The OVRLANDR: 1200R Sportster by Combustion Industries

For Sale: The OVRLANDR is now for sale. Contact Michael Bates of Combustion Industries for price / details.

The Sportster is one of our favorite, most versatile platforms for customization. In production since 1957, the V-twin cruiser has been transformed into scrambler, tracker, cafe racer, and full-out adventure bike. However, few Sportsters seem so capable of blasting across the post-apocalyptic world as the OVRLANDR, built by Michael Bates of Combustion Industries.

Michael, an industrial designer who works as a design manager for such aftermarket brands as MAG motorsports and Kuryakyn, says of the build:

“I really love the idea of building a no-nonsense vehicle for going balls out across any type of terrain…[or wasteland] of the future.”

Starting with a higher performance 1200R as his donor, Michael took his inspiration from 80s science fiction — films like Bladerunner and Star Wars, where futuristic tech meets the challenges of apocalyptic climates and alien terrains. The result is the OVRLANDR, which reminds us of a two-wheeled Mars rover — the motorcycle that might accompany a human space mission to other worlds, at home on the desert wastes of Tattooine or the off-world mining colonies of Calantha…as long as the atmospheres are conducive to internal combustion!

Below, we get the full story on the build from Michael Bates himself, along with some killer shots from Andy Kawa (studio shots) and Naomi Liester (outdoor shots).

The OVRLANDR: In the Builder’s Words

Built by Michael Bates, an industrial designer who recently started working in the motorcycle aftermarket after a 15 year career designing luxury faucets and plumbing fixtures. I have always had a passion for anything two-wheeled, and working as a design manager in the motorcycle aftermarket (MAG motorsports, Kuryakyn) means I have the ability to design and create my own custom parts, or I can use newly released parts.

I have a fondness for science fiction, so the idea of starting with a Sportster and turning it into a rugged, crazy mashup of brat/70s enduro/hooligan, and café racer sounded tits. I love Sportsters for their versatility, and I really love the idea of building a no-nonsense vehicle for going balls out across any type of terrain…[or wasteland] of the future. This bike combines 80s science fiction design cues (think Bladerunner, Star Wars) and undertones with real world performance in a bike that is a blast to ride.

For the Overlander, I chose the 1200r because it has a taller front end; and a performance cams, higher compression, higher performance engine. All of the fabrication and assembly was done in my “micro” shop; which is the size of a 1 car garage but has the tools to cut, bend, machine and weld damn near anything.

Sheetmetal was built from scratch, with a modified gas tank which the fuel sender was shoehorned into. The sidecovers and rear pulley were borrowed from an XR1200. The top tree was swapped out for a Joker Machine top tree and a lower tree from a 48 Sportster. To top it off, I added a set of ProTaper EVO Adventure handlebars.

All that I needed to get the enduro stance that I wanted was to add taller 16″ shocks in the back.

I didn’t mess with the engine much, and just decided to upgrade with an air cleaner from Kuryakyn and a handmade exhaust.

The mirrors, bashplate, and headlight trim were all built in a MAG motorsports collaboration with Dave Mucci of Moto Mucci.

Admittedly, it is easier to make the proportions work in a single seater setup, but I wanted to make sure this would work for a rider and a passenger. Ya know, because sometimes when you are doing reconnaissance tearing across the wastelands, you might need to pick help out a drifter.

So, I fabricated the rear end to support rider and passenger. The elongated seat gets its inspiration from motocross. I fabricated a seat pan and carved out the foam, and then my friends at Mustang took my sketches and created the seat cover.