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I thought I would submit a brief story about this 1940 Chief I have had for awhile. I'm submitting this because I love to read about the personal history people have with their motorcycles and I hope this spurs others to talk about their bikes.
I got this bike in (about) 1975. I got it from Bruce Palmer of all people. He had the most atmospheric motorcycle shop I have ever been in, which was in a then, pretty funky part of Tampa, Fl. The Indian was in a pile. Rusty old parts, and roach eaten cardboard boxes. I had never restored a motorcycle and knew nothing about Indians other than I wanted one. We made the deal and I remember sitting in the back of my pickup truck with a friend trying to figure out what went where. I got an Indian repair manual from Indian Joe Martin along with a parts catalog. The repair manual covered post war Chiefs with notes about earlier models. I still didn't even know what a 1940 was suppose to look like and it seemed that anything I really needed to know was not covered in that repair manual.
I worked like a demon on this bike and finally got it together. I wish I had bottled some of that energy because I could sure use it these days. I was working as a machinist at that time and was able to make the parts I didn't have. Of coarse the bike was horrid by todays standards but I was proud of it and it did run. It never ran very well and after I completed it, I more or less forgot about it. I bounced around the country for a few years and finally settled in Tampa to live a bohemian life which I have very fond memories of. Of coarse bohemian jobs don't pay very well so I had to move to Orlando and get middle classed. I sold the Indian to my best friend with the promise that if he ever wanted to sell it, I had first consideration.
We jump ahead almost 20 years. My friend still has the Indian which has served as an objet d'art in at least 4 living rooms and finally wound up in North Carolina. I was getting sentimental for the old Chief and worked out a trade with my friend. I really should have known better because you should never do a deal with your heart without consulting your brain. In retrospect, it was obvious I still didn't know what a 1940 Chief should look like because what I had restored back in the 70's was not a 1940 Chief. Instead of telling you what parts I had to replace, I'll just tell you what I was able to use: The only correct 1940 parts were the frame, the fork spring pack, the cylinder heads, the handlebars, and the rear fender. . . . Oh yeah, and the rear brake backing plate.
This is getting long winded so I'll cut it short. Some how I found everything I needed for this bike over a surprisingly short period of time. Toney Watson was a big help and then the rest was just constant detective work. The restoration was actually pleasant once I had all of the parts. During the restoration my Father went through a pretty agonizing death which was quite hard on the family, needless to say. During this time I would find some part of the restoration that would require mindless busywork like sheetmetal sanding or bearing lapping. That really helped a lot and I think that put some long overdue, good karma into that bike. Eventually, it was completed and painted. Two weeks after it was painted, it fell over and dented the gas tank, ( so much for good karma). I fixed the worn part of the frame so the kick stand would work, repainted it, and everyone has been happy ever since.
This is another example of a bike that just ran better and better as it got some miles under it's tank. I love the 1940 Indian because it was a milestone motorcycle in so many ways and I think it was Indian's last ground shaking example of what they could do and had been doing since 1901. When I get home tonight, I'm going to take it for a ride.
And CO we will be riding soon,......................... as soon as the snow goes !
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