Have you ever wondered why some custom Harley-Davidsons turn out so great while others are a matter of personal interpretation? Well, that would be first because these bikes are the result of hard work performed by more or less talented hands, but secondly, the owners’ personal input, their beliefs, and ideas most often than not weigh heavily in the outcome of some builds as well.
Take this Harley-Davidson Sportster for instance. You know the breed, a very cherished type of two-wheeler for custom garages over in Europe, and also a highly appreciated machine for customers. Neither group seems to like the Sportster very much in stock form, so a lot of projects based on it have been made over the years.
This particular Sportster is the work of Spanish garage Lord Drake, under the careful guidance of the motorcycle’s owner. I mentioned the owner because we’re told he was in some ways involved in the project and is mostly responsible for the choice of the custom’s name: Vivir.
That’s “live” in English, and a name asked for by the man currently riding it. In fact, it’s a derivation of something that looks like a creed, inscribed in full on the bike as well: “vivir es urgente,” which translates into “living is urgent.” Something along the lines of "seize the day," if you will.
A quick look at the custom reveals pretty much the same Sportster lines we’re used to, so don’t expect a spectacular change in stance either. These lines though were paired with carefully chosen bits and pieces that obviously separate it from its stock siblings. Underneath the bike sports a cutting of the subframe to allow for the conversion to a single-seater.
Photo: Lord Drake
Built as a bobber, the bike adopted custom wheels with many spokes front and rear, with the one at the back supporting a 200 mm wide tire. They are both hidden under custom fenders and get their spin from the stock Evolution engine.
As usual when it comes to Lord Drake builds, the Vivir features custom parts made all over the world. The grips with included turn signals are made by motogadget, the mirrors were supplied by Arlen Ness, while the only upgrades made to the engine, the air filter and short shot exhaust, come from Rough Crafts and Vance & Hines, respectively.
As far as paint goes, the bike's owner opted to keep the original orange paint of the Sportster on the fuel tank, but went for black everywhere else for a powerful impact. Oh, and there's even an elephant discreetly painted somewhere on the bike. We don't know why, but it's a detail so rare on custom motorcycles we more than enjoyed stumbling upon it.
As usual, Lord Drake is not willing to share details on how much the Harley-Davidson Vivir cost to put together, but when did that trivial detail stop us from enjoying a proper custom build?
Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies. Full profile
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