Hello,
I have been looking for a panhead to bring back to life. Does anyone have any advice on creating "a check list" of questions to ask and what look out for?
Thanks

 

Ask yourself:
"how long am I going to be willing to kick start this son-of-a-bitch"?

 

Haha that's a fair question but I'm still young and dumb enough to not care. It's looking for something I can restore and be proud of.

 

1948 the most expensive to buy till 1954 uses the same lower unit as the knuckel - in 55 they changed it and effed it up so, in 1956 to 1966 they changed the lower unit again

pans are very expensive to have one buy the numbers all correct if its not already, finding a chopper and piecing it back together in this environment of gouge the guy looking for parts is also a mistake

you need to decide 48 to 57 is a hard tail bike and swing arm after that till 65 when the last and first elect start with a kicker pan came along

bruce palmer 111 writes the bible for early pans and alike look him up, and buy his new book second addition

join a local to you a AMCA chapter the antique guys will know and can be a great help in finding stuff, they dont give anything away no body does

do your home work and go to the events for the AMCA and see what it takes in real money to be in this sport today before you start buying

 

Buy the best bike you can find, not the most expensive. Building something from parts has become a losing proposition, the bikes are worth more in pieces. So you need to start with something that is already a motorcycle. Even then you are going to run into obstacles you never even knew existed. Intake nipple replacement anyone!?!?!?

Here is the link for the Palmer book, it will be your bible:

http://www.howtorestoreyourharleydavidson.com/

I bought it direct from Deborah and mine showed up autographed by Bruce. Maybe you can find it cheaper elsewhere, IDK. You want the current second edition. Read up on the type of bike you want and start taking notes on ways to tell different years apart, different parts etc. Most of the affordable bikes have gone thru a hundred different owners and are a mix and match of parts, with a bunch from Taiwan thrown in. An almost correct bike will be a ton of cash, up to you what your budget can handle. Fully restored is pretty, but not the experience of bringing it back that you mention in your post.

Lots of good knowledgeable people on this forum and some other forums, Google around you will find the other forums. Some of the other are dedicated to just the old bikes. I strongly recommend you be nice to everyone, some of these old guys are encyclopedias of information, don't be a d**k and you can get all the information you could ever need. Some of them are ornery, bite your tongue and say thank you, it goes a long way. They really do want to pass on the knowledge because if they don't who is going to keep this machines running.

Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

 

Pans are not cheap to restore correctly. Lots of old bikes are advertised as "restored" but many are just over chromed collections of aftermarket parts.

Like has been stated get your self a copy of Palmer's 2-volume series on the subject. best money you will ever spend.

When you go start looking, make sure you take someone with you that is knowledgeable about them. The most important part is the motor, a motor with a title and a good vin. There's a lot, a bunch out there with absolutely horrific number jobs. Here's a link to a free website that will give you some pics of vin numbers and belly numbers. Vin stamps changed over the years so it is important to make sure you are looking at the correct numbers.

http://www.vintageamericanmotorcycles.com/main.php

Good luck in your quest. I have been working on my 49 project for about 18 years now. This summer I should finally get to run it down the road.

 

Thank you for getting me started in the right direction.

 

Old bikes are a blast, I ride a 56 and really enjoy its ownership. Be advised that Old Harleys are the most miss represented vehicle in the world. whatever you buy you will have to tear it down and inspect it before you ride it. And, before you even buy it you must know what your getting,so you must be knowledgeable. Like already said, Old bikes are all about the numbers, learn them so you get a bike with a good foundation to build on so you have pride in ownership.

 

Damn good advice.
Scott