Custom Harley FX Super-Glide Cafe Racer Has S&S Power and Classic XLCR Influences

When your aim is to create a bespoke cafe racer of Harley-Davidson lineage, the most obvious choice for a donor would be a Sportster. Some builders will opt to surprise us by straying off the beaten path, however, and we can probably all agree that an occasional breath of fresh air is more than welcome on the custom motorcycle scene!

James Roper-Caldbeck is well aware of this fact, so he didn’t just defy the status quo by picking a very unlikely candidate, but also chose to experiment with a genre he’d never tackled before. Operating as Jamesville Motorcycles just outside the Danish capital of Copenhagen, the man is famed for his sublime bobber- and chopper-style projects. Cafe racers, on the other hand, were just about as far as you could get from James’ comfort zone.

As he isn’t the sort of guy who will turn down a challenge, the Dane eagerly accepted a client’s unusual request for a caffeinated hog some time ago. The end result can be seen in this article’s photo gallery, clearly drawing inspiration from Milwaukee’s only production cafe racer – the short-lived XLCR of the late seventies.

Searching for an appropriate donor, James came across an FX Super-Glide whose Shovelhead motor had been replaced with an 80-cubic-inch (1,311cc) S&S powerhouse. The said V-twin was conveniently mated to a five-speed gearbox, and it could produce around 40 percent more grunt than the stock Shovelhead produced by the Motor Co.

Once the Super-Glide was delivered to his shop, Jamesville’s mastermind got rid of all its factory bodywork items except for the gas tank. Then, he kicked off the customization process by giving the Harley a much sportier rear-end geometry, which was no easy feat considering its slouched posture. For starters, the subframe got mildly reworked to accommodate a new set of handmade garments.

These include a custom seat pan topped with red and black saddle upholstery, as well as a pointy tail section fabricated in-house. The latter was designed with superbike lines in mind, carrying a discreet license plate holder and the repurposed taillight of a Triumph at the rearmost tip. Sure enough, the Super-Glide's demeanor experienced a radical transformation following these mods, but James was just getting warmed up.

Although you’ll often hear people telling you to stay away from motorcycle parts sold on eBay, the Danish expert decided to take a gamble with the front fairing now worn by his XL. Surprisingly, he was met with no headaches when it came to getting it installed, and the product’s quality was found to be pretty remarkable as well.

Moving over to the chassis side of things, we find top-shelf Progressive Suspension componentry supporting the structure on both ends. The new arrangement also gives its bearer a more aggressive stance by lowering the front and raising the rear. When the suspension-related work had been completed, James turned his attention to the brakes.

A premium pair of drilled rotors provide ample stopping power up north, and there are aftermarket calipers from Performance Machine at both poles. The S&S engine was left internally unaltered since it already offered plenty of power, but some adjustments did occur at the intake and exhaust. One is a mesh-covered air cleaner, while the other comes in the form of high-mounted pipework manufactured from scratch.

The cockpit area features a single aftermarket dial and clip-on handlebars, which are complemented by tailor-made foot pegs lower down on the bike’s flanks. Last but not least, the caffeine-infused XL received a monochromatic black and grey paint scheme, with the only touch of color being the red leather upholstery on the seat.