Roland Sands Designs' Sportster cafe racer/scrambler for Hurley

TheBullitt

TheBullitt

Active Member
I'll admit I started off practically hating all things "Harley" just because of the stigma of the chopper/bad boy/shithead type guy. As I get older and more and more into all motorcycles I have to say Harleys are growing on me. I've tried to still hate the Sporster and most new Harleys but dammit RSD, this thing is sick. It started out as a cafe but they boys decided it was better with moto-style bars, etc. Interested to hear your thoughts and which set-up you like more.

I think I can only get one photo up for now. More here: http://thebullitt.blogspot.com/2012/07/roland-sands-designs-hurley-scrambler.html
 

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Cafe version above. Scrambler version below. Much more if you follow that link in the first post.
 

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TheBullitt said:
That's what I'm saying!!

@shamus - to each their own
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Is their a reason why a Harley Davidson can't have a f*cking level or at least proper stance? I'm pretty sure "raise the rear!" is unheard of when it comes to anything with association to HD. The bikes are whatever, I don't care if its HD or Polaris, but if they would for ONCE set the stance of an HD bike to reflect how its themed, I'd give credit where due.
 
Got one of those pipes on order for my new Sportster 48. I really dig the looks of them. And as for "cafe" and "handling", I would venture its better than most of the myriad of CB360's that seem to be so favored.
 
ChimeraMW said:
Is their a reason why a Harley Davidson can't have a f*cking level or at least proper stance? I'm pretty sure "raise the rear!" is unheard of when it comes to anything with association to HD. The bikes are whatever, I don't care if its HD or Polaris, but if they would for ONCE set the stance of an HD bike to reflect how its themed, I'd give credit where due.
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The motor is so tall that to give it the look you are talking about would require the seat height of a XR650R.

"but if they would for ONCE set the stance of an HD bike to reflect how its themed" - you on the drugs? the sportster low not sitting low? The VRod drag bike not look like a drag bike? The new 72 not looking exactly like a chopper from the early 1970s?
 
t71ford said:
Got one of those pipes on order for my new Sportster 48. I really dig the looks of them. And as for "cafe" and "handling", I would venture its better than most of the myriad of CB360's that seem to be so favored.
Click to expand...

Even this one? ;)

2012-04-19_17-27-05_134-2.jpg
 
Haha, I defer to the "most" in my statement to not include "all"! ;D. Of course not Gretta!

The new sportsters are really cool, though, especially the ones in the dark customs line. And they are marketed toward an entirely different dynamic than the standard Harley fare and more in line with the custom scene that is so popular right now. Not priced to bad either.

I'll be sure to post up the dyno tune numbers from that pipe!
 
Hahahahahahaha vrod drag bike ok now that thats outta the way the sportster tank is the worst on anything. a nice custom bike imo needs a good line and having a gas tank that sits five inches above the guages well thats not a good line and those wheels are beat. So its not the brand or the builder that kills it for me. its the fact that its ugly as shit for no reason there was more than enuff money spent on putting that bike together, it should have got a better less predictable tank and spoked wheels or at the very least wheels that didnt come off some 100000 dollar chopper that didnt sell a year age when the bottom fell outta that fad the paint i forgot all about the paint haha
 
I remember other photos of this bike w/o the fairing
xr750tt.jpg

When you talk of Roland Sands this is what comes to mind
IMG_0979wp.jpg

okay then back on topic
XRCR2.jpg


So I guess my point is not that it has all been done before but that there are many that think the Milwaukee "pony bike" engine has some merit as a canyon carver . The one I couldn't find in a brief search was a Steven Storz project of several years ago that looked the part due to several thousand($) of dollars in suspension and undisclosed engine modifications . Knowing Storz's connections in the industry I doubt it was anything near stock .
You are correct though . Most adaptations of the Sportster mill miss the mark either in some small way , make me puke a little in my mouth or fall somewhere in between .

now what was the question ? ;-)

~kop
 
My problem with Harley bikes in general is as some have mentioned before. They aren't a standard. They have that drop seat frame from the factory, and the motor is too tall to really do anything else with it to work. I like a standard with a nice clean seat and tank line, and anything that doesn't lend itself to that (or cost as much as 5 of my other bikes) tends to get dismissed.

And Tyler, I'm just messing with ya buddy!
 
Well, where we could buy a sporty new and do that for less than it would cost for a new jap bike...

If I wasn't 6' stupid, i might think about it. For now the only harley I want is a V rod and its not a traditional harley.
 
My intrigue with the 48 actually started because of the lines of the motor, and actually the relatively old technology of the motor. I have been on kind of a throwback kick lately, and this fits the bill as a base model for a throwback-type build base. It is purely for nostalgias sake, and less for the sake of performance, but the 48 tank is taken from 1948 molds, the engine might as well have been, etc. Will it be an IOM TT bike? No, but it will be adequate for around town, and a fun day blasting around the county--it'll be quick and light as well. My idea here was a halfway between my previous 1098 and the Heritage Softail, and something the wife could ride as well. I think it'll fit the bill perfectly. :)

Kiley--no worries brother--but it's just not fair pulling the Gretta card! ;D
 
As you pull a 1098 card to help make your point haha bazoka to knife fight
 
Haha! Riding a 1098 on the street is like bringing a bazooka to a knife fight. ;D I really didn't mean it to come across as I was pulling any kind of card, though. It's just my most recent experience with a big power, serious race bike, so I'm drawing off it.

I'm also not ragging on anybody's bike builds here. But having a ridden a few serious performance built bikes, my flavor of performance is slightly off. This means that to me whether it is a HD sportster cafe bike or a CB,XS, etc, if it makes under a hundred horsepower they are all solidly within the realm of current production stuff with numbers that are easy to obtain. While these bikes might be vastly superior to their OEM configuration (which is to be commended), a bike of equal performance can be readily had at the nearest dealer.

Now, I've built enough bikes to know that this is certainly not the reason we all build. But it makes me chew my cheek a bit that people will still decry as "old fashioned and slow" the merits of a current bike that could easily outpace many of the builds on DTT--while in stock trim. It's just not true. Obviously, this is not true for every build here, but certainly is for a good many.

I am all for building to the style, enhancing the performance of what ya got, and all that jazz...Lord knows I do enough of that to my own stuff. And most of us succeed with modifications that improve the performance greatly. But I have been humbled enough bya few (not just the 1098) bikes exhibiting true and very serious performance to see what is aesthetics and what really matters to performance in a very different light.

Styling, on the other hand, is entirely subjective, and I make no excuses or opinions on how any bike looks in the eyes of another.

I hope I haven't come across as condescending on the fine work that is put out on the DTT pages, since that is not my intent at all. Nor am I calling anybody else's bike slow or unerpowered. I just view the whole performance game differently than most, and build/ buy my bikes to suit their intended purpose. If that makes any sense...

In other news, I should be picking up the new 48 this Thursday or Friday...so stoked! ;D
 
Its okay Tyler, I still love you! People are too sensitive if they were offended by any of this.
 
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