King Of Ireland Iron 883 Sportster

1-DORCHA3-DORCHA5-DORCHA10-DORCHA6-DORCHA7-DORCHAFrom all over the USA and Europe, H-D dealers send me pictures of the Iron 883 Sportsters they customized for the “King Of Custom: Battle Of The Kings”, competition organized by the mother factory. Impossible to feature them all, but if you wonder why I feature this one built by Kenny Roetsch at Dublin Harley-Davidson in Dublin, Ireland it’s because it is more than a nice looking blacked-out Sportster.

2-DORCHA“Dorcha” (means Dark in Irish, a different language than English) is the result of staying clear from building a full-on Café Racer or Scrambler like so many other dealers participating to the H-D competition have done. Taking in account the facts that overbuilt bodywork is passé, that the trend is on muted colors, and that honest functionality remains the end result all those riding a custom motorcycle are looking for, a bare bone Sportster seemed the only possible direction for H-D Dublin to create “Dorcha.”

8-DORCHA9-DORCHABut Kenny Roetsch realized that riding a naked bike with no fenders in a country famous for almost daily rainfalls will not cut it. It explains the most interesting feature of this custom Sportster, because new to me and probably to you too. Look attentively and you will notice that the bike has a rear fender. It is made from a 200 section Fat Boy Dunlop tire that has been cut, adapted and stretched to replace the rear fender. Why not? There is no support underneath this rubber tire fender. This idea has the added advantage of making the rear end appear wider than stock. Clean lines, solid black wheels and lots of RSD custom parts complete the look. Dublin Harley-Davidson.

11-DORCHAModel: H-D Custom Sportster Iron 883
Name. “Dorcha” as in the Irish for dark.
Custom parts & work:
H-D “Peanut” fuel tank
H-D tank knee pad kit
H-D V-Rod headlamp
H-D Bobber leather solo saddle
H-D rigid seat mount
H-D spoked wheels
H-D Screamin’ Eagle round air cleaner kit
RSD black “clip on” handlebars
RSD upper fork covers
RSD side mount numberplate holder
Progressive Suspension lowered rear shocks
Easyrider speedo side mount
EMD wheel covers
Custom exhaust
Custom headlamp bracket
Truwrapz LED front indicators
Kuryakyn rear LED indicators
Custom-made rear fender / Dunlop tyre
dorcha

15 Responses to “King Of Ireland Iron 883 Sportster”


  1. 1 Brett Garner May 16th, 2016 at 8:01 am

    Some creativity here on a Dark Sportster.

  2. 2 Ralph883 May 16th, 2016 at 8:03 am

    I have to admit that the tire/rear fender is a new thing. Good way to make people talk…

  3. 3 J. Costello May 16th, 2016 at 8:05 am

    Pretty good Sporty. Some black is missing!

  4. 4 pj98rider May 16th, 2016 at 8:22 am

    Really nice looking. Great idea for rear fender. Think those solid wheels, while looking good, may be wind catchers on the highway.

  5. 5 chicagojohn May 16th, 2016 at 9:54 am

    Should be king of the evo sportsters

  6. 6 BobS May 16th, 2016 at 11:52 am

    Nope, not diggin it. I think the fender is goofy and those wheels not only look like wind catchers, they look heavy too. I’ve never understood the concept behind making a motorcycle less comfortable, worse handling, less braking, etc. For my dollar I’m into customizing that makes things better to ride, not just look at.

  7. 7 mkviz May 16th, 2016 at 12:58 pm

    Looks fun. Just dont ride during heavy crosswinds. Especially with those wheels.

  8. 8 Fritz May 16th, 2016 at 12:59 pm

    Good looking bike. Sportiest are great bikes.
    Neat concept on the rear tire too.

  9. 9 Matt W. May 16th, 2016 at 1:40 pm

    Pretty innovative fender. Kinda wished the embossed pattern continued up the spine of the tank as well.

  10. 10 Michael Phelan May 16th, 2016 at 2:48 pm

    Kenny is obviously a genius 😎
    This is a work of ART. 🇮🇪

  11. 11 Woody's May 16th, 2016 at 5:48 pm

    Interesting build. Good to see someone having fun with an assignment ☺

  12. 12 Septic the Sceptic May 16th, 2016 at 6:34 pm

    Using a bit of tyre, or a fibreglass copy of a bit of tyre, or painting an existing mudguard to look like a tyre is not new. Custom builders, survival bike owners have been doing it for years.

  13. 13 Blackmax May 16th, 2016 at 7:45 pm

    European style, but it is a very good looking bike

  14. 14 John Makin May 17th, 2016 at 6:58 am

    rains a lot in Ireland, don’t you need a front fender as much or more than a back, both would be nice,agree wheels stand out but are wind catchers

  15. 15 Dublin Harley-Davidson May 17th, 2016 at 10:34 am

    Hi all,
    As Cyril mentioned; this was built as part of the H-D “Battle of the Kings” competition, so it was to a strict budget. We believe in making our custom bikes completely ridable, but this one isnt for the highway.. its for the byways! So we used a little poetic licence with the solid wheels.

    Here’s a very short video about the bike..
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAPIv77hgY0

    Thanks Cyril for featuring our little bike. Go n-éirí an bóthar leat!

    Kenny & Jeff @ Dublin H-D

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Cyril Huze