WWII courier model

DarkKnight

Seriously, if the MoCo knew those bikes were gonna be working in sand so much, don't you think someone would have thought to address that back then? Makes total sense to me!

I look forward to seeing this project in progress Joe... post pics as you go please.

roaddawg4life

i have got a couple shots of the XA models they were quite the machine

roaddawg4life

also something else i just thought of if you do the 45 make sure you get a bike trannie and not one for a trike cause the 45 servs had a reverse gear along the normal 3 speeds also it wouldnt hurt to get a harley interchange book these came out quite a few years back (i have one ) j&p cycles sells them i believe it might be called what fits what or something like that it will help you with what will interchange on the vintage iron
just thought i would pass this on
later
roaddawg4life

roaddawg4life

you know i think they would have but i think at the rate just to keep up with the germans ,i dont think everthing was thought out.when you think about they converted international harvester truck plants to build 03 rifles and other auto plants remachineing to build tanks etc i figure there was a lot of get into production so it could be used in the field not a lot of time taken to work out all the design flaws .now as for the XA the way i understand it was made to go after rommel in the african desert ,i think we was playing catch up on some of these things so thats why i figure harley & indian both kinda copied the bmw in its design. the bmw had already been proven in desert war fare with its opposed cylinders and shaft drive we just had to make our own version of it , and had to do it in a hurry to try to stop rommel.at least this is my oppion
and i have been known to be wrong .i guess only the moco would know for sure
later
roaddawg4life

joesnuffy

That's absolutely right, roaddawg. IBM, I-H, Rock-Ola (juke box maker) Postal Meter, and many others switched their tooling for war time production. the Germans' engineering was and still is far superior to ours. The engine in the Focke-Wulf fighter, for example, I believe was made by Mercedes-Benz to some seriously tight tolerances. Same as Beemers. The Germans have always been famous for building tight, excellent running machinery. That's why you still see all of those old Mercedes, V-Ws, Beemers, Opels, and so forth running up and down the roads. You just can't trash one of those old 4-cylinder V-W engines!! I still love my H-Ds above all, though.

Hobbit

errr urmmmm arrrrr was not not me, i did not do it, quick look over there.............................phew nobody saw me
German engineering is very good but its not unbreakable - my MK2 8v Golf Gti grenaded at 150+mph(speedo only ran to 150 and i was beating a 5series BMW limited to 155mph), but fair play it still got me home and on ivestigation both me and my dad were amazed.
cracked block, 3 of the remaining valves were fine, no holes in pistons, head gasket was intact, supercharger was fine but the fuel pumps and crank were toast it appeared i was running on only the lift pump in the tank due to the main already being burnt out and the oil draining out the block ruined the crank. would i buy another oh yes but this time the V6

joesnuffy

I wasn't trying to imply "unbreakability" to any German made machinery, Hobbit, but that anecdote does reinforce my point. I've seen those beetle bug engines to the point of almost being molten metal and still running--almost! Anyway, I'm quite sure that is why H-D modeled the XA off of the Beemer. They probably figured "What the hell-they work for Rommel!"

roaddawg4life

hay i have been checking out a awesome antique motorcycle sitefor around a week now this site has hundereds of old pictures (a lot of wwII shot )i have only made it through the german and the english bikes so far i did find out the germans had lots of different makes of motorcycles that was shaft drive and a few makes with opposed cylinders im sending the link for so any one that wants to check out the old bikes can go and enjoy
http://www.autogallery.org.ru/mota.htm
have fun at this site
later
roaddawg4life

joesnuffy

Thanks alot, Roaddawg. I plan to find several pictures from various angles and enlarge them as needed to put up as references. I'm going to need all the help I can get on this one, I do believe. It looks like the engine will be a major sticking point. They make repro Knuckleheads, Panheads, and Shovelheads, but no Flatheads! I may wind up building the engine from components. I asked the counterman in parts at J&P about it and he said they are in line for being reproduced, but not for a couple of years at least
and he doesn't know of anywhere to get them. Maybe I'll just build the bike and deal with the engine when they come out. BTW, if anyone sees or knows where I can get the scabbard for the Tommy gun and saddlebags, let me know!! That will be another major sticking point. I did find a seat, though.
Just went and checked it out. Excellent pictures and spec sheet as well. should be a great help!

Hobbit

a good saddler or leather craftsman should be able to make those items for you, we have people over here that would make them but they would not be cheap due to the exchange rate and shipping