The only barn find I've had was a 1960 Sears Allstate. Paid the guy a six pack of beer for it. Finally gave it to a friend when I moved from that area who turned it into a mailbox holder.
Sometimes I wish I had kept it.

 

Yes it did!

 

Speaking of V-rod ornaments....
My ex-wife works for MoCo, so I've been in and around all the plants around Milwaukee several times. In the cafeteria of the Product Development Center, they have a Night Rod hanging on the wall as well as a few other bikes, but the Night Rod is the one I remember. Beautiful machine, just not an iconic Harley.

 

I think Harley has TRIED to make the V-rod into an icon, but it hasn't really worked. In the end, it's not the MoCo that decides such matters, but rather it is we who do.

 

I also think the Night Rod is one of the prettiest machines I have ever seen.

 

These old barn finds are rapidly becoming a thing of the past. I mean that they are there but with afp, American F@@king pickers, they simply jack the prices up to beyond reasonable numbers.
The recent swap meets that have the older guys with the older parts have confirmed this to me. If they ever bought a digital camera and an eBay account they could be in a pretty profitable business. They're trying to sell to us guys looking for a good used part and not a museum quality n.o.s. part.
Please look at Craigslist and ebay. A slab-side Shovelhead in good condition is not worth $15k. It ain't. Maybe some day but not today. Panhead prices for stock paint bikes are high but not for chops from back in the day.
Rant over.
Tom

 

It's an interesting question to ask why the V-ROD just hasn't inspire the same degree of commitment or acceptance. It does not even seem to have inspired it's own sub-culture in the same way V-Maxes did.

I was going to say, hence the appeal of Evos as cheap, perfectly adequate transportation ... but then have you checked out the prices Elvis charges for FXR parts?

Who on earth pays them?
Yah, may be in a 100 years.

Funnily enough, the Japanese have a perverse appreciation for AMF generation Harleys. I think the appeal is that you *have* to tinker with them. They live in a society which is just so perfectly ordered, tidy and reliable that a few of them just love old Americana just because it leaks and breaks down and needs to be maintained. I cannot work out whether it's a way of "sticking it to the man" or some unfulfilled needs to be practically involved in their chosen hobby. I've seen some amazing YT videos of older stuff still on the road too.

I'd say the next generation of "barnfinds" are going to be early Evo baggers. Some of them, especially high mileage ones, are starting to drop to a price where folks can't/won't be bothered to sell them and just leave them at the back of the garage. There'll be enough bits to ensure another 100 years of running them!

 

I like my V rod.....it just doesn't have that Harley V twin sound that so many HD fans want....it's big in Europe though, that's where the big aftermarket tuners for it are.

 

Yes, I guess it fits in with the European "streetfighter" scene, which has it's own history rooted in sticking big fast Japanese engines in old chopper frames.

Is it a "young man's" versus "old geezer" divide?

Here's another golden oldie being coaxed into life. These videos, and the involvement it shows, just blow me away. Now you know where all your barnfinds have gone. There, and Scandinavia.

 

[QUOTE=Lucky Luke;14550891]Yes, I guess it fits in with the European "streetfighter" scene, which has it's own history rooted in sticking big fast Japanese engines in old chopper frames.

Is it a "young man's" versus "old geezer" divide?

Here's another golden oldie being coaxed into life. These videos, and the involvement it shows, just blow me away. Now you know where all your barnfinds have gone. There, and Scandinavia.(quote)

You got that right, I looked at buying a wishbone Pan back about 1989. The guy that had it for sale wanted me to buy it real bad because the last 3 he had built and sold had went to Japan. I passed on it sorry to say.