Here at the museum, we've got an ever-growing collection of rare artifacts from the Harley-Davidson Motor Company.  Over the past forty years, I've come across some of the most interesting peices and continue to search far and wide for historical memorabilia from the early days of American motorcycling.  From photos, to old oil cans, to factory literature and promotional materials, I'm always keeping an eye out for great pieces that will add to the overall experience at Wheels Through Time. 

One of my favorite peices in the museum sits right in the showcase in the museum's front foyer.  Its a roladex of paint chips from the Harley factory.  Now before I get to in depth, I'll share a bit of history as to Harley-Davidson paintwork. 

Back in the early days, the Harley-Davidson motorcycle was known as the "Silent Grey Fellow".  This name was given, I believe, for two reasons.  First, the "silent":  Harley-Davidson motorcycles were renowned for their quite nature.  The machines featured single cylinder motor, with an "atmospheric" combustion chamber -- the intake valve was opened via a pushrod, and the exhaust was opened via suction.  This proved to be a somewhat docile motor, and was quieter than the side-valve or "I over E" design used by countless other companies.  These machines were also equipped with an exhaust cutout, which would allow the rider to close the exhaust for quite running.  "Why?" you ask.  Because it was the polite thing to do.  Many folks back then still used horses as their means of transporation, and such a cut-out would allow motorcyclists to pass without spoking the horses.  A little known fact, but indeed true.  As for the "Grey" in Silent Grey Fellow -- you guessed it....they were Grey.  Actually from 1906 through 1915, the only colors that Harley offered were Grey and....Grey. 

In 1916, Harley-Davidson changed it up.  Optioning out of the "old-style" Grey Fellow paint scheme, the H-D Motor Company went a new route, painting each of their machines, from factory racers to road models, green.  It wasn't until 1932, that the tides would change again. 

1932 brought new light into the eyes of Harley-Davidson customers.  Although the well-known green from the past 15 or so years was still an option, the Motor Company introduced color options for their new models, and by 1933, the old green was a thing of the past.  Offering colors such as Mandarin Red, Sunshine Blue, and Orlando Orange, the company began to let customers "individualize" their machines with different colors.  And by 1936, the motor company was encouraging dealers to have their customers order custom colors. 

The paint roladex at the museum is made up of just that -- custom colors and color schemes from the Harley-Davidson Motor Companies Juneau Avenue Paint Department from the 1930s and 40s.  Incredible stuff.  Theres at least 25 or 30 different color combos, showing the primary color, secondary color, and different stripe options.  And these are no ordinary paint schemes -- orange, red and silver;  Green, red and gold; Yellow orange and green.  We're actually doing a 1936 H-D Knucklehead with one of the custom colors right now -- Gold and Black with a red stripe -- and its almost finished.  I'll be sure to post a picture when its done. 

So next time you're visiting the museum, be sure to check out the Custom Color Roladex in the big showcase up front.  Its quite a piece of history, and it still gets used to this day.

-- Dale