Shaken, Not Stirred: “Seventy” Sportster by Lord Drake Kustoms

LDK builds a Sportster inspired by Martini Racing…

In the history of sports car and rally racing, few liveries are as iconic as those of Martini Racing, featuring dark blue, sky blue, and red stripes over a white or silver body. Parent company Martini & Rossi, which produces Martini vermouth, began sponsoring motorsports as early as the 1950s, but non-motorsports-related advertisers weren’t allowed on bodywork in sports car racing until 1968, when Martini logos began to appear on Porsche racing cars.

Martini Porsches would win Le Mans multiple times, and the vermouth brand would go on to sponsor cars in Formula One and the World Rally Championship, including the Lancia Delta HF Integrale — their winningest machine. For anyone who grew up in the 70s or has an interest in motorsports history, the Martini colors are instantly recognizable…

Enter our new friend Fran Manen of Lord Drake Kustoms, whose “Urbantracker” Sportster we recently featured. Fran has long been a fan of the Martini livery and decided to build a scrambler inspired by the Martini race cars of the 1970s, using a 2005 Sportster 883 Low as the donor.

“Seventy” was originally intended as a show bike, but 2020 threw a monkey wrench into those plans:

“The transformation of this motorcycle was done in record time, since once the project started, we came up with the idea of presenting it at the AMD World Championship of Custom Bike Building in 2020. But because of COVID-19, the bike show was canceled, so Fran Manen decided to sell the bike and start a limited production of 10 units.”

Now the bike is the first of ten limited-edition machines that LDK will be selling to ten lucky customers across the world. Below, we get the full details on the build.

883 Scrambler / Tracker: In the Builder’s Words

The inspiration is the Martini Racing Team of the late 70s! “Seventy” was going to be a cafe racer motorcycle (that was the original idea of its owner, Fran Manen), but it ended up being a Harley-Davidson scrambler with flat track touches.

The base bike is a 2005 carbureted Harley-Davidson Sportster XL883 low. It’s part of a limited edition of 10 units that Lord Drake Kustoms is building in their workshops in Malaga (SPAIN) and Miami (USA). This first unit was built in the Málaga workshop and is for a customer in Germany.

The inspiration in the Martini Racing Team of the late 70s. We decided to be inspired by the designs of the race cars of the 70s. “Martini” was one of the most famous sponsors at that time and gave his vehicles a particular stylish-look with its three-band color designs: blue, light blue, and red.

Those designs survived in the memory of Fran Manen (owner of LDK). So we decided to adapt them to this Harley scrambler. The transformation of this motorcycle was done in record time, since once the project started, we came up with the idea of presenting it at the AMD World Championship of Custom Bike Building in 2020. But because of COVID-19, the bike show was canceled, so Fran Manen decided to sell the bike and start a limited production of 10 units.

Modifications made to the original Harley-Davidson Sportster include a handmade flat track rear tail, custom modified fuel tank, and custom front fender.

Spoke wheels with Continental tires, Vance and Hines RSD tracker exhaust, K&N air filter, BMX-type handlebar, etc.

As for the painting and airbrushing work, graphics and colors were chosen that are reminiscent of those used by the “Martini” brand on their competition cars.

Lord Drake Kustoms ships motorcycles worldwide, so if you want one of these limited edition Sportster scramblers, you can order one now. For more information, visit us at: www.lorddrakekustoms.com

Technical Data Sheet

• Base: Harley-Davidson Sportster 883 low
• Year: 2005
• Displacement: 883 cc
• Exhaust: Vance and Hines RSD Tracker
• Air Filter: K&N
• Shock Absorbers: Custom.
• Fork: Original modified with metal covers
• Odometer: Daytona with rev counter
• Hand controls: Handlebars, grips, brake pumps, etc.
• Foot controls: modified
• Wheels: Spoked rear and front
• Fuel tank: Handcrafted
• Seat and subframe: Custom made
• Front fender: Handmade
• Rear fender: Handmade
• Chassis: Modified subframe
• Lighting: Front turn signals in grips, pilot and rear turn signal LEDs, etc.