How-to: Install Side-Mount License Plate on a Harley-Davidson Sportster

The people who follow me on twitter already know that I got this part a couple of weeks ago but unfortunately, it took me more than two weeks to find some free time to install it. Anyway, let’s start…

Everything discussed in this post is about Harley-Davidson Sportster XL motorcycles but the same steps with a slight difference on the mounting bracket can also be applied on Dyna models. Something that some of you might not know is that all these models ship with side-mount license plate only in USA but even in USA the side mount is just a piece of plastic, nothing special.

—————————————————-
Example bike: 2011 Harley-Davidson XL833N
Applies to: All 2004-later Harley-Davidson Sportster and Dyna
Cost: 200-500€
Time: 1-2 hours
Level: Intermediate
Parts: (1) side-mount license plate kit, (2) appropriate sized license plate, (3) additional frame rail nuts (optional)
Tools: (1) Standard Phillips screwdriver, (2) Torx wrenches, (3) Allen wrenches, (4) Socket wrenches, (5) Torque wrench (optional)
—————————————————-

This post will be divided in two parts, one for how to remove the existing mounting bracket and a second part for the installation of the Harley-Davidson side-mount license plate kit (part number 60972-10).

Warning: Changing the license plate location and license plate’s size might be illegal in some countries. Please check your local laws before proceeding to any of these.

Removing the Stock License Plate Bracket
So, in Greece Sportster models ship with a rear license plate bracket with light that you see in the following photograph with the license plate being removed.



This is bolted with a Phillips screw you see on top of the rear fender and the two frame rail nuts on each side of the bike. First locate the two side frame rail nuts. Here is a photo highlighting the nut I’m talking about.



To remove this use a T40 Torx wrench along with a 13mm socket wrench from the inside of the fender. Proceed following the same steps for the other side of the bike. Next, remove the seat screw which is highlighted in the picture below.



After removing the seat you will see all the cables of the rear lights. In case you have the newer LED rear turn signals then you’ll almost certainly have something similar to the following…



Here the two grey cables are the turn signal lights and the black one is from the license plate bracket’s light. Consequently, disconnect the black one and have a look underneath the rear fender now. You will see that the cable is guided through some plastic clips. For better understanding here is a picture highlighting the those clips.



Carefully remove the cable leading to the license plate light and at last, remove the second Phillips screw from the top of the fender and this will release the existing license plate mounting bracket. Here is this bracket when removed.



And this is pretty much how to remove the stock bracket. There is a possibility that a metal plate will fall off when you remove the last top screw, in case this happens do not forget to put it back when finished since this is used to reinforce the rear fender. We can now move on to the next section which is how to install the side-mount license plate kit.

Installing Side-Mount License Plate Kit
Before moving on with the installation, here is the installation instructions shipped with the kit.



Okay, now take the license plate mount you see here.



And take the kit provided LED light and screw it using a Torx T20 wrench.



Follow the same steps to install the license plate frame using the two Torx T25 flat-head screws…




Next, go to the right side of the bike where the license plate bracket will be installed and remove the two frame rail bolts using a Torx T40 and a 13mm socket wrench. Use the same 13mm socket wrench to also remove the turn signal’s bolt. Disconnect it and carefully remove the frame rail cover. Here is a photograph of the frame rail after removing the turn signal light along with the frame rail cover.



And here is the frame rail cover with the attached turn signal light…



From the service manual you’re advised to discard the original screw from the turn signal light and replace it with the new one which is included in the kit. So, simply remove the old and replace it with the new one…



Now take the mounting bracket you see below and place it between the frame rail and the rear fender.



Bolt the frame rail cover along with the turn signal light using the stock bolts for the rear screw and the turn signal. For the third screw use the longer one provided in the kit.



As you can see I haven’t bolted the rear nut. In case your previous license mounting bracket was similar to mine (see above) the last frame rail screws did not use any nut from the inside of the fender. So, if you have a similar mounting kit, then buy a couple nuts for these screws before proceeding with the installation…



Next, bolt the license plate mount to the mounting bracket using the two smaller top Torx pan-head screws. To do this use a T15 Torx wrench. This is also a good time to route the new license plate’s light cable through the plastic clips and plug it to the connector where the previous one was.



If your previous license plate mount did not have a light you can use the kit provided wire harness to get a connector for the newly installed light.



And connect everything, test them and then put back the seat.



You can now screw the three button-head screws along with their washers using a No.10 Allen wrench. In case you happen to have a torque wrench you are advised to torque them to 8-10 ft-lbs (10.8-13.5 Nm).



Finally, we have to install the new license plate which should have specific size. Its size has to be 7″ x 4″ (178mm x 102mm). To have as clean look as possible, I decided to use the kit provided 3M stickers you see below.



To install the frame cover locate the two small holes underneath it. Here is a highlighted photograph of one of those holes…




And use the two small Allen set screws to install it…



Here is the end result from the inside of the fender:



Finally, as in most of my how-to posts, here are two photographs before and after the installation of the side-mount license plate kit.

Changing the Gas Cap on a Harley-Davidson

Of course, it will be completely ridiculous to make this a how-to post, but just as a reference, here is another simple and (most of the time) cheap way to improve your bike’s look.

—————————————————-
Example bike: 2011 Harley-Davidson XL833N
Applies to: All Harley-Davidson models
Cost: 0-300€
Time: 1-5 minutes
Level: Beginner
Parts: (1) Replacement gas cap
Tools: -
—————————————————-

Okay, so in this case we used the “Harley-Davidson Skull Gas Cap” (part number 75097-05).



And here are two photographs to see the improvement…

How-to: Remove Front Forks Reflectors of a Harley-Davidson

Everything discussed in this post also applies to cars, boats and basically anything that comes with sticker reflectors, nameplates, badges, etc. To get an idea look at the highlighted part of the following picture.



—————————————————-
Example bike: 2011 Harley-Davidson XL833N
Applies to: All Harley-Davidson models (and most cars too)
Cost: 0-10€
Time: 5-10 minutes
Level: Beginner
Parts: -
Tools: (1) fishing line or dental floss, (2) glue/sticker removal chemical, (3) towel
—————————————————-

As mentioned above, this can be done easily using some simple things. So, first of all, clean the area carefully since you probably don’t want to scratch your paint because of some small debris or gravel…



Depending on the place you live in you might have to heat up the reflector to make your job easier. You can do this either by using a hair dryer or a heat gun (be very careful with this). However, now in Greece we have 35-40°C (95-104°F) so this step is not really necessary if you leave your bike for a couple of minutes under sun light.
Next, get some fishing line or even dental floss…



And start from bottom with a sawing movement to remove the sticker reflector. Don’t force it, keep doing it on a steady pace and slowly. It only takes a couple of minutes (in my case it took about 1.5 minute for each reflector) to remove it.



But the remaining glue on the front fork will look really ugly…



Take your glue/sticker removal chemical (I used Goo Gone as you can see below).



And pour some of it on a towel



By the way, thanks to Greek Army (Ε.Σ. stands for Ελληνικός Στρατός meaning Greek Army) I still have a shitload of towels that I can use for all these things. :P
After cleaning it up, you can see how awesome it looks.



Finally, here is a photograph before and after the removal of the reflectors.

How-to: Replace Turn Signals Visor Trim Rings on Harley-Davidson

So, continuing with the 2011 Harley-Davidson XL883N Iron you saw on a previous blog post, I will proceed to another easy and cheap modification that improves the style of the bike.

—————————————————-
Example bike: 2011 Harley-Davidson XL833N
Applies to: All Harley-Davidson models equipped with bullet style turn signals apart from the LED ones.
Cost: 20-30€
Time: 5-10 minutes
Level: Beginner
Parts: (1) Front trim rings smoked lens, (2) Yellow amber bulbs
Tools: (1) A standard, flat-head screwdriver, (2) Some electrical contact lubricant
—————————————————-

If you recall, the model we are dealing with here has a very clean design and as you can see in the following photograph, the yellow turn signals do not fit that style very well.



In this case, we used the following trim rings with smoked lens (part number 73342-09).



As you can see from the above photograph, the kit also includes the required yellow amber bulbs. However, you should be careful to select the type that fits your bike’s turn signals. More specifically, the available types are:
1) 1156A Single Filament (which is for front turn signals)
2) 1157A Dual Filament (which is for rear turn signals)

If you click on the above picture (to see it in higher resolution) you will notice that this kit has dual filament light bulbs, this means that we had to separately buy two 1156A light bulbs which costs less than 1€ so it’s nothing really important.

Okay, the only tool you will need for this task is a standard flat-head screwdriver. Personally, I used a 6.5mm screwdriver you see here.



Now, locate a notch at the turn signal (usually underneath) that should look like the highlighted part of the next photograph.



Insert the tip of the flat-head screwdriver to this notch and gently push it towards you. The yellow lens will pop out and you will have direct access to the amber bulb. If you do not fill confident enough that you won’t scratch the turn signal’s paint, you can put a thick paper towel between the screwdriver’s tip and notch.



Now twist the installed amber light bulb and it will also pop out. Be careful not to make a mess inside the turn signal since the light bulb’s base is lubricated with electrical contact lubricant.



Put some electrical contact lubricant on your new yellow light bulb and install it using the same steps. Push it and twist it.



Finally, take the new visor trim ring and push it inside the turn signal.



Remove the lens protective film and you’re ready.
For completeness, here are two photographs before and after the installation of the new visor trim rings to see the difference.

How-to: Flipped Mirrors on a Harley-Davidson Sportster

Although the following information can be applied to other HD models as well, I will be focusing specifically on sportster models. So, since the introduction of the Black Line of Dark Custom, many sportster owners did this modification which completely changes the style of the bike making it more aggressive and bobber-like.

This was so successful that even Harley-Davidson now ships its 2011 Forty-Eight model with this design. Here is a photograph of the 2011 Harley-Davidson Forty-Eight.



Here we will be using my 2011 Harley-Davidson XL883N Iron. To begin with, here is how this motorcycle looks with the stock mirrors…



A closer look reveals that the mirror is bolted underneath the handlebar using a single 13mm nut close to the turn signal. Here is a close-up of this nut.



Starting with the left mirror (from riding position), I used a small ratchet with a 2″ extension and a 13mm socket you see here:



After removing the left mirror (as seen from the riding position), we can see that apart from the 13mm nut, there is also a washer of the same size. Pay attention not to lose it because it is used to securely lock the nut.



I have intentionally started from the left one because the right one is more tricky to remove. The right one is harder because of the brake and throttle lines as well as the turn signal which is very close to the mirror’s bolt. To avoid scratching your paint or having difficulties removing the nut, I suggest using a 13mm open-end wrench.



Now that you have both mirrors out, start by installing the left (from riding position). To do this, take the mirror you removed from in the previous step from the right side and flip it over. Yes, it is as simple as that!

Moving to the right side, it is more tricky due to the previously mentioned lines and turn signal. Because of the position of the right turn signal it is impossible to insert the mirror underneath the handlebar. To do this, you simply remove the turn signal temporarily which is a very straightforward task.

Locate the small hole shown in the following picture.



In this hole, there is a 4mm Allen (hex bit) bolt. Use an equivalent wrench head to unscrew it.



You don’t have to completely remove the bolt. Just loosen it up enough to release the signal light.



With all the required free space, just install the right mirror and adjust it to the vision field you’re comfortable with. Then re-install the signal light.

If you happen to have a torque wrench which I highly recommend to get one if you don’t have, you must tighten the mirrors’ nuts to 16 Nm. Hopefully, the end result should be something like this:



Apart from the aesthetics improvement, this modification also assists on a better vision field. The stock mirrors are short and most riders (including myself) do not have clear view due to the arm’s (more specifically elbow) position.

Remember to check that there is enough clearance space between the gas tank and the mirrors when flipped. This modification cannot be applied to some bikes with large gas tanks. Just turn the handlebar left/right to make sure it doesn’t hit the gas tank.

Anyway, I hope you find it useful. :)