Black as the night!
“Are you up for a custom project? It has to be done within 60 days though!” When this call came from Milwaukee, we didn’t hesitate for a moment to say “Yessss!”. We didn’t know exactly what the project was, but of course we were mega into it!
Little by little, the details came out and we realized that the Thunderbike team was being given a special honor here: As Customizer (and the only Harley-Davidson authorized dealer worldwide), we are allowed to rebuild the second of the new Sportster model series, the Nightster RH 975 with a brand new Revolution Max engine. Other participants in this exclusive custom project were to be five customizers from England, Japan and the USA.
So at the beginning of the year, the Nightster 975 was delivered to us in a sealed box and given the mysterious name “Project X”. Our incentive was huge and we gave everything to show the world our ideas about the new generation Sportster. Come and see what we have built in the last weeks under utmost secrecy:
Dark, deep low rider style
“I’m totally pleased that we’ve completed Harley’s line here. And we’ve gone one better!” explains Andreas Bergerforth. “We’ve built a lot of awesome parts, all European style – so a bit aggressive and wicked. People like that here with us.”
We always think it’s good for a new bike to show what you can do with it and Kim sums it up, “Everything Thunderbike can do, we put into the bike. It’s understandable and visible to everyone: this is a Nightster, but it’s just a complete custom bike.”
Anyone who remembers the old Nightster will see right away that we’re going about things completely differently here, which is why we needed a completely new concept. Nothing we already had could be used here. So we did our Thunderbike thing and redeveloped everything.
Thunderbike Projekt X: Talk and Making-of
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Rear fender, radiator cowling, bow spoiler, handlebars and risers are just as much a part of this as the smaller but equally important parts such as covers and adapters. The wheels from our New Digger series were adapted and the rest is simply new or modified.
When it came to styling, there was no alternative to black for us. The biker’s favorite color runs through the entire project. Even the components that already came in black were all blacked out again (coated gloss black) so everything has the same look.
One of the strongest visual differences is the engine. Instead of the original silver, it now shines in black, which contributes significantly to the new attitude.
The exhaust is also one of the heavily modified elements. Not only the length of the tailpipe has been trimmed considerably. The two manifolds were shortened before bending to bring the entire system closer into the bike and make the silhouette narrower. To raise the height of the system, we brought the two pipes together earlier and created a fancy new cover for the triangle.
Much less noticeable, as desired, are the turn signals. We attached the front ones to the upper triple clamp, and sunk the rear turn signals into the struts we shortened. Cool, isn’t it?
Kim was able to enjoy the easy handling right from her first ride, with plenty of power from the Rev Max engine and accurate shifting, which the Nightster offers from the factory. The Nightster’s already low center of gravity is lowered even further thanks to our lowering at the front and short shocks.
The sound from the thick pipe is likely to divide opinion – but we should agree on the looks. The big funnel and fat muffler leave no doubt about where the journey is headed: Here comes a Bad Ass Bike!
Parts & Details
- Thunderbike New Digger Wheel
- Thunderbike Rear Fender Shorty GRP
- Thunderbike Strut Stripe LED 3in1 Turn Signals & Tail Light black
- Motogadget mo.Blaze Pin Turn Signal Set
- Thunderbike Pulley Cover front contrast cut
- Thunderbike Seat Plate
- Thunderbike Side Mount License Plate Bracket Medium Pro black matt
- Thunderbike Rider Footpeg Set SP-S black
- Thunderbike Chin Fairing GRP
- Thunderbike Upper Fork Cover black matt
- Thunderbike Handlebar SP-S2 Alu 74cm black matt
- Thunderbike Flat Riser Kit black
- Thunderbike Grips SP-S satin black cut
- Thunderbike Frame Cover black
- Thunderbike Radiator shroud set bicolor
- Thunderbike Timer Cover
- Thunderbike Clutch Cover SP-S
- Thunderbike Alternator Cover SP-S
- Thunderbike Swing Axle Cover black
- Thunderbike Axle Cover Set front black
- Thunderbike Axle Cover Set rear black matt
- Thunderbike License Plate Frame Inside Plate
- Thunderbike License Plate Lighting
- Thunderbike Brake Disc Spoke Floated 340mm
- Metzeler Cruisetec Rear Tire 180/55ZR18 M/CTL 74W
- Metzeler ME888 Front Tire 120/70B21 M/C REINF TL 68H
Made for project X:
- Alternator cover
- Clutch cover
- Ignition cover
- Shorty tail part
- Turn signal holder front + rear (Struts)
- Riser (thereby speedometer deeper)
- Handlebars butted from 28 to 22 mm, for this the risers are made
- Grips alu in satin for 22 mm
- Intake funnel
- Dashcover Alu milled (orig. plastic)
- Bow spoiler
- Cover exhaust manifold (triangle)
- Frame cover on steering head
- Belt guard front
- Pulleycover front
- side license plate holder
- brake caliper adapter (to 340mm) with brake disc Spoke
- Wheels: New Digger rear 6×18 DF, front 4×21 SF
Modifications:
- all surfaces black gloss coated and thus color-matched
- Fork DLC coated
- Exhaust system: orig. manifold modified to make the system higher and closer to the bike. Orig. muffler shortened, new end cap fitted from tourer.
- Fork lowering and short shocks
- Struts shortened / turn signals inserted
- Seat shell shortened and adapted
- Front fender shortened
Tires: Metzeler Cruisetec 180/55×18 rear, Marathon ME 888 120/70×21 front
Involved partners:
Paint: Chiko’s Pinstriping (Pforzheim/Germany)
Leather seat: Spirit Leather (Germany/ Düsseldorf)
Nightster Projekt X Making-of
orig. Harley-Davidson Sportster Nightster 975
All information about the series machine you can find at the Nightster in our new vehicle gallery
Contact our team!
You can find Thunderbike Parts and original Harley-Davidson Parts in our online shop.