up for bid is my 1968 ironhead sportster. good running bike with lots of very rare parts on it including some 50's K model stuff. since ive bought the bike ive been able to learn some very interesting history of it. ill start by telling the story as i know it. the bike is titled as a 1968, but the bike is actually older than that. it was an insurance re-claim bike, meaning the bike was stolen at one point and then recovered by the insurance company after the payout was already made on the claim. it was then retitled, and new numbers stamped by the state of michigan in 1968. which is why its titled 68. the new numbers start with MICH instead of XLCH. the title is 100% free and clear, titled in my name. the true year of the bike is unknown to me, but i would guess early to mid 60's. i bought it from a guy in Cincinnati a couple of years ago, and when i got it i posted some pics of it on the jockey journal forum site, and miraculously found the guy who had put it together. the guy who put the bike together had a shop somewhere in the midwest and acquired the motor/title from a harley tech school graduate who had rebuilt the motor at the school during his attendance. when exactly the motor was built i do not know. the rest of the bike was pieced together with parts he had laying around at the shop. some very rare parts im sure he wishes he still had today including a true 1950's K Model front end and front wheel, and the super rare, and sought after K model racing oil tank. oil tank is in exceptional condition. bike was assembled in 2003. the bike switched hands a few times before i got a hold of it in 2011. how many miles were put on the bike in that time i do not know.
this is a good running bike. i rarely ride it, sometimes on the weekend, maybe 50-100 miles. motor seems to be in good condition. the only things i have done to it are as follows: i put new head and rocker gaskets as the rockers were leaking a little. i did notice there are .030" over pistons while i was in there. magneto gaskets were leaking so i replaced those. just put a brand new barnets wet clutch. new kicker gears and ratchet gears. new plug wires. new solid state voltage regulator. other than that just general maintenance.
while i had the heads off i inspected everything including cylinder walls, valve seats, guides etc. everything looked good. i did put a fressh lap on the valves just to insure a good seat. bike does leak a little bit of oil, as to be expected.
tires are good, avon on the back and firestone on the front. lots of tread, no dry rotting. magneto works great. pretty clean overall for the age. the paint is not original, but was done in 03 by the builder. its an old panhead paint scheme.
really hate to sell this one as these older 60's mag models are getting very hard to find. need the money for other, more pressing projects.
PLEASE NOTE: this is an old bike, and sold as is. please look at photos and video closely.
$200 deposit via paypal due at end of auction. remainder to be paid in CASH ONLY upon pick up. deal sealed with a hand shake in person only. no shipping, you must come pick it up. i do offer a final chance to look over the bike when you come to get it. if you should decide you dont want it i will refund the deposit and cancel the sale, no hard feelings.
feel free to ask questions i will answer promptly in most cases.
dont miss this rare opportunity to own a piece of american history.
happy bidding. thanks. J Ryan
