1934 Harley Davidson VL Project Begins

Well I finally got all the '34 VL parts I bought in one place, my shop !  It took forever to get the engine parts and some were damaged due to poor packing by the seller, never the less I am moving forward.  I know it's a pretty meager beginning but all good projects start with an idea anyway.

I am looking for a good VL frame and front end that are not all pitted from being stored behind the barn.  I see quite a few go through E Bay but they have not been as clean as I would like.  The frame is the whole structure that holds all the parts together so I want one that has seen some care.

There isn't a whole lot I can do until my arm heals up but hoard parts so that is what I am slowly doing.  My goal is to use original parts as much as possible but I am going to use all Replicant sheet metal to avoid the hassle and expense of using old beat up tin work.

World's Fastest VL ? 103 mph

I came across this 1934 VL on Steve Slocombe's VLHeaven site, I had no idea that a VL could be made to go over 100 mph.  The more I look at these old bikes the more impressed I am with their performance and from what I am finding out, their handling and reliability.

The description below is from the VL Heaven site.  Steve has this bike for sale.

"World's Fastest VL? This is the bike electronically timed on an airfield at 103 mph, and that was before putting on the high compression aluminium heads and the bobber seat. Matched 1934 cases with ported and relieved cylinders, bored and stroked to 1350 cc, titanium valves, racing valve springs, street/race cams with more lift and duration, period M2 Linkert carburettor with 1 1/8" venturi, racing muffler, cadmium wheel rims, Avon street / race tyres, brakes actually rather good after numerous quarter-miling sprint sessions down the track, and with the mighty 27 tooth drive sprocket for relaxed high speed cruising. The bike is street legal during daytime in the UK and comes with UK registration papers."

Craigs' Harley Davidson JDH Bobber

I met Craig yesterday while trying to sell my '58 Triumph project.  I saw a 1945 UL engine he had for sale and I inquired to see if he might want to do some swapping.  I don't know if that will happen but I was real glad to meet him.  He is a local motorcycle restorer and painter as well as the president of the LAAMCA.
We got to talking and I asked him if he had any old JD's and he said he actually has 2 JDH's !   To me these rank way up the list in the coolest bikes ever built. Two-Cam Harleys, also known as the JDH, first appeared in 1928 in 61- and 74-inch engine sizes. They were bred from H-D racers and featured domed Dow magnesium alloy pistons that allowed for higher compression.

To up the cool factor, Craig inherited this motorcycle from his grandfather !  This is not a bike for a purist as it runs a British four speed tranny and disc brakes.  Back in the day guys just built what they wanted and rode them as intended.

Sugar Bear

 

This man has been building custom choppers longer than most of the current chopper heroes have been alive.  He is famous for his long bikes..."if it isn't long it's wrong"

The now famous Counts Kustoms out of Las Vegas uses his front ends on most all their long bike builds.

 

 

Gorgeous

Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. is one of my personal heroes, I grew up in the 1960's and early 70's and never understood the hatred one person would have for another because our skin had different pigmentation.  It constantly amazes me that the same ignorant mentality still exists today, especially in the biker community !  He had a dream of racial equality that has somewhat taken place....is America a melting pot or a salad bowl ?

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity"

Quote by

Martin Luther King Jr.

Suicide Legion

Burt Munro

This man was amazing, his story is much more interesting than the movie.  He took a 1920 Indian Scout and over the tears he got almost 200 mph out of it.  I have seen and heard what was supposedly the original bike and it was impressive.