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I drew out the softail frame idea on a bar napkin and pushed it over to some cat who identified as being with the HD design team.
The dude just laughed and wadded it up. He didn't throw it away though. I noticed that he slipped it into his vest pocket.
Well I had to do a quick 10/100 and when I got back the punk had left me with the bar tab. Some chick told me his name was Willie.
I've told that story a million times over the decades and I've yet to meet anyone who can deny it's true.
I invented the softail and never made a penny. As a matter of fact in 1999 I got a cease and desist letter from the HD lawyer. They threatened me that if I kept telling my story that there was going to be problems.
They were right. I've had a lot of problems and I blame it on HD.
I saw that napkin go up for auction about 5 years ago. It was in the Harley-Davidson archives collection, and was listed as a Willie G. original draft. It had an undisclosed reserve and sold to a private collector for $2700.00.
Last edited by SirHarley; Dec 9, 2021 at 12:22 PM.
Some say that "Much of History is written by the hand of those that conquer, and that those who are vanquished all but disappear from the pages of history"
(anonymous)
From the Harley-Davidson Museum....(and yes, it is called a "Prototype) I find it noteworthy that they never bother to mention the purchase of the patent by "Road Works" design from Bill Davis, but merely mention that "Davis showed it to Willie G."... No mention of the fact that it was rejected (by HD) at first and the concept was further improved by Road Works to where the shocks were placed under the frame to lower the seat height.
That should put an end to the auction house "subterfuge" theory. Mecum and other high-end auctioneers have a reputation to uphold, a brand to protect and I believe that they even guarantee up to a point the validity or provenance of their auction items as genuine. I'm sure the word prototype was evaluated for accuracy before the item was listed as such.
Last edited by SirHarley; Dec 9, 2021 at 02:42 PM.
Reason: correction
I still don’t see this motorcycle being sold at this auction as a Harley Davidson Softail prototype. To apply this term to this bike is taking it to the broadest and most general sense that you can get away with and still have an ounce of honesty.
It was made in the second run of frames by a company that was not Harley Davidson, built by employees who did not work for Harley Davidson, and sold to someone who did not buy it at a Harley Davidson dealership. It has subsequently probably had several owners…none of which was Harley Davidson. It has a 1967 shovelhead engine. It is an aftermarket frame that was made and sold and had nothing to do with the business operations of Harley Davidson. It was simply built to a patent that Harley subsequently licensed and paid royalties to use. A lot of the rest of the story is inaccurate and folklore.
Harley came along and bought the rights to the invention/patent and then made further design changes and many prototypes under their own engineering team and then came out with a Softail. The patent gave them 17 years of legal protection and allowed them to produce a design another company invented. Woopty ding dong. The inventor never worked for Harley and Harley paid him a royalty for each unit they built with their revised design until a lifetime cap was hit.
Any auction company is going to work to maximize sale price…its called marketing.
Last edited by stratplexi; Dec 11, 2021 at 12:18 PM.
This "Mecum" Auction bike is a well-documented prototype from the company that invented the Softail frame. It is 1 of 36. It was Originally called the Road Works Sub-Shock frame. Harley-Davidson bought the company, and still makes the Softail frame today.... That was all in the link documentation if you bothered to read it before commenting.
I wouldn't mind parking it in my garage....
We now revoke your HD Forums "Member of the Month" award...lol!
Harley did not buy the company. This is inaccurate and makes the prototype claim a stretch. The company went out of business and folded. Harley simply bought the patent rights and paid a royalty for each unit sold until they hit the lifetime cap. This is all well documented.
Last edited by stratplexi; Dec 11, 2021 at 12:19 PM.
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Slideshow: A standard cruiser becomes an intricate metal canvas in the hands of a Swiss custom house known for pushing Harley-Davidson platforms far beyond their factory brief.
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