Many of the Harleys had survived the front lines of afar only
to fall to the saw in the streets at home. "Everyone was
chopping these bikes and turning them into civilian models,
like I did in the 70s," he said. "I threw all the
military stuff away. They're probably the most chopped up motorcycle
in the history of motorcycles."
However, those early hard tail experiences left a lasting
impression on Metcalfe. "I always liked the military
ones and always had a fascination for them," he said.
"I even had a number of friends who used to be dispatch
riders." Thirty years, and 20 vintage motorcycles, later,
Metcalfe and his son Cory decided to find a WLC and restore
it exactly to the condition the Canadian military would have
received it in 1942.
Dedicating nearly all its production capacity in the early
1940s to the war effort, Harley Davidson produced more than
90,000 WL's for the Allies during the Second World War. Powered
by a 45 cubic inch power plant, the bikes understandably sacrificed
power and comfort for reliability. The side-valve design sported
only a medium compression ratio. The front forks wore their
suspension springs on the outside while the rear wheel was
given no suspension, giving rise to the hard tail nickname.
"They call it the bike that won the war," Metcalfe
explained. "It was the answer until the Jeep came along
a few years later. It was a big, tough, durable bike that
could go."
Metcalfe started his search in 2003 by contacting enthusiasts
and taking out advertisements across Canada informing people
of his desires for an original condition 1942 Harley WLC.
In short time, he found an excellent specimen in Regina, Sask.
A friend of Met-calfe's had recently restored the engine and
transmission in the Regina Harley dealership. A trace of the
serial number showed the bike had been delivered to the Canadian
military in January of 1942 and shipped to Europe in spring
of that year.
What the bike had in drive train restoration it partially
lacked in military trim, forcing Metcalfe and his son to embark
on a continent wide scavenger hunt. They frequented antique
motorcycle and military swap meets like the one held every
year in Davenport, Iowa, searching for things such as an authentic
blackout kit and headlamp. One item Metcalfe was able to source
locally, in Shilo, Man., was the 1942 Sten gun. The submachine
gun, now disabled, would have been originally issued to dispatch
riders in WWII. Out of the 4.5 million Sten guns produced
during the Second World War, Metcalfe's bears the serial number
103.
Despite making the motorcycle historically accurate in every
way possible, Metcalfe always intended it to be on the road
and not in a museum. "The concept of this bike was never
to be a 100-point show bike. It's authentic but we ride the
thing. It's got gas and oil and the battery is hooked up.
It's not a trailer queen."
The Metcalfes put hundreds of kilometers on the old hard
tail every year. "It's a beautiful ride. At 60 miles
per hour you could ride around the world six times,"
he said.
And despite not being a dedicated show bike, the WLC has
proven to be a showstopper wherever it pulls up. It has drawn
everyone from motorcycle enthusiasts to Second World War history
buffs. "Military ones complete with all the accessories
and done up in military trim are very hard to come by, very
rare. And yet, originally, it wasn't a rare motorcycle at
all."
|
