5 Classic Harley-Davidson Motorcycles That Make Great Project Bikes

Taking on a motorcycle as a project can be fun, especially if you find a classic Harley-Davidson you can restore to its heyday. Project bikes don't have to mean digging up an old model from 50 years ago, although that's part of the appeal for some people. In many cases, it's as simple as finding a second-hand bike and making some small adjustments to get it going again. Of course, getting a bike running like this does require a bit of knowledge and having the right tools. There are plenty of affordable tools out there for DIY motorcycle mechanics, so you don't have to break the bank by any means.

The downside of trying to find a project Harley is that they hold their value pretty well, so even if you're looking back a few decades, you can still expect to spend a few thousand dollars to pick something up. On the bright side, if you find something in decent enough shape and you get it running again, you can still get years of mileage out of it or even make a profit by selling it again.

Nowadays, the Harley-Davidson Sportster line only features the Sportster S, but if you browse through the used market, you should be able to find an Iron 883 with relative ease. The last Iron 883 rolled off the assembly line in November 2022, and it was discontinued as a result of the move to the Revolution engine, retiring the famous Harley-Davidson Evolution engine in the process.

What makes the Iron 883 a good project bike is they are relatively new enough that you should be able to find one that's not in too rough of shape to fix up. If you do get one running again, it makes for an excellent starter bike. The Evolution engine is also a key selling point.

The more recent model years can cost closer to the $10,000 mark, but as you go back you can get away with spending somewhere between $3,000 and $5,000. Of course, that's not the cheapest bike by any means, and you can often find a brand-new bike from another brand for that price. The Iron 883 doesn't set the world on fire, but it's an easy bike to track down, it's affordable, and it delivers solid performance.

You can still buy a new Harley-Davidson Fat Boy, but the 1990-2017 model years, codenamed FLSTF, are beloved by owners for many reasons — its old-school look and rich history being big ones. The bike was essentially thrust into the limelight thanks to 1991's "Terminator 2: Judgement Day" where the audience got to see megastar Arnold Schwarzenegger ride around on one. This bike is credited with re-popularizing cruisers in the 1990s, so it makes perfect sense for this to be a good project bike if you can restore it to its former glory.

This is another example of a popular bike that was produced for several years. As a result, it's easy to track down a used one, and one without many issues if you're willing to be a little patient. The downside to this bike is it's still an expensive pick. Even going back into the '90s, you can expect to spend around $10,000, but some are available for as low as $3,500. Whatever the case, you're not likely to pick one up for a few hundred bucks.

On the bright side, this bike was so popular that it's still easy to find aftermarket parts for it, so it's easy to fix up and mod. You'll want to keep your fingers crossed for one with a good engine because a replacement V-twin can run you more than $2,000.

The Dyna Low Rider had a similar production window as the FLSTF Fat Boy as both got their start in the early 1990s, and it built up quite a few fans over the years. The version we're looking at is the FXDL, and if you're interested in fixing up an old bike with good bones, it's a solid pick. The abundance of exposed chrome makes this an appealing choice — as long as you're willing to clean your bike often (which might be a dealbreaker for some). A user on the Harley-Davidson forums gave a 1994 Dyna Low Rider a transformation that completely modernized the bike, so there's some inspiration if you want to go that route.

Many people gravitate to the bike for its classic style, so you don't have to give it an overhaul if you don't want to. As is the case with all the Harleys on the list, the Low Rider isn't the cheapest bike in the world. At the time of this writing, the Dyna will run you between $5,000 and $20,000 depending on the year and specific model. If you're not set on grabbing a Low Rider, there are plenty of other bikes with the Dyna frame you can pick from.

The Harley-Davidson XLCR is the only bike on this list that had a very small production window of just a few years in the late 1970s, but that didn't stop it from being one of the best Harley-Davidson motorcycles ever made. While Harley-Davidson might be known for its cruisers today, the manufacturer took a risk and added a cafe racer to the lineup, ditching the iconic chrome look of its bikes in the process. The XLCR never managed to gain a foothold with the general public, but that's part of its appeal as a collector's bike. If you can find one around, it's a good project bike too.

In some ways, the XLCR can be considered a trailblazer for street bikes in America, but it was just a bit ahead of its time. Finding one today can be difficult, but it's not impossible. At the time of this writing, a 1978 XLCR was available for $14,500, so you'll have to be prepared to spend a pretty penny if you do see one.

[Featured image by Yesterdays Antique Motorcycles en Classic Motorcycle Archive via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | CC BY-SA 3.0]

Harley's FXR refers to the chassis of the motorcycle, and during its production run, you can find quite a few different bikes sporting the frame. You might recognize the Harley-Davidson FXR Super Glide from "Pulp Fiction," but it's more than just a bike from a popular movie. The FXR dates back to the 1980s before ending production in 1995, but it made a noticeable imprint in Harley-Davidson's history. Outside of its first couple of years when it used the Shovelhead engine, the FXR Super Glide was built using the Evolution V-twin engine, so if you can find one today it's easy enough to fix up thanks to the relative ease of finding parts for this motor. 

At the time of its debut, the FXR was compared to foreign bikes like something from Yamaha or Honda, but the tide shifted and won over a real audience. Even after all this time, there's a subsection of people who argue the Super Glide is still Harley's best-handling motorcycle. The Dyna chassis, also featured on this list, ended up replacing the FXR.

Finding an FXR isn't difficult to do, but the price of one can vary wildly, and you might have to be very patient if you're looking for a Super Glide. At the time of this writing, prices for an FXR ranged from around $5,000 up to $16,500.