CAFE SPORTSTER | Roland Sands Design

Where others see trash we see treasure. We wanted a cafe sporty on the cheap so we set about finding a crashed bike we could build as budget-minded as possible. We started with the bars or lack of them, by adding clip ons, removed all the junk on top of the triples, and prototyped a cool intrument cluster and headlight relocation piece that moves the headlight and gauges down. We also prototyped a key and coil relocation piece to get rid of all the plastic under the gas tank. We then threw on her all the RSD product we had, fixed the tank, chopped the rear fender and painted her on the cheap. For under 10K we brought her back to life and she’s better than ever.

:BEFORE:

:AFTER:

Posted In: RSD, more, rsd cafe sportster, rsd nightster, sportsters

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Comment with Roland Sands (39)

rolandadmin says:
8/24/2010 10:56:00 PM

he shocks are pre-production 14” Progressive Suspension 970 Series. They are due to be released late in 2010 with a retail price of somewhere around $900 for the pair.

rolandadmin says:
8/24/2010 10:57:00 PM

Sounds like you’ve got a good idea of what direction you want to go. Find bikes that inspire you and have the look you like. I recommend shopping around online and pricing things out. Check out http://www.jpcycles.com and http://www.motorcyclesuperstore.com . Mustang Seats makes some cool options you might like. Remember that half of the fun is building and customizing so don’t worry about getting it all done at once. When a bike is “done” you usually end up selling it or changing it because you miss working on it. Have fun!

rolandadmin says:
8/24/2010 10:58:00 PM

he shocks are pre-production 14” Progressive Suspension 970 Series. They are due to be released late in 2010 with a retail price of somewhere around $900 for the pair. The increased length raises the rear end to allow more ground clearance for cornering. This also steepens the rake angle for quicker steering. The increased ground clearance allows you to lay this bike over really far when on canyon roads, etc. Front forks are stock height but we installed Race Tech Gold Valve Emulators and spring kit. The forks work 10 times better than stock and the emulators allow separate compression and rebound valving adjustments to be made too. This is a way better option than the stock dampening rod setup.

annuaire généraliste says:
9/9/2010 7:56:00 AM

I’ve send this page to my fb friends. Keep this good work

tim maloy says:
11/20/2010 4:23:00 AM

saw this bike in cycle world mag was wondering about the bag attached to left side at side cover is this something that is or will be available

rolandadmin says:
11/22/2010 6:50:00 PM

that bag is not available and was a one off piece however stay tuned as we will be coming out with accessories soon!

Daniel Shayder says:
1/7/2011 1:00:00 AM

I’m working on my sportster to come out like yours How does it handle?

rolandadmin says:
1/7/2011 7:47:00 PM

Handles awesome. Steers quickly but still stable at high speeds. The stock front forks are using Race Tech Gold Valve Emulators & Springs and the rearend has 14″ Progressive Suspension 970 series reservoir shocks. These suspension components are key to making this bike handle the way it does.

Neil says:
1/15/2011 4:20:00 PM

I prefer your cluster kit over joker’s side relocation. How would you suggest finding the similar one?

rolandadmin says:
1/19/2011 1:20:00 AM

This is a production part we sell. Feel free to look up your local dealer here http://www.dragspecialties.com/dealers/

Sean says:
3/21/2011 3:04:00 PM

Beautiful bike. The seat on this bike and the “99″ bike is exactly what I’ve been looking for. It flows into the fender better than anything else I’ve found. Will it be a production piece? If so, when?

rolandadmin says:
3/22/2011 12:28:00 AM

we are currently in the process of producing this seat. We don’t have a release date as of yet but we will definitely let everyone know once we do!

Ryan says:
3/23/2011 9:16:00 PM

Will rearset foot controls such as Storz work with this pipe?

rolandadmin says:
3/24/2011 10:31:00 PM

Havent tried it. I would recommend sending a photo to Storz and asking them.

Ryan says:
3/28/2011 5:04:00 PM

The speedo relocator is listed as 07-up. What prevents it from working on the 04-06 bikes, different trees or wiring?

Craig H. says:
7/18/2011 7:19:17 AM

Is this a aftermarket upper triple clamp. If so, where can I find these? My '10 forty eight upper doesn't allow much flexibility.

Pier says:
8/1/2011 6:11:25 AM

I like this bike, is really awsome! Did you have to change the position of the foot controls from the original bike? I want to put the same handbars on my sportster but I guess the current foot controls are too much forward for a correct position. Am I right? Thanks!

rolandadmin says:
8/10/2011 9:12:25 AM

portsters are available with OEM forward controls or mid-controls. Sounds like you have forward controls. You can buy mids from you local Harley dealer and bolt them right into your bike to convert it.

Tobey Nash says:
8/14/2011 12:03:41 PM

Love this bike! Getting the Dakota Digital Guage and RSD speedo relocation for my Iron. Can't wait to see how it looks with my HD LED headlight. Lifting the rear, but prob not quite as much as yours, with progressive's 430 rear shocks. Put there progressive rate springs on front and that helped ALOT! Not sure if i'm goin with your clip-ons. Don't want to be sittin on my nuts likea rocket lol. Next year will be a full Screamin Eagle (race only parts) engine over haul. I need a better paying job lol. Keep up the gr8 work!

Warren Sutton says:
8/27/2011 8:18:48 PM

Can you send me some details on how you guys did the wheels, really want to buy a set similar to what you have put on this and want to understand whether you're still running the standard swing arm or whether there were any mods done to accommodate the bigger rear wheel. If not, would be great if you could send me the sizes and some prices for ya wheels? Cheers WS

rolandadmin says:
9/2/2011 1:19:51 PM

This bike is using stock spoked wheels. 16” rear and 19” front.

Jose says:
9/11/2011 2:04:52 AM

How much would it cost a bike like this?.

rolandadmin says:
9/11/2011 8:45:13 PM

Hey Jose, Please email us at info@rolandsands.com

mwk says:
9/19/2011 8:01:18 PM

The air intake... is that a stock part? if so, what is it, and can it be used on an '04 sporty (ie. carburated)?

rolandadmin says:
9/22/2011 11:10:39 AM

This bike is using a RSD Velocity Stack part # 1010-0835. Fit 1991-2011 Sporster XL models. More info here http://www.rolandsands.com/products/Velocity-Stack-Black-Anodize

gcraig says:
11/4/2011 9:29:48 AM

Do you sell the relocation kit for the coil/ignition & the headlight? Thx.

rolandadmin says:
11/4/2011 10:42:13 AM

Yes we do. Here are all of the "Cafe" parts we offer. http://www.rolandsands.com/categories/cafe-sportster

Hydo says:
11/6/2011 11:43:09 PM

Just wondering what the time line on the seat is... Love it-

rolandadmin says:
11/7/2011 4:16:17 PM

In stock at your local Drag Specialties dealer. Part # is 0804-0437. Details here http://www.rolandsands.com/products/Cafe-Sportster-Seat

Hydo says:
11/7/2011 3:39:10 AM

It almost looks like that seat would be great for a 2 up set up. Do you have a time line for it?--Love it!

rolandadmin says:
11/7/2011 4:12:57 PM

The seat on "Cafe Sportster" is actually a prototype. The production seat is not as flat in the rear. It can be seen on "Hamsters Sportster" here http://www.rolandsands.com/wp/2011/07/22/hamster-usa-sportster

Shorty says:
12/5/2011 5:24:36 PM

I'm about to purchase a 883 Iron and deck it out with many of your RSD Cafe parts. Question was ask but, not answered. Does the Cafe Sportster seat work for 2?

rolandadmin says:
12/15/2011 4:46:40 PM

Yes you can put 2 people on it.

Paco says:
12/12/2011 7:00:35 AM

Hey, Love the bike! Quick question, did the Race Tech Gold Valve Emulators come with the springs or was that seperate from that kit?

rolandadmin says:
12/14/2011 2:51:33 PM

Thanks Paco. That was separate

kw86er says:
1/2/2012 1:31:00 PM

I have the security option on my bike. If I want to strip it down with the coil relocator and new gauges will I loose this function? I dont have the bike at my house yet so I am not sure how the security crap works.

rolandadmin says:
1/12/2012 1:57:35 PM

It will still work. We have built a could Sportys wIth security on them.

waynesworth says:
1/16/2012 9:14:57 AM

Is it just the cafe seat that makes the bike look like it sits higher? Comparing photos from the cafe sportster, love that name, and a stock nightster, they look like they sit completely different. Cheers.

rolandadmin says:
1/25/2012 4:13:31 PM

We used longer shocks on the café sportster, but the seat does give the illusion of a higher sitting bike.

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