A cool photo from Steve Sharp's garage
Showing posts with label Antique Bikes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Antique Bikes. Show all posts
Rarin' to Go?
I don't know about Rarin' to Go, but I'm back from a very long absence. As a matter of fact the last 10 posts plus last month's header were actually done on the fly. I'll try to update the blog more often now that I'm back. There's still one big problemo. My ancient computer's operating system and browser is now way out of date, so until I rectify that, I'm stuck with using my wife's lap top for the blog.
1965 Panhead De-Rusteration
My friend Larry Settle purchased a reallly rough condition 1965 Harley Police bike something like 12 or 15 years ago with the plan to restore it one day. Larry has a shop in Harbor City, Ca and since customer's bikes come first (plus some other personal bikes), he didn't get to the Pan until maybe 4 years ago. While he had finished it a little more than a year ago, and I had witnessed it's progress, I never saw it completely finished until recently.
I didn't get any before pictures before the tear down, but the following pictures pretty much illustrate how rough it was. It was possibly one of the worst condition 1965 Electra-Glides out there.
As rough as the outside was, Larry said the internal parts look as though they had little use.
Larry tried to salvage as many of the original parts as possible, but all of the sheet metal had to be replaced. If I remember correctly, the bike spent many years outside under a tree slowly leaning and sinking more and more into the earth.
Strangely, the original tanks were 3.5 gallon which you never see on a '65. Larry found some 5 gallon tanks which were a first for '65.
I didn't get any before pictures before the tear down, but the following pictures pretty much illustrate how rough it was. It was possibly one of the worst condition 1965 Electra-Glides out there.
As rough as the outside was, Larry said the internal parts look as though they had little use.
Larry tried to salvage as many of the original parts as possible, but all of the sheet metal had to be replaced. If I remember correctly, the bike spent many years outside under a tree slowly leaning and sinking more and more into the earth.
Larry chose to restore it to a civialian mode. The bike's speedometer was marked BHPD. Beverly Hills Police Dept.?
Strangely, the original tanks were 3.5 gallon which you never see on a '65. Larry found some 5 gallon tanks which were a first for '65. 
Another one saved from the ravages of time.
Panhead Racer and Other TT's
I don't normally like to just lift and post images from other blogs but I had to share this one I found on the Lucky B Design blog.
You don't see many factory photos or bikes like this. Looks to be a '51 TT Racer. Note the raised transmission and the magneto at the generator's location. You can definitely see how bikes like this influenced the street bobbers built by guys like Dick Hirshberg.
I then Googled Panhead TT and almost nothing came up. I did find the '48 below at http://roadboogers-1948panheadtt-bobber.blogspot.com The strange thing about this blog is that it's one page devoted to just this bike. A look at the guy's profile revealed that he has 20 blogs all dedicated to a single bike.
Nice, but a bit too shiny and pretty for me. Should old bikes be so pristine?
Almost a twin '47 from another of his blogs.
You don't see many factory photos or bikes like this. Looks to be a '51 TT Racer. Note the raised transmission and the magneto at the generator's location. You can definitely see how bikes like this influenced the street bobbers built by guys like Dick Hirshberg.
I then Googled Panhead TT and almost nothing came up. I did find the '48 below at http://roadboogers-1948panheadtt-bobber.blogspot.com The strange thing about this blog is that it's one page devoted to just this bike. A look at the guy's profile revealed that he has 20 blogs all dedicated to a single bike.
Nice, but a bit too shiny and pretty for me. Should old bikes be so pristine?
Almost a twin '47 from another of his blogs.
Indian Summer
It's been really hot the last few days. We're about a mile or so from the ocean and escaped the summer's heat this year, but not now. It was 109º nearby on Monday. Downtown L.A. set a record at 113º, 6º warmer than some of the local desert cities.
Just a lame excuse to post this.
Just a lame excuse to post this.
The El Camino Conundrum
El Camino can be a hard show to completely take in. The show opens at 8 a.m. and is basically over by noon. Yes trophies are announced around 2 p.m., but pretty much everybody else has split. Not a lot of time to fit it all in, especially when you get there around 9:00.
You don't really see things if your busy looking through a camera, so sometimes it 's best to put the camera down and just take in the experience.
Here's the drill. If I'm taking pictures, I'm really not checking out the show bikes. If I'm really checking out the bikes, I'm not taking pictures, or looking for parts. If I'm looking at parts, I don't have time for the first two activities. Then throw into the mix, running into friends every 10-15 minutes or talking with someone who is admiring the same bike you happen to be standing by. The day will race by, and later I'll think, what happened?
So here's my (limited) highlights of what happened.
A well restored early Sportster will always dazzle me. This '61 belongs to Glenn Bator. It started with 3 kicks and sounded real sweet. The overcast skies don't bring out the color quite as good as it really looked.
I didn't get a chance to read the board behind this bike.
The owner of this Super-Glide really wanted to sell it. It has a few incorrect items but is still very nice.
This black VL is refreshing.
Lowrider anyone?
It's nice to see old grubby bikes are still surfacing.
This was the first time I saw Keith Ball's Peashooter.
That tank art looks familiar? The fire extinguisher is actually an oil tank.
Original paint Sprint.
Police bikes shouldn't have whitewalls and look so much better without them.
Some probably hate the green. I like it much more than the typical red Injuns.
Can't go wrong with black.
These might be the best tank emblems HD ever offered.
Didn't see many vintage chops this year.
This sums up how this year went. I didn't take many photos, didn't really see all or check the bikes out that well, bought only one part, talked with several friends and a few other enthusiast.
Still a good time overall.
You don't really see things if your busy looking through a camera, so sometimes it 's best to put the camera down and just take in the experience.
Here's the drill. If I'm taking pictures, I'm really not checking out the show bikes. If I'm really checking out the bikes, I'm not taking pictures, or looking for parts. If I'm looking at parts, I don't have time for the first two activities. Then throw into the mix, running into friends every 10-15 minutes or talking with someone who is admiring the same bike you happen to be standing by. The day will race by, and later I'll think, what happened?
So here's my (limited) highlights of what happened.
A well restored early Sportster will always dazzle me. This '61 belongs to Glenn Bator. It started with 3 kicks and sounded real sweet. The overcast skies don't bring out the color quite as good as it really looked.
I didn't get a chance to read the board behind this bike.
The owner of this Super-Glide really wanted to sell it. It has a few incorrect items but is still very nice.
This black VL is refreshing.
Lowrider anyone?
It's nice to see old grubby bikes are still surfacing.
This was the first time I saw Keith Ball's Peashooter.
That tank art looks familiar? The fire extinguisher is actually an oil tank.
Original paint Sprint.
Police bikes shouldn't have whitewalls and look so much better without them.
Some probably hate the green. I like it much more than the typical red Injuns.
Can't go wrong with black.
These might be the best tank emblems HD ever offered.
Didn't see many vintage chops this year.
This sums up how this year went. I didn't take many photos, didn't really see all or check the bikes out that well, bought only one part, talked with several friends and a few other enthusiast.
Still a good time overall.
Venice Vintage MC Show
On Sunday I cruised on up to Venice to check out the show. I got there late (around 2 p.m.), it was probably peaking as I could hardly make my way through the crowded street.
The group was really mixed. There were Honda's, Indians, Harleys, Beemers, and British bikes, though not as many nice Brits as I would have expected. Since it was filtering out fairly fast, things could have been different earlier.
This old Scout was an attention getter.
Rust never sleeps.
Memory says 1910
Definitely not vintage. An amazing example of what you can build and still legally register as a motorcycle. It follows the theme of Roth's original V-8 trike intentions, build a Dragster for the street.
A few of the judged entries.
A flashy '72.
Hardcore. Bikes tend to say something about their owners.
A group from the Garage Co.
Another nice Scout.
This kid's face says it all!
The group was really mixed. There were Honda's, Indians, Harleys, Beemers, and British bikes, though not as many nice Brits as I would have expected. Since it was filtering out fairly fast, things could have been different earlier.
This old Scout was an attention getter.
Rust never sleeps.
Memory says 1910
Definitely not vintage. An amazing example of what you can build and still legally register as a motorcycle. It follows the theme of Roth's original V-8 trike intentions, build a Dragster for the street.
A few of the judged entries.
A flashy '72.
Hardcore. Bikes tend to say something about their owners.
A group from the Garage Co.
Another nice Scout.
This kid's face says it all!
A One, and a Two, and a Three
I've been going to the Long Beach Swap Meet since it began (1989?), and would often see bikes that I really liked but, never took a camera. One rare occasion, in the summer of 1996, I did take a camera and shot the following photos as I was preparing to leave.
A One. I really dig this old road warrior. How about that passenger seat?
I call them Blend Bikes (made up from a unique blend of different year's parts), or Swap Meet Bikes, since their owners have built them up or keep them going by using whatever they find at the swap meet.
A Two. What's this... another cool flathead parked along side?
A bit more of an original survivor. There is nothing cooler than old bikes that are taken out and ridden.
And a Three. This one's blend of parts isn't really working for me but, you don't often see three UL's being ridden together. I assumed they were all buddies since they were just about the only bikes left in the lot. This one could very well be the same bike a friend of mine bought a few years later (at Long Beach), and restored to stock.
I never saw them again. I can't help wonder, where are they today?
A One. I really dig this old road warrior. How about that passenger seat?
I call them Blend Bikes (made up from a unique blend of different year's parts), or Swap Meet Bikes, since their owners have built them up or keep them going by using whatever they find at the swap meet.
A Two. What's this... another cool flathead parked along side?
A bit more of an original survivor. There is nothing cooler than old bikes that are taken out and ridden.
And a Three. This one's blend of parts isn't really working for me but, you don't often see three UL's being ridden together. I assumed they were all buddies since they were just about the only bikes left in the lot. This one could very well be the same bike a friend of mine bought a few years later (at Long Beach), and restored to stock.
I never saw them again. I can't help wonder, where are they today?
A Lost Opp
The year, 1993. I was at the El Camino Vintage MC Show checking out the bikes when a quiet elderly gentleman near a restored Harley VL For Sale, commented to me, "I didn't know they were so valuable now... I guess I better go home and put a lock on the garage."
The bike he was commenting on. I believe the price was about $10k.
He went on to say that he use to race VL's, still had a few plus a garage full of VL parts. He then said there was a picture of him taking a jump in Harry Sucher's The Milwaukee Marvel book. I told him I had the book and knew the photo he spoke of. We talked briefly and he handed me a card with his contact info.
Of course I knew this photo... It's so cool. The year stated is likely incorrect. There are some other similar jump photos in the book on the same course and by the same photographer, but dated 1948. Also, the rear wheel is a 16" and they weren't available until the '40s.
I should have struck when the iron was hot. As time passed, I felt more uncomfortable about contacting an elderly man that I really didn't know.
I'd guess he has long since passed and I blew a unique opportunity to learn some M/C history first hand. Still, it was nice to have met and chat with one of M/C's old timers.
Anybody out there who knew Don Fera, know what happened to him, or his bikes?
The bike he was commenting on. I believe the price was about $10k.
He went on to say that he use to race VL's, still had a few plus a garage full of VL parts. He then said there was a picture of him taking a jump in Harry Sucher's The Milwaukee Marvel book. I told him I had the book and knew the photo he spoke of. We talked briefly and he handed me a card with his contact info.
Of course I knew this photo... It's so cool. The year stated is likely incorrect. There are some other similar jump photos in the book on the same course and by the same photographer, but dated 1948. Also, the rear wheel is a 16" and they weren't available until the '40s.
I should have struck when the iron was hot. As time passed, I felt more uncomfortable about contacting an elderly man that I really didn't know.
I'd guess he has long since passed and I blew a unique opportunity to learn some M/C history first hand. Still, it was nice to have met and chat with one of M/C's old timers.
Anybody out there who knew Don Fera, know what happened to him, or his bikes?
El Camino 09 Part 2
It took me so long just to do the swap meet, that by the time I made it back to the show area, many of the bikes were loaded and gone. Most of the bikes left belonged to guys waiting to hear if they had won anything.
If your into Antique MC's , you probably know this fella. Mike's done bikes for big shots such as Jay Leno.
This '66 returned but this time with a side hack.
Too flashy for me and likely for the judges as well.
Craig Taylors exceptionally clean '61.
I heard he took it all the way to Davenport.
You had to see this BMW's color in person to really appreciate it.
Nice '51. I love black wheels but not with whites. If your into flash and want to run whites wouldn't it make more sense to have chrome wheels?
Interesting but too much flash (and red), for my taste. All that work, so why the funky and torn '80's Sportster seat?
A simple Chief. It may have been the only Indian in this groups line up.
Pepper Red and Ivory White. Yes, the factory really did this simple form of two tone for '54.
This funny little Powell was the last (scooter class), bike standing when I came back. It appears the seat and rack are sprung by those 3 springs in the back.
If your into Antique MC's , you probably know this fella. Mike's done bikes for big shots such as Jay Leno.
This '66 returned but this time with a side hack.
Too flashy for me and likely for the judges as well.
Craig Taylors exceptionally clean '61.
I heard he took it all the way to Davenport.
You had to see this BMW's color in person to really appreciate it.
Nice '51. I love black wheels but not with whites. If your into flash and want to run whites wouldn't it make more sense to have chrome wheels?
Interesting but too much flash (and red), for my taste. All that work, so why the funky and torn '80's Sportster seat?
A simple Chief. It may have been the only Indian in this groups line up.
Pepper Red and Ivory White. Yes, the factory really did this simple form of two tone for '54.
This funny little Powell was the last (scooter class), bike standing when I came back. It appears the seat and rack are sprung by those 3 springs in the back.
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