The amount of recognition Matt McManus slathered over his 1947 FL Knuckle would shame a museum historian with Obsessive-compulsive disorder. He made the motorcycle precisely how a bobber would've appeared in the 50's. Every nut and bolt has the correct factory finish on it, even though situations and unique preference dictated a few diversions from time to time.
This was not his very first rodeo, though. He and his old man each love themselves some aged knuckle heads. They have individually raised from the dead a couple of the old girls in the whole duration of their lives. Matt built another 1947 just before the current project.
From his descriptionyou may almost think of the very first knuckle like a test bike for this.
"The very first motorcycle was okay however it wasn't precisely what I dreamed of. Another person had began developing it and that I simply completed it from what was left behind," he says.
The earliest was offered by Matt at an vintage bike swap meet. Some guy fell in love with it and unconditionally had to purchase it. Even though he was uncertain at first, he ultimately caved and scooted out the swap meet without the knuckle head but with a fat pocket.
That ended up for the best. The challenge with the first project was that Matt stepped in when the motorcycle was less half original from another builder's styles and Matt just glued in the pieces. Imagine this as a kind of starter house, it's not ideal, but the worth in it helps you to acquire what you desire the very next time. He poured the money from the sale to make the motorcycle you see here.
Matt's first order of business was research. McManus checked old pictures, bike mags and photos on the internet to get an idea of what changes and gear were done to these motorcycles back in the fifties. Matt knew the significant stuff. What he was looking for were the normal changes. Next, it was a question of setting up that knowledge into the project. Largely, that meant searching high and low to obtain all the parts. What if you decided to buy a vintage knuckle and every little thing was working well, there wouldn't be much of a restoration tale in it, right?
He fully rebuilt the motor. It was similar to hunting for treasure. He bought the cases from one place, barrels from another, and so on. Part by ancient part he set it all together, and after that took the motor to Ben's V-twins where they carried out the machine task and put it all back together. The authentic parts were used up, though. Because Matt was restructuring this bike as a rider and not a museum curator, Matt planned good quality alternatives on the inside. That's why he went with S&S pistons, rods, Rowe valves, and an Andrews S grind cam. At this point, Matt has already logged 13K miles on it without a hitch.
There isn't much of fabrication on this motorcycle but what little there is comes straight from Matt himself. He bobbed the rear fender and topped it with a taillight. Even the exhaust has his handy work on it. He took a couple of headers and crafted the rest himself. It took Matt seven months from hunting parts to paint to reinvigorate this motorcycle.
"I've thought about changing the bike around later on by putting the original fenders and seat back on it, but for now I'm just gonna let those parts and accessories like harley hand grips and the likes, lay around and relish the motorcycle how it is now," says Matt.
This was not his very first rodeo, though. He and his old man each love themselves some aged knuckle heads. They have individually raised from the dead a couple of the old girls in the whole duration of their lives. Matt built another 1947 just before the current project.
From his descriptionyou may almost think of the very first knuckle like a test bike for this.
"The very first motorcycle was okay however it wasn't precisely what I dreamed of. Another person had began developing it and that I simply completed it from what was left behind," he says.
The earliest was offered by Matt at an vintage bike swap meet. Some guy fell in love with it and unconditionally had to purchase it. Even though he was uncertain at first, he ultimately caved and scooted out the swap meet without the knuckle head but with a fat pocket.
That ended up for the best. The challenge with the first project was that Matt stepped in when the motorcycle was less half original from another builder's styles and Matt just glued in the pieces. Imagine this as a kind of starter house, it's not ideal, but the worth in it helps you to acquire what you desire the very next time. He poured the money from the sale to make the motorcycle you see here.
Matt's first order of business was research. McManus checked old pictures, bike mags and photos on the internet to get an idea of what changes and gear were done to these motorcycles back in the fifties. Matt knew the significant stuff. What he was looking for were the normal changes. Next, it was a question of setting up that knowledge into the project. Largely, that meant searching high and low to obtain all the parts. What if you decided to buy a vintage knuckle and every little thing was working well, there wouldn't be much of a restoration tale in it, right?
He fully rebuilt the motor. It was similar to hunting for treasure. He bought the cases from one place, barrels from another, and so on. Part by ancient part he set it all together, and after that took the motor to Ben's V-twins where they carried out the machine task and put it all back together. The authentic parts were used up, though. Because Matt was restructuring this bike as a rider and not a museum curator, Matt planned good quality alternatives on the inside. That's why he went with S&S pistons, rods, Rowe valves, and an Andrews S grind cam. At this point, Matt has already logged 13K miles on it without a hitch.
There isn't much of fabrication on this motorcycle but what little there is comes straight from Matt himself. He bobbed the rear fender and topped it with a taillight. Even the exhaust has his handy work on it. He took a couple of headers and crafted the rest himself. It took Matt seven months from hunting parts to paint to reinvigorate this motorcycle.
"I've thought about changing the bike around later on by putting the original fenders and seat back on it, but for now I'm just gonna let those parts and accessories like harley hand grips and the likes, lay around and relish the motorcycle how it is now," says Matt.
