| While
many felt the Knucklehead's life was
cut unduly short, the Panhead that
replaced it for 1948 offered some
valuable improvements. Most notable of
these was a switch to hydraulic valve
lifters, which automatically took up
any slack in the valvetrain and did
not need constant adjustment. As a
result, Panheads produce less engine
noise and required less maintenance.
They also ran a little cooler, because
the heads were now made of
aluminum.
.
|
1948
1949 |
Panhead
engine is introduced for
1948, featuring hydraulic
lifters and aluminum heads. Four
speed transmissions get new
shift pattern with first toward
the rider (actually a 1947
change). New engine is offered
in two sizes: 61 and 74 cubis
inches. Panhead is well
received, boosting sales to a
record 32,000 units. Theft
resistant steering-head lock
added. 1949's Hydra-Glide brings
modern telescopic forks to
replace the previous
leaking-link arrangement. |
The
next few years brought only minor
revisions, but 1952 saw the
introduction of a
hand-clutch/foot-shift option for the
big twins. Like any change from
tradition, this modern arrangement
took a while to catch hold. But by
mid-decade, most riders had made the
switch, and though hand-shifts were
offered by Harley through 1978, annual
demand only rarely topped 200 units.
More
big news came in 1953, though it
affected the motorcycle market more
than the motorcycles themselves: After
nearly 50 years as Harley's
arch-rival, the Indian Motorcycle
Company finally closed it's doors.
While the tendency would be to credit
Indian's demise to superior products
from Harley Davidson, that wouldn't be
altogether accurate. Indian had been
suffering since before the war,
and though competition from Harley
surely didn't help matters, neither
did the postwar competition from
overseas. and it wasn't helping Harley
Davidson either.
After
the war, both Indian and Harley
Davidson offered smaller bikes that
more closely rivaled their European
challengers. Indian's efforts didn't
do the company mush good, and Harley's
had rather mixed results.
Though
minor alterations were made over the
next several years, a major
advancement wouldn't come until the
Panhead's final season. But a major
advancement it was: After 60 years of
having to pedal or kick thier Harley's
into life, riders were finally
afforded the luxury of electric
starting with the 1965 Electra Glide.
Though that name would live on for
years to come, the Panhead would not.
It was time for a change; one that
some enthusiasts felt was not
necessarily for the better..
|
