A lil help please?

[Dirt Diggler]

Alright, since I'm new to the forum I'll give a little introduction about myself and my delimma. I'm a 18 year old fresh out of high school who is busting his ass at a shitty job to save up $$$ to start building his first bike.

now the drama...

I've recently bought a 2005 883 Harley Sportster engine and I can't seem to find a frame that I want to fit it. Any suggestions? I want to build a basic bobber, rigid frame with a stock 30 degree rake. Everywhere I've looked I found frames that will only fit 2003 and below engines. Anyone know why? Are the engine mounts placed differently?

If there is no chance that I can get a frame to fit my engine, what can I do to make it fit? I have a friend who works as a custom fabricator and he can tweak the frame in order to fit but I need to know what needs to be done and if it is reccommended.

I would rather get a frame that fits properly first but desperate times calls for desperate measures. I've spent a lot of hard earned money on this engine and I don't want to see it go to waste and ANY help will be greatly appreciated. I know that I'm a new to building bikes but we all have to start somewhere, right?

[Big Nick]

The Sportster changed completely in 04, they went to a rubber mounted engine and the motor mounts are different. You may want to call some frame builders to see if they are making a frame for that motor. I know Killer Choppers up in New Hampshire are always doing new shit, you should check with them.

I would not recomend putting it in a frame thats not made for it. You are asking for problems. My friend did that by putting a flat head in a big twin frame, he is kicking himself in the ass for it the amount of money he spent on machining to make it fit safely.

[rukwikenuf]

Dirt, if you can find a stock frame, i would suggest sending it out to a true custom shop. i don't know of any, but i can GUARRANTEE that there are a shitload of shops in the Bay Area. before you chose one, make sure that you know the quality of work that comes out of said shop.

[Trumpnut]

I second that . find a stock frame to start with .

[raygunriot]

Just do a search online for "05 sportster hardtail frame" or use other combinations of words describing it. You'll be surprised what you'll find out there.

[TigMan]

I have an 05' sportster frame in house now. I am doing a rake and stretch job on it. I havn't gotten into it yet but will be sometime the end of the week. It is rubber mount and set-up completely differant than the older stuff. The mounting pattern from 1957 - 2003 are the same. The evo heads are taller but the mount pattern is the same. The backbone on this bitch is a wopping 2-1/8" and the downtubes I think are 1 3/8". It's fuggin heavy..........bottom line, Hopefully with this frame in house I can build a jig for the rubber mount before this gets picked up by the customer....... keep an eye on my website........... www.tanksbytigman.com

[Dirt Diggler]

thanks a lot to everyone that helped. turns out that UPS freight somehow lost the engine. they said if it goes missing for a week or so, I can file a claim with the insurance. so i might not be using the 05 sporty engine after all, but if it does turn up, I'll definitely heed your guys's advice. I'll keep you guys posted.

[Dirt Diggler]

I have an 05' sportster frame in house now. I am doing a rake and stretch job on it. I havn't gotten into it yet but will be sometime the end of the week. It is rubber mount and set-up completely differant than the older stuff. The mounting pattern from 1957 - 2003 are the same. The evo heads are taller but the mount pattern is the same. The backbone on this bitch is a wopping 2-1/8" and the downtubes I think are 1 3/8". It's fuggin heavy..........bottom line, Hopefully with this frame in house I can build a jig for the rubber mount before this gets picked up by the customer....... keep an eye on my website........... www.tanksbytigman.com (http://www.tanksbytigman.com)

yea that'll be awesome. you might be able to make some dough off of it too since it's tough as hell to find a frame to properly fit a newer engine. I'll keep an eye out for your website.

[Dirt Diggler]

well, the engine came in. fucking sucks. i was hoping it fell off the truck and onto the interstate. i'll prolly just weld myself a frame. and thats funny too because my welding aint that good. can you die if your frame cracks into 2 cruising on the freeway? yea? good. I kinda feel like dying right now anyways. i should've done the research before i got all googly moogly on a cheap deal. the hard headed never learn. if worse comes to worse, I'll buy a stock frame and have my friend cut/weld/do magic on the mounts. he's mainly a car fabricator, but if he can chop tops and make it look like it came like that out of the factory, i can trust his work. whatever. i don't care. i hate my life right now.

[grail21]

Maybe some one would have said this already if they make them - but have you checked with Redneck Engineering? They have that whole line of Sportster / Buell frames - kinda their specialty. It's quite possible that they only make them for earlier models, but I would give them a call - they might have something in the works if they don't have something already done. Also, I've seen Tigman's work in person and it is fantastic so I would not hesitate to have him build you a frame.

[tradelake]

First thing to do is take a step back, relax, and try to remeber it's just a bike. I'm new here, but i'm willing to bet that nearly everyone here has screwed up something royally. I beat on a set of 84 1/2 shovel cases for half an hour before I found the bolt I forgot. You haven't done that yet. You got a good deal on a motor, thats a plus. You didn't break anything, yet:D Patience is the name of the game. I get burned out, frustrated, and pissed off to. Some days I cant look at a bike. Sit down and make a list of everything you need. The best tech tip "I think" anyone could give you right now is to get the right mindset, then go for it!