The restoration story of 30V9772

 

Relatively little of the early history of the bike is known, other than that it was delivered new to the police department of the State of Maryland. The police link was established when, during its initial inspection when I took it home, one of the petrol tanks yielded the legend ‘Dept. of Mo*** ****cles, State of Mar***nd. I was puzzled by the layout of the wording, because filling in the gaps with what seemed logical did not fit the spaces of the missing letters. Following enquiries with the Motor Company, which led to nothing, the AMCA were able to inform me that in 1930, the police department of the state of Maryland were issued with their cars and motorcycles by the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles, the state motor pool. The missing letters fitted perfectly! There was the solution. It is not known when the bike was retired from police service, but could be expected to have been in ’36 or ’37 when the Knucklehead entered service.

Somehow, after its retirement, the motorcycle was exported to Norway where it lived its life until it was abandoned sometime in the mid-1960s and buried without ceremony in a field south of Stavanger. A friend of mine knew of the burial and thought no more about it until the mid-‘70s, when he acquired a 1941 ULH. He pondered whether or not the old machine rotting away in the field could give up some useful spare parts for his new bike and went to ask the farmer if he could exhume the body. Grudgingly, the farmer agreed and a digger was brought in. Once above ground, it was immediately clear that the bike was older than he’d recalled and shared little with the later machine. Wisely though, it was decided to keep the corpse in cold storage, ‘just in case’.

It lay in a barn in a very sorry state for the next five or six years, until I visited the farm to look at some ‘30s American cars and other vintage H-Ds, and noticed the old thing sitting there forlornly and suggested the possibility of a restoration. Without hesitation, my friend suggested that if I thought it even remotely possible, the wreck could leave with me there and then.

As can be expected, much of the old bike was beyond use, but remarkably, much was perfectly useable. My original idea was to restore it to the condition in which it left the factory all those years previously, but as work slowly progressed, it became obvious that so much would have to be replaced that the restored machine would be as much a replica as it would a restored original. So, a new plan was conceived. In later years, when UL was introduced, many refinements had been added to the specification, including 16” wheels with fatter tyres giving a smoother ride, recirculating oiler system, duplex frame, redesigned forks and so on. Owners of the earlier models, some even including those who owned the JDs and JDHs of the late ‘20s saw these refinements and began to modify their own machines. On the US west coast in particular, the idea of the ‘Bobber’ was born, where many superfluous parts such as the front mudguard, unemployed in the sunny California climate, were taken off and thrown away. The resultant machine was lean, mean and sexy. That’s what would become of 30V9772! Only one matter would have to be resolved first. Though on a westerly coast, in common with California, Scotland does not share a common climate. 350cm (138”) of rain annually would be the climate this bobber would have to live with, so the fenders had to stay, but how to make the bike look lean and mean, whilst staying reasonably dry in all that rain? I chose to fit ‘50s style fenders, with a centre rib to retain the air of past times in the design. As you can see, I have made up my own colour scheme of cream and maroon, with the original ’30 tank decals. I hope you’ll agree that the effect is tasteful, but sharp. I’ve fitted a ’31 pattern exhaust pipe, Delco Remy horn, pan saddle and that 16” back wheel. I’ve topped it off with some of my own make stainless steel parts and originals brightened up with chrome. The end product has stayed true I hope to its 1930s heritage, whilst reflecting what an enthusiastic owner of the forties or fifties might have done to spruce up a tired old bike. A Scottish bobber, or perhaps ‘Scobber’ is born from the rust and ashes of a long dead motorcycle.

At the time of writing, the bike has been ridden about 300 glorious happy miles (480km). Not everything has gone perfectly and one or two minor niggles have still to be rectified. The back tyre oiling system is working well, so the crank case breather needs to have its output limited. I have a cunning plan, based on the layout of my teenage 250cc Ducati MkIII breather, which had a hose to the tip of the bike’s back fender. Most inconvenient has been the battery charging. I’ve just started to get the hang of the adjustment of the 32E generator, with its three brush commutator. One recommendation I should make on experience, is to check which way round the wires fit to the terminals on any repro parts you may use. The wiring diagram does not show which way round they go other than by its physical appearance. The terminals in other words are not marked, and may not be the same way round as they were on the originals. Oh, and one more thing. If you have to send away an expensive part, such as in my case I sent my newly overhauled original crankshaft, including the new pistons to be balanced, make sure it is fully insured against loss or damaged. You see, the freight company Pegasus Express lost it. LOST IT!!! The original crank that was fitted in Milwaukee, lay buried with the bike and lovingly rebuilt with new shafts, bearings and pistons – lost forever. Can you imagine? Fortunately I was insured, but had I not been a drama would certainly have turned into a crisis. It was impossible to explain to the idiots at the freight company what the loss of an original part meant to me. You will all understand of course, so if you want to avoid a similar problem, at least take my advice and adequately insure what you send.

In June 11th 2003, the motorcycle will go back to Norway under power for the first time since the ‘60s and will return to the field from which it was exhumed. In celebration of its survival, several cold beers and reminiscences will be shared with the original owner before parading it in style through its old home village.