Looking at a 1993 Sportster 883, any tips before buying?

[daewon774]

Hey all, this is my first post. I'm looking at a 93 Sportster 883 in a few days and was wondering if you all (the great and the knowledgeable) could give me a few pointers. Right now, all I know is that there's 20k on the the odo. so...

1) What tell tale signs should I look for if I want to avoid buying this HD?

2) How long do the motors last for? Already 20k on the bike... so... alot more life left in this bad boy?

3) any specific problems that are common to this bike?

Thanks!!!

WRITE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE!

[shameless]

Well I can tell you that 20k is not anything to worry about if it has been taken care of. My 2002 has 28k on it and I ride it hard everyday.

If I'm not mistaken, the 93 is the last year for that version of the bike. I'm not sure of the changes but I know in 94 there were some.

[Moved On / My Own Choice]

Ahhh 93, I bought my first sporty in 93, it was, as you might guess, A 93... good times.

Anyway, things to watch out for.

First off, I put more than 20k miles on mine IN 93.

Bikes don't like to sit.

So has it been ridden much LATELY is the first question.

If not there are things like rubber parts that dry rot and fuel tank/carb with bad gas or gunk - but those are all easily remidied.

Next - it's the old style turn signals (more squared button, with the horn and bright switch reversed - not a big deal if you're not used to the other set-up - not a REAL big deal if you ARE used to the other set-up, but you'll honk the horn at the wrong time, at least a few times). But functionally it's fine - though the self-canceling system is strictly time/speed/distance and doesn't involve lean angle. The good news is that I think you can disable it and go fully manual pretty easily (I think, I never did it back then).

The oil tank is a possible weak spot - they used to mount the battery tray to 2 threaded mounts both at the bottom of the tank. This meant the battery acted as a lever, putting all it's weight on the bottom of a relatively thin sheet metal tank, so after time they'd often crack. The tank was redesigned (with additional welds and an additional mounting point for a new battery tray - that point being at the top of the tank to remove some of that leverage) in 94 or 95 and the new parts can retrofit, but it can be pricey (couple hundred bucks).

The kickstands didn't use a replaceable bushing insert on part of the mount in those years and if they weren't lubricated enough the kickstand would sag and scrape in corners. Only way to fix it was to cut the old mount off and weld a new one on. Not expensive, but a PIA.

Mine ATE base gaskets like candy - it came apart every 10k miles the whole time I owned it (35k miles).. so check the base of the jugs for wetness. They didn't all do it, so you might be fine.

Other than that, it's a long-lived, simple bike.... If the pieces look good, it starts and runs, there's no funny noises and the various bearings (steering head, wheels etc) feel good no notchyness etc, you should be good to go.

Gratuitous picks of my 93

[jason43]

My 86 had sat for a long time and the gas tank was rotted out on the bottom, but $50 later, I had a new one... Just something to keep your eye on. When I bought it, the seller had replaced the parts that he knew were bad and had the carb rebuilt in order to sell it... So far I havent had a problem at all and I am loving riding it. Good luck!

[Erik]

I bought a '92 and it started and drove good ride away, all i did was tensioning/thightning the belt and replaced the rear tire.

After that i did a few other mods just for extra fun

[Takingabreak]

As with any used bike, it is best to have a tech look it over.

I would suggest you find a good Indy shop and or the dealer to do a used bike inspection.

[jharback]

I bought a used '93 a couple of years ago with 11,000 miles on it from my Indy. I'm very happy with it but then, I trust my Indy. It still runs strong as hell and I've had no engine work on it since I bought it. Like Kevin said, your biggest problem will be if it has just sat for quite a while. Check closely all rubber parts, gas tank, oil tank, and carb. If you don't know harley's I would highly recommend that you follow Jeffytune's advice and get a good Indy to look it over for you.

[96sporty4me]

I agree with everyone else. Let someone who knows about bikes to look at it. I have a 96 1200 which just turned over 60,000 miles. I replaced the top end gaskets two weeks ago and everything else is perfect. 20,000 is just broke in. Good luck and welcome!

[rottenralph]

Kev said just about everything you need to know. My 93 has been a good bike and would have needed almost no maintenance if it had not been bastardized so often over the years. Look for oil under the front of the swingarm, that is a sign the oil tankk might be leaking. I love my 93

[slatroni]

If the price is right, Just buy it! If your on the XL CAFE FORUM , your just going to change it up anyway. I paid $2700 for mine from the dealer with 10K mi. and I never looked back!
Steve