Like many builders, Brian’s customers don’t always want bikes built exactly the way he would want them built. He likes to keep his clients happy, but sometimes a builder will discover a new idea for a bike that a client hasn’t asked for, and they need to get it out of their system. Case in point, Brian had been talking about building a seventies-style Sportster chopper with his metal fabricating friend, Justin, for some time. None of Moonshine’s customers were asking for a bike like the one they wanted to build, so Brian and Justin decided to build the bike in the shop after normal business hours.

They were able to salvage a few useable parts from a wrecked ’99 XL 883 that they already had as a foundation for the build. The natural cast-finish motor and integrated drive-train was one of the few aspects of the wrecked bike they were able to use. “I prefer to work on motors, and Justin is into fab work, so it was easy to split the work between the two of us,” Brian said. He knew the top end needed to be disassembled to up the displacement to 1200cc and decided to tear apart the entire engine to facilitate more extensive modifications. First, he bored out the cylinders and ported the heads, then sent the exterior components of the motor to California Polishing for a show polished finish that gives the motor a look far cooler than the original aluminum casting. He performed a complete engine rebuild supplemented with Andrews N2 cams, Wiseco forged pistons designed to create 10:1 compression, a Dyna 2000ip single-fire ignition, and a long runner intake manifold with a dual-throat Weber carburetor jutting forward from the right side of the motor. Brian rebuilt the motor with more than looks in mind. “An 883cc bored to 1200cc is quicker than a stock 1200cc. The 883’s transmission is geared differently to compensate for the lack of torque compared to the 1200’s stock transmission. The same effect can be achieved from swapping 883 trans gears into a 1200 trans case, but it’s generally cheaper and easier to bump up an 883,” Brian said.

The motor needed a place to live, and both Justin and Brian agreed to use a Fred’s Frames XL rigid frame with time-honored chopper style. Raked to 34-degrees with down tubes stretched four-inches and a backbone lengthened to match, they bolted a six-inch over Fred’s Frames narrow springer front end to the to the steering neck of the frame. A 21” front wheel with a Wheel Works spool hub was mounted between the springer’s rockers and the wrecked Sporty’s 16” wheel was secured to the adjustable rear axle.

After squaring away the chassis components, Justin utilized his metal shaping skills and concentrated on the bike’s sheet metal. He modified the derelict Sporty’s tank with a J-shaped filler neck off the right side. Next, he bolted a swap meet trailer fender to the tail end of the bike supported by a tall, traditional chopper-style sissy bar. A barrel-style, polished aluminum oil bag was fastened to the frame underneath the seat. Justin built a seat pan that resembles a king and queen seat seen on many seventies chops. He didn’t use a ton of padding for cushioning; he built the pan out of steel that’s supported in the front and the back but not the middle, creating a flexible pan that acts like a sprung seat.

Color Zone Designs shot the House of Kolor blue metal flake base coat and Bob Iverson laid down the gold leaf flames on the right side of the gas tank with silver leaf scallops decorating the left. The seventies-inspired paint is the perfect compliment to the bike’s springer, ‘Frisco-mounted gas tank, rigid frame, and sissy bar.

Justin and Brian’s combined talents created a bike with light overall weight, a hopped-up motor, and throwback, Seventies styling. Their efforts resulted in a retro-mod Sportster chopper that would earn as much respect from bikers in that era as it does today.