I keep seeing people say on these boards how they love their 48's. I'm new to riding so I was wondering what the differences are between the 48 and custom.

 

Lol. Where to begin? The obvious differences are the fat front tire, 2.1 gal peanut style tank, solo seat, under bar mounted mirrors. Not so obvious differences could be the forward controls, wrinkle black primary and drive covers, the fork mounted turn indicators, shortened rear suspension, front fork brace, ummm that's all I can think of off the top of my head as I avoid sleep. I'm sure others will add more.

 

Two totally different ballparks, If your looking for that rough, raw, retro look then nothing holds a candle to the 48, I have a Custom, but if I had the Cash/Credit to back me I'd be on a new 2012 48, the logos are the bomb. to me the custom is the Shiny side of the sportsters showing everyone just because it's a sporty doesn't mean it cant have as gobs of chrome that a roadking does, the Iron 883 Stands for the American Blue Collar way of life where you work for what you own, the Nightster is more of the dark cousin to the custom & Iron it doesn't claim either territory just a good balance of both, and in my opinion the 48 to me is a better representation of the 100th anniversary sportster, Sportys have been pumping pistons since the 50's and Harley really acknowledged that with the 48, it's no secret that every sportster gets personalized, and the 48 shows what harley has come from hence the styling to our modern technology and advancements of today. Harley has many different families in their line ups but none more fun, pleasing, or soulful than the sporty, there is a sporty for everyone out there, it just depends on what it takes to make it yours. Best Wishes. -Joe

 

While there are quite a few differences between the 2012 XL1200C (Custom) and the 48...they do both have the fat front tire and forward controls. They also have the same drive train.

Differences are many also, mags vs. spokes, finish, seat, and the Custom has over twice the capacity in fuel at 4.5 gallons and more

Pics below-

Kevin

 

Good coverage, don't forget about the seat though- which is unique to the Forty Eight alone.
I will make one correction though. The new Customs actually do have the Forty Eight mid-glide front end and wide tire as well.
Also, the Forty Eight has black engine cases as well (not just the primary and drive cases), painted intake cover, flat black handlebars, levers, and lever controls, gloss black headlight and trees (mid glide), and side mounted license plate. The belt guard is also different, it is stock Sportster but black with a series of holes in it. Plus, the Forty Eight has rear turn signals/brake lights/running lights integrated into one.

 

All in all, the Custom is more geared toward longer riding for the Sportster market, whereas the Forty Eight is just that- named so because it has retro throwbacks to the 1948 Harley Davidsons.

 

Wow...couldn't be said better...

 

I stand corrected. For some reason I thought only the 48 came with forward controls and fat front tire.

 

It's called a 48 because that was the first year they used the 2.1 gallon tank