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Introducing the Q-Ship, or, how I learned to love torque curves
15rebet.jpg64CH.jpgDoc Dytch.jpg
Imagine you had $2,000 burning a hole in your pocket at an Antique Motorcycle Club of America (AMCA) National Meet. Bikes for sale are plentiful, so what do you choose? Many riders would likely say they want an “old” Harley or Indian, but that they can’t touch one for so little money.
While this might be true, what if we take a step back and make a list of what we are looking for in a project? A typical list might look like this:
1) American V-Twin – identified by a nickname containing the word “head”
2) Easy to work on with common hand tools
3) Fun to ride and something that could be used on an AMCA National Road Run
4) Able to keep up with modern traffic
5) Reliable with good parts availability
6) Electric start options from the factory
7) Less than $10,000 to buy, fix up, and get on the road
Many will claim criteria #1 is at odds with the rest of the list – or worse, that these criteria can only be met by some pricey motorbikes. We humbly disagree.
Enter the ubiquitous and much misunderstood Harley Davidson Sportster.
Whoa, whoa, whoa; wait a second! A Sportster? Are you serious? Aren’t those unreliable “girls” bikes that blow out knees when you try to kick them?
Yes, we are serious – and just about everything you may have heard about a Sportster is dead-on mythology. They are not hard to start, perform well in modern traffic, are relatively easy to work on, come in both kick and electric start, have excellent parts availability, and can be brought up to snuff for well under $10,000. In terms of reliability, sportsters are as reliable as anything else out there and great fun to ride, especially at 55-65 mph. They require almost no special tools to work on and it is rather unlikely you will run into another vintage Sporty out in the wild.
The purpose of this series of articles is to help show there is a different path to owning and enjoying an American classic – one that is within the grasp of many AMCA members regardless of age or experience. Most importantly, starting with the 2020 model year, all “ironhead” sportsters are eligible for AMCA judging and events. Project bikes can be bought for less than $1,000 and the vast majority of parts needed to restore one to road-going glory can be had rather easily at AMCA meets or through well-respected vendors.
For those wanting to get into AMCA judging – a Sportster is an excellent choice and very rewarding to research. While the bikes may “look” the same year to year – there were an amazing number of year to year changes over the ironhead’s 28 year production run (1957 to 1985). We suggest you check out the Old K Model and Sportster Research Group website (http://www.harleykmodel.com/index.html) for some more information on Sportster history and year-to-year changes.
To keep us focused, we are going to set some basic goals for this project and take you along for the ride. Here’s what we are aiming towards:
1) Explaining how to find a project bike and parts using AMCA connections
2) Refurbishing a bike for road use using tools and techniques available to many riders
3) Having fun
4) Taking the completed project on a National Road Run in 2021.
The only thing we aren’t going to do is restore the bike with an eye towards judging. While many will argue it takes only a bit more effort to go the extra mile and make the bike 100% factory correct – it is not a goal we are personally interested in achieving. We deeply admire those who do pursue this end of our hobby and invite their commentary on where we have deviated from a dead stock bike so as to inform readers about what can be done in a different way to achieve the reader’s personal goal(s).
For our part, we are headed in the opposite direction. We are going to show you how a hot, street-going Sportster may have been put together 50 years ago. We are not talking theory – we are talking about triple digit performance using vintage parts from now legendary names such as Sifton, S&S, Dytch, Axtell, and Drag Specialties. The end result will be a classic, all-American torque monster you can use every day.
Throughout the articles, we will strive to give you both a 20,000 foot view as well as more detailed information. The idea is to help the reader better understand the types of work professional shops perform, from cutting valve seats to fitting pistons to painting parts. We are not going to give step-by-step instructions, but rather a general sense of the work so you can feel more confident in exploring options and asking questions of service providers. It is important to note that everything we are going to show is only one way of accomplishing a given task. We do not represent it is the only way or even the best way. We do represent what we will show you are proven shop kinks that work, and work well.
Please sit back, enjoy, and don’t hesitate to ask questions.
Our aim is to post new articles every two to three weeks over the next year; depending on how much we actually get done in the shop during our “free” time.
But, before we jump into all this; let’s take a moment to introduce ourselves. Here is our cast of characters:
Chuck is a 30 year veteran of vintage motorcycling and has restored or refurbished dozens of bikes from Triumph to Guzzi. Chuck grew up in auto dealership service bays, the son of a second generation master mechanic. Before deciding that becoming an Industrial Archaeologist sounded like a good idea, Chuck trained as a machinist. Chuck is pleased to note he has not found a reason to own a bike made in the last 30 years and that he still rides year round through Chicago winters on a vintage Guzzi. He swears he’ll fix the Goose’s oil leak before the speedometer rolls over, again. His preferred Sportster is a 1959 XLH.
Will is a retired professional motorcycle mechanic with more than 40 years of experience. While he spent most of his time at Harley dealerships in the Denver metro area, Will also wrenched on dozens of makes from Honda to Jawa. Will’s love of Sportsters was kindled by a 1955 KH. Over the years, he has refurbished dozens of Sportsters and even found the time to win two national motocross titles – on a Sportster. As Will gleefully puts it; “Sportsters ain’t nothing but big dirt bikes.” In his “other spare time,” Will is a dedicated to uncovering hidden aspects of Western history and has made several important archaeological discoveries with his trusty metal detector. He maintains a sizeable stable of ironhead Sportsters which he routinely rides to AMCA chapter meets and on local rides – just because he can. His preferred Sportster is a 1974 XLH.
Dr. Dick is our technical advisor and former owner of the Iron Steed, an independent shop in New Jersey specializing in high performance Sportsters. He also co-founded Morris Magnetos with Dave Shaw. With more than 40 years in vintage motorcycling, Dr. Dick has built and serviced hundreds of ironhead strokers. Today, he continues to ply his trade in a high-precision machine shop and enjoys hurting Sportsters whenever possible while mentoring aspiring mechanics and speed freaks. His preferred Sportster is a 1959 XLCH.
The Q ship is a 1964 XLCH Sportster found by Will in the wilds of Colorado and bought by Chuck in spring 2019. Q ships were a special class of merchant vessels in World War One containing hidden armament. From the outside, they looked relatively harmless. Up close, they packed a wallop that surprised more than one U-boat and sent its crew to commune with the fishes. We thought this a very apt name for the project as it will be a true “sleeper” with high performance modifications not visible to the casual observer.
The Yeti is Mrs. Chuck’s shop dog. She tries to stay out of biker pictures to preserve her “good girl” image, but like the Q ship, just cannot help herself. If you see her at a meet – you had best give her a chin scratch and firm pat on the head lest she decide you are trying to pilfer adult beverages from the cooler. The Yeti plays a mean game of “stare down,” is excellent at placing fur in freshly cleaned bearings, and enjoys sleeping – a lot. She also likely knows more Grateful Dead lyrics than Bob Weir remembers.
15rebet.jpg64CH.jpgDoc Dytch.jpg
Imagine you had $2,000 burning a hole in your pocket at an Antique Motorcycle Club of America (AMCA) National Meet. Bikes for sale are plentiful, so what do you choose? Many riders would likely say they want an “old” Harley or Indian, but that they can’t touch one for so little money.
While this might be true, what if we take a step back and make a list of what we are looking for in a project? A typical list might look like this:
1) American V-Twin – identified by a nickname containing the word “head”
2) Easy to work on with common hand tools
3) Fun to ride and something that could be used on an AMCA National Road Run
4) Able to keep up with modern traffic
5) Reliable with good parts availability
6) Electric start options from the factory
7) Less than $10,000 to buy, fix up, and get on the road
Many will claim criteria #1 is at odds with the rest of the list – or worse, that these criteria can only be met by some pricey motorbikes. We humbly disagree.
Enter the ubiquitous and much misunderstood Harley Davidson Sportster.
Whoa, whoa, whoa; wait a second! A Sportster? Are you serious? Aren’t those unreliable “girls” bikes that blow out knees when you try to kick them?
Yes, we are serious – and just about everything you may have heard about a Sportster is dead-on mythology. They are not hard to start, perform well in modern traffic, are relatively easy to work on, come in both kick and electric start, have excellent parts availability, and can be brought up to snuff for well under $10,000. In terms of reliability, sportsters are as reliable as anything else out there and great fun to ride, especially at 55-65 mph. They require almost no special tools to work on and it is rather unlikely you will run into another vintage Sporty out in the wild.
The purpose of this series of articles is to help show there is a different path to owning and enjoying an American classic – one that is within the grasp of many AMCA members regardless of age or experience. Most importantly, starting with the 2020 model year, all “ironhead” sportsters are eligible for AMCA judging and events. Project bikes can be bought for less than $1,000 and the vast majority of parts needed to restore one to road-going glory can be had rather easily at AMCA meets or through well-respected vendors.
For those wanting to get into AMCA judging – a Sportster is an excellent choice and very rewarding to research. While the bikes may “look” the same year to year – there were an amazing number of year to year changes over the ironhead’s 28 year production run (1957 to 1985). We suggest you check out the Old K Model and Sportster Research Group website (http://www.harleykmodel.com/index.html) for some more information on Sportster history and year-to-year changes.
To keep us focused, we are going to set some basic goals for this project and take you along for the ride. Here’s what we are aiming towards:
1) Explaining how to find a project bike and parts using AMCA connections
2) Refurbishing a bike for road use using tools and techniques available to many riders
3) Having fun
4) Taking the completed project on a National Road Run in 2021.
The only thing we aren’t going to do is restore the bike with an eye towards judging. While many will argue it takes only a bit more effort to go the extra mile and make the bike 100% factory correct – it is not a goal we are personally interested in achieving. We deeply admire those who do pursue this end of our hobby and invite their commentary on where we have deviated from a dead stock bike so as to inform readers about what can be done in a different way to achieve the reader’s personal goal(s).
For our part, we are headed in the opposite direction. We are going to show you how a hot, street-going Sportster may have been put together 50 years ago. We are not talking theory – we are talking about triple digit performance using vintage parts from now legendary names such as Sifton, S&S, Dytch, Axtell, and Drag Specialties. The end result will be a classic, all-American torque monster you can use every day.
Throughout the articles, we will strive to give you both a 20,000 foot view as well as more detailed information. The idea is to help the reader better understand the types of work professional shops perform, from cutting valve seats to fitting pistons to painting parts. We are not going to give step-by-step instructions, but rather a general sense of the work so you can feel more confident in exploring options and asking questions of service providers. It is important to note that everything we are going to show is only one way of accomplishing a given task. We do not represent it is the only way or even the best way. We do represent what we will show you are proven shop kinks that work, and work well.
Please sit back, enjoy, and don’t hesitate to ask questions.
Our aim is to post new articles every two to three weeks over the next year; depending on how much we actually get done in the shop during our “free” time.
But, before we jump into all this; let’s take a moment to introduce ourselves. Here is our cast of characters:
Chuck is a 30 year veteran of vintage motorcycling and has restored or refurbished dozens of bikes from Triumph to Guzzi. Chuck grew up in auto dealership service bays, the son of a second generation master mechanic. Before deciding that becoming an Industrial Archaeologist sounded like a good idea, Chuck trained as a machinist. Chuck is pleased to note he has not found a reason to own a bike made in the last 30 years and that he still rides year round through Chicago winters on a vintage Guzzi. He swears he’ll fix the Goose’s oil leak before the speedometer rolls over, again. His preferred Sportster is a 1959 XLH.
Will is a retired professional motorcycle mechanic with more than 40 years of experience. While he spent most of his time at Harley dealerships in the Denver metro area, Will also wrenched on dozens of makes from Honda to Jawa. Will’s love of Sportsters was kindled by a 1955 KH. Over the years, he has refurbished dozens of Sportsters and even found the time to win two national motocross titles – on a Sportster. As Will gleefully puts it; “Sportsters ain’t nothing but big dirt bikes.” In his “other spare time,” Will is a dedicated to uncovering hidden aspects of Western history and has made several important archaeological discoveries with his trusty metal detector. He maintains a sizeable stable of ironhead Sportsters which he routinely rides to AMCA chapter meets and on local rides – just because he can. His preferred Sportster is a 1974 XLH.
Dr. Dick is our technical advisor and former owner of the Iron Steed, an independent shop in New Jersey specializing in high performance Sportsters. He also co-founded Morris Magnetos with Dave Shaw. With more than 40 years in vintage motorcycling, Dr. Dick has built and serviced hundreds of ironhead strokers. Today, he continues to ply his trade in a high-precision machine shop and enjoys hurting Sportsters whenever possible while mentoring aspiring mechanics and speed freaks. His preferred Sportster is a 1959 XLCH.
The Q ship is a 1964 XLCH Sportster found by Will in the wilds of Colorado and bought by Chuck in spring 2019. Q ships were a special class of merchant vessels in World War One containing hidden armament. From the outside, they looked relatively harmless. Up close, they packed a wallop that surprised more than one U-boat and sent its crew to commune with the fishes. We thought this a very apt name for the project as it will be a true “sleeper” with high performance modifications not visible to the casual observer.
The Yeti is Mrs. Chuck’s shop dog. She tries to stay out of biker pictures to preserve her “good girl” image, but like the Q ship, just cannot help herself. If you see her at a meet – you had best give her a chin scratch and firm pat on the head lest she decide you are trying to pilfer adult beverages from the cooler. The Yeti plays a mean game of “stare down,” is excellent at placing fur in freshly cleaned bearings, and enjoys sleeping – a lot. She also likely knows more Grateful Dead lyrics than Bob Weir remembers.
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