesus out of me, currently I am in one of those points in life where I have no REAL debt (unless you count child support) and any expenditure I do have (mostly towards my business) is on a schedule that can be cut at a moments notice, so I'm not tied down to anything which I'm actually really enjoying.

Getting a a loan for a bike; even a second-hand one is not something I want to do and time is a resource I have more of than money. So basically I want to give myself something to do and at the end I can have something I made for myself. From a purely financial perspective - yes it's cheaper just to buy a bike, but in the end I'm not in any rush, but if i had to get a loan I'd get a smaller one for the engine/tranny assembly.

Yes I know I sound probably stupid but there is a method to my madness.....that method being to avoid madness.