restoration

Final-Year 1947 Harley-Davidson FL Knucklehead on auction

General Posts / By

by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com How do you prefer you vintage Harley motorcycle? Do you like them restored to their former shine, or would you rather go for some modifications to make them unique, but somehow spoil them in the process? Well, if you’re a collector, there’s only one possible answer to that. At the end of April, auction house Mecum will be holding its massive, annual motorcycle auction in Las Vegas. This year, a prominent presence on the auction block is that of an impressive Harley-Davidson collection belonging to a single, Tacoma, Washington resident museum owner by the name of J.C. Burgin. The incredibly well preserved 1947 Harley-Davidson FL Knucklehead we have here is part of the collection. It entered Burgin’s possession all the way in 1983, and then underwent a careful restoration process that left the two-wheeler looking like it does now. Wrapped in blue on the body parts that support paint, the two-wheeler retains the chrome shine the bike maker envisioned it for the Knucklehead engine. Most of the FL’s original hardware was preserved, from the front fender lamp to the horn cover. There’s even a red ball tank emblem in there for effect. The motorcycle is powered by the same powertrain back when it was made, meaning a 74ci unit running a four-speed transmission. The fact that this bike comes from 1947 might boost its price a bit in the upcoming auction. That was the last year of production for the Knucklehead, as starting 1948, the era of the Panhead began. For reference, back in its day, a motorcycle such as this sold new for around $600 – that would be roughly $7,000 adjusted for inflation. Now, of course, they sell for a hell of a lot more on the collector’s market. For this particular 1947 […]

Final-Year 1947 Harley-Davidson FL Knucklehead on auction Read More »

1938 Harley-Davidson Knucklehead Runs Like New

General Posts / By

by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com Harley-Davidson has had a rough patch these past few years, and 2020 was the coronation of its problems, a time when it lost its CEO, a factory overseas, and gave up on its direct involvement in the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle series. Earlier this week, the Milwaukee-based company announced a plan for the next five years to turn things around, taking baby steps to make some profit, expand some segments, and reward its workforce. There’s even talk of getting back the public love, although given how not that many new models are planned for the next five years, it’s hard to tell how it could happen. And that’s a shame because, after all, it was public love that kept the company afloat during the Depression years, right alongside Indian. Public love and the technological gambles the bike maker was not afraid of making. Like taking the Flathead-engined VL motorcycle off the market in 1936, before the economic hardship was even over, and replacing it with what came to be known as the Knucklehead. It stayed in production for a little over a decade, right through the war years, and then the Panhead came along and kicked it away. But that decade was enough for the Knucklehead to impress Americans and give birth to an army of followers that are still devoted to it to this day. Followers who keep restoring and then selling them to others who are alike. One particularly fancy Knucklehead is going under the hammer in April, during the Mecum motorcycle auction in Las Vegas. The pre-war model, made in 1938, was the subject of restoration work that got it back in shape, so much so that the 61ci (1.0-liter) engine that gives it its name still spins the wheels. It has

1938 Harley-Davidson Knucklehead Runs Like New Read More »

Rebirth of a Shovelhead, Part III

General Posts / By

Prepping for the Charlotte ER Show By Stealth with photos by the magnificent Vicki The magnificent Stealth wrote this one week before the wild Easyriders Bike Show in Charlotte, NC. This show was always one of the best in the Easyriders annual series of shows. It consistently brought out the best in customs from the Easter seaboard. Mike faced stiff competition and a dire deadline to finish this restoration on time. Hang on! Read the whole story in BIKERNET CANTINA – CLICK HERE

Rebirth of a Shovelhead, Part III Read More »

Support Bonneville Salt Flats restoration

General Posts / By

  Utah Appropriations Committee urgently needs push to support Bonneville Salt Flats restoration Your email support is critically important As part of its work with SEMA, the Save the Salt Coalition and the Utah Alliance, the AMA recently asked Utah residents to contact their state legislators to ask for their support for a program to restore the Bonneville Salt Flats. The race track at Bonneville-once 13 miles long-is now less than 8 miles, due to salt erosion. The Utah legislature is considering a 10-year program to dramatically increase the amount of salt pumped onto Bonneville. As a result of input like yours, the Utah Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee has ranked our “Restore Bonneville” budget request No. 4 of 28 budget requests. If it keeps this ranking, Utah’s Restore Bonneville program should be funded in the state budget that will be up for approval in mid-March. The program will dramatically increase the volume of salt being pumped onto Bonneville Salt Flats each year. We are not finished. Using a Bonneville analogy, we’ve just entered the timing lights for a land speed record. Now the hardest part: the budget requests must still be approved by a second group, the Utah legislature’s Executive Appropriations Committee, which could change the rankings. Your very important task now is to contact the Utah Executive Appropriation Committee members right away. Please send a personalized email to all the members of the committee now. Their decision will determine if the restoration program gets funded. Follow this link Take Action to enter your information, and edit our prewritten message to express your personal stance and reasons for supporting this funding. The prewritten email can stand on its own as written, but it will be MUCH more effective if you edit both the subject line and the content to stress

Support Bonneville Salt Flats restoration Read More »

Scroll to Top