Sportster / Sidecar

Attached picture is of a portion of a subframe we did for a late model sportster.Dunno if they wil make sense or not.

Hello Claude,
I am not into Harleys at all as you know.
I didn't know that they are now pretty stuffed and don't let you much space to work with.
The rear motor mount looks pretty good, but on the front and back mount you have a lot of lever that might need reinforcement corners and the long angle legs I would avoid and eventually continue straight to the main frame with a fist as lever rest.
Just a thought for the next occasion.
I'd love to have to assemble as much rigs as you do. That would be a nice pensioneers job, but still a long way to get there.
Best regards
Sven Peter

Sven wrote:
>>The rear motor mount looks pretty good, but on the front and back mount you have a lot of lever that might need reinforcement corners and the long angle legs I would avoid and eventually continue straight to the main frame with a fist as lever rest. <<

I was hesitant to post those pics as they do not show all of what is there.Wish I had taken more but it was kinda complex underneath. From what you can see of the mounts I would have said about the same thing.
I wwas told by a long time Harley employee and long time sidecarist that the swingarm support area on these newer sprotster frame was amn investment casting that had little additional strength to deal with much. This was why things got a little invloved when we mounted this sidecar.
I will see if I can find more pictures. The ones I wanted to post were from an '07 Sportster and were more complex than the ones here.

I hava a 2002 Sportster 1200. For me, it is fine with the light small Cozy Euro...retro looks with steering dampner easier to handle. Great for local and for shuttling kids and Dog...The Sporty, "Eagle5" has lots of pep cruises nicely but at the lower gears can virate your fillings out of your teeth!
I would not dis the Sporty but if I were to go on long trip with her I would chose a larger more confortable bike.Road king for instance or a....(Sportster=SPORT not luxury). But for my needs for now she is more than fine!
Many carefree safe rides with the shiny side up!
L

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------from a previous post

I am having a good time doing all this plus more and saving some money..with these prices that are still climbing presently $3.78/gal!
The shop where I had the car mounted are getting calls scoping out where to have their future cars mounted. If anything, in my neck of the woods I am showing that fill 'er up @$7...is not crazy, but my MDX @ $65 is insanity...

Having put together and riding an 883 with a kenna for the last 3 years and putting over 13,000 miles on her I have only had one issue at highway speeds. Using the stock harley touring windsheild, She was hard pressed to maintain 75mph. Add a strong head wind and 65 was all she would do. Cured the problem by removing the windsheild and adding a rifle fairing and now 90mph is easily obtained when needed. The wife and I have traveled 1500 miles at a stretch on vacation on every type of road from interstate highways to the blue ridge parkway with out any issues. One thing I might add is that neither of us are light weights and the sporty works for me because i'm short. I did modify the suspension, triple tree, added an oilcooler and steering dampner.

We mounted a Watsonian Palma onto an '07 883 last year. I actually tried to talk the owner out of it as that is a pretty heavy sidecar. I was amazed at how well it did do and he is very happy with it.

Yes, and the owner of the 2007 883 Sportster and Watsonain Palma, and now a Monaco, is very happy with it. He doesn't do the 80-90 mph highways, none up here and the RCMP love giving tickets. I had Claude put it on last year and ran it from Penns Creek, to Warkworth Ontario, north of Kingston Ontario in one day. From Warkworth to Sault St. Marie Ontario in one day and Sault St. Marie Ontario, to Manitoba the next day, total of 2490 miles. All at legal highway speeds. I installed a steering dampner from the front upper sidecar mount to the forks, and no wiggle or wobble at all. I used a Volkswagon bug steering dampner. It cruised all day long at 70 MPH, it gave me 50 plus miles per gallon with the fuel injection. I have had sidecars on 500 CC/650CC Triumphs and ran the 401 highway in Ontario, 1960's/70's and had no problem keeping up with traffic. Also an 1984 800 CC BMW air head. At 60 years old, my speed has dropped to realistic values, IE normal speed limit. Do I need a larger displacement? I don't think so, but I also didn't need a 1200 CC or 1500 CC or larger to keep me satisfied. Now I travel for pleasure and seeing what is there. Not seeing a blur as it goes by. So, yes, a Sportster is a good bike for a chair, BUT, not for everyone. Each bike model is as individualistic as the people that ride them.. Or, all they would make is one bike and one model!!!!

I have a 2001 Sportster 883 with a Liberty Sporty sidecar. A picture is on the album page under "Sporty Sportster"

I agree with the suggestions about engine work, start with a stock 883 and change out the jugs and pistons but leave the stock gearing, cams and heads. You'll want to put on a Screaming Eagle or K and N air filter, and after market mufflers like Screaming Eagle II or Cycle Shack slip ons. Then rejet the carb, and retune it. You'll get a nice power increase by doing that, but even after that my stock 883 just barely pulls 70 mph with two of us, I am saving my pennies to do a bore job up to 1200.

I was amazed at how much better the stearing was after adding a 5 degree rake triple tree set, and I put on a 21" laced wheel for looks. Use 2 or 4 inch over tubes as it changes the geometry (height). If you are willing to change to a front end with 41 mm tubes you can get inexpensive raked triple trees on ebay, but the stock 39 mm ones are never discounted that I can find, and I paid almost $500 for a set. You can also change to wide glide if you want. Use a fork brace to stabilize the front end, and add a damper to restrict oscillation.

The rubber mount frame may be more difficult to mount sidecars to, but it's a real improvement in "Rideability". After all the work I could think to do I still need padded grips to keep my hands from going numb, and I can barely see out of the mirrors at any real speed.

I don't think yuo'll make any money on them , I bought mine at three years old with 12000 miles on it for $6500. It was running and needed only a small bit of tlc to be going good. I've seen a couple of other similar rigs sell on ebay for under 10K

Peter

All this talk about Sportsters w/sidecars beginning to enhance my excitement waiting for my proposed rig to come together. I too tend to drive a little slower these days, so hopefully the 883 Sportster will perform acceptably. Does the vibration on a 2003/earlier Sporster diminish at all with the addition of a sidecar?

Nope!

Swampfox wrote:
>> Does the vibration on a 2003/earlier Sporster diminish at all with the addition of a sidecar?<>Nope<<

Heck if you rfeet can be kept from walking off the pegs at 70 mph you'll be okay. Just ride it and have fun:-).

I've found the vibration on the '02 to be OK and not particularly bothersome up to 62mph, but once over 62, its become intolerable, such that it almost impossible to ride at 67-70mph. I didn't notice the vibration when passing traffic at 80+, but I think I was too busy hanging on to notice.

80+??? heck man then either run it at 62 or below or over 80
and hang on:-)
Who was that country singer who sang about being country when country wasn't cool?

I don't remember the song, but the film "Conwoy" with the nick name of the main person "Rubber duck"
Last comment:
"Have you ever seen a rubber duck that cannot swim?"

I'd love to see that film again.

My tiny toy has nothing heavy but nasty fine engine vibration at 4000 to 4800 rev. = 95 km/h to 115km/h = 60 to 72 mph. Fiddle with piston and crank balancing just for that? No, I use that rev area just for over takeing or short acceleration. Our Costa Rican roads are anyhow too dangerous to speed.
Just enjoy landskape and monkeying serpentines...

Regards
Sven Peter

The "Isolation" style footpegs help out some. I've used them for the buddy pegs too instead of the hard rubber stock H-D pegs.

Lonnie