Ironhead Sportster Project Complete

Jeff Higgins · 04-28-2013, 01:09 PM

Some of you may remember I've had this old (1976) Ironhead Sportster kicking around for oh, about the last 34 years or so. I finally well and truly broke it at last year's Vintage Motorcycle Enthusiasts' Isle of Vashon TT, one of our big local vintage events. It spun the drive side crankpin in the flywheel. As a result, I spent this last winter rebuilding, as well as transforming, the old girl.

Here are a couple of "before" pictures. Pretty much a stock '76 except for some Andrews cams, Wiseco forged 10:1 pistons, and an S&S Super E carb, along with a GMA front brake:

This winter's project turned into far more than just a simple rebuild. I developed a particularly bad case of the "while I'm in theres..."

The motor now has the same Andrews R5 cams (a new set) and Wiseco 10:1's. In addition, it has S&S wheels and rods (stock stroke), Jim's "big axle" lifters, Manley chrome moly pushrods, Kibblewhite valves, and headwork by Baisley (roller rockers, porting, massaged combustion chambers) down in Portland.

Not content with just hot-rodding the motor, I converted the bike from an XLH electric start to an XLCH kick start, dispensing with an awful lot of weight and complexity. In addition, I converted it to right hand shift, as H-D and God himself meant all Sportsters to be. So, here she is, with her fresh makeover, ready for another 30+ years of faithful service:

I can't believe how much smoother and quieter (mechanically, anyway) it is. I'm looking forward to putting some miles on her this summer.

VINMAN · 04-28-2013, 01:26 PM

Very cool, Jeff! May she give many many more years!

Did some minor rehabs to mine over the winter. ( new cams.. head work..)

HardDrive · 04-28-2013, 03:39 PM

Looks great. Post some back roads video when you get her out in the wild.

herr_oberst · 04-28-2013, 04:03 PM

Sounds like you had a lot of fun this winter. If I may ask a couple of questions, I've never heard the term "wheels" when discussing the guts of an engine; is this HD speak for crank halves? And when you swap shifter for brake lever do you keep the old covers and just modify the holes, etc, or is this a "Big Deal" requiring lots and lots of new replacement parts?

Anyway, thanks for sharing; it's always cool to see how people modify their toys.

motion · 04-28-2013, 04:14 PM

Looks good, Jeff. Happy riding! I'm tackling cylinders & pistons replacement on my XR1200 in a few days. Never done it before, so it should be an interesting experience.

FLYGEEZER · 04-28-2013, 06:47 PM

Very cool old school. Enjoy the ride!

Don Ro · 04-28-2013, 07:10 PM

Thanks for sharing. I enjoy looking at older motos. Is she loud? That Corbin saddle fits right in with the great lines on the rear.

dhoward · dhoward's Garage

Looks great!

Jeff Higgins · 04-28-2013, 07:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by herr_oberst

Sounds like you had a lot of fun this winter. If I may ask a couple of questions, I've never heard the term "wheels" when discussing the guts of an engine; is this HD speak for crank halves? And when you swap shifter for brake lever do you keep the old covers and just modify the holes, etc, or is this a "Big Deal" requiring lots and lots of new replacement parts?

Anyway, thanks for sharing; it's always cool to see how people modify their toys.

Yup, "wheels" are simply Harley shorthand for the two flywheels making up the crank assembly.

Swapping the brake and shifter are extremely easy on '75 and '76 Sportsters. Harley really ass-patched these parts on those two years after the federal law in 1975 stated all bikes had to be left hand shift. Pretty much everything is there to go either way; all I had to buy was a longer shifter shaft that would fully exit the case on the right (the hole in the case had a brass plug in it, and the original shifter shaft ended jut behind that plug), a different crossover shaft from the pedal on the left to change its function from shifting to braking, the brake pedal, and the shift lever.

This really cleans up the shifting on these bikes. The long shift lever (that used to be a brake pedal), coupled with the crossover shaft, made for a very long, sloppy shift action. The setup is not bad as a brake lever, but as a shifter is really sucked. H-D fixed it right in 1977, with a shifter shaft that exited the left case, but none of those parts would fit my cases. It was easier to "fix" it by going older than by going newer.

Motion, you'll be stunned at how easy it is to do all of that on these bikes. So easy, even Harley mechanics can do it. These things are prehistorically simple. That's part of their charm, really.

Don, it's really not all that loud. Those are simply stock replacement pipes/mufflers. Granted, noise standards back then were not what they are today, so it does make a bit more noise than today's stock bikes. Nothing like the modern aftermarket pipes that are made intentionally to be loud, though, but more a deep thump that you feel as much as hear. Old Harleys, like this Ironhead and Panheads, Shovelheads, and Knuckleheads, have a sound that the newer bikes will never match. It's a function of their porting, cam timing, combustion chamber shape, and other outdated aspects of their design that make them sound the way they do. Modern, more efficient designs will never sound the same, no matter how just plain loud they are.

Anyway, thanks for the kind words, guys. This was a labor of love for me, having owned this thing since I was only 19 years old. It was a bit daunting when I first tore into it, seeing just how well and truly shot everything was. There was a very strong temptation to just sell it as a "bike in a box" and be done with it. I have far more modern, far "better" bikes. I'm sure glad I decided to bring this old girl back to life, though.