The Great Indian Spirit......

[Bills37]

The Great Indian Spirit smiled upon me this weekend. A little background. I've had various pieces of a 37 Chief for nearly 30 years. I decided that the time had come to do something with it. One thing I need was an engine with a title. Va. is not very friendly about titles. I was able to make a deal at Oley for a bottom with a title. I'm new to the pre-war stuff but I found out very quickly that the correct cyl's. would be hard to find and be very expensive when & if I did. This Saturday while I was dragging out the assorted parts I had for the 37 project much to my surprise I find these. A pair of 37 cyl's with the correct numbers. You could have bought me for a nickel.






Sure they need a complete rework but I got a pair.

[sirhrmechanic]

Congrats and again... congrats!

I'm hoping that my '38 is done by this fall. Things are coming together well. Prewar Chief's are gorgeous bikes. I love skirted fenders... but there is something about leaf spring front-ends and that perfectly-designed rear fender... that makes a pre-skirt Chief a gorgeous bike.

FYI, those cylinders should be nickel plated. I had mine done at International Chromium Plating in RI. They advertise in the AM. I have to say that, having visited them, they are the most professional, spotless, well-sorted plating shop I've ever seen. And all the work they have done for me has been first rate.

Post some more pictures... because prewar Chiefs... wow... just wow.

Cheers,

Sirhr

[exeric]

. A pair of 37 cyl's with the correct numbers. You could have bought me for a nickel.

Great quote Bill. Cylinders are so hard to find for a correct year, and it's like winning the lottery when you do find them. Glad your '37 is going well.

[Bills37]

Congrats and again... congrats!

I'm hoping that my '38 is done by this fall. Things are coming together well. Prewar Chief's are gorgeous bikes. I love skirted fenders... but there is something about leaf spring front-ends and that perfectly-designed rear fender... that makes a pre-skirt Chief a gorgeous bike.

FYI, those cylinders should be nickel plated. I had mine done at International Chromium Plating in RI. They advertise in the AM. I have to say that, having visited them, they are the most professional, spotless, well-sorted plating shop I've ever seen. And all the work they have done for me has been first rate.

Post some more pictures... because prewar Chiefs... wow... just wow.

Cheers,

Sirhr

That would be great to take it for a ride on a nice crisp fall day. I'm shooting for the spring myself. I agree that a rigid frame, leaf spring Chief is about the nearest thing to art on two wheels.

Thanks for the referral for the plating, I definitely plan to do that since I was lucky enough to have the correct part.

[Bills37]

Great quote Bill. Cylinders are so hard to find for a correct year, and it's like winning the lottery when you do find them. Glad your '37 is going well.

So far so good. I've got a long way to go.

[fillibuster]

So far so good. I've got a long way to go.

I had a day similar to that several years ago, while hunting for 37 sport scout cyls. Found a rear at one buddy's place, and a front at another's, both locals! .... in SOUTH DAKOTA, even! ... and they are very workable!
had to pinch myself!

[Yellow53Chief]

Hi,
In regards to nickel plating, sometimes electroplated nickel can be spotty with a tendency for rust to show through after only a few years (unless in a museum). An alternative that many guys in Central New York prefer is electroless nickel. From wickepedia: "Electroless nickel plating is an auto-catalytic reaction used to deposit a coating of nickel on a substrate. Unlike electroplating, it is not necessary to pass an electric current through the solution to form a deposit. This plating technique is to prevent corrosion and wear. EN techniques can also be used to manufacture composite coatings by suspending powder in the bath.[1] Electroless nickel plating has several advantages versus electroplating. Free from flux-density and power supply issues, it provides an even deposit regardless of workpiece geometry, and with the proper pre-plate catalyst, can deposit on non-conductive surfaces.[2]"
Electroless nickel is something to consider. This topic may have been covered before, but it is worth mentioning again.

[Mack]

International Chromium Plating Does Electroless first. Then does Nickel.

[someozybloke]

Hi
Cylinders are not a pair one is of a later cast than the other.

See the extra finning around the exhaust on the right hand cylinder.
The on on the left is likely to be a 37 and the right is possibly a 39.
The heating build up around the exhaust needs more cooling so that started to extend the fins on the 1938 and again on the 1939.

Beyond 1940 they made changes to the lower barrel to add more strength, but added no more cooling fins.

Cheers
Mike

[tfburke3]

Hi
Cylinders are not a pair one is of a later cast than the other.

See the extra finning around the exhaust on the right hand cylinder.
The on on the left is likely to be a 37 and the right is possibly a 39.
The heating build up around the exhaust needs more cooling so that started to extend the fins on the 1938 and again on the 1939.

Beyond 1940 they made changes to the lower barrel to add more strength, but added no more cooling fins.

Cheers
Mike

I believe the cylinders are 35-37.The fins between guides look to long for the oiler tee tubes which would make them 35 but hard to tell from pics.38 and 39 the ex fins continue to wrap around the guides
Tom

[Bills37]

Stripped the front fender to get it ready to sand blast. When I pulled the rubber bumper off I found some of the original paint.