Stunning 1929 Harley-Davidson Packs Rare Features
How does a commercial-grade 1929 Harley wind up a racing bike? It’s a mystery we may never solve.
There’s something undeniably cool about any early Harley-Davidson motorcycle. These simple, pre-war bikes had it all, wrapped up in styling as timeless as it gets. But unlike most old vehicles, there isn’t exactly a shortage of early Harleys. Save for a few select models, of course. So, when we ran across this 1929 Harley-Davidson with a fascinating story, we knew we had really stumbled onto something.
On the surface, the classic bike looks like any other quality restoration. But look a little closer, and you’ll see the bike sports a “C” designation, meaning that it was built for commercial use. Perhaps it spent some time delivering goods or parts. The bike’s side car is long gone, however, and it looks like this 1929 Harley-Davidson then embarked on another, very different journey. That of a race bike.
We know this because the 1,000cc J motor is fitted with a JH Racing cylinders. The very same cylinders found on the 61″ Harley-Davidson two cam racing bikes. How these rare cylinders wound up on this particular commercial bike is a mystery. Despite the fact that the Harley was owned by the same family for the last 60 years.
As the story goes, the last owner took the bike apart to keep anyone from using it. It sat like this, completely disassembled, for many years until it landed in the hands of the current owner. As he was putting it back together and restoring the bike, he made the incredible discovery. And the rest, as they say, is history.
The fascinating 1929 Harley-Davidson was listed for sale on eBay recently, but failed to meet the reserve price. So for now, it’s still stuck on its third owner. And yet, its true past remains a mystery, and most likely always will.
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