Another Look at the LC Fabrication Sportster SX1250

What do we have here?

This bike, the SX1250, is a dirt oriented Sportster that looks like one helluva good time in the hands of a capable rider. What's up with that name you ask? Well, that is a homage to old enduro-look SX250 Aeromacchi HD made back in the 70's. I know I know. Most folks despise those bikes and this makes you wonder why LC would look at that period of HD history for inspiration, but they have. And you know what? This thing ain't bad at all. Don't worry about anything like an Italian two-stroke powering the bike either because the Sportster engine is still intact.  

A new life

The donor bike for this project comes from an estate sale from a friend who was close to the shop. LC Fabrications head, Jeremy Cupp took one look at the bike and began to formulate a plan to morph it into a quick and dirt-loving Sportster. The initial plan was just to make the Sporter a fast turnaround job by adding knobby tires, stilettos and lower gear. Jeremey remarks that this should have taken just a few weeks but fast forward almost three years and you have the completion of the project. 

>>Join the conversation about this SX1250 dirt Sportster right here in HDForums.

When puttings things off is a benefit

So what the hell happened to make things escalate to the point of years passing by? Good ol' procrastination is what. However, with the bike shoved into a corner like Baby in Dirty Dancing, that left Jeremy's mind to wander with all the possibilities of things to do with the project. For beginners, the subframe of the bike was a disaster of heavy cast steel, so Jeremy cut it out and made something on his own.  "Once removed, I realized I had a nice open space for a monoshock." LC fitted the front with a set of fork tubes from a 2001 YZ250 and made a set of triple trees to set the proper geometry. On the rear, the concept of a straightforward ladder bar was tossed out in favor of a billet swingarm that accepted a rising rate suspension linkage. 

>>Join the conversation about this SX1250 dirt Sportster right here in HDForums.

Carbon is light and strong

The body was thrashed and so off the shelf parts weren't going to cut it. The bike served as a testbed for Jeremy's interest in hand laying carbon. The fit and finish of it all are due to Jeremy having cut his teeth working a good portion of his life inside a machine shop in the hills of Virginia. That level of attention was also turned on the engine as well so that the bike performed just as well as it looked.  "So I called my friend Pat at Led Sled and picked up one of his Evo Sportster kickstart kits." Jeremy then cut the enter starter nose off the stock cases and made a billet primary cover to fit. He also designed a hydraulic clutch actuator via the internals from a Buell 1125R. The rest of the engine is a mix of parts that were laying around the LC workshop. 

>>Join the conversation about this SX1250 dirt Sportster right here in HDForums.

More of the good stuff

To finish up the project, Jeremy laid on the paint and graphics to show off the bike and the carbon that lay beneath the colors. The livery is another nod to the Aeromacchi HDs of the past. On gazing at his creation Jeremy remarks "I’ll admit that I’ve built a lot of what I call butt jewelry. Mechanical sculptures and showpieces. This is a new direction for me as it’s designed with function over form and yet still wound up being aesthetically quite nice too. I also see it as more of a prototype and something the factory should take note of rather than a creative expression that I usually find myself working on."

Check out more of the cool stuff LC Fabrication is creating right here. 

>>Join the conversation about this SX1250 dirt Sportster right here in HDForums.

For help with your maintenance and repair projects, please visit our how-to section in the forum.