Time 2 Ride Harley-Davidson Nightster
Justin loves to ride his Nightster to the limit.
I HAVE owned a number of bikes over the years starting with a 1938 BSA OHV 250. Then I got into the late model stuff with a 1968 BSA Thunderbolt. I think the next bike, a 1969 BSA Thunderbolt, had the funniest story attached with it when I went to sell it. I bought it in the USA with my American mate while I was living in California. It had very low mileage and it was a very tidy looking thing. I ended up selling it to a Mexican who paid for it with his monthly mortgage repayment which his wife knew nothing about. With visions of an angry Señorita coming after me with a smashed tequila bottle, man, I got outta there fast!
The bike that got me through my mid-life crisis was a Harley-Davidson 883R Sporty. I spent a lot of money on a 1200 cc kit, etc, and making it look like a flat-tracker. Then I owned a 2006 Trumpy for a short spell and now my current bike, a Harley Nightster.
I had some pin-striping done on the bike by Kjell at Von Patto Pinstripping. I virtually told him to do whatever he thought had to be done to make it look cool. Kjell did some awesome work on it and I am more than happy with the end results.
Roscoe at RPM has done all the work on my Harleys over the years. Roscoe fitted V&H pipes, heavy breather air filter, etc, to this bike and is now pulling 81 hp on the dyno. I’m rapt! Other accessories he fitted were the nine-inch apes and vintage grips.
Then I had the derby cover and points cover powder-coated grey the same as the engine. I have a lot of other smaller accessories fitted like an after-market fuel cap, axle covers, smoky indicator lenses, etc.
The original fitment USA side-plate for the number plate gets a lot of comments but none by the powers-that-be on the highway as yet.
The black H-D forward controls really suit me for my riding comfort. The seat has been recovered in leather and diamond stitched to give it that old skool look.
The white wall tyres were my latest addition; they really break up the contrast of the black bike nicely.
The black 11 inch Progressive shocks made a drastic change to the handling and general feel when riding my bike at warp-speed plus. I really needed it to handle well when going for brisk rides with my good mate Sax. Sax had a bit of a heath battle for a while last year but he is fighting fit now; and with his Harley-Davidson Fat Bob kitted out with a big bore kit, cams, etc, all fitted by Roscoe at RPM, I’m a bit concerned that I won’t be able to beat him anymore! But as sure as the sunsets to end another good day of riding, I will be giving it a damn good try!
Photos by Rod Cole; story by Justin
