1979 Perennial Panhead - 3-Page Vintage Custom Chopper Motorcycle Article

Description

1979 Perennial Panhead - 3-Page Vintage Custom Chopper Motorcycle Article
Original, Vintage Magazine article
Page Size: Approx. 8" x 11" (21 cm x 28 cm) each page
Condition: Good
PERENNIAL
PANHEAD
With Decades of Innovation,
Application and Inspiration
Behind It, the Panhead Gets
Better and Better Throughout
the Years
Harley-Davidson owners thrive on
the uniqueness of the V-twin design.
Called by some a dated engine design,
it has nevertheless become the tradi-
tional mark of American biking. Inter-
mixed in this clan of V'ers are panhead
owners and enthusiasts.
There is nothing radically different
about pans in relation to knuck-
leheads and shovelheads. In fact, of
the three designs, (his is probably the
most aesthetically conservative and
subtle of the lot. But panhead owners
for some reason lake unmatched pride
in the lineage of their bikes. It isn’t
uncommon for a pan owner to review
a list of parts added to his bike from
various years; “It's got '52 rods, the
right case is a ’54, the left a ’50, the
heads are from a '55 and '56 . . . ” And
the list goes on.
One reason for this devoted atten-
tion to the parentage of parts is that
the panhead owner rarely sells his
bike. Once he lays the bucks down and
takes possession, it is likely a long time
before ownership is transferred again.
In this respect, panhead owners are a
conservative lot. If Archie Bunker rode
a Hawg, he would probably have a
panhead.
The most passionate perennial pan-
head owners are the custom bikers.
Without fail, most of them do some
sort of teardown each winter to update
the bike for the foliowins ridins sea-
son. Don Coffey of Rochester, New
York is one of these. Having owned his
panhead over five years, the bike has
never set tread on cold pavement. It
has been suspended up on blocks dur-
ing those cold months while Don and
his friends put the torch, bondo and
brush to it. What you see here is the
latest rendition of his 1958 pan.
At a glance this bike appears to be a
show scooter, which it is, having won
Best Bike four out of four times. But
Don also rides it every day. It’s his
transportation bike as well as a custom
show bike. For this reason, Don made
doubly sure the engine was reliable,
from intake to exhaust, valve cover to
oil drain plug. The parts enlisted had
to prove their worth or be scrapped.
The stock stroke was retained', and
the cylinders bored .020-inch over.
Stock pistons are used. Bill White
made sure all moving parts were bal-
anced, then all the parts were blue-
printed to specs prior to assembly.
Don fabricated the clear distributor
cap. Then to dress the outside of the...
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