Once the engine cases were finished, I moved on to cleaning and repairing the internal engine parts.  Where possible, I chose to replace worn out parts with new replacements from Eastern Motorcycle Parts.  These included the pistons, crank pin, pinion shaft, sprocket shaft, valves, valves springs and a variety of nuts, shims and washers.  Still, […] More »

This new series of articles will allow you to follow along with my 1933 Harley-Davidson VL build.  I’ll take you through the entire process of building an antique Harley-Davidson motorcycle, starting with bare engine cases and finishing with a complete running machine.  The goal is not to build a 100 point correct restoration that is […] More »

During WWII, Harley-Davidson was the main supplier of motorcycles to the US Armed Services. Production of their most popular model, the WLA, is thought to have been over 80,000 units. While the bulk of these were used by American GI’s, large numbers were also sent to US Allies through the Lend Lease Program. These included […] More »

Back in the 1920’s, the Los Angeles Bureau of Power and Light used Harley-Davidson based vehicles, like the one pictured above, to transport its underground construction crews back and forth to the job site. The rider of this motorcycle was splicer Elmer Gutsch, with his helper Carly Knoobs on the back. At first glace you […] More »