Corbin speedo/ '37U

[3_7/16bore]

I have not seen this dash panel without an oil gage in any book,
does any one else think it's unusual?

[Steve Slocombe]

It's just the wrong speedo head in the dash panel. The Corbin accessory speedometer finished on the Harleys in 1936 with the flatheads. The 1937 dash is a tough - and expensive - one to build correctly, so it looks like someone improvised with an older Corbin that still did the job.

[3_7/16bore]

Who do you think made tin flow around the speedometer cable exit, and blank out the oil gauge?

The oil gage hole was never punched out, and there are no thin areas where the metal has been reworked.

Do you think Corbin produced the replacement dash cover, or did HD produce the special tin.

Steve, I agree with your statement about it being incorrect, but where did this "tough - and expensive" dash panel originate?

[Matt McManus]

I believe that is the correct dash for a 37UMG. I think that is factory and no one has reworked it. I have no clue about the oil gauge.

[3_7/16bore]

Matt- my hero. I found a internet pic of a 37 and that giant speedo cable going down the right to the rear wheel. The oil gage cant exist under this dash because of the cable......

The pic doesn't show the dash, but now I know what wrong parts I have, and where they came from.

This bike was painted silver.

It has a normal timer and generator, unlike the UMG

[Matt McManus]

Glad I could help, I believe I have seen a vintage picture that directly shows the dash on a 37UMG. I did a quick google search and came up with nothing, maybe someone else has a picture that shows the dash or more info.

Matt

[Jerry Wieland]

Nick Muthe has this same setup only it is a 1936 dash -- he thought it might be police equipment set up by an independent company and not from Harley Davidson. The conversation started 30 years ago in Daytona when I made the statement that I had seen at least 5 variations of the 1936/37/38 dash cover and we compared notes and that is when he mentioned his Corbin dash cover making at least 6 and this one makes 7.

[Steve Slocombe]

I'd expect the UMGs to have right hand tank shift, as most of them seem to have gone to NY Police Dept to replace Indians. Any signs on this or other bikes with this dash to confirm?

[3_7/16bore]

Any signs on this or other bikes with this dash to confirm?

Steve, the only thing out of place is the trans has a nice flat plate covering the speed cable drive opening.
The bike's tank and fenders showed the remnants of silver when my father bought it in the '80s, and under the silver was red/black of '37.

No other signs of UMG on this bike, normal timer, left shift, regular generator...etc
The scratched in "50" leads me to believe something is mis-matched.

[Chris Haynes]

I held one of those units in my hands. It is definitely a Police unit. The Stewart Warner speedometers in 1936/'37 didn't have the speedometer lock. So Police that wanted the speedometer lock got this one.

[Steve Slocombe]

Good call Chris. The Corbin in the photo looks like the one pictured in the 1935 Harley accessory catalog as the Police special one, at $30 compared to the regular $15 Corbin head. However, the Police ones I've seen are marked as such on the dial, and have a different trip lever. They have a brass clutch in the needle drive, and can be locked before speeding up and swooping past the car to pull him over. Maybe they changed the design of the Police Corbin, or maybe this 1935 accessory catalog used the picture of the regular max hand 100 mph Corbin used elsewhere in the catalog. I'm not yet convinced the Corbin head on the '37 is a special Police one. Maybe max hand was enough?