Rear fender buddy seat hook holes?

[frichie68]

This may qualify as the dumb question of the day/week/decade but.....
Were all harleys originally shipped from the factory with the three fender holes empty, or were some plugged, and if so, what with?
I haven't seen anything shown in parts books.
Thanks in advance.
Rich

[Steve Slocombe]

Dear Rich, on the VL I would call those the three luggage rack mounting holes. I believe these were always drilled, then filled with three 051 screws with 0108 nuts when the luggage rack was not fitted. When judging we often make a quarter point hit if people use repro mudguards and don't drill these holes. And we go tsk-tsk if the screw slots are not neatly lined up front to back. The same nitpicking goes for the front mudflap, which was not an accessory, plus the front stand catch where the holes are drilled and filled with 042/0106 screws/nuts when the optional front stand is not fitted.

[MMasa]

And we go tsk-tsk if the screw slots are not neatly lined up front to back.

Steve
Did the guys on the assembly line actually take the time and effort to line up the slots. I don't know, maybe they did. I personally always cringe when I see that kind of stuff on a "restored" bike.
JMO
Mark

[exeric]

I would have thought the holes in the fenders were 'punched' at some point in the fender forming process at the factory. I have to believe H-D was way too busy to hand drill any of the body work.

[Sargehere]

I would have thought the holes in the fenders were 'punched' at some point in the fender forming process at the factory. I have to believe H-D was way too busy to hand drill any of the body work.

You're right, Eric, but all the factory-made r. fenders had the holes, used to correctly locate the buddy seat spring catch, rear cargo rack or a Tandem Seat. And what Steve Slocombe said about VLs also goes for subsequent ELs, FLs and ULs. The drilling being referred to, I thnk, is in repop fenders that come with no holes, and done by the owners/restorers. i always line up the three slots in the screwheads front-to-back just to make it look better, but it's no deduction if they point in all different directions. He he!

Centering those holes at the proper height (I think starting about 34 inches up from the front lower edge of the fender, I measured it once for someone) depends on proper layout. The locations of the hand drilled holes have to "look" factory-punched, is all.

[jwl]

Sarge, So far, from this thread, I have gathered that all fenders are expected to have the 3 holes and they are to be used for one thing or another or else plugged with screws. The screw head slots may or may not be lined up. What confuses me is your last statement in post #5. If the holes are either used or plugged with screws, how can judges, or anyone else for that matter, see if they "look" hand drilled or punched?

[cdndewey]

Sarge, So far, from this thread, I have gathered that all fenders are expected to have the 3 holes and they are to be used for one thing or another or else plugged with screws. The screw head slots may or may not be lined up. What confuses me is your last statement in post #5. If the holes are either used or plugged with screws, how can judges, or anyone else for that matter, see if they "look" hand drilled or punched?

I believe what he is refering to is that the holes should be lined and evenly spaced to look like a factory job and not the method of achieving said holes. As an added note, I don't know when this happened, but there was a tapped blocked on the underside of the fender that the seat spring yoke attached to. My 62 FL has that piece and I thought somebody put it there before I got the bike (I got it in 80), but it has 1/4-24 threaded holes.

[Sargehere]

I believe what he is refering to is that the holes should be lined and evenly spaced to look like a factory job and not the method of achieving said holes...

EGG-ZAKLEE! Thanks.

[frichie68]

but........were the bikes originally shipped from the factory with empty holes?
Or?
Rich

[Jerry Wieland]

I would think not.

but........were the bikes originally shipped from the factory with empty holes?
Or?
Rich

[Steve Slocombe]

Dear Gerry, what happened to the front stand clip holes after 1936? This was a common accessory on the early VLs when maybe half of the Big Twins were fitted with sidecars. The differently shaped 1934-36 VL front stand is a rare piece, and most bikes of this era have the blanked off screw holes. Did this continue long after 1936?

[Rubone]

but........were the bikes originally shipped from the factory with empty holes?

No, the holes were always filled with the screws whether they had Buddy seat clips or not. They were never shipped empty except on a replacement parts order fender.

Steve,
The front stand holes remained in the fender through the entire life of Springers on solo bikes. The '50s Servi-Car and last of the 45" solo with the streamline fender do not have them.

[frichie68]

[QUOTE=Rubone;137316]No, the holes were always filled with the screws whether they had Buddy seat clips or not. They were never shipped empty except on a replacement parts order fender.

THANK YOU! That's exactly what I was curious about.
Rich