New Rider and need some Help

[jasonramirez93]

Hey guys!

i am a new rider (5 months) barely got my first bike few months ago (2011 Sportster) and starting to make it look somewhat lil more chopperish.

This may be a stupid question but when it comes to motorcycles im still a noob and quite stupid.

after going to Bornfree this past weekend i saw alot of bitchin' bikes and some had a wicked lean when they were on their kickstand.

My question is: Is it possible to make my new bike look like that? and if so what does it take to make the bike
get that angle? do i have to get a new kickstand? modify the stock one? change the position? i am completely lost and if anyone can point me into the right directing that would help.

[jonnyoz]

These guys would have either made a kickstand, or welded on a kickstand at the angle they want.

If you want a mad lean, you are going to have to modify what you have or install a new one. Modifying what you have would be easiest - basically you could heat it with a torch and bend it till the bike sits how you want. You'd have to be careful though, as once it's bent, it may not retract the same or hit the rubber bumper any more. This is easy to deal with when building a bike, more tricky if you want to tweak a stock one.

Not sure if there's aftermarket kickstands that you could simply replace.

Installing a new one would mean cutting off the stock mount and welding a new one in place.

[jasonramirez93]

Thanks for the input Jonnyoz,

i will for sure look into getting a new one.
im thinking if i heat up the stock one woulnd't that make it a little weaker?
im worried it might start losing its strenght and snap on me... that would suck lol

[Fings369]

Extend the front end 6-8" and you'll lean...

[Tattooo]

Before you start modifying your bike put some miles on it like it is now... Then when your comfortable do some changes... Ride safe...........

[Peterson13]

Gotta agree with tatooo. For right now I'd concentrate on miles.

[BuddhahoodVato]

Take a clothes hanger, metal one of course, and mimic your present kickstand, then enhance the bend little by little, and see where it winds up, will it clear everything, come against your primary cover etc.
Then go from there, good luck and welcome to the party.

[jasonramirez93]

Hey Fing,

what would you recommend? getting longer fork tubes? also how much longer to get a good lean?
not too much where the bike looks that its going to tip over but enough for it to be "gangster lean" as they say? lol

[7and7is]

[nickey]

I'd say the lean is probably from some other changes. Not just a kickstand. Most likely taller front. Did you notice anything else about the bikes? Were they hardtailed? Extended forks or springer front? Etc. If all you are wanting to do is make it lean more then you can modify the kickstand but I wouldn't go cutting yours up just yet.

What model sportster do you have? The huggers have a shorter kickstand. Measure yours. You can get a shorter one probably.

[ManicMechanic]

This one really made me laugh out loud....

The lean is a byproduct of long forks and stock rakes and kickstands. I'm sure those people with crazy leans would love to fix it but either a longer kickstand interferes with other parts of the bike or they cant be bothered to sort it out.

I don't think anyone starts out actually wanting their bike to lean that far but don't let that put you off. Take the kickstand cut it in half and weld the foot back on. Instant leans......

Be warned though, crazy leans + parking on gradients = Bad time.

[jasonramirez93]

its a 2011 iron 883

[jasonramirez93]

as far as i've seen and heard just getting long fork tubes would give me a lean. 6"-8" over tubes.

Is it possible to install the extended fork tubes without having to modify anything else?

what are raked cups? do i need that in order to run the extended fork tubes?

[humancertainty]

Tattooo is right. Get some time in the saddle.
While you're getting that experience, start doing research. And make some friends with customized bikes to help you.

[nickey]

Yea taller forks cause it to lean due to the bike being taller and the kickstand being the same. You can run just extended forks without changing rake. I had 6 overs for a while. Handling at slower speeds takes a little more effort but not a bad ride. Check out the NorCal thread in the sportster section for some examples.

Like stated earlier, I'd ride it a while to figure out what you'd like to change. It sucks changing something only to realize you really didn't want that. But it's your bike, have fun with it!

Also, changing fork tubes is pretty simple. Just get s manual and watch some YouTube videos on fork disassembly.