Carburetor Question

[MikeW]

I have a couple of questions about this well known photograph of Ester Stevens of Newark NJ on her J Model Harley Davidson and sidecar.

Esther Stevens H-D.jpg
Miss Ester Stevens from NewarkNJ on her Harley Davidson (3).jpg
Can anyone identify the type of carburetor fitted to her machine. It isn't the standard Schebler and I can't find any references,to, or other pictures of,a similar carburetor fitted to a contemporary J Model.

At first glance I thought the motorcycle was a 1920 J, with the tall front fork spring tubes which, I understand, became standard in 1920, but with the front mudguard/fender without the full valences which came in in 1921, However, the primary chain cover is the pre-1920 style, and the saddle looks like a Troxel with two springs each side - the top one tapered and the bottom one parallel - which seems not to have been fitted after about 1919.

Perhaps the photo was taken in the mid to late 20s and her machine, like many at the time, had been been modified and "up-dated" over the years.

Mike

[MMasa]

That is a Carter carburetor.
https://harleydavidsoncarburetor.com...dian-usa-1.htm

[MMasa]

I’m going to say that it’s a 1917 because of the rear fender, pre 1918 front chain guard and the longer spring fork is because it is the pre 19 fork fitted with accessory tube extensions.
Mark

[T. Cotten]

I've never held one in my hands, Folks,...

carter3.JPG

carter2.JPG

Carter1.JPG

carter carb shirt.jpg

....Cotten

[MikeW]

Thank you Mark and Tom for the informative replies. As I've said before, you can always learn something.

Mark, I wasn't aware that extensions to the forks for accessories were offered by H-D. With that cleared up, I agree with your judgement that it's a 1917 model. I'll now have to have a closer look at my photo collection and, in particular, at some some pictures of pre-1920 motorcycles which I thought had been fitted with later, taller spring forks.

The Carter carburettor (sorry carburetor) is also a new one for me. Were they offered by Harley-Davidson as an option to the Schebler or would Miss Stevens have needed to replace the stock carburetor with the Carter at her own expense? Tom, your comment suggests that they are, and perhaps were back in the day, pretty scarce?

I'm conscious that I've hogged the airwaves, and probably members' patience, over the last few days so will shut up for a while when this topic is exhausted.

Thank you both again. Your help to a member on the far side of the world is much appreciated.

Mike

[MMasa]

Mike
Yes, they are quite rare. The example that Tom posted as well as the one in your picture are fitted with a different style of aluminum air intake than I usually see. I have several of these carburetors and they are all fitted with a different intake. It’s more of a 90 degree elbow with a filter screen over the end. I’ll look for a picture of one of mine or try to find one online.
As to whether or not the HD factory offered it as an option, I can’t say for sure, but I doubt it. I’ve never seen a reference to it in factory literature, parts books, etc.
It may however been offered on competition machines or as a non-factory accessory by certain dealers.
Mark

[MMasa]

4F9FB938-666F-4397-BBFD-6A255B1F2703.jpeg

[T. Cotten]

What was the nut in the middle for, Mark?

carter5.jpg

A priming port? Or did it hold the airhorn on?

Is the manifold adapter unique? (It reminds me of a SuperX? that crossed my benches years ago....)
Super X Adapters.jpg What kind of bike is that anyway?


Was there any support for all that mass?

.....Cotten
PS: Thanks in advance...

[exeric]

In regards to the Carter carburetor; my friend Charlie Carter (past editor of our club magazine) wanted a Carter carb for his 1919 Excelsior, for the obvious reason. It worked great on his Ex and much better than the Schebler it replaced, so he started collecting Carter carbs, and parts so he could put them on other Excelsiors he had. His next opportunity to use a Carter carb was a big disappointment and he was forced to use a Schebler I believe they were advertised as having only 2(?) moving parts. That could either be good, or bad, I guess.

[MMasa]

Cotten
the nut in the middle holds the air horn on. The slot at the bottom is for a choke lever.
Mark

[MikeW]

The motorcycle in Tom's post looks to me like a mid-20s Super X? With the manifold adapter it certainly seems a lot of unsupported weight as well as two gasket and fixing screw sets to keep airtight..

I was entertained by the photo of the rider sporting the Carter Carburetor racing jersey. To show off fully the 10 letters in "Carburetor" in that size of font, a rider would need a chest like Arnold Schwarzenegger or Hulk Hogan.

Mike

[T. Cotten]

If we believe https://quadrajetparts.com/, Folks,..

Carter spelled it with an "E".

Although I cannot find that corroborated, that's how MARVEL spelled it as well:

marvelgskt_small.jpg

.....Cotten
PS: If you run an AMAL, SU, or Zenith,.. You need a bigger shirt.

AMALBOX.jpg