Panhead frame repair
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79 cone shovel - Location: California
Re: Panhead frame repair
Ok thanks I looked again and it either says 5 c,g,o maybe haha it's hard to tell
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Re: Panhead frame repair
That makes a lot more sense! I call it March of 1955, somewhere near the middle-late part of the 1955 production run. Your frame is a '55.
Also, none of your photos show the underside of the frame. Can you post a few? The concern would be the extent of the corrosion.
I agree that the integrity of the frame looks questionable, but what I see is a lot of surface rust. It's the areas of severe corrosion that cause concern for the entire frame- *internal corrosion* that you can't see.
Did you tap on the legs and dump out the crud to see how much there was?
Also, none of your photos show the underside of the frame. Can you post a few? The concern would be the extent of the corrosion.
I agree that the integrity of the frame looks questionable, but what I see is a lot of surface rust. It's the areas of severe corrosion that cause concern for the entire frame- *internal corrosion* that you can't see.
Did you tap on the legs and dump out the crud to see how much there was?
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79 cone shovel - Location: California
Re: Panhead frame repair
I will do the hammer in morning and can take better photos in morning of the bottom. Here are some for tonight.
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Re: Panhead frame repair
Surprisingly, the bottom of the lower tubes don't look bad. I was expecting to see serious corrosion, but it's just surface rust. However, it looks like the left lower leg took a hit right on the footboard tab. It's bent in right there, isn't it?
I can tell you that if it's bent there, it's bent out of whack somewhere else too, something you won't see unless it's on a frame table.
I can tell you that if it's bent there, it's bent out of whack somewhere else too, something you won't see unless it's on a frame table.
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Re: Panhead frame repair
Thanks for the extra photos. In the date code I agree the first character looks like 5 but I’m not sure if the letter is C or G. (Can’t be O because they only used A thru L.)
In your first picture below, under the arrow do I see a line that may be part of the letter G? Or is it just the photo?
Something else to check is the thread inside the small block I pointed to in your next picture. As I mentioned earlier, the thread was 5/16”-18 for 55-earlier model frames but it was 3/8”-24 for 56-later models. Also, don’t be misled by the thread on the portion of stud that is visible because the thread size may be different inside the block.
Eric
In your first picture below, under the arrow do I see a line that may be part of the letter G? Or is it just the photo?
Something else to check is the thread inside the small block I pointed to in your next picture. As I mentioned earlier, the thread was 5/16”-18 for 55-earlier model frames but it was 3/8”-24 for 56-later models. Also, don’t be misled by the thread on the portion of stud that is visible because the thread size may be different inside the block.
Eric
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79 cone shovel - Location: California
Re: Panhead frame repair
Hello everyone, I found a another $50 panhead frame this one looks to be from 1949 or 1950 and this one is in better condition then the last one. This one though has some tweeker rake attemp on it. Was hoping someone could give me any ideas on dyi fix deraking this abortion. Thanks
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Re: Panhead frame repair
It looks to me that the bent back bone tube, its high arch, is consistent with the seat post having been cut and jacked for a stroker motor clearance, or more likely, a head on collision with an unforgiving object.
PS: All the "castings" on an OEM Harley frame are actually much stronger forgings, but y'all know that......RooDog
PS: All the "castings" on an OEM Harley frame are actually much stronger forgings, but y'all know that......RooDog
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79 cone shovel - Location: California
Re: Panhead frame repair
Not sure if I’m reading correctly are you saying that the latest frame I posted is not an original panhead frame”besides the chopping and tweaked rake” ?
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Re: Panhead frame repair
It's an original L'48-'51 H-D frame. Some of the forgings such as floorboard mounts, dash mounts, toolbox mount have been removed in the 'chopping process'. That IS a bad rake job! My suggestion is to send that frame to a good frame repair place to have it repaired/straightened, rather than trying to 'do it youself'. Spend the money you didn't spend on a good frame to fix this one. It will be worth saving. Doc
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79 cone shovel - Location: California