Harley and the Davidsons


Book Description

This addition to the Badger Biographies series tells the story of four young inventors who shared a dream: to create the best motorized bicycle in America. Their turn of the century aspirations took them from a backyard machine shop to a highly successful business empire - and all in the span of just a few years. With grit, determination, and not a little elbow grease, Bill Harley and the Davidson brothers - Arthur, William, and Walter - used their engineering and machine-shop expertise to continually perfect their designs and present the best possible products to the American public. Along the way they made their mark on the racing circuit and introduced safety measures that continue to this day. After their deaths, their sons and daughters continued this legacy, buying back the company after it changed hands and re-establishing Harley-Davidson as the king of the motorcycle world. From the old Knucklehead, Panhead and Shovelhead motors to the Evolution, Revolution and Twin Cam engines that followed, the story of Harley and the Davidsons remains one of the great success stories of the 20th century.




Jean Davidson's Harley-Davidson Family Album


Book Description

Here's an inside look at Harley-Davidson as only family members could tell it! Jean Davidson's Harley-Davidson Family Album presents never-before-seen family photos, as well as personal stories from the perspective of a family member and former Harley-Davidson dealer. Jean Davidson, the granddaughter of Walter Davidson, one of the four founders and the first president of Harley-Davidson, and the daughter of company vice-president Gordon Davidson, shares such family stories as: how four boys built their first bike in a shed in 1902, speculation about how the firm was named, how the family's rich hermit uncle saved the fledgling corporation from bankruptcy, the story behind the Silent Gray Fellow, and the sale and buy-back of the company. It also includes photos and reminiscences from Sarah and Mary Harley, granddaughters of William S. Harley. This memoir of the Harley-Davidson motorcycling dynasty presents a family album of rare photos of family members and fun photos of all those fabulous Harley-Davidson motorcycles: putting a personal face on the world's most famous motorcycle maker.




Growing Up Harley-Davidson


Book Description

Motorcycles have been a way of life for Jean Davidson. Her grandfather was Walter Davidson, one of the four founders and the first president of Harley-Davidson. Her father was company vice president Gordon Davidson. And Jean herself was a Harley-Davidson dealer, rubbing elbows with all the Harleys and Davidsons as well as the Hell's Angels and Outlaws, famous racers, and Evel Knievel. This is the history of Harley-Davidson motorcycles no one else knew-until now! Here is the fairy-tale story of how four boys built their first motorcycle in a shed; how a slippery-handed maid stole all the company's earnings from the coffee can that served as their "bank"; and how a hermit uncle donated his life's savings to resurrect the company and set it on the path to becoming the world's most famous motorcycle maker. Here is the inside scoop on behind-the-boardroom-door politics and corporate battles, the unknown history of the first Knucklehead and Sportster, the secret friendship with arch-rival Indian motorcycles, and more. Here are family stories and rare photos from the family album that no one else has seen before.




The Harley-Davidson Source Book


Book Description

The Harley-Davidson Source Book is the ultimate curated survey of the ultimate motorcycle. It details the most significant designs and models throughout the Motor Company's history.




The Complete Harley-Davidson


Book Description

Arranged chronologically, presents a history of every major motorcycle model produced by the legendary company since 1903.




Harley-Davidson


Book Description

From the appearance of the first single cylinder engine, followed by its twin cylinders, the Harley-Davidson has distinguished itself by its imposing models, known for their trustworthiness and endurance, and by their many wins on the racetrack. The motorcycles, powered by V-Twin Harley-Davidson engines, have forged the legend of this American brand - already in business for over a century - through families of highly prestigious names: Hydra Glide, then Duo Glide and finally Electra Glide, and also Softail, Dyna, V-Rod and Sportster--names that exist and have persisted, in the case of certain models, for more than 50 years. In spite of competition that in late years from America and then from the UK and Japan, Harley-Davidson has prevailed because of the innovations it has introduced - at times belatedly, but always the fruit of sensible reflections - and because it has diversified its family of motorcycles to make them correspond to the public's expectations. Without falling into the trap of expanding technological innovations to an exaggerated level, the new Harley-Davidsons have become motorcycles offering modern performance while at the same time conserving the spirit of the brand and, above all, that special Harley-Davidson character. All you need to do is climb onto the saddle and rev up a Harley-Davidson to discover a new motorcycling universe, where the concept of pleasure reveals new meaning. This is the universe that this book invites you to discover, through the history of the brand's main models, embodying nearly 110 years of motorcycling adventures, and touching upon touring, sport, customisation and a simple and outright passion for motorcycles. AUTHOR: Pascal Szymezak is a motorbike journalist. He has worked as an editorial consultant for music-themed volumes and, in particular, he was the curator of the title 'Heavy Metal,' and worked on graphic design for the book 'Dream Cars of the Twenty-First Century' (2013). Illustrated




The Harley in the Barn


Book Description

Break into that barn - you know you want to - there might be a vintage Harley inside. If you won't break in, Tom Cotter will; amazing motorcycles await. Driving down a country road, a flash of chrome catches your eye as you pass an old farmstead. Next time you roll by, you slow down and focus on a shed behind the house. Could that be? Good lord, it is! Hard on the brakes, quick reverse, and pull in the drive. Yep, it's a vintage Triumph Bonneville peering forlornly from beneath a tattered cover. You've just begun the journey that fuels the dreams of every motorcycle collector: the long-forgotten machine, rediscovered. The Harley in the Barn offers forty-plus tales of lost Nortons, hidden Hondas, dormant Indians, and busted BSAs, all squirreled away from prying eyes but found by lucky collectors just like you. Author Tom Cotter is not only a barn-find master, he's also master of discovering the collectors with the best stories and the most outlandish finds. In The Harley in the Barn, all those great stories are told. If you can't pass a padlocked garage without wondering if there's a great old bike stashed inside, this is your book. Hell, this is your life.




The Harley-Davidson and Indian Wars


Book Description

Allan Girdler. This colorful reprint examines the dueling marques right up through Indian's dissolution in the 1950s.




Ultimate Harley Davidson


Book Description

Celebrate more than a century of Harley-Davidson history with this definitive e-guide. Ultimate Harley-Davidson tells the story of the world's greatest motorcycle marque - from its origins in a backyard shed to the international company it is today. Gloriously illustrated gallery spreads showcase more than 70 of the best Harleys ever built, highlighting and exploring their defining features. Spectacular close-ups of key engines explain how the classic Harleys ran, while an updated catalogue of every production model provides technical data and key specs for each bike - including racing models, special one-offs, and limited-edition production runs. From the early bikes and their key innovations to the v-rods and sports bikes of recent years, it is the complete guide for lovers of this American classic. Whether you're an easy rider or born to be wild, there is only one Harley-Davidson, and this is the book for you.