Tom Cotter - The Vincent in the Barn: Great Stories of Motorcycle Archaeology

Great Stories of
Motorcycle Archaeology

TOM COTTER
FOREWORD BY DAVID EDWARDS
Editor-in-chief Cycle World magazine

To my nephew Ian, who is battling Lyme disease. A portion of the proceeds from this book will be donated to the cure of this illness.

First published in 2009 by Motorbooks, an imprint of MBI Publishing Company,
400 First Avenue North, Suite 300, Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA

Copyright 2009, 2010 by Tom Cotter
Hardcover published in 2009. Digital edition 2010.

All rights reserved. With the exception of quoting brief passages for the purposes of review, no part of this publication may be reproduced without prior written permission from the Publisher. The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. All recommendations are made without any guarantee on the part of the author or Publisher, who also disclaims any liability incurred in connection with the use of this data or specific details. We recognize, further, that some words, model names, and designations mentioned herein are the property of the trademark holder. We use them for identification purposes only. This is not an official publication.

Motorbooks titles are also available at discounts in bulk quantity for industrial or sales-promotional use. For details write to Special Sales Manager at MBI Publishing Company, 400 First Avenue North, Suite 300, Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA.

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Digital edition: 978-1-61673-027-7
Hardcover edition: 978-0-7603- 3535-2

Editors: Lee Klancher and Zack Miller. Design Manager: Brenda C. Canales.
Layout by: Mike Vineski

On the cover, main image: Rick Schunks 1948 Series B Vincent Black Shadow emerges from a Minnesota barn in an artful interpretation of every motorcycle collectors dream. Rick Schunk

Detail: Motorcycle collectors scour the earth looking for long-forgotten machines. This 1943 Indian 741 military model was hiding in a basement near Moscow. Dick Fritz

On the frontispiece:

There is something very beautiful in the patina of an unrestored machine.
Tom Cotter

On the back cover:

Harry R. Pauls home-built racer. Following the age-old hot rod tradition of wedging large engines into smaller machines, Harry equipped his Indian Scout with an Indian Chief motor to make an effective flat-track and scrambles weapon. Dormant for five decades, the machine appeared in a Craigslist ad and was scooped up by collector Dale Walksler. Tom Cotter (color); Dale Walksler collection (black and white)

Printed in China

Everybody loves a good barn-find story. The best of the tales read like juicy detective novels. There are hidden clues, rumor and intrigue, false hope, shadowy characters, high-stakes negotiations, invariably a trying voyage, sometimes even outright danger. But work through the plot twists, stay on the hunt, mix with a little good luck, and at the conclusion we have a happy, satisfying outcome. In the end, barn-find stories are all about resurrection.

Not to belittle the efforts of the car collectors in Tom Cotters previous two books, The Cobra in the Barn and The Hemi in the Barn, but they had it easy compared with unearthing hidden motorcycles. Due to its size, a sequestered car does indeed need to be stored in a barn or garage. Not so a two-wheeler. Not much bigger than a Schwinn, many go subterranean and end up in basements. Others ascend: A couple of healthy guys can hump a non-runner up several flights of stairs for safekeeping. Some get bricked in behind walls for the ultimate in antitheft. Heck, break a bike down to its basic componentsmotor, frame, tinware, and wheelsand it can be stored in a small closet.

As is often the case, my own favorite barn-find story came about completely by accident and turned out to be quite the quest. I was in the Cycle World library one day, researching a story, when I spied an old 1954 Cycle magazine with the cover blurb Indian V-8! Now, Indian never made a V-8, but Bill Drabek, a lanky Texas car mechanic, certainly did. He had a 1940 Indian Four with a duff motor and, by chance, a Ford V8-60, the smaller 2,200cc version of Henrys famous flathead. Drabek combined the two to create an eight-cylinder Indian that spanned 9 feet fender tiptofender tip and weighed in at almost a half ton, some 965 pounds. Resplendent in Kelvinator white, it was said to be good for 95 miles per hour in second gearand there were two more gears to go!

Great story, I thought, Ill contact the builder and see if he still has the bike; a follow-up should make for interesting reading. What then transpired was six months of sleuthing that included tracking down additional stories about the bike in Mechanix Illustrated and the Ford Times, calls to old newspaper reporters, and inquiries at local motorcycle shops. Frankly, it became a bit of an obsession. Now I wanted the story and the bike.

Turns out Drabek had passed away in 1968. After his death, there were several offers to buy the bike, but his grief-stricken wife, Jennie, wouldnt hear of it. The V-8 was pushed into a shed, where it spent most of the next three decades, falling prey to the occasional flood, juvenile delinquents, and a family of rodents. In the mid-1990s, Jennie was diagnosed with Alzheimers and put in a home. The Drabeks property and possessions, including the big white bike, went on the auction block.

Someone gave the new owner my phone numberafter Jay Leno declined interestand soon enough I was winging to Corpus Christi with a U-Haul truck reservation and directions to a quonset hut in Kingsville. I was not leaving the Lone Star State without that bike.

Before its (still ongoing) restoration began, I showed the V-8 once in its as-found state. It caught the attention of one of the worlds preeminent Indian collectors, a moneyed man with at least 60 Wigwam products in his stash.

Why dont you let me save you a lot of time, effort, and money, he said. Sell me the bike.

Not a chance.

David Edwards is editor-in-chief at Cycle World magazine and also counts a $100 BSA Gold Star among his barn finds but thats another story.

On the bus ride home from school as a kid, every time I saw an old car in a backyard, Id make a mental note of the address. Then Id ride my bicycle back on the weekend to see if it was for sale.

The habit of searching for old cars continued during college, marriage, and various careers. It became second nature; while driving, my head would constantly be scanning the landscapeback and forthchecking for bright metallic objects hidden behind garages and bushes.

On a lark, I wrote a book about my obsessionThe Cobra in the Barnin 2005, hoping a least a few enthusiasts would find the title interesting enough to buy it. It sold well, as did the follow up, The Hemi in the Barn.

Wow, Im not the only one who enjoys looking for motorized treasure!

I asked my editors and publishers at Motorbooks if they would consider a motorcycle barn-find book, and they gave me the thumbs-up. The result is in your hands.