XR 750 .

Harley followed his build from 1980 to improve the sporty in 1991 they're a little slow! This really sounds like their evo big bike engine not sure what year that was introduced, mid to late 80's!?!?!
 
Thanks Matt

I enjoyed that longer Harley clip a lot

Made me feel years younger. I think I'll shave off my beard and grow a mullet... again.

Like many older US motorheads, I watched a little flat track at the San Jose Fairgrounds before HD took over. Brit bikes did alright for a minute, and motors were still loud back then.

Harley Davidson got the right kids on the bikes and designed an impressive purpose-built motorcycle.
 
XR 750, one of the most Bad Asp looking engines of all time....
 
My adopted grand child Evan Renshaw 14 years old XR 750 .XR 750 .
 
Danno I am always amazed by photos of this bike they make it looks so big/ bulky.
In reality it's not. My friend built a replica for parading & its stunning.
Perspective 6ft2" Seeley MK2 Commando
If you scroll the pic up to cut off the tank and bumstop, along with most of the front fairing, you can tell how densely-packed it is.
 
This iteration of Lucifer's Hammer may be the Nobles bike or nearly exactly like it. I have an autographed poster of Springer in action on it above my toolbox in the garage.
XR 750 .
 
I remember seeing this XRTT in the pits at Road America. The factory Ducatis weren't running well that day and Roger Reiman had a smile you couldn't rip off his face.

XR 750 .
 
Judging a Harley Sportster in standard form is probably not a good way to assess it's potential. The 5 speed gearbox in the Sportster has a top gear which is an over-drive. The bike is not designed to be a sports bike.
 
Didnt know these existed untill two minutes ago .

XR 750 .


1961 XLR 883 . I guess thats silver paint , not aluminum , for the top end . or were they a best kept secret .

XR 750 .

Top end of the XLR was still cast iron, same as the Sportster at the time, and the first XR750s. Soon after the 900 cc (actually 883) OHV Sportster came out in 1957, HD offered a stripped version, the XLC, and later the racing version, the XLR. They continued to make the flathead-powered KR race bikes for a while, but in limited numbers, until they were replaced by the XR750. Pretty hard to find a decent XLR for sale now, and quite dear when you do. On the other hand, since they were basically just modified Sportsters, today one could make a pretty nice replica for a reasonable price. One of the more interesting features of the XLR was that you could order it with either the standard or close ratio gear sets (both 4-speeds, of course). I was in high school when the Sportster came out, and it was definitely the cool bike to have.

Ken
 
Top end of the XLR was still cast iron, same as the Sportster at the time, and the first XR750s. Soon after the 900 cc (actually 883) OHV Sportster came out in 1957, HD offered a stripped version, the XLC, and later the racing version, the XLR. They continued to make the flathead-powered KR race bikes for a while, but in limited numbers, until they were replaced by the XR750. Pretty hard to find a decent XLR for sale now, and quite dear when you do. On the other hand, since they were basically just modified Sportsters, today one could make a pretty nice replica for a reasonable price. One of the more interesting features of the XLR was that you could order it with either the standard or close ratio gear sets (both 4-speeds, of course). I was in high school when the Sportster came out, and it was definitely the cool bike to have.

Ken
It is not difficult to trick-up a gearbox to get performance. The whole bike would not be difficult to build. You would just need patience while collecting the bits. The XR750TT in my videro clip was built in Australia from parts bought off the internet. It would be much easier in America. The one that Don Emde rode at Calder Raceway in about 1971, was fast enough to be competitive against some very serious bikes. I would really love to own an XR750TT. That one at Broadford was to die for. A replica would be better than an original.

 
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i have owned about 25 different bikes over the years never ever had a HD never wanted one but i would make an exception for one o these
 
This is the bike that converted me to HD.
Simple, sounds right, feels right, feels fast, quality components.

IMG_20200320_144030691_HDR.jpg
 
It's actually the larger of the tanks available. 3 gal compared to standard 2
 
For those less familiar, the XR 750 is not a Sportster. The XR 1200 (1st go round) used XR heads with front-facing exhausts and twin rear-facing intakes. The first XR (iron) WAS a destroked Sportster with standard center intake. Then someone decided to use two front cylinders and heads to get twin intakes and carbs. It was still iron. Then the true XR motor was produced for racing only and was all-alloy. Sportsters didn't follow suit (alloy top ends) until 1984, when the Evolution engines were first produced. Although the bottom ends were made on the same tooling, there are differences. The last XR1200's used Buell engines with different breathing than standard Sportsters and was nothing like the racing XR. I'm sure there are some common part numbers, but XR 750 factory bikes were not produced for very long. Engine production lasted a while longer, but complete engines were not available and delivered as boxes of parts for the race tuners to assemble on their own.
 
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I think Harley Sportster paid homage to the chopper idiocy with their styling. But beauty is only skin deep. Buells were a step in the right direction, but so ugly. The XR750 looked right, so it probably was right. The problem with building a re[lica, is that it would only ever be a replica. Usually the rules of any sort of historic racing would preclude it's use. However I would love to race against replica XR750s and bevel Ducatis. It would be much better than racing against modified Japanese road bikes. There is a major problem with mindset, many of our rule-makers have never raced solo motorcycles. So for them, a lot of things are simply supposition. I don't really know what the answer is, but if I was young again I would love to build and develop an XR750TT.
When I built my Seeley 850, I always knew that in the era, it had never existed. If I started winning championships with it, there would be protests. But I simply love racing it, so if somebody wanted to protest I would simply be amused. Life is not that serious.
'Some things are worth doing simply because they are good things to do,'
If you built an XR750TT today, you could make it become what it could have been. Then just ride it in demonstration races. When I ride a motorcycle, I like to feel the hairs growing on my chest. An XR750TT would be a real buzz. 'Some things are so bad that they are good' ?
I cannot imagine why anybody would build a chopper and look so strange.
 
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