Words & Pics Craig Pattison
I
n the early 1970s, a young Willie G Davidson began creat-
ing factory custom Harley-Davidsons, initially by attaching
a Sportster front-end to an FL frame, with the aim of better
capitalising on the custom bike scene by utilising factory
components from other H-D models.
In 1980, the first Harley-Davidson FXB “Sturgis” factory
custom was released to market from an idea by Willie G Davidson.
Legend says that Willie dreamed up the design and sketched it
on a paper bag he pulled from a rubbish bin whilst riding from
Sturgis back to Milwaukee. Sturgis, of course, is the little town
in South Dakota synonymous with the annual motorcycle rally
known for attracting the largest number of Harley-Davidson
riders anywhere on the planet.
More legend says that the next year Willie himself rode the
prototype to Sturgis where it received rapturous applause. A perfect
name then for an iconic motorcycle in the Harley-Davidson range.
Miles from a stock Shovelhead – the
Twin Belt Drive Sturgis.