2008 Harley Davidson Super Glide
As I watched the History of The making of the Harley Davidson, I was shocked and surprised to see how much effort and determination came from four young men. It all started in 1903 when four men William S. Harley, Arthur Davidson, Walter Davidson and William A. Davids came together. Each on of these men played a huge part towards the success of the Harley Davidson Company. In 1901, William S.
Harley, age 21, drew up plans for a small engine 7.07 cubic inches and four-inch (102 mm) flywheels. The engine was designed for use in a regular pedal-bicycle frame. Over the next two years Harley and his childhood friend Arthur Davidson labored on their motor-bicycle using the north side Milwaukee machine shop at the home of their friend, Henry Melk. It was finished in 1903 with the help of Arthur’s brother, Walter Davidson. Upon completion the boys found their power-cycle unable to conquer Milwaukee’s modest hills without pedal assistance. Will Harley and the Davidson’s quickly wrote off their first motor-bicycle as a valuable learning experiment. They headed back to there shed In the Davidson Family back yard to start the process all over. The first real Harley -Davidson had a bigger engine with flying wheels weighing 28lbs.
The First documented appearance of the Harley Davidson was seen at a Milwaukee State Fair Park at the Motorcycle Race in Sept 8th 1908 it came in fourth place. In January 1905, small advertisements were placed in the “Automobile and Cycle Trade Journal” that offered bare Harley-Davidson engines to the do-it-yourself trade. By April, complete motorcycles were in production on a very limited basis. That year the first Harley-Davidson dealer was born.
In 1906 Harley and The Davidson brothers built there first factory. However the railroad officials said the factory was on there property and had to be moved by so many feet. The Brothers were frustrated the brothers and all the employees moved the building . The factory is located on Chestnut street later know as Juneau Avenue and still remains Harley -Davidson Corporation Today.
By 1911, some 150 makes of motorcycles had already been built in the United States – although just a handful would survive the 1910s. In 1911, an improved V-Twin model was introduced. The new engine had mechanically operated intake valves, as opposed to the “automatic” intake valves used on earlier V-Twins that opened by engine vacuum. With a displacement of 49.48 cubic inches (810.8 cc), the 1911 V-Twin was smaller than earlier twins, but gave better performance. After 1913 the majority of bikes produced by Harley-Davidson would be V-Twin models.
Harley Davidson Provided about 15,000 Motorcycle to the Military it was the firt time a motorcycle was introduced into the war. By 1920, Harley-Davidson was the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world. Their motorcycles were sold by dealers in 67 countries. Production was 28,189 machines.
One of only two American cycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression, Harley-Davidson again produced large numbers of motorcycles for the US Army in World War II and resumed civilian production afterwards, producing a range of large V-twin motorcycles that were successful both on racetracks and for private buyers.
Harley-Davidson, on the eve of World War II, was already supplying the Army with a military-specific version of its 45″ WL line, called the WLA. (The A in this case stood for “Army”.) Upon the outbreak of war, the company, along with most other manufacturing enterprises, shifted to war work. Over 90,000 military motorcycles, mostly WLAs and WLCs (the Canadian version) would be produced, many to be provided to allies. Harley-Davidson received two Army-Navy ‘E’ Awards, one in 1943 and the other in 1945, which were awarded for Excellence in Production. From the 1950’s through the 1970’s The Movie Studio’s damaged Harley image with many outlaw biker gang films , Harley – Davidson was now infamous with the Hell’s Angels and many other outlaw motorcycle clubs…
In 1969, American Machinery and Foundry (AMF) bought the company, streamlined production, and slashed the workforce. This tactic resulted in a labor strike and a lower quality of bikes. The bikes were expensive and inferior in performance, handling, and quality to Japanese motorcycles. Sales declined, quality plummeted, and the company almost went bankrupt. The “Harley-Davidson” name was mocked as “Hardly Ableson”, “Hardly Driveable,” and “Hogly Ferguson”,
I In 1977, Harley-Davidson produced what has become one of its most controversial models, the Confederate Edition. The bike was essentially a stock Harley with Confederate-specific paint and details. The e Harley was not as popular with the AMF Stickers The Company was Sold back the Harley Davidson where it still remains today.
Through out the history of the Harley , The four Founder’s never gave up and stood by there product and inventions. There are thousands of Harley Distributors through the world. Selling Motorcycles and Harley Davidson apparel.
It’s like no other ride. It’s freedom, sunshine, open road and graceful curves. It’s called the Loop and for motorcycle enthusiasts everywhere, it’s a riders dream.