10 Upgrades You Must Undertake To Convert Your Harley

Building your Harley Davidson into a bobber is a ton of fun, but where to start? Make these 10 changes to get there

You're probably wondering what a bobber is or looking for some tips to get that style for yourself. The bobber style on a Harley is one of the most iconic yet unique out there; plus, it will ride like a whole different beast once you modify it. Chop the fender, throw on a springer seat, and you're basically there. But, going to the next step like installing minimalist bars and a short exhaust will definitely affect the handling and performance. Before you get started, you should have a very clear idea of what you want to change and even try out whatever you can before you go shelling out lots of cash, lest you end up with something that feels too awkward for you. The next thing to do before you start is to have a clean and organized workspace with ample lighting, as well as all the tools and protective equipment that you need.

Swapping your Harley-Davidson's bars can be a great way to give your bike a facelift. There are plenty of options: Z bars, T bars, ape-hangers, straight bars, and also lots of different risers to choose from. Your best bet for this style is a drag bar on a low riser. Some riders find ape hangers to be awkward to turn with. Other options can also be way too narrow and not offer enough leverage. Be sure to use a thread locker like Loctite on the threads of the bar bolts and screws in your grip controls to stop anything from coming loose. Also, keep in mind that your throttle cable, brake line, clutch cable, and any wires may need to be adjusted or replaced to be able to reach whatever bar height you choose.

While we're talking about bars, you might want to think about relocating the gauge to an engine or fork mount to keep the bars as minimalist and clean as possible. In general, this involves rerouting that part of the wiring harness and also requires a reconfigured aftermarket gauge housing. If you aren't a big fan of the stock gauge on your Harley, you can even change that out if you like. If you opt for an engine mount, you may have to relocate or remove the horn, so keep that in mind.

Related: Top 10 Bobbers

Another way to make your Harley bobber unique and keep the bars clean is to modify to a suicide clutch. Essentially, this is a foot-operated clutch with a stick shift system. This is a bit of a more technical install, so be mindful of that. Also, something like this definitely takes some getting used to if you're already used to the standard system. However, once you get the hang of it, you may find you really enjoy it. No more clutch fatigue at stops, and one less awkward cable running up to the bars.

This is one of the key changes to make if you're going for a bobber look on your Harley-Davidson. There are plenty of options to choose from, ranging from some random junk on eBay to Harley's own model, as well as a number of very reputable third-party manufacturers. It can be a surprising difference, so be sure to secure your pockets so nothing jumps out. If you find it uncomfortable, there are plenty of other solo seats to choose from which achieve a similar style.

Related: This French-Built Harley-Davidson Fat Boy Is Extravagant Enough To Make Americans Jealous

There are a lot of different directions to go if you want to give your bobber a unique look. Some out there opt for a springer front end on their Harley-Davidson, which is very cool indeed— just be mindful to inspect for cracks often, because this design can put a lot of stress on the forks. Another popular choice is to either lengthen or slam the forks, and even invert them, which can improve rigidity and make the top look beefier.

Here's another core pillar of the Harley-Davidson bobber style: the chopped fender. You can go run out and grab any old angle grinder and just go to town, or even just tear the whole thing off. If you opt to go that far, just be aware that street grime can and will splatter all over your back. If you opt to chop it, whether by saw or grinder or what have you, you should definitely use proper safety equipment, including gloves, eye, and ear protection. You can also just buy a finished fender, but where's the fun in that?

Related: You've Seen The Harley-Davidson Fat Boy, Now Check Out This Custom Fat Man

If you don't mind getting your hands dirty, you may want to even chop the frame and weld in a hardtail, or at least throw on a sissy bar. When you first get a bike, you can get caught up in questions like "is this part compatible?" or "will it fit?" but then you realize you can do whatever you want if you make it yourself. You can increase your Harley Sportster wheelbase, adjust your rake angle, and make your own pegs or even your own exhaust once you start getting familiar with welding a chopper. Plus, the perfect weld is so satisfying.

The OEM intake and exhaust on just about every stock Harley-Davidson is the epitome of boring. Plus, it might look really silly if you went from top to bottom changing stuff and never got around to a simple Stage 1 kit, which is basically a performance mod. First, you need to find an intake you like. Swing by Revzilla and you'll see a thousand different kinds. Arlen Ness intakes are an awesome choice, for example. Next, you need an exhaust. Shorter exhausts like the Vance and Hines Shortshots look great on a bobber-style build and add torque and horsepower.

Related: Custom Harley-Davidson Fat Boy Looks Ravishing In Its French Guise

For a really minimalist Harley-Davidson bobber style, the lights are only noticed when they need to be— perfectly visible when turned on yet otherwise unseen. There are a ton of cool options to keep your lights as minimal as possible, especially the handier you become with a soldering iron. Many companies offer aftermarket license plates that can house taillights, or light strips that fit to the end of your fender, and grips that house turn signals, plus there are many possible homemade configurations that can be as creative as you are.

Whether you just want to install a tank lift kit(a great idea in any case) or you want to give it a paint job, modifying the tank can be a little technical— but it's not rocket science. To remove an EFI-style tank, you should be able to take off the seat, unscrew the bolts at each end of the tank, and then detach the fuel line before removing it— ideally with as little gas remaining as possible. Then you can mount the tank lift kit hardware and reattach everything in reverse. If you want to repaint it, first remove the fuel pump by unscrewing it from the bottom of the tank. It's smart to order a spare gasket as well. With a respirator on, you can sand it down and paint a Harley-Davidson logo or anything else that suits you.

When he's not turning a wheel, a wrench, or a throttle, Alex is probably dangerously close to turning a parallelism into a run-on sentence. He began riding motorcycles and teaching English in 2017 and from that, grew to love both realms deeply. Since then, he has owned three motorcycles and crossed the USA on them an equal amount of times. Joining the Top Speed team has been an opportunity to combine both passions.