Black As Night Harley-Davidson Shovelhead
Now to say the engine was tired would be an understatement. With a possible 35 years on the road… the resurrection… could become an expensive exercise.
DENNIS, the owner of this fine black custom, lives up in North Queensland. He left his motorbike — a mid ’70s 1200 cc Shovel — with Rusty after they had worked out the details for the rebuild. There wasn’t a lot of history on the bike but it was thought it started life in the Michigan Police Force, and that alone would mean a lot of miles on the clock of this tired old Shovel; a total rebuild was always on the cards.
Once stripped bare, the frame was given to Rusty’s regular frame man, George McKenzie, who made sure it was straight and added a bit of rake to give it 35 degrees at the neck. A late ’80s Softail front-end was added which gives two-inch over-stock length.
It was now ready for some wheels; these would be the usual 16-inch rear and 21-inch front, but from DNA and feature black hubs and rims laced up with 60 stainless steel spokes per wheel so they would match the bike’s overall paint scheme which is ‘predominantly black’.
The forward controls are anodised and the rest was covered in black by painter Graham Carr using his own special blend of Two-Pac he simply calls Truck Black which is as deep as an ocean when you get up close.
Now to say the engine was tired would be an understatement. With a possible 35 years on the road, God knows how many owners, plus repairs and rebuilds, means the resurrection of the old Shovelhead engine could become an expensive exercise. Metal fatigue, replacing broken, worn out parts and valve seats for unleaded petrol, stripped threads and any number of other unforeseen problems can soon blow out an engine budget. Taking this into account, plus the fact that new engines have so much more technically going for them, the original engine was put aside. Rusty then built up a 4-1/4 inch stroke, 3-5/8 inch bore, S&S based replacement that made it a sweet 88-cubic-inch engine fitted with an Andrews BH cam and lightened conrods and also fully balanced. Then he added a single fire ignition, Mikuni carb, Goodson air cleaner, and Indian Larry dress-up pieces to finish it off.
The well known people at BDL supplied the three-inch belt-drive to hook up the fully-rebuilt, ratchet-lid four-speed gearbox. The whole affair was brought to life by a very classy Tech Products starter and support plate combo. The clutch plates are retained by an Indian Larry engraved pressure-plate to finish off the driveline with a touch of class.
Rusty used a non-hinged FLH-style rear guard, KraftTech horseshoe oil tank, a Police Special Panhead style seat, trumpet mufflers, and a cat’s eye dash. The front brake is a stock unit; the rear is a GMA twin piston.
Wiring was done by Holger from Zap Electrics; handlebar controls are genuine Harley and the lights are from various aftermarket suppliers.
The finished bike is just what Dennis ordered and apparently he rides it at every opportunity, and I was able to get it in front of my camera before it was returned to Rusty’s for a post-build service/check out.
When I commented to Rusty on how clean the bike was for being ridden all the time, he agreed. “Dennis is a very fastidious and meticulous owner,” said Rusty. “It’s rather amazing as he lives down a long dirt road.”
As there has been a lot of time and money invested in this bike, we hope there’s another 35 odd years of riding for this Shovelhead.
Article submitted by Keith Cole
