Welcome Doc and good luck with your project.

 

 

A warm welcome from out west in Walker Basin, California.

I don't know anything about knuckleheads, but I am confidant you have come to the right place.

Get out you check list and check book and enjoy yourself.

 

i hear that flat head engineering from sweden has moved too either texas or louisiania they can build u a brand new knuck motor. also see shovel below that had a knuck motor in it with a 5 speed electric start softail. the guy that built that bike is very good and on long island. he builds many bikes. if u want too contact him about a build call off line and i can set u up with him.

 

welcome to the forum great place too hang out u know kiwi indian makes a leaf spring girder that just may be made too work that would look great.

 

Thanks, folks. Your repsonses have been helpful and encouraging. I've followed links and talked peoples' ears off, and now i have a real solid outline of the knuckle bobber project. Now I just have to build a new garage to buld my new scoot in! Patience.

Turns out the flatheadpower.com folks are my neighbors- in morgan city about 50 miles from new orleans! they can build knucks up to 120 inches. i'm going with what doug calls an 'alternator/generator' case- it's old-school on the right, new on the left. that way i can have an electric foot, an alternator, and i can mate it with whatever frame & tranny will bolt up to an EVO. maybe everyone already knew this, but it's new (and good news) to me!

i'm going hardtail, chain drive, slightly fat rear, and prolly that stylin' kiwi leaf spring front end. moon oil tank, solo seat. there's time to flesh out other details, but i can already picture this scoot in my mind.

thanks again for the warm welcome and useful advice. i'll be back around in a few months with a new toy to show off.

 

I found mine on EBAY, bought it in El PASO.. I will never sell, unless I was offered way more than its worth. This winter its going on the table for a redo, new front end, paint, some chrome etc. Also it is an 80" engine. Nothing better looking than a flat sided Harley. Also have a 67 bobber my wife rides.
Robin

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Don't have much experience building knuckle motors Doc but I have owned several in my time. I have a friend do my motor work and have been very happy with it. This is my 47 that I rode from Kansas City to Canon City Colo. and then up to farmington Minn. on last summer. They are great if your not looking for performance type speeds and are willing to just cruise around on. The biggest problem I've had is the rocker tins leaking oil onto the heads and cylinders. I don't push mine much faster that 65 going down the road. One of the big weaknesses of an original motor is metal fatigue with the cylinders. I blew a front cylinder apart once. Good Luck! Let me know if I can help with questions about original parts.

 

If you want a REAL knucklehead I would save up and pay the price,they can be bought for not too much if you know where to look.They DO make aftermarket Knucklehead motors but any real HD rider that knows his stuff will be able to spot a fake a mile away.Go for the gold and get a Harley NOT some knock off.As far as Knucks go they do things differently when to comes to the oiling system.Pan and Shovel motor push the oil thru the motor with the oil pump.The Knuclehead motor sucks to oil thru the motor by creating a vacuum which sucks the oil up into the rocker tins and down thru the pushrod tubes.

Anything can be done,I have put a Evo top end on a Pan lower(god only knows why,but he wanted it so I did it),I have built a 45 magum which is a 45 lower end with a K model sportster top end.I also have a Pan lower with a Shovel top(very smiple to do).I would be careful of how big you make any motor the bigger the motor the less dependable and the shorter the engine life.Biggest motor Harley ever made was a 80ci and that is plenty big enough for long distance crusin',the rest is just braggin' rights.

The Knucklehead is the best motor Harley ever made that is why they are still out there on the road today,they will last forever.(And that is probably why HD quit makin'em,couldn,t make money off of rebuilds and parts,lol.)And of course the Knuclehead is a beautiful motor to behold!AND what a sound,with that 1:1 rocker arm ratio you can count the strokes as it fires.

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Whoever suggested that the only Knuckle is a real one & the other ones fake should be bought a beer or a soda pop. They speak the truth. If it`s an aftermarket "knucklehead" it`s not a Knucklehead.
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