The Harley-Davidson Nightster Special is at the base of the Milwaukee company's line-up pyramid: although highly evolved and definitely a modern motorbike, it picks up the legacy of "entry-level bike" that until a few years ago was borne by the unforgettable Sportster 833 and 1200, bikes that in turn had an illustrious lineage that can be traced back to 1970 and the legendary XR750.

What's that got to do with it, you might say. It has everything to do with it: the heritage of the XR750 is still alive today, and in this test we show you one of the many ways it has survived intact to this day. We have in fact, alongside the Nighster Special an amazing one-off made by Harley-Davidson Onorio Moto of Correggio (RE) just based on Nighster Special, a bike that takes the livery in that orange colour with checkered graphics that the XR has then passed to the 883 R and then to the unforgettable XR1200 of 2008, demonstrating that - just as Harley-Davidson says - the cruiser/roadster of 975 cc is really a "blank canvas" on which owners can invent their own customization. But that's not all: we couldn't get our hands on a Nighster Special and not subject it to one of our tests!