[freakrz]

Here is the Bobber i have been working for sometime.








This is a 2010 Harley Sportster Nightster 1200N Silver/Black



My first mod started after a month i purchased.I have researched a lot over the web on sportsters and different models.I fell in love with the hardtail's and iron heads but they are not practical on Indian Roads.There are a lot of speed bumps , potholes and uneven surfaces.hardtail's are not quite practical in our conditions.

I love to ride a lot , I take my bike out everyday , so i stick to the stock suspension.It has 130 mm ground clearance which is decent for a solo rider and for the road conditions here.

The first thing i came across is the Exhaust.most people around U.S upgraded the exhaust as soon as they purchased the bike.the most popular one's i came across are the screaming eagles,vance and hines ,bub , bassani , RSD and a lot more custom made ones.



I have read a lot of comments in forums and writeups on how to select exhausts online.A lot of people i talked to recommended to go with vance and hines exhausts and screaming eagles for sportsters.There are basically two types of exhausts,1.) 2-1 and 2) 2-2 .the main difference i encountered is with 2-1 you get a better performance and with 2-2 you get better sound and low end which is quite good with the street riding.If you want straight out performance i would suggest a 2-1 exhaust. I preferd to go with vance and hines after checking out the videos on you tube and other sites.they are quite loud , i did'nt expect but they sound very aggressive which i like.I went with the Short Shots from Vance & Hines its 2-2,with those i am told to get the fuel pack or get a remap done by harley.I went along with the fuel pack,also i needed to upgrade to stage 1 air cleaner so I got a Screaming Eagle Stage 1 air cleaner.

Video of Vance & Hines Short Shots with quiet baffles

Dtunerz 1200N Nightster Kustom with Vance & Hines - YouTube

The quiet baffles reduce the sound by about 15%.eventually it gets a little louder.so expect about 10% reduction in the sound and you wont have the aggressive grunt.

Video of Vance & Hines Short Shots with stock baffles

Harley Nightster 1200N Vance & Hines ShortShots Staggered Exhaust - YouTube

The entire pack got my 1200 to stage 1 Tune up.It set me back by 1000USD.Which includes the shipping and 26% Customs Duty.

The Exhaust covers are custom drilled locally.i love the buck shot style.



The Next mod is to relocate the speedo ,ignition coils and the key.which is a default mod on all harley sportsters in the U.S plus they look pretty cool.I have got everything done locally.It took a lot my time more than the money.but i got the job done right.



I am quite impressed with the Harley 48 model,so i got the mirrors inverted and relocated my front turn indicators to the fork.got a side number plate fabricated locally and mounted on lower end of the fork.



The Next set of mod's are visuals.Bobber Style Solo Spring Seat,drilled hand grips , drilled foot pegs ,skull gas cap.I love the old school bobber's.they are my inspiration.



Paint Upgrade:

After about a year using the bike,i decided to upgrade my paint job.i have designed this in paint shop and went along with it.it took some time to find the right guy to do the paint work but got it after a long search.

we did a lot of test paint jobs on sheet metal before i tried it on the bike.it came out pretty good.so i finally got it done.it did come out as i expected.



I first got the Engine covers and Head powder coated black,i did not like the grey color of the stock engine block and then i got orange color on the pushrods,sprocket and the brake covers .This is a heat resistant paint.the job was great.even after two years the paint's still fresh.

Then i worked on the Gas Tank.did it in a step by step process.it took us a couple of days to get it right.had to do multiple coats.first painted it all black,then did the orange , after that white stripes and finally skull.





I even got the Harley Print on the Tyre painted orange to match the bike's paint.





I got a set of mini led's for rear indicators , which i placed under the spring seat and a bobber style mini bates led light on the rear.mounted it on the side plate on the top of rear forks.



With the help from xlforums i found the wiring diagram for the rear tail lights and it was indeed helpful.it was a pain to sort the wiring but once done it was easy



hardwired the indicators & tail lamp by soldering the wires.





The Video of the Tail Lights & Indicators

Nightster Bobber Spring Seat Mount Turn Signals Indicators - YouTube

I removed the stock connectors for the tail lams and the indicators.for the nightster the tail light and indicators are built into the indicators.



This entire set of mod's set me back by 1200USD in parts from U.S and another 50,000 on the paint and other stuff.

The Next round of mod's i did are more like a courageous act or chopping the bike's rear end frame.It took quite some time to take the step.after about another year i wanted to bob it further.I usually ride solo and occasionally with a pillion.more like the bike is a solo rider.so i went ahead and chopped the rear end.

I didn't want to mess around with the stock fender,so i got a spare one fabricated.it took us couple of days to get it right.



Once we got it right.then chopped the fender and finished it finely.i left the rear end unpainted.it matched with my RSD Gas Cap.I am currently working on the Handlebar Clamp to match the current theme.







I was looking around for a peanut tank for sometime.If i were to buy a spare,ot would cost me 400 USD + paint.i got lucky.one of the members in hyd HOG wanted to swap a 48 tank with the nightster.he wanted a bigger tank and i wanted a smaller , done deal.

Meanwhile i also drilled the air cleaner cover and the hand grips to match the bike's buckshot theme.with 5.5" Risers & Drag Bars gave it the bobber feel.I initially had a 3.5" risers and used the stock bars but i liked the drag bars more.they are easy to ride around in the traffic.

This is the current stage i am on....! I am in process of further mod's like springer front end, belt to chain conversion, 180 rear tyre, custom paint job,top head light mount,custom primary drive cover.

I stripped the bike and removed a lot of stuff like the belt guard,primary drive cover,rear indicators,rear frame cover,front fender,rear fender chopped to get this look.



This is what i have right now. it took me a lot of time to get it right and it was quite an experience, i am happy the way this is going.i am proud to say this is one of its kind custom sporty in India.

with my experience i have helped a couple of my friends with custom paint jobs and also parts.i will also put up the other works i have done later in the post.i would love to help anyone customizing their Harley as i have got some exposure from my work.

Please Leave your suggestions and comments,which will help me in my future mod's.

[aadithsince1980]

Woah! That's one hot looking harley you have there Love the paint scheme, the placement of the RVM's and the speedo meter! Too bad that
no one gets to ride pillion though.

Congrats on the great work and it would be great if you could share the costs involved in the modification process.

Cheers!

[90BHP]

The mirror looks rather interesting, the view would be good only for such bike with high handles. Otherwise god knows what you may see in mirrors...

BTW why did you debadge your bike completely ? I know it's a Harley & will remain one but, its not a common sight to see these beauties on road. So flaunt it while you have it. And yes, the paint job is amazing ! Brings out an element of funk in an otherwise sober looking ride. Correct me if I am wrong that is an Iron 883 right ?

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Motorbikes section. Thanks for sharing!

[fine69]

I personally feel its stripped down way too much but whatever works for you! Love the number plate placement, RVMs and specially the right amount of orange all over.

You've totally changed the character of the bike, way to go!!

[mayankk]

all well, but that seat is not fitting in at all.
I know it looks lovely on a low rider.
No flow!
everything else, naice!

[freakrz]

Thankz for the comments and inputs guys.

Originally Posted by aadithsince1980

Woah! That's one hot looking harley you have there Love the paint scheme, the placement of the RVM's and the speedo meter! Too bad that
no one gets to ride pillion though.

Congrats on the great work and it would be great if you could share the costs involved in the modification process.

Cheers!

i ride solo a lot of time.sometimes i take a pillion nd that's usually my wife,its quite low with a pillion on the back and will scrape at the normal speed breakers.so i avoid riding with a pillion.i have put the aprrox costs that i remember in the write-up.

Originally Posted by 90BHP

The mirror looks rather interesting, the view would be good only for such bike with high handles. Otherwise god knows what you may see in mirrors...

BTW why did you debadge your bike completely ? I know it's a Harley & will remain one but, its not a common sight to see these beauties on road. So flaunt it while you have it. And yes, the paint job is amazing ! Brings out an element of funk in an otherwise sober looking ride. Correct me if I am wrong that is an Iron 883 right ?

I love the 48 harley,i wanted to get it so badly.when i walked into the showroom to checkout if its being launched they told me its not gonna come till couple of years and this was like sep 2010.so the next option i had then was the nightster.i felt sportsters are the best to ride around for the Indian road conditions.easy to maneuver and can ride it everyday.

after about 8 months they launched the 48 and in due time i started working on the bike and souping it up.added bits and pieces of 48 which i liked.right now i am using the 2011 harley 48 tank.its stock and i did not debadge it.

Originally Posted by fine69

I personally feel its stripped down way too much but whatever works for you! Love the number plate placement, RVMs and specially the right amount of orange all over.

You've totally changed the character of the bike, way to go!!

Yea i v stripped it almost naked. somehow i like the harley orange,they look bight and catchy.i saw this custom chopper have a paint job on the engine block and got inspired.from then i wanted to have it accented orange.

Originally Posted by mayankk

all well, but that seat is not fitting in at all.
I know it looks lovely on a low rider.
No flow!
everything else, naice!

i am in the process of removing the springs on the seat and lowering it.i will need to relocate the turn indicators from under the seat to the rear number plate.then it would have the low seat feel.

[2StrokeJunkie]

The colours remind me of what a Cruiser from KTM would look like ! Good job !

[mayankjha1806]

Wow, awesome work. Looks neat and cool, although i am not a big fan of cruisers this one looks way better then whatever i have seen (excluding VRod).

The petrol tank in comparison to the rest of the body looks bigger, especially from side profile. Is that normal?

[vanam]

Wow. That is an unbelievable amount of detail that you have paid attention to. In my view there are two changes needed to complete the whole job - 1. Remove the 48 decal on the tank and keep it as a plain peanut tank. Change the paint back to the orange stripe as the reason for the tyre painted orange otherwise gets lost and also the bike seems as though it was a 48 stock that has been modified. 2. The seat needs to be a non springer seat as it does not go with the overall look. This is just my two cents and not to take away from the amazing job that has been done on this bike. Hope we see more such work from you in the future.

[Leistung]

A genuine and bold effort and sure your Harley is unique! I just love the drilled metal handles. The color combination- Orange, black and-AWESOME.

[ZYCE_4WD]

Awesome is an understatement. Frankly you work will be counted as a pioneering work in HD mods. One needs to have courage to mod a HD and the beauty is you got it right. You have set a precedent for others to follow. A bold step in custom design. BRAVO

I am inspired for sure !

[ku69rd]

Originally Posted by freakrz

Please Leave your suggestions and comments,which will help me in my future mod's.

The bike does look very good in its present avatar and must appreciate the guts that you have displayed needs to be commended. However quite not sure why there would be a requirement for the belt to be done away in favor of chain?
Having ridden many of my friend's HD's always maintained that belts give a smooth ride compared to chain.

[Thilak29]

Not that I am sidelining your work,even the photography is stunning!
Great work,I was not aware that people choose to modify even HDs,here in India!

[samarth.bhatia]

Hi,

One word for this amazingly detailed effort. Amazing.
But that's not the only word. Probably another one would be - Brave!
Doing up a Harley. In India. And to such great detail. Wow.

It would have taken a whole lot of research, planning, getting your hands dirty etc. etc.
But more than anything else, guts.
And for that, I salute you, my friend.

The color theme is brilliant.
I have always aspired to own an HD. And that's mostly because I really like the old school feel of the bikes and the brand itself.
But your customized HD has opened my eyes to a completely different dream . Way to go!

Cheers and Ride Safe.
Sam