For more than 25 years, Leo knew of this 1947 Knucklehead that was owned by one his friends.
In December of 2002, thanks to his lovely wife and sons, Leo received the bike of his dreams as a surprise birthday gift.
Produced from 1936 to 1947, the Harley Davidson type 61 is nicknamed “”Knucklehead”” by enthusiasts because of the shape of its rocker covers. The Type 61 is equipped with a 1200cc twin cylinder engine and a 4-speed hand shift gearbox with a foot clutch
The knucklehead is a retronym used by enthusiasts to refer to a Harley-Davidson motorcycle engine, so named because of the distinct shape of the rocker boxes. The engine is a two-cylinder, 45 degree, pushrod actuated overhead valve V-twin engine with two valves per cylinder. It was the third basic type of V-Twin engine used by Harley-Davidson, replacing the Flathead-engined VL model in 1936 as HD’s top-of-the-line model. The engine was manufactured until 1947 and was replaced by the Panhead engine in 1948. The Knucklehead-engined models were originally referred to as “OHVs” by enthusiasts of the time and in Harley’s official literature; the nickname arose from the California chopper culture of the late 1960s.
As the design of Harley-Davidson engines has evolved through the years, the distinctive shape of the valve covers has allowed Harley enthusiasts to classify an engine simply by looking at the shape of the cover. The knucklehead engine valve covers have contours resembling knuckles on a person’s fist that give the knucklehead its name.
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