Sweet Tracker | Stock Sportster to Dirt Track Racer

Here’s the original rendering that The Harpoon did for me. In no time at all we’ll be pretty close to achieving this look. The paint scheme may vary slightly, but you get the overall idea.

Here’s the original rendering that The Harpoon did for me. In no time at all we’ll be pret

A few issues back I dedicated my monthly column to converting a stock Sportster into a street tracker, a dirt track racing replica (picture Harley’s XR-750), but able to be legally ridden on the street. The Harpoon drew up a rendering of what the bike was to be, with the only instructions being that I wanted a black and gold theme. He nailed it. I got to thinking though… A street tracker limits you to only being able to ride on the street. I wanted the option to ride around the oval at Costa Mesa Speedway in Orange County, California, with proper dirt track tires as well. I’ve become a huge fan of flat-track racing, and it has been a goal of mine to race flat track. Why not have both? I struck a deal on a 2000 XL883 Hugger Sportster at Skip-Fordyce Harley-Davidson in Riverside, California and once I got the bike home I stripped all the crap off that would inhibit its ability to haul ass and look cool.

01. This Sportster was used at the dealership as a parts mule for other bikes so there were some items missing. Not to worry since pretty much everything would be coming off anyway. Once I got it home, I rolled the bike onto the lift and started stripping.

01. This Sportster was used at the dealership as a parts mule for other bikes so there we

To start the project, I needed a proper roller, fit for the dirt track style. In order to do so, I’d need dual 19-inch wheels to fit the iconic 19-inch Dunlop CD5 dirt track tires ($165 ea). These tires have been rolling racers around tracks for years so it was only natural to use them for this project. They are not DOT approved however, and are only meant to be ridden on the dirt. The rubber compound simply won’t hold up on ashphalt, according to Dunlop. They’re only available in 19-inch diameters with varying widths so do some research on fitment specs. When I’m ready to ride the bike on the street I’ll have to get some street tires.

To save a buck on wheels, I converted a front 13-spoke, 19x2.15-inch cast wheel into a rear that I found on Craigslist for $50 using a couple of machined spacer blocks attached to the outsides of the hub in order to mimic the stock wheel width (one in between the wheel and sprocket, one in between the wheel and brake rotor). I knew that Wheel Works in Garden Grove, California, was up to the challenge since they’re the local gurus in Orange County.

I also wanted to convert the final drive from being belt driven to chain driven since no respectable dirt track racer runs a belt. Baker Drivetrain has the goods when it comes to trans and wheel sprockets, chains, etc. And since this was a special application, I selected parts on more of an a la carte basis. The company does offer all-in-one belt-to-chain kits though so just give them a call and they’ll hook you up. In this case, since the converted 19-inch rear wheel is 3 inches taller than stock, the trans/wheel sprocket ratio had to go from the standard 27/61 teeth configuration to 23/52 in order to mimic the stock gearing. I ordered up a 52-teeth wheel sprocket (raw $135), a 23-teeth trans sprocket ($65), and a chain ($90).

05. With the lower legs back from Wargasser, and the box of fork guts, I headed over to Race Tech in Corona, California, to get tuned up. Tony Marasco, Race Tech’s resident genius would transform the stock fork internals to a much racier setup thanks to new springs and the Gold Valve Emulators. When I arrived, Tony made sure to thoroughly clean all the parts in the ultrasonic parts washer that uses sound waves to remove tiny particles that other parts washers can’t get at.

05. With the lower legs back from Wargasser, and the box of fork guts, I headed over to Race Tech in Corona, California, to get tuned up. Tony Marasco, Race Tech’s resident genius would transform the stock fork internals to a much racier setup thanks to new springs and the Gold Valve Emulators. When I arrived, Tony made sure to thoroughly clean all the parts in the ultrasonic parts washer that uses sound waves to remove tiny particles that other parts washers can’t get at.

With the frontend removed, I wanted to send the lower fork legs to Wargasser Speed Shop in Simi Valley, California to have the fender mounts shaved since I won’t be running a front fender (the service is $100 if you ship your set, for a new set it’s $150.). Wargasser does some really trick stuff for hot rods and motorcycles and they’re good guys.

To go with the legs, I ordered a set of Fork Gaiters ($39.95) from Lowbrow Customs. The Gaiters fit 39mm fork tubes and come in black, and 35mm and 41mm Gaiters are also available. With a subtle amount of sheen from the satin lowers and the dirt-inspired fork Gaiters, the Sweet Tracker should be right where I want it once everything’s complete.