cn 37 heads

This is a late 36 37 head that we received for repairs this week. The rear head is pretty nice, and the front head is in amazing condition. It has never been converted to run covers. 36 and 37 ohvs had open rocker motors. Go to www.youtube.com/gosonytv to see some videos of open rocker heads in action. Anyways this head is amazing!


It looks like a fin is missing, but it is cast like that, so that the return line on the baby food jar has clearance to route back to the rocker box.



Check it out!!!!




36 and 37 heads have this little y stamped in the intake port. It is a cool deal. The only problem with this head is a crack up the exhaust port, which is a pretty common deal.

Silver Paint!!!!!

We got a bunch of silver motor paint back from Mike today. We use imron paint, and it works really well. It holds up to the heat and gas and is tough as nails. Check out the lifter blocks, they are all original and they all have different casting textures. This is a cool detail and it proves how inconsistent the sand casting facilities were back in the thirties and forties.


Here is one an oil pump for one of the 1940 knuckleheads we are doing in this batch of motors. Check out the parkerized nipples, this is a cool detail that no body notices

Free WLA

This pile of parts is Ryan Mackey's WLA. Ryan is the winner of the first ever AMCA bike giveaway contest. All of these parts were donated by different guys in the club from all over the country. Ryan just didn't win the bike though, he also won two months worth of shop time to restore his bike. I will keep you guys updated as the bike progresses along. We plan on starting on the project during his Christmas break, redoing the motor at Wheels through time during spring break and doing final assembly sometime in the summer. This whole project was a lot of work, and I am very happy with how it is turning out.

front fork leg repair!!!!

This front leg is really messed up, it is all dimpled, kinked and bent out of shape. The other leg is in good shape, which is strange, but it's still a good thing. Roger and I made up a ton of front legs a couple of years ago, they are flat on the inside and dimpled just like originals.


In this pic, I have cut off the old leg, and ground what was left of the original fork leg out of the forging. These legs were pinned and brazed together when they were new. Some guys heat up the casting and try to pull the tube out, which is not good.



I have the fork bolted down and straight when I do the plug welds. This picture is what the leg looks like after being ground and filed. I still have to silver solder it so that it looks cosmetically right. The plug welds and tight fit of the tube in the forging make this a strong enough set up to run as is.






Here is the finished repair, this is a great fix that will last a long time.

Knucklehead progress

My daddy put a bunch of valves in heads yesterday. What a bunch of work to get this far. He is doing a great job though.


The head on the left is a late 36 head, and the one on the right is a 39 head. These things are so cool!! There is light at the end of the tunnel.....

sears rockers

HEre are the rockers that came with my sears project, They are really tiny! The over all length is three inches! The frame weighs 24 pounds, the fork weighs 15. I am shocked at how light weight everything is on this bike. I can't wait to go cruising across the country on this little bike.


All three holes are different sizes, the bottom hole is for the axle, it is .375. That would be the equivalent of laying 120 of your hairs side by side.

Wierd stuff that I saw this week

This is Tim's main drive gear. It is toast. Look at how worn out it is, this is caused by running a belt drive way to tight.


I got the frame and fork for my sears project this week, and I am happy to report that a panhead motor will probably fit in it, just with a little bit of cutting and grinding....

Last night Jesse took a package to ups, the only problem, was that the box that the parts were in was a post office box. I always imagined that people that work at UPS don't get along with post office workers, or fedex people. The last thing that I want is for a box to get discriminated against because it was made by another rival shipping company, so I had jesse wrap it up in newspaper.

Larry sent back some 41 to 46 tanks that he straightened out. They are mint! We haven't received the invoice yet, and I am kind of nervous to see what it cost to spray paint the mullet skeleton onto the tanks..

spinning cookies with my 36

I pulled my el out of storage today to practice spinning cookies with it. My bike still has the buddy seat on it, so it was a lot more difficult to spin out.


I didn't dump it, but I was close a couple of times.



WEEEEEEE




Then I threw the rear chain, which is a big bummer.

1913 sears post number 1!!!!!

Today has been amazing so far. UPS delivered my 1913 sears frame and fork today. The amazing condition of these old parts is a true testament to the workmanship of the people that built them 96 years ago.


Here is the frame, all of the tubes are in really good shape. The axle plates are a little bent out of shape, and there is a small crack in the rear pedal casting, but it won't be a challenge to fix them.



Here is the fork, there are cracks on both of the tapered legs from water getting inside of the fork and freezing. This happens all the time on springers. I need to buy the leaf spring, struts and rocker studs. There is a fellow up in canada that makes some that are really close to what I need for my bike. I am so excited.

more fun in the mud

Tim and I took a break today to spin some cookies in the mud. This is the most fun you can have on a knucklehead. I am going to put the battery in my 36 tonight, so I can go play in the mud on my own bike in the morning.


WEEEEEEEE

Rocker boxes

We got some polishing in today. These rocker boxes are for this batch of motors that we are doing right now. There are still three sets at the polishers, but these will keep my dad busy for a little bit.


It has been raining all day, so duke has had to wear a hat to keep his ears warm. He is a good dog that enjoys the finer things in life.

42 Head repairs????

This is the rear head for a 42 knucklehead that we are doing. Check out the rear exhaust stud. Somebody welded the shaft to the rocker tab. My dad wont admit to it, but I think we all know it was him. Whoever did this sub standard repair wasn't too concerned with ever taking the head apart.


Here is what it looks like after a little bit of grinding.

Ta da! The shaft is out. This head is messed up.

Neat transmissions case

Here is a neat late 39 case that came through the shop for repairs this week.


Whoa! where is the boss for the breather???? This is a rare set up that HD only did for a little while. I have seen these cases on late 39s and 40s. The boss showed up in 1940 during the production year.

panheads finished

Here are some panheads that my daddy finished up this weekend. We shipped one set off that isn't in the pictures. They all turned out nice. Now he has moved onto knuckleheads.

36 frame job

Here is the bottom half of a 36 frame that I have been working on for the last couple of days.

Here are the new top legs. It took me three hours to sand the old tubes out of the axle castings. This is the farthest that I have ever had a frame apart. IT is coming back together very nicely

check it out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyW5SptXUBE

Drifting knuckleheads

My dad and I took an hour long break today to practice our cookie spinning skills.


I climbed up on one of the silos to take this picture. They kind of look like south dakota lawn circles. Tim the Australian video recorded us horsing around. I will post it on youtube sometime this week.

1936 EL frame repairs

Here is the backbone of a 36 frame that I am re tubing for a friend. It is really messed up.


Look at the seat post, MAN O MAN! Somebody beat it in to fit a pan motor into the frame, and then tried to beat it back out. I think that the person that did this must have been on acid or some other type of drugs.

They bent the male part of the casting that the back bone slips onto, but this is not that big of a deal, I can straighten it out and return it back to stock specs.

Tim's oil filter modification.

I am making a little top hat shaped piece to weld into the oem oil filter top in this picture. It has a 1/4 20 blind tapped hole in it. I neglected to take a picture of the finished piece, so you will have to use your imagination.


In this pic I am boring a counter bore into the top for the piece in the previous pic to sit in.



Here is the top after welding, grinding and sanding. This top mimics the 48/49 style of oil filter and screws onto the oil tank, instead of having a bunch of ugly brackets. This is for Tim's 46.




Here is what the inside looks like. I still have to have it polished, but you get the idea.

65flh Tear Down

These two pics are over a week old. Mara tore down a 65 flh for restoration last week. The bike is in pieces now and getting ready to get shipped off for plating and paint work.


Here is a pic of the right side. The black stuff is at the painters right now. I haven't decided on whether or not we should ship the chrome plating to st. paul or drive it over there. The UPS bill would more than cover the expense of a quick day trip to Minnesota and back.

Tim's Kill switch

Here is Tim's kill switch. Since he is running a mag he doesn't need a spark advance cable. It is a button that he bought at radio shack. He put a set screw in the handlebar plunger, so that when you retard the spark all the way it pushes the button and kills the engine. This is a cool set up. Tim is a smart dude.