Back to Basics with a Split Rocker Box Shovelhead
Build goes from crusty roller to genuine joy to ride.
Winter Show
In the best way possible, this 1972 Shovelhead build is one of those friends of a friend type of deals. Built by Russ Nahodil of Black Diamond Cycle, the project all started on a winter day in Coal Township, Pennsylvania, and a captivating Shovelhead motor that was destined to become a 'best in show' win.
Photos courtesy of Cycle Source Magazine.
Counter Ride
The Shovelhead was featured in the January 2020 issue of Cycle Source Magazine. Founded by Chris Callen, the publication has been an infinite roll call of cool bikes for the past twenty years. Reflecting on the magazine's start he stated, “I had to decide whether I was gonna sit behind the counter and watch the world ride by or if I was going to join them.”
Part Build
On that cold day in Pennsylvania, it was Alex Grabiec who had spied the motor sitting on the shop's workbench. Grabiec and Nahodil are good friends, but it still took a few weeks for reluctant Nahodil to part with the engine and a four-speed ratchet top transmission—comforted by the fact that he would eventually do all the build work.
Crusty Cone
Recently retired from the army, Grabiec was keen to get back to riding. The Shovelhead was going to join his stable of cool bikes, which included a 1979 Ironhead and a 2019 Electra Glide Standard. As the story goes, soon after acquiring the 'cone' motor, he dropped off a crusty rolling FXD chassis at Black Diamond Cycle.
Quality Time
Grabiec's intent was to get the motor installed and get riding. Nahodil wanted nothing to do with that plan. The Shovelhead had actually been a back-burner plan for him, and it needed to be done right. The build sheet lists 400-plus hours sunk into the project. It is a testament to Nahodil's dedication and a good reminder that quality takes time.
Best Machine
Dubbed, 'Prudence,' the Shovelhead was later shown at Apple's East Coast Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, where it took best of show. Held yearly at Little Orleans (population forty-two) in the Western Maryland Mountains, the rally is one of the last non-commercial, old-school events still running. The win might have been humble, but the perfect send-off for Grabiec's new machine.
Motor Rework
The rocker boxes were split and chromed. Sometimes the source of controversy, the process of machining out the rocker's centers is purely a cosmetic touch. The cases were also treated to the shiny bath and the transmission received a polish. The flywheels were balanced, and the motor was fitted with reworked ZEL cylinders, from the 1970s aftermarket supplier, Zodiac Enterprises Limited.
Right Iron
The Shovelhead is awash with meticulous detail and considered fabrication. Grabiec reflected that the Shovelhead was his “single most comfortable bike,” and that it was a genuine joy “hammering the twisty country roads in the coal region of Appalachia.” Looks like it pays off to have friends in all the right places, especially those who share the same enthusiasm for old Harley-Davidson iron.
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