Saturday evening post

[HarleyCreation]

MMMMMMH... Bacon raised on Coca Cola

Yeah, what gives? Those were Milwaukee guys. Shouldn't that piggy be guzzling Beer City suds like Kobe beef in Japan?

Oh, I forgot, photo was taken after Prohibition began! One sad day in Milwaukee....

[HarleyCreation]

Herb,
Here are a couple pics of some old Brookfield bags. The smaller one is the common size on rigid machines, the larger is typically mounted to a Duo-Glide. The big one is large enough to basically put a '60s fiberglass bag inside with room to spare. They are truly big!
Robbie

Those look similar to my pair of short fringers. I'll have to go up in my attic and find the one.

Mine must be the smaller rigid size. The set of 3 (bags & seat) I saw hanging up in Pater's H-D maybe were size HUGE for Duo-Glide. They sure looked big to me at the time.

[HarleyCreation]

I believe this is where the term "HOG" was first applied, or garbage barge was another popular term for these things.

Actually Hog came from the racing teams mascott, shown here with Ray Weisaar as a piglett, but grew to full hog size.

You guys bring up a great question. When was the term "hog" first applied to a Harley-Davidson motorcycle?

Not what we are told by modern myth-makers, but the oldest ACTUAL occurance of the term found in old mags or other literature. Real proof.

It would be fun to write about this subject sometime too.

[HarleyCreation]

I really don't want to speak for Kevin or officially interpret the handbook but this question usually comes up at the Judge's Breakfast before every event. I think what Kevin means is that the bike should have all the original equipment that came with a "canned" option package, like a Deluxe Solo option group, no substitutions as you say. Things that were strictly add-ons are treated as I mentioned above. So, a bike that did not originally come with saddle bags could have anything that was available at the time.

But, after looking at the cover photo that Barry posted earlier, I would also guess that there are limits. Just how much is TOO much is another question.

Mike

Thanks. That explains things.

Nice avatar photo!

[T. Cotten]

Hog epithet

I, too, am very curious as to the approximate date of the nickname: "Hog".

My local yokels attributed it to the first 'five-gallon' tanks. And the style was still to overload them, from the perspective of contemporary Brit and sport bike lovers anyway... (Who else would coin such a name?)

Just one hard-evidence example would put that to rest easily. But no anecdotes please!

Thanks in advance,

....Cotten

[Chris Haynes]

They were callin' them Hogs long before 1965.

[T. Cotten]

Hey Chris!
Not that you are not an authority, but just saying so is still anecdotal.
As I posted, I really look forward to evidence on this question.

...Cotten

[exeric]

I don't think anyone can produce evidence of the origin of "HOG". My opinion is, it was coined by post WW2 racers and outlaws to express their disdain for the increasingly gawdy, overloaded dressers. As for Ray Weisaar and his mascot; that's a pig not a hog. There is a big difference and most Americans in those days would have known that. Besides; if I called Ray Weisaar's Harley a hog, I'll bet he would have popped me in the nose.

[Chris Haynes]

Hey Chris!
Not that you are not an authority, but just saying so is still anecdotal.
As I posted, I really look forward to evidence on this question.

...Cotten

OK Cotten,
I was calling them Hogs before 1965.

[Chris Haynes]

As for Ray Weisaar and his mascot; that's a pig not a hog.

It was a Hog when it grew up. Stories I have heard is the Pig/Hog was with the team for a long time.

[T. Cotten]

Back to handlebars,
I finally retrieved this pic of a Stellings and Hellings decal upon a local '46 Chief.

...Cotten
PS: Chris!
Just think how rich you would be if you had copyrighted!

[Chris Haynes]

[HarleyCreation]

I don't think anyone can produce evidence of the origin of "HOG". My opinion is, it was coined by post WW2 racers and outlaws to express their disdain for the increasingly gawdy, overloaded dressers. As for Ray Weisaar and his mascot; that's a pig not a hog. There is a big difference and most Americans in those days would have known that. Besides; if I called Ray Weisaar's Harley a hog, I'll bet he would have popped me in the nose.

What we can find are the oldest uses of the term "hog" (for H-D) in print. Seems I recall the term appearing in 1960s chopper mags. Possibly it appeared in normal motorcycle mags too. That is the published record of our sport (obcession?)

But how far back does the term appear in that record?

At the time the Coke fed little porker appeared, Weishaar & H-D referred to it as "piggy" and perhaps other terms, but I never saw them calling it a hog and I have looked. Because you are right, back then nobody in their right mind would call that a hog. A hog is defined as: "noun pl. hogs, hog. any swine, esp. a domesticated adult (Sus scrofa) ready for market, or, in England, a castrated boar."

That little guy is not an adult nor ready for market.

[HarleyCreation]

OK Cotten,
I was calling them Hogs before 1965.

How long before 1965?

To your best recollection what year do you first remember the term "hog" being used to describe a H-D motorcycle? Was it a positive or a negative term?

Like Cotten said, that is anecdotal evidence, but still useful.

[schmittm]

Was it a positive or a negative term?

It was niether, it was used more as an identifier or description of the big twins. When I was in high school in Milwaukee in the mid-sixties and the MoCo started selling the Italian lightweights along with the Topper scooters and Scats and Bobcats and all that other junk we used to refer to the DuoGlides as hogs; "Now that's a REAL Hog". So, as Chris has already mentioned, the term was in use before 1965.

We also used to call some of the girls from South Division High School hogs, I'm pretty sure it was a negative term in that context. But that's another story.

Mike