Customer Reviews

Harley-Davidson 1930-1941: Revolutionary Motorcycles & Those Who Rode Them

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This books first hand accounts of this pivotal era of harley davidson history make it a must read for any harley nostagia buff. The photos alone are worth the purchase price. Mr Wagner has done a fine job of bringing a bygone era to life.I have enjoyed this volume many times.

A historical tale (from the factory workmans' point of view) explaining the deco-design of the first 61 cu.in. Knucklehead motor. If you own an original, or you're building a V-Twin (Tedd Cycle,Inc.) Replica Knuckle, you'll appreciate this book for stoke. A chronicle of club-life in Wisconsin before the 2nd World War, there are family names repeated in this text (i.e; Kokesh; Knuth; Deckert; Ulicki; Beguhl; and Matheus) connected with Harley-Davidson, that you still hear about today. An insight as to the working conditions at the factory (in the best of times) can be read in this excerpt: "The founders had divided their responsibilities early and stuck with them. They demanded top quality work and usually got it. They desired to build things correctly - they only accepted what they knew was right. For that reason, there weren't many surprises around Harley-Davidson. The atmosphere was predictable, calm, and relaxed. So many guys had worked there all of their lives, that some referred to the company as the "Old Soldiers' Home". It was the last place you'd expect a crisis... -
If you were known around the factory, like Frank Matheus was, they didn't care much where you went or what you saw. That's how Frank saw the prototype Sixty-one Overhead two years before the rest of the world".
As this book illustrates, Wisconsin had their own scene. They didn't need California. This is a darn-good read and once you start building a machine, a re-reader.
- Plumber ~ Mechanics & Owners Guide 1941-1959 Harley-Davidson OHV Big Twins - Vol. 2 ~

The book gives a refreshing view of incredible machines and what they were truly designed for. The author describes, in depth, how the machines were used for everything from the sublime to the rediculous on a daily basis. He walks the reader into a time that is long gone, dwells there with him (or her) in the legendary Visitors' Room, then races the reader onward to the swamps and backlands that earned the cycles' reputation. He illudes to a peaceful, contented feeling that can only be shared, alone, on a quiet hidden roadway that only the rider knows exists. He shows just how a cycle was meant to be ridden by the men who refined the machine, not the men who designed it. I can't say enough about this book. NOTE: If you believe that a motorcycle is a work of art and should be kept spotless and under glass, don't purchase this book. You'll be sorely disappointed.

JB#52

Historical account of the men and machines of yesteryear. This book is not layed out as a technical or motorcycle repair manual. It's straight forward and addresses the evolution of the Harley Davidson flathead design from it's inception to the end of production. Chronologically laid out it glides you through the changes in attitude and design. A must read for the true enthisiust. A fine job by the author of keeping the subject readable and understandable.

A rare up close, personal, inside veiw of the factory and the motorcycles of that era by the people who worked at H-D and the individual customers and riders that owned the machines. The insights provided by factory employees of the knucklehead's development is told from a first hand perspective. I love the personal experiences and stories about the machines provided by the every day owners. By far, one of the BEST Harley history books out there.