Affe's 1974 XLH Frame Modifications
Affe from Finland made available these interesting photos of the modifications that he made to the frame of his 1974 Harley Ironhead Sportster XLH 1000.
Affe wanted to mount a 130 wide rear tire. While a 130 rear tire would just fit into the original rear fender, it is a tight fit. Affe therefore decided to widen the fender by one inch.
To clear the wider rear fender, Affe modified the diagonal rear frame stiffeners to a higher position as you can see by comparing the two pictures below.
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Before...
After...
Rear Fender Strut Mounting
To fix the one inch wider fender to the frame, Affe moved the struts from the inside of the frame support arms to the outside as you can see in the pictures below.
Before...
After...
In the process of rebuilding the rear end of the frame, Affe also changed the wiring of his Ironhead XLH.
Affe has second thoughts about the fuses: "Although I changed to use modern fuses I still think that those automatic fuses Harley used are very good and that I should have used those."
For more information on Affe's 1974 XLH Ironhead Sportster go to:
1974 Ironhead Sportster XLH 1000 FrameOr check out Affe's own website:
Affe's Harley-Davidson and American V-twin Website(May 2008)
MORE Ironhead Frames Photo Albums:
MORE Ironhead Classic Sportsters Photo Albums:
Clymer Service and Repair Manuals
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