Creating an "Iron" or "48" from a 90's Sportster - What is needed?

Post some pics of your sportster so we know what you're starting with.

Lowbrow has lot of neat bolt-on doodads:

http://www.lowbrowcustoms.com/sportster-specific.html

1. Raised tank -> Not on a stock iron. Likely you need a new tank. Peanut is what you are looking for. Lowbrow or revzilla will have it. Tank lifts however are common and inexpensive aftermarket parts. kineticmotorcycles.com has one.

2. Fatter front wheel -> On the 48s yup. This is pretty expensive, you have to convert to a wide glide front end (new trees and bearings and such, costs around 500$ http://vulcanworks.net/store/39mm-Mid-Glide-Triple-Tree-Conversion-Set-Black.html). You will also need a new tire and wheel, new that would cost at least another 200$. You can always follow chopperswapper on instagram and wait for some steals tho.

3. Lowered suspension -> definitely helps. Burly Brand Shorty suspension. Nice and cheap and low.

New handlebars make a pretty big difference.

You could also move the license plate to the side and get smaller lights, both inexpensive, dkcustoms has kits for that very cheap and all bolt on.

Depending if you want to go with the Iron or 48 look, it can be pretty easy or a little tricky. I say that because the 48 has some modifications that can be somewhat expensive.

The good news is for a 97 you probably already have a peanut tank and the general base, so we just need a few tweaks. If you don't have a peanut, you'll need one as it's an integral part of the look. Probably can find one for a couple of hundred plus the cost of paint.

First you'll need to take off all of the eagles and live to ride and ride free shit the previous owners put on it. Strip off any unnecessary chrome, side bags, luggage racks, fringe lever covers, etc.

Then chop off the rear fender and taillight. you'll need to change the rear blinkers so that they also are the taillights, or add a taillight under the lip of the fender or on the side with the side mount plate. Depending on how you do it, could hit $100.

Next you'll want to drop it a bit. ~$200+ for some rear struts. Probably want to drop the front while you're at it, a little over $100 for progressive drop-ins that have some adjustability. You could save some money by finding used struts. You might need a different kickstand depending on how it changes the geometry of the bike.

Next ditch the studded pillow top two up and find a minimalistic solo seat or fastback or something. $200 plus or minus.

Get rid of the forward controls and find someone that will swap for some factory mids.

Change out the buckhorn bars for something low and aggressive. You probably won't need to add length as the stock length should be more than enough for the aggressive bars you go with. Go ahead and relocate the speedo and dummy lights so they don't stick straight up, or use bars like the biltwell keystones to kind of hide the speedo in the bars. Get some smaller black rear view mirrors and mount them under the bars instead of up top. Finish it out with some nice black grips. Should be able to do all this for ~$200 if you are frugal.

Paint parts of the engine, rocker box covers, cam and primary covers, fender struts, blinker casing, front lowers, eyebrow, and various other parts a nice gloss black, using the iron and/or 48 as a guide. As cheap as the spray paint you pick.

Get rid of the stock pipes with the crossover or the drag pipes and get some decent pipes. All kinds of choices here. Might as well get an air cleaner while you're at it, and get that carb running right. Probably gonna break $600 on this, up to twice that.

Now we should be pretty close to the iron. Throw on some fork gators and ditch the spokes for some mag wheels and we're in business. Maybe you can find someone that will trade wheels?

You could raise the tank and relocate the ignition module but it's not necessary to get the look. You can get kits for $50-100 or DIY with some u-bolt brackets for <$10.

Now if you want the 48, well, you'll need wider forks an a matching 16" wheel and tire (whatever you have on the back). To really get the look you'll swap out your spokes for two mags and tires, which could get costly and you're unlikely to find someone with two used mags willing to trade. There are probably kits that retain the stock tubes and give you the wider front forks without replacing the whole front end, but I haven't looked into this. New axle and such may come with that kit. I'd bet $400-500 for the wide glide conversion, plus whatever you do with the wheels/tires.

If you are looking at an 883, you don't need the 1200/1250 but if you want the 48's power, that'll be another $600+ DIY (depending on options) and possibly a lot more if you want someone else to do it, but you probably don't want to spend that or do that much work. Just something to keep in mind if you're comparing a 97 883 to a late model 48... along with the 48 being fuel injected instead of carbed, and having a rubber mounted motor instead of frame mounted, neither of which is feasible to change on the 97.

Or you can just save a little more and buy the one that comes the way you want it in the first place.

You dont hear of many people wanting to make their bike look like a stock bike. Typically people are trying to get a unique look. More power to you.

Search salvage shops, ebay, and craiglist. People are always removing stock parts and selling them cheap.