Davenport Treasures

First the find of the meet, an original fender light. I made $10.00 buying this light! It was attached to a '49 fender with nice trim and accessories. I got the fender for $50, took off the fender light and resold the fender 20 minutes later for $60.00. So for all you guys that say there are no deals out there.

Next the second best find at davenport a real nice original guide headlight with the bracket attached. Needs a lens and some work but very nice piece for real nice price.

A transmission for a future '37 W project. Gears look perfect. Need a sprocket cover if you got one. I picked one up but then discovered it is incorrect.

NOS headlight bezel and gas cap.

An early steering damper leaver.

An original break light switch. Needs some pieces but a good start.

Get to the Meet

Leaving today to vend at Wauseon www.wauseonnationalmeet.org. See you there. Hope to post many photos of the meet.

battery production photos

I am getting some batteries ready for the AMCA Wauseon meet. This a shot of the boxes just after curing.

Battery Production

Today I worked on making some batteries for the Wauseon Ohio AMCA meet in a couple of weeks. I copied an original 40's 6 volt battery and fitted it with the best SLA (sealed lead acid) battery I could find. It is 18amp hr. I made the molds myself. I poor the lead terminals, mold the new battery and do all the assembly by hand. I also included a 20amp inline fuse. from the exterior it appears to be an original Harley-Davidson 6v lead acid battery but inside the SLA battery is superior technology and requires no maintenance and will not leak acid all over your bike. I work on getting some production images up.

fitting sheetmetal

The tanks are original but I went with the replica fenders but they still need some work to get them to fit correctly.

Engine and Tranny in frame. My friend Mark traded a JD fork for a 47 tranny to David Sarifan for me.

More books

Nice book but not very helpful for restorations. A lot of the bikes have incorrect parts and of finisings. As a restoration guide it is pretty much worthless.

How to restore your Harley Davidson

If you want to restore a 1937-1964 Harley you need this book. When you hear people in harley restoration circles say "Did you check the book?" this is what they mean. It is not perfect but it is a great resource and no one has made a better reference or to my knowledge ever attempted to. This Is My Favorite Book. I have two copies one for the shop and travel to swap meets and a second to read inside the house.

motor in parts

motor disassembled and in boxes and bags

the gear case looks like brand new

the tear down

first is a shot of the matching belly numbers

The Start

Here is what I started with. This milk crate full of 1947 wl and was purchased at the Wauseon OH AMCA swap meet from Dale Walksler before he moved to the Carolinas to open the Wheels Through Time Museum.