My 'Sporty' Sportster...

The one I always wanted...


I've always had a love affair with machinery.  Grew up as a kid on two wheels.  As much as I loved
the 'muscle cars', hot rods and fast sports cars of my day & age in the latter 50's and early 60's,
my heart was raised of the freedom of two wheels, nature, the weather, and the wind in my face.

The first vehicle I actually owned was a 1965 Suzuki X-6 Hustler.  A hot two-stroke rice-burner
that could hold it's own against just about anything of it's time around a city block.  Not too bad
in the quarter mile, either.

However, I lived in the rural cow-belt of Upstate NY, though.  When I raced local guys with the
muscle cars over stretches of long highway, I was left wanting for something better to ride.

My first look at a Harley Sportster on the road instantly told me what I really wanted.  I traded my
X-6 for a used '62 XLCH Sportster at the first opportunity.  What a beast he was, too!  Not the
tweaky-quick off-the-line like my X-6, but raw muscle at all speeds that I would dare to take him.

Then came the draft in 1966 and I had to sell the boy to join the Army at a pay rate of $48 per

month.  After a few years of training and a tour of Vietnam, I yearned for two wheels again.  

I travelled far-and-wide bike-wise after this for a long time.

Starting with a Honda 750 K-1, which more than satisfied my lust for excitement after Vietnam.

Fast, smooth and really refined.  This was a highly innovative and polished machin that kept
satisfied for quite a few years.


Then after my delayed college years, I had a prolonged love affair with Norton Combat Model
Commandos.  They offered what my first Sportster did to me.  Raw mechanical power, simple to
work on, built for function and most of all, they had character & personality. Something the
riceburners were seriously lacking.

 

Then, due to circumstance, travels and other sundry reasons, two wheeled travel was either not

practical or sensible for a prolonged period of my life.  


I spent half the past Winter scouring the internet for a nice Sportster to fill that void for me today.
Knowing full-well that the dead of Winter is the best time to get a good bargain on motorcycles
in the North East.


It was then I came upon the one I knew I wanted and must have.

 




Yup, I knew it.  Love at first site.  No doubt about it.  Headed out to Southern New Jersey with

son-in-law/ace mechanic, Luke, to check this boy out.

 

Further away than I had thought, but we arrived fine in spite of drizzly, dank weather in the middle
of February.  As soon as we got out of the car, I held my hand out to feel the rain and said to Luke,
"Thank you Big Ranger for all this liquid sunshine.  It's a great day to buy a motorcycle!".

 

With that, we proceded inside and found the boy quickly in the crowded showroom.  We gave him
a quick, but thorough examination.  Yup, he was exactly as pictured.  Luke split to look at other
goodies around the area and I got together with the owner to play "Let's make a deal".

 

He was not as negotiable on price as I had hoped, but we struck a deal for the bike and a hand-
ful of goodies to go with the deal.  Good with me, this was under the budget I had set for the
project and the machine was everything I'd hoped to find.


Well, after a waiting period for checks to clear, paperwork, etc, we returned a few weeks later
to take possession.  Upon arrival at the dealer, I got another touch of good news; he was NOT an

883 Sportster, as had been sold to me, but rather a 1200cc conversion with all Harley parts and

assured that hit had been dealer-installed. The first of many good revelations to come.

 

It was another dank day, but made no difference to me when I looked throught the back

window seeing my new boy headed home with me, I could have cared less about weather
that day.


The weather gods were against me this year, though.  The dank weather pretty much prevailed
all the way through the month on May.  No problem, though, I secured a good garage on my
grounds to house him in and set about taking care of his & my needs.

Everything I examined on him was tip-top and first class.  All that was left was to personalize him
more to my liking.  Continued cleaning & polishing and detail work.  Also scoured the internet for
good useful accessories to make his functionality fit my needs more exactly.  

 

Secured good trip saddlebags, a slick tank bag, a cushiony seat for trips, nice emblemry to set

him off, do-dads and so on.  There really wasn't anything that needed doing mechanically.
Just to personalize him for my needs & make him look better.

 

With very minor expense and a little elbow grease, here's what Spring looked like from the left

side.

 





 

 

And his handsome right side...

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

Plus ready-to-roll miles...

 



 

 


...Yup my boy's a handsome rascal and I love him.