Photo: Thunderbike
Today is Christmas Eve, the perfect time for each and every one of us to dream about what Santa will leave under the tree this evening. Some dream of tangible stuff, others of peace and health, and a few, provided the tree is large enough, may even dream about the most aggressive kind of Sportster this year's end has to offer.
The bike featured in our story here is the work of a custom motorcycle garage so large it has several series of modified motorcycles in its portfolio: Germany's Thunderbike. This one is the fourth bike in a series called SPS, and if you ask me, the most impressive of that bloodline to date.
The bike was originally a Sportster of the S 1250 variety, meaning it packs in its frame the impressive Revolution Max engine of 1250T lineage, capable of developing 122 horsepower. The thing is impressively styled even as it rolls out the factory doors, but in the guise Thunderbike envisioned for it all of that is taken to the extreme.
The short, stubby and mean Sportster was made even more so with the fitting of truly impressive wheels from the shop's GT series, sized a massive 21 inches at the front and just 18 inches at the rear, creating the perfect contrast between the bike's two ends.
The interesting part about the front wheel (and no, I'm not talking about that deliciously tiny fender) is that, for the first time on a Thunderbike product, it was adapted to make use of two brake discs, and that also meant modifying the upside-down fork.
To change the riding position and make it more in tune with the ride's aggressiveness, the footrests were relocated, new triple clamps were fitted, and the flat handlebar propped on special mounts.
The body of the Sportster was the recipient of extensive enhancements, starting with a new radiator shroud, covers over the engine, pulley, and shock absorber, and a new headlight fairing.
The engine of the ride is the same one supplied by Harley-Davidson, and we're not told anything about potential modifications made to it. Usually, Thunderbike tampers with the rides' exhaust system, and the same seems to have happened here, although the garage makes no mention of the extent of the modifications.
The Harley-Davidson SPS 4 is one of the most recent Thunderbike projects, but despite its expensive looks, it was not at all painful, financially speaking, for its owner.
A Sportster S sells over at Harley for $16,399. On top of that, the 30 or so parts that went into this build amount to about $10,600. Topping that off with the man hours, paint job, and possibly some other unforeseen expenses, we're probably left with a bike worth around $35,000.
Not bad for something that looks as insane as this!
The bike was originally a Sportster of the S 1250 variety, meaning it packs in its frame the impressive Revolution Max engine of 1250T lineage, capable of developing 122 horsepower. The thing is impressively styled even as it rolls out the factory doors, but in the guise Thunderbike envisioned for it all of that is taken to the extreme.
The short, stubby and mean Sportster was made even more so with the fitting of truly impressive wheels from the shop's GT series, sized a massive 21 inches at the front and just 18 inches at the rear, creating the perfect contrast between the bike's two ends.
The interesting part about the front wheel (and no, I'm not talking about that deliciously tiny fender) is that, for the first time on a Thunderbike product, it was adapted to make use of two brake discs, and that also meant modifying the upside-down fork.
To change the riding position and make it more in tune with the ride's aggressiveness, the footrests were relocated, new triple clamps were fitted, and the flat handlebar propped on special mounts.
The body of the Sportster was the recipient of extensive enhancements, starting with a new radiator shroud, covers over the engine, pulley, and shock absorber, and a new headlight fairing.
The engine of the ride is the same one supplied by Harley-Davidson, and we're not told anything about potential modifications made to it. Usually, Thunderbike tampers with the rides' exhaust system, and the same seems to have happened here, although the garage makes no mention of the extent of the modifications.
The Harley-Davidson SPS 4 is one of the most recent Thunderbike projects, but despite its expensive looks, it was not at all painful, financially speaking, for its owner.
A Sportster S sells over at Harley for $16,399. On top of that, the 30 or so parts that went into this build amount to about $10,600. Topping that off with the man hours, paint job, and possibly some other unforeseen expenses, we're probably left with a bike worth around $35,000.
Not bad for something that looks as insane as this!
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