A master Harley builder has fun with an 883R…
Lord Drake Kustoms is a custom Harley workshop founded by Francisco “Fran” Manen, a Spanish native who customized his first two-wheeler at the age of 14, a Vespino moped. Fran went on to spend the first half of his 20s pursuing a life in mountaineering, participating in climbing expeditions all over the world — Nepal, Tibet, India, Pakistan, Bhutan, Morocco, Switzerland, France, Austria — and becoming a pioneer in “vertical works” conducted on high-rise buildings, using only ropes.
However, in 2000, Fran suffered a fall while training for a Himalayan expedition and broke his pelvis. Though immobilized for 40+ days, he still completed the climb in Nepal — only to be mistaken for an Albanian terrorist on his trip home and detained in Pakistan for two weeks! After that “black year,” Fran decided to take a radical turn and start a new direction in his life.
“It was time to dedicate himself to his other great dream: to paint and customize motorcycles.”
Today, Lord Drake Kustoms has offices both in Miami and Fran’s hometown of Vélez Málaga, Spain. Fran has been the champion builder at Daytona Bike Week and the European H.O.G. Rally, won first and second place in the same year at the prestigious Rat’s Hole Custom Bike Show, and recently built a custom bike for fashion goddess Agatha Ruiz de la Prada!
Recently, Fran reached out with LDK’s newest project, a 2010 Harley-Davidson Sportster 883R transformed into a scrambler/tracker style machine. Below, we get the full story from Lord Drake Kustoms on this “Urbantracker.”
Sportster 883R Tracker: In the Builder’s Words
The “Urbantracker” is one of the best Harley Davidson scramblers or street trackers built in our Harley workshop in Malaga. A custom Harley that’s completely unique, with its own style and without resembling any of the typical scrambler motorcycles seen to this day.
Fran wanted a Harley Davidson Scrambler that could be ridden two-up without losing the charm of the motorcycles we’ve transformed previously in our workshop. And to achieve this, a tail was made with space for a second seat, accompanied by a pair of Öhlins shock absorbers.
Then we had to work the front of the bike. From a KTM shop in Malaga we were able to get a set of WP inverted forks, which gave a radical look to the entire front end, which was finished with a floating disc brake, a Brembo brake caliper, and spoked wheels.
Finally the front fairing was hand-made in metal with the headlight incorporated.
A hand-crafted exhaust tipped with Supertrapp silencers, custom air filter, and a large number of parts and details were added create this Harley Davidson Scrambler or perhaps Street Tracker with urban airs.
The finishing touch in the transformation was the paint and airbrushing work done on a base of broken white or light beige, accompanied by a handmade brown seat.
Technical Data Sheet
- Base: Harley Davidson Sportster 883 R
- Year: 2010
- Displacement: 883 cc
- Exhaust: handmade with Supertrapp tail
- Air Filter: Custom
- Shock Absorber: Öhlins.
- Fork: Inverted WP
- Odometer: MMB
- Hand controls: Handlebars, grips, brake pumps, etc.
- Foot controls: modified
- Wheels: Rear and front of Radios
- Fuel tank: Artisan
- Seat and subframe: handmade
- Front fender: handmade
- Rear fender: handmade
- Chassis: Modified subframe
- Brakes: Brembo on front wheel
- Lighting: front turn signals on grips, pilot and rear turn signal
- LED’s, control lamps, etc.
- Powder coating
Follow Lord Drake Kustoms
Website: www.lorddrakekustoms.com
Instagram: @lorddrakekustoms
Facebook: @lorddrakekustoms
Youtube: LDK TV
Great job – what a lovely build!
The mechanical imagination of fabricating such a machine makes me realize why H.D. is going under. They lack the personal intelligence, in designing & fabrication, required to make the company exist, their service centers suck & their bikes are WAY Over priced. This 883 is simply amazing, an eye catcher & fabricated using common sense. A job well done.
…….no need to worry, America has returned with Indian making a magnificent come back in price, design and fabrication, as they have since 1901. “The First American Motorcycle Co.”, 1901~ INDIAN “MOTOCYCLE”. American Motorcycles, the 1st & now the only, Indian.