McQueen's Indian Re-discovered

Thanks to Irish Rich's comments, I went back to the National Motorcycle Museum's website and found these photos.

I had seen these shots quite awhile ago and thought they were no longer up. I don't know how old the pictures are, or if the bike still there?

To it's left is a Wild Angels Dragon bike. What's the story on this one?

Are You Having a Great Taint?

Taint, It taint Christmas and it taint New Years.
It's that magical and wonderful period between them. A time for mischief and merry making.

Old Saint Taint, The patron saint of the Holiday.

I'm officially starting this New Holiday Tradition. The Five days of Taint start on the 26th and run through the 30th. The 28th will be the most important and celebrated date, as it's smack dab in the middle. The holiday's colors will be orange and blue.

From now on, be sure to wish all your friends and loved ones a Terrific Taint!

McQueen's Indian Agianagian

Photo likely taken at the Santa Paula airport. Photo used with permission of Barbie McQueen.

Back in Nov. 08 I did a post on Steve McQueen and also showed what was said to be his favorite bike. It was said because he would ride it when he was grubby and nobody would suspect it was him. I have a similar photo of him somewhere (grubbier than this), but found this one recently.

What prompted me to post this was an interesting anonymous comment about the Nov. 08 post that I just received yesterday.

Anonymous said...

Where is this bike? Cause if you want the truth about it I'm the person to tell it because I'm the one who built it for Steve. I built it for him cause I would not sell him mine. Which I still have the twin sitting in my shop. So piss off to who ever claims building this bike. And yes it was his favorite bike. YES it would be a mistake to restore it. It was built to look like my bike, "A Rat Bike" thats what he wanted.

J.D.

It would be very cool if J.D. would tell us more, possible send some photos, or perhaps identify himself.

Bam!, Xmas is Here

Time's Up

Only 366 days till next year.

This is How it Starts

Brass Balls FXR Concept Art

I recently did this Concept Art for Dar Holdsworth of Darwin Motorcycles (Brass Balls Bobbers), of a new model for 2010. The build of the first prototype will be documented in Cycle Source magazine and also on Bikernet.com.

For more info on this and his other bikes click on the following link:
http://www.brassballsbobbers.com/bikes

Dedicated Hardcore Blogs

I recently found these two blogs by hopscotching through a follower.


Click on logos to visit. There are a few Sportster only blogs but this is the first Evo only one I've seen.

The first one features an interesting and fairly unique point of view. Seems that the owner of the blog won't post anything but Blockheads (Evo's) and expresses (kidding or not), a disdain for earlier H-D's. The Blockhead name was thrown around when Evo's first came out and I wish it would have caught on more than it has. Anyway, it's a reminder of how segmented this sport (?) can be.

The blog puts down "Old School" and I can understand how someone might react to the recent craze in vintage chops but, since Evo's are 10 to 25 years old, they themselves aren't exactly New School.

I myself don't dig Twin Cams that much and feel that the Evo is the last true evolution of the classic H-D twin.

Some Evo owners probably now feel like Shovel owners did (maybe still do), not too long ago. Sort of like a lost step child instead of a favorite son.

Fike?

If a three wheeler is a trike, then what's a five wheeler? A Fike... a Pike?

Threesome

Tom McMullen aboard his Corvair powered trike. This photo was taken on the way home from the trike's second showing in '67 and was just before or right after he was pulled over by the police. It was published in AEE's Chopper catalog in '70. Other shots from this ordeal with the cops were originally published in the July 68 Cycle Guide which featured the trike's first completed photos. Tom contributed features on custom bikes to Cycle Guide before starting Street Chopper in '69.

Cheers!

Good to be Back In The Saddle Again

Electra-Glide... the only way to fly!

Back From The Dead

Up and Ready to Roll

I took my old iMac G5 to the Apple Store Sunday evening and told the tech at the Genius Bar my dilemma. He peaked inside and said it was indeed likely the power supply and if they had one in stock they could fix it on the spot. Also, since it's an easy fix there would be no labor charge (very cool!). They had one, took it in the back and said they would run it for a few minutes to make sure that was the only problem. 20-30 minutes later, and $94 lighter, I was on my way. That's a whole lot better than buying a new machine and losing half my data.

My wife and I have both had nothing but good experiences with the Apple Store so far. She's been given two new batteries for her laptop and when my Mac was 1 1/2 year old and out of warranty (for some unknown reason), they did a $950 repair for free. I only wish other businesses stood behind their products like that.

Technical Difficulties

Please be Patient

I'm experiencing problems with my Mac. It's shutting down periodically very abruptly. I'm backing up tons of files before it conks out completely so, I may not be posting much for awhile.

Gift Ideas?

H-D T-shirts sure have changed. I like these better than the shirts today (especially the psychedelic trademark and XLCH), albeit not so tight fitting.

Happy Thanksgiving

Taking off for the Holiday so I won't be posting for awhile. Keep leaving comments and I'll post them when I can. Later!

World's Fastest Motorcycle!!

At one time. I believe the record was set in 1969. Sportser powered too. Another gift courtesy of Big Scott.

"Keep on Chuckin"

Big Scott gave me these. They came with the '70 custom dresser he had. To refresh your memory go to:

http://motorcycleart.blogspot.com/2009/05/1970-nok-new-old-kustom.html

Pack Rats

Talk about a Garbage Wagon.

I remember when a rat bike was just an old bike (sometimes chopped), that was greasy and grubby with maybe a few odd pieces that were usually functional.

Now it seems it's mostly about piling on useless junk. Sorry but, I don't see what's cool about that!?

Art Imitates Life

Many of the crazy images that were put out by Roth had some basis in reality. Note the Iron Cross on the gas tank.


Dick Cook aboard "Big Daddy's" mini bike. It was said to be too big for Ed. This thing is more ridiculous than in the art.

Helmet Collector

Robert Williams with some of his collection of WWI Pickelhauben.

The Pickelhaube (plural Pickelhauben; from the old German Pickel = "point" or "pickaxe", and Haube = "bonnet", a general word for headgear) was a spiked helmet worn in the 19th and 20th centuries by German military.


As a kid, I was obsessed with these helmets. I always made sure I saw this one featured in the ending credits of Hogan's Heros. I would still like to have one.

Bronson Bikes

Next to the Easyrider bikes, the "Then Came Bronson" Sportster is probably the next most commonly imitated bike. Still, you don't see that many. I found these photos on the web (Flicker?), taken outside the H-D museum.

The third one back is a replica of the H-D Sprint used sometimes in the show for stunts.


It really wouldn't be too hard to build one. Most I've seen are not completely correct.


These two are the closest to the real thing in the bunch. They both feature a correct 21" front wheel.

What Sort of Man Reads MC ART?

An adventurous man. A free spirited man who can handle any curve life's long lonesome highway throws his way. The kind of soul that knows where to find MotorCycle entertainment that's cool to hang with.

The Sportster

...That Never Was

Where would they have fitted a generator?

The KL model was originally planned for release in the early 50's. Instead, the poor performing K model was rushed into production to fill it's gap. The high cam KL was continuously plagued by overheating problems, so the later (1954), experimental XL overhead design superseded it. At one point both the KL and XL were being tested side by side. Harley originally didn't want an overhead design based on the old flathead four cam bottom, but it worked and it's performance pretty much surprised everyone. What shouldn't be a surprise is that the XL's top end was designed by the same guy (Charley Featherly), who had done detailed work on the Knucklehead and later the Shovelhead. Since early Panheads had trouble with their aluminum heads, he stuck with iron like on Knuckles. Charley also thought that the valve covers on Pans held too much heat.

French Connection

Stephane of Versailles France sent in this photo of his 70 H-D. He didn't say but, the black wheels, forks, and the silver paint makes it look like a former police bike. I couldn't resist posting it as I have a soft spot for them done up this way, ....it doesn't hurt that I have a 70 myself.

Love Machines

A whole lot of Shag going on.

For our Friends in France

Another shot of Brigitte.

Likely from the same shoot as the previous photo, but she switched bikes with one of the guys.

World's Fastest?

When? ..... it's a Cool Decal, anyhow.

What Sort of Woman Reads MC ART?

An out front woman. An independent gal who's not afraid to break from the pack. The kind of gal who knows where to find the kind of MotorCycle entertainment, that like her, ....is miles ahead.

Camo Stahlhelm

Modern Art?
This old WWI helmet's pattern would be cool for an old bob job's paint. The Germans were probably the first to use camouflage. The colors makes me wonder, where were they hiding?

Credit Where It's Due

It figures. Irish Rich's blog was the place I saw the ad. I had a sneaking suspicion it might be there... and it was only posted last January. Should have double checked. The ol brains going to mush.

Bombay Buzzard

I forgot to post this photo (for the story below), I stole from Irish Rich awhile ago. It clearly shows Buzzard with the Bombay Taxi Horn. I cleaned it up and tweaked it. Sorry Rich.

The Buzzard Mann Connection

Laid Back Jammin. Roth's pal Buzzard was featured in one of his "The Country's Grooviest Bike People" Posters. Note the antique bulb horn on the left side pullbacks. Was he the first to build six-bends? This bike is Bitchin! and there's a good reason this shot looks like a David Mann painting.


Buzzard in a early Choppers Magazine Wheelie Prones ad. It's a somewhat confusing ad for risers and slugs. Extending and trimming wide glide trees and legs seemed to be his specialty. He had also placed a few ads in the Beg Borrow and Steal classified section promoting these services. Buzzard later wrote an article on the subject for the Nov. '68 issue.


David Mann circa 1969. I remember seeing one of those ads stating that Buzzard was selling his bike since he was off to the "Joint", but can't find it. I also read somewhere that David Mann was the guy that bought it. For the longest time I didn't put the two together. Dave lost the front brake.


Dave and the bike in 1970. Now painted black featuring an SU carb, drag pipes, longer forks, and Finned Dish Pans.


Here you can clearly see a large brass horn mounted on the bars.


Art imitates life. Dave even used the bike as inspiration for this later Easyriders center spread art. The six-bend pullbacks, unique high pipes, and fork boots give it away. Note the entry info taped to pillar.


Later, when it was featured in Choppers Magazine Aug. '73 it sported a 20" over D&D springer and frame. This article never mentions that the bike was once owned by Buzzard. It does mention him as his friend and the builder of the Ankh sissy bar and pullbacks. I believe this sissy bar was on the bike when Buzzard owned it, but the additional side supports are not in the top photo. The article states the brass horn as being from a Bombay Taxi and questions how Dave acquired it. It also states that since the shoot, Dave had gone back to the original H-D frame and wide glide. What really puzzles me, I don't recall Easyriders ever doing a feature on Dave's bike?

Update

This familiar shot was recently posted on The Shame of it All blog. It shows a different horn on the bars. The top Buzzard photos look to be the larger Bombay Taxi horn.

This Month's Header

The photo for this month's header was the second post on the blog and was posted before I knew I'd be doing a monthly masthead. I felt it's just too good not to use this way, plus some of you may never have gone back that far to see it.

That's me on the left. Greg's mom took the photo in their backyard. For more on it, click this: Some History We really need to recreate this photo again.

Favorite Von Dutch Sign/Taking Off

I'm going to be away from the blog for a bit. Feel free to leave your comments and I'll post them when I can. In the mean time....
I leave you with my favorite Von Dutch sign.

From the Brucker auction