Ride Em, Don't Hide Em

I found this picture on the web, it's a guy named Roland riding his flattie like they were meant to be ridden.  These WR's were work horses !  About 40 hp and about 350 pounds.

Destination...WR ?

These WR's are just about as beautiful as a bike can get, pure simplicity.  It is the purity that 1st drew me to choppers and bobbers about 100 years ago ( or so it seems) !

I am not speaking of these bikes that have everything on them but the kitchen sink, excuse me O.C.C.    The reason Jesse James was so successful was that he took choppers back to a bare bones, if isn't needed to make the bike run type of build.

If I can't get my asking price for the WR frame i think I will build it.  I had a '49 WR motor a couple of years ago but I sold it.  Another will come along.

Genuine Harley Davidson Chrome-Moly WR Racing Frame

I just got the Harley Davidson WR frame that I purchased on-line and it turns out that it is a genuine Chrome-Moly racing frame.  All the frame lugs are correct, etc.

It is a good frame in amazing shape for its age.  It would have been made in 1948-49 so its been around a while.  It looks like an old repair on the front down tube.  that is not too surprising since that is why they quit making them, they were too fragile.  I am not going to strip the paint as a lot of folks like the original paint.

SOLD

The Old Bloke Did It !!

The "Old Bloke" did it, he rode his 1910 FN Four Cylinder "Effie" from Tibet to Belgium just to see if he could.  His name is  Ron Fellowes and he is almost 70 years old !  I posted some write ups when he first started his trip and I followed him most of the way and then got side tracked.  He is now writing a book about his adventures.
Check out his blog here

http://oldblokeonabike.com/

Harley Davidson Twin Cam JDH

Harley Davidson offered the JDH “Two Cam” in very limited quantities, and only during 1928 and 1929. Many believe there are less than 1,500 real JDHs left in the world, and most of them are in museums or private collections.

Garage Company Harley Davidson JD

I was over at the Garage Company the other day and this Harley Davidson JD really grabbed me.  As I get older I appreciate the worn down motorcycles that you can get on ride.  Cool bike with a lot of tasty treats, special fork covers, cast aluminum tanks, etc.

As a side note, the Davidson family played as an important part in the founding and continuing success of Harley Davidson as the Harley family did.  Therefor it is Harley Davidson not Harley.

Harley Davidson WR Frame or Not ????

I just purchased this Harley Davidson flathead frame and I am pretty sure it is a 1948-49 WR racing frame.  I looked very closely at the pictures on The Beauty of Speed site and everything looks spot on.

This frame came out of the Mid-West and was found in an old mans' stash of Harley parts.  The person I bought it from, bought all the parts and was selling them off.  The frame was being sold as a Harley Davidson WL 45 frame, at WL prices, not as an authentic WR frame.  This leads me to believe that it is not a fake as there was no reason to fake them back when they were actually being used.

 Go to the "THE BEAUTY OF SPEED" SITE For Pictures
 

 

Nice Harley Davidson WR

Original Harley Davidson WL Frame

My WR Frame..The Castings are Different Than The WL Frame
 

 If you look at The Beauty of Speed site he lists 292 WR models sold in 1948 and 121 WR's sold in 1949 which makes a total of 413 WR sold for both years.  Since these were the only years chrome moly frames were sold, that does not account for a very high number.  Considering that a lot of WR's were road raced and sold as WRTT's with the stock WL type frame the chrome moly frames are probably one of the rarest frames made by Harley Davidson, ever.  According to everything I have read they were also weaker than the WL frames so when they broke and proved to be inadequate, were they saved for heirloom items or scrapped ?  Think about it.

 

 

Knucklehead

As good as it gets !

Big Twin Race Bikes

If you look closely at these pictures you can see that the big twin Knuckle and Panheads were raced as TT bikes and hill climb bikes.  Pretty amazing when you consider what they weighed. 

I was over at the Garage Company the other day and there were cool bikes everywhere, but the bike that really grabbed me was a beat up old JD Harley Davidson.  The old original bikes, especially the race bikes should be restored mechanically and left in their original state of glory.  Just my opinion.  If they are too pretty to ride they have lost their reason for existing in the first place.

Daytona Beach

Dreamin'

This picture takes me back.  Ever since I first saw a motorcycle , they have always made me smile.  I look at kids today and I wonder if they still get excited about their first mini-bike or just the sound of a bike coming up the street.  I hope so ?

WR

Motodrome Racing

 

I have had this picture hanging in my home for years and never knew the mans name was Otto Walker.  These were true men of steel, moto-drome racing was about the most dangerous sport you could participate in during its time.  It only lasted a few years and was gone by the end of the 1920's.  These guys were going just shy of 100 mph on bikes that were just in their infancy and on tires that were very likely to blow and put you down !  

Below is a link to a really amazing footage of original moto-drome racing.  I got from The Jockey Journal site .



http://vimeo.com/51335139

1971 Norton 750 Commando Still For Sale

I still have the '71 Norton Commando for sale.  It starts and runs good.  Handles very good as well.  I have quite a bit invested in this bike.  I have not titled it but I do have the registration and will do a Bill of Sale.  I can title it but I would have to charge for it.  I ran it through the police department and it came up clear.
Call or send an e-mail if interested.  I want $7500 for it
951-992-9839
timdrennen@yahoo.com

CLEAN !

This probably one of the best Shovelheads I have ever seen, very clean and to the point.  It looks like it would also be very functional as a daily rider.  I really like the slab side Shovel motors, probably not as efficient as the cone jobs, but they look better.  If a person wants efficiency, buy a Honda.

I am not sure but I suspect that theengine is acyually a Panhead with a Shovel top end. The frame looks like a swing arm Panhead frame.

If I remember right, the picture came from The Jockey Journal