Zen Harley-Davidson Sportster Seventy-Two

A CUSTOMER approached Zen Motorcycles wanting a 70’s style bike which could be ridden on a daily basis. He wanted the motorcycle to have a lot of chrome with touches of gold and so the Harley-Davidson 1200 Sportster Seventy-Two was chosen as the starting point due to its abundance of chrome which came from the factory.

After stripping the Sportster down, we started the build by installing the springer front-end which proved a little more challenging than what we had anticipated! Making the old-school-style front-end work with the modern frame and ABS required additional engineering and tweaking but the result was definitely worth it.

The devil is in the detail on this motorcycle; the more you look at it the more you actually realise what has been done with it. We think that the hidden wiring, the mini switches and the mini-LED lights really set this motorcycle apart.

The custom, deep purple paint with gold-leaf flames by Aaron Turner is outstanding; and with the addition of touches of brass, this motorcycle really stands out in a crowd.

We at Zen Motorcycles could not be more pleased with the outcome of this build and the customer was so thrilled he is now talking about building a second bike — we can’t wait to start the next project!

Bruce Crerar, Zen Motorcycles. 200 Euston Road, Alexandria NSW 2015.

Build Parts List

• Springer front-end.
• Deep purple metallic paint with gold-leaf flames by Aaron Turner.
• Speedo re-location.
• Brass risers & hand-grips.
• Retro style headlight.
• Mini LED indicators & brake lights; mini switches; hidden wiring.
• Chrome brake discs and calipers.
• King and Queen seat.
• Chrome sissy bar, leavers & footrests.
• Custom handlebars.
• Chrome nut and bolts.
• Chain conversion with gold chain and chrome sprocket.
• Chrome Gold spark plug leads.
• Avon Tyres.