Project for the un-initiated novice and son...??

[jim d]

The BMWs from the 50s - 60s are already set up to attach a sidecar. They are reliable and can be found in good original condition and there is a good source of replacement parts for them. Look for models with the Earles Fork. The prices aren't too high compared to some brands.

[T. Cotten]

PS: William and Will!

You probably won't find your motorcycle.

It will most likely find you.

Please put the word out locally first...

....Cotten

[exeric]

Ammorest always gives good advice, and someone I always pay attention to. I don't know if this has been mentioned, but what about early to late '80s Evolution Big Twins? They are reasonably priced, many of them are still un-molested, they're all over the place, and sidecar ready. Early bikes are fantastic, but expensive, and super desirable so you will have a lot of competition for any bike, and needed parts. As Dave mentioned, any Harley from Shovelheads back are sought after and any Panhead and back is going to be a high dollar, total commitment project. I wouldn't try to talk you out of any bike you really want because once you have the passion to see a project through, you'll discover a whole new world of learning new skills, and milestone accomplishments. When people tell you it can't be done, it just makes you want to try harder

[ammorest]

Hello William,
Been following this thread and there's a lot of good advice from experienced people, especially finding a running and fairly complete but not correct bike. Also getting all the literature you can pertaining to the bike you choose; shop manuals, rider's handbook, parts books. You might want to get a copy of Bruce Palmer's book, How To Restore Your HarleyDavidson, He is out of them but you might find a copy on line. It covers 1937 to 1964. He is working on a new edition now that will cover more models.
By all means try to get to some meets. I realize being a farmer is a full time job but try to find the time. Now for my suggestion on a bike: Harley big twin, 1937 to 1948 74 or 80 Flathead or 1948 t0 1964 Panhead. In 1936 Harley made some good improvements: recirculating oil system, improved clutch and transmission, better wheel hubs, welded gas tanks, and built in speedometer..
A couple if issues to think about and I am not trying to discourage you in any way. Is Will on the same page of enthusiasm as you about the project? At some point the project may get held up for one reason or another. Will he lose interest and back off? Just a thought. Also do you have a space dedicated to the project where you can organize it to store and work on the bike? Don't forget a sidecar takes up a lot of space.
Anyway, hope to see you and Will at a meet digging for parts.
Dave

[WmC1911]

Can't emphasize enough the value of attending a national swap meet to look around and talk to people. The season is winding down now but check the AMCA website for schedules and a Chapter near you. Contact the Chapter and make connections locally if at all possible.
Like you I came here in my antique bike infancy and folks told me to attend a swap meet and join a chapter. I had done homework online on my own but actually meeting and talking to people with experience was a significant important step in making sure I bought the right bike. Since then I have seen others buy the wrong bike because they didn't get educated and it ends up being a bad experience for them.
Don't buy a basket case starting out. Those are for guys with a garage full of parts (or a friend with a garage full of parts) and years of knowledge in the hobby. Buy the best running bike you can afford and trust me, there will still be plenty of projects for you and your son to work on. Good for you wanting to get your son interested in the hobby.

Thank you Jason,
Great advice!

Wm. Covington
Member 35521

[WmC1911]

No problem if you've got 'cubic money', Willliam!

Otherwise,.. .. ..

(I dug up one of my '37 OHVs.
Literally.)

...Cotten
PS: My daughter was with me, and about Will's age at the time.

Holy cow. Haha. .
That's awesome.

[WmC1911]

I think I would narrow your preferred choices down based on whatever criteria you feel most important and then educate yourself on what ever your end up deciding on. Education can save you a lot of time and money and streamline your progress once you have a bike. I can't stress educating yourself enough. There are a lot of "experts " out there and you will soon figure out who really knows what they are talking about and who is just gassing on to hear the sound of their own voice. Patience is a virtue in this world. Good luck to you and your son!

Tom (Rollo) Hardy
AMCA #12766

Tom,
Thank you for your reply. I will definitely take your advice on educating ourselves as much as possible. Are there any references that you turn to that might help us to gain this knowledge and hopefully better prepare us for this investment? Books, articles, journals, etc? Anything I can get my hands on will definitely help better prepare me from making hasty, costly decisions.
Wm. Covington
Member #35521

[WmC1911]

Hi William,

I see you live in Western KY. I live around (not in) Champaign, IL. Depending on where you live, it is likely a +4 hour drive to Central Illinois. If you want to take a rode trip with your son one day I'd be pleased to host you both for a tour of the local antique motorcycle community. With-in a half hour's drive of my house you could get a look and over 30 neat old bikes including Harley J, V, U, W, E & F (Knuckleheads, Panheads and Shovelheads), Indian Chiefs and Scouts, British Triumphs and Ariels, Italian MotoGuzzi and others. This may help you narrow your search.

You'd be welcome to spend the night as doing it in one day would be tough. FYI - We're all affiliated with the OVC Chapter of the AMCA. If you'd like to contact me via email my address is slammer.indian47@gmail.com.

Steve Slaminko

Great idea Steve, we would appreciate that very much. Our schedule is crazy because our small cattle farm only has me, wife, & kids doing all the chores...but, I'm interested enough to make it happen so thanks for the generous offer. My son & I may take you up on that!

Wm. Covington
Member #35521

[T. Cotten]

....I was getting too wrapped up in finding one that was all original from the starting gate. ...

No problem if you've got 'cubic money', Willliam!

Otherwise,.. .. ..

(I dug up one of my '37 OHVs.
Literally.)

...Cotten
PS: My daughter was with me, and about Will's age at the time.

[WmC1911]

Mr. Covington- I lived in Clarksville, Tenn. back in '68, during my enlistment in the US Army.
Here's my take... Almost any reliable runner, that is, a complete running bike, dependable yet not all stock or correct, a good starting place might be around $7-10K, depending on year and model. With things like valve jobs/ pistons, trans rebuilds, wheel hub/bearing rebuilds, carb improvements, etc. you could easily add another $2-5+ thousand dollars, depending on your budget. You could find a bike thats already been through the "works" from a previous owner, but you wouldn't have the experience or knowledge of doing all that work yourself. (or with your son).

Add a sidecar, and tack on another $3-5K. A sidecar is a bit of a novelty, I've built and rode one. Long term use with a sidecar is extremely taxing on a M/C for practical use, and will wear out your bike in short order. They are alot of fun, however !!

All in all, you could be looking at an investment of close to $20K+ for something really nice.
My recommendation would be find a low mileage, fairly stock panhead, or early shovelhead, '50-'68, pre-AMF Harley. A full dresser, not a chopper or bobber. An estate sale, or an auction. E-Bay as a last resort effort.
Be patient and selective in your efforts. Don't settle on something cheap. (cheap=needs work, in most cases). '58-'65 FL's are readily available, beware of high mileage bikes (unless documented engine/trans work). You'll find the old saying... 'you get what you pay for'... is a fair statement.

Remember this... the antique community isn't at all like the modern biker lifestyle. Its much more addicting, and certainly more financially demanding. But, once you've been bit, its hard to get the hook out of your mouth. yes, its a lifestyle that could take a lifetime.
Good Luck, C2K

ChiefTwoKicks,
Wow, love the detail in your reply. Many, many thanks for your time.

[WmC1911]

If you have all the time in the world a JD or VL bare bones basketcase can be a nice affordable starting point.
But at 12 years old your son will probably be heading off to College before you ever finish the project.
Especially if you live out in the middle of nowhere. That is unless your 90 year old next door neighbor has a barn full of old flathead stuff he will sell you at scrap metal prices and he has a machine shop and the time to educate you on everything you need to know......... Don't get me wrong, JD's and VL's (forget 45's if you want a sidecar) are probably the best affordable buy for the money today WHEN it come to vintage H-D's. EXCEPT maybe for early 50's Panheads. At our last 2019 chopper style swap meet there was a 48 Pan for sale for 9 grand. It was (I hesitate to say "restored") black and shiny new chrome built using a repop frame with aftermarket cases. the springer was real but chrome and the fenders were old repop but pretty nice. Tanks were repop along with most everything else but it had a real trans, hollywood bars, crashbars and later police style solo seat. I think it could have been bought at the end of the day for 7500 bucks and that is probably what it is worth in parts. Buy it, ride it, then look for a set of 48 cases and sell the repop bottom end to a chopper guy to offset costs. Nice entry lever bike for less than 10K. Look for a set of tanks etc etc and improve on the bike while enjoying it. If you want something for AMCA Judging and that whole scenario triple the 7500 and plan on 2-3 years before you ever get it running. JUST MY OPINION, 46EL

46EL,
many thanks for your input. I need all the advice I can get. I like the idea you suggested of buying an antique running bike that's not all original and just ride to acclimate my son & I to older bikes, while searching for original parts along the way. BRILLIANT!
I was getting too wrapped up in finding one that was all original from the starting gate.
I'm glad you replied!

Wm. Covington
Member #35521

[T. Cotten]

Can't emphasize enough the value of attending a national swap meet to look around and talk to people...

Or ANY international Meet, Folks!

The AMCA abandoned my region.

If you want to have a machine judged in a timely manner, better ante up for a trailer and expect to put thousands of miles upon it.

....Cotten

[Skirted]

Can't emphasize enough the value of attending a national swap meet to look around and talk to people. The season is winding down now but check the AMCA website for schedules and a Chapter near you. Contact the Chapter and make connections locally if at all possible.
Like you I came here in my antique bike infancy and folks told me to attend a swap meet and join a chapter. I had done homework online on my own but actually meeting and talking to people with experience was a significant important step in making sure I bought the right bike. Since then I have seen others buy the wrong bike because they didn't get educated and it ends up being a bad experience for them.
Don't buy a basket case starting out. Those are for guys with a garage full of parts (or a friend with a garage full of parts) and years of knowledge in the hobby. Buy the best running bike you can afford and trust me, there will still be plenty of projects for you and your son to work on. Good for you wanting to get your son interested in the hobby.

[underwel]

I went through the same thing about 5 years ago. I am definitely no expert, but I can give you a few of my lessons learned. I bought a civilianized 45 flathead and did a complete rebuild. First and I think most important is get one with a Title and make sure it matches the VIN located on the engine (learned that one the hard way). Second, try to get something that runs. Complete engine rebuilds are expensive. Third, get something as complete as possible. The cost of all those little missing parts you need adds up fast, real fast. If you don't care about using all OEM parts, you can find anything on 45 restoration to build a WL/WLA.

[pfindlay]

Steve Slocombe pointed out that there may be some non-Harley alternatives, if you're not firm on having an American bike. A 50s / 60s British bike, or a 60s / 70s Japanese bike, can sometimes be found for a pretty reasonable price - even in running condition. Many parts are available and often a seized up parts bike can be found for next to nothing. Maybe your son wouldn't mind an import.

The first bike I restored was a 1957 Triumph TRW - built for the Canadian military using an old design so it looked and felt older than it was. These bikes still do not have a have high value and are very simple to work on and ride. Choose something like a Honda CB90 and your son will be riding it around the farm himself. Or a Honda CB350, CB450, or four cylinder CB550? There are lots of bikes to consider.