1945 Harley Davidson FL

What motivated you to start your project?

This build was started by the death of a friend. Let me start from the beginning. In 1975 I bought a 1945 FL Knucklehead chopper, it was nine feet long. Over the next fifteen years I rode it across the country three times and changed its configuration a few times. I even shipped it to Hawaii for a couple years to be with me on a job over there.

1990 I got myself in some money trouble and had to sell the old gal. A friend of mine bought her with the understanding if it ever came up for sale I would get first shot.
Fast forward thirty three years… my friend lost his fight with cancer. He had left word with his wife to work out something with me to get the bike back to me. She did and I went and picked it up.
The bike had been taken apart probably twenty five years ago. Some of it was back together but it was a little sketchy so I took it down the rest of the way.
Hoping the motor had weathered the storm I slammed the bike back together cause I wanted to ride her really bad. Hell, my ol buddy was home and I needed to go for a ride.
The motor was trashed, so it came apart.  Luckily my Bro Jack Silva builds Harley motors and has for years. Jack knocked it out of the park, I helped puttin it back together, sorta, well I did the heads.
Because it took a while to gather up all the pieces for the motor I had the time to go through the whole bike again and do it all like I should have to begin with. I even did the paint, my first attempt at a paint job.
Seven months later my ol buddy and me were once again on the road together. What a great feeling.
I was pissed off at myself from the minute I sold her, I felt like I had sold out my best friend right up to the day I got her back.
My ol lady was baggin on me (cause I’m 71 years old) about bein able to start it and because I put the jockey back on it be able to ride it. My response to her was “I’ll do both or die tryin.

It fires right up almost always on the first kick just like it used to back in the day and I’m  gettin reacquainted with the jockey.
I love this ol bike till death do us part.

What was the most unique and creative thing you did to the bike?

Lots of fab work that doesn’t show but probably the sissy bar. It’s solid stainless, I didn’t want to deal with the chrome shop. After it was all welded together I polished it.