Dad's Bike

[keithh]

The attached photo likely dates from the mid 1930s.  It is my late father.
Can anyone identify the bike for me?

Thank you so very much!

~Keith

[rosko]

bike looks American but the engine is inlet over exhaust.

There is a name on the crankcase but I cant quite make it out, can you scan it in at a higher res?
it help if you gave some idea of where your dad was ? usa Gb Oz?

[keithh]

Thanks for the reply!
This photo was taken in central Minnesota.

I have attached the highest resolution scan that I have of the photo.

~Keith

[esometisse]

your dad's bike is most likely a DeLuxe built by the F.W.Spacke Machine Company in Indianapolis from 1912-1916 and marketed under this name by the Excelsior Cycle Company in Chicago.
Other Spacke-engined bikes of the time were sold by brands like Sears, Dayton, Crawford, Eagle or Peerless, to name but a few. It could be any of them but I think I can just read the DeLuxe on the crankcase.
For a then twenty years old machine your dad's bike looks in remarkably good condition in the pic.

Cheers
Andy
 

[keithh]

Thank you, Andy.
I appreciate the expert information!

~Keith

[R]

Those Deluxe front forks/ action don't look anything like the forks on Keiths dads' bike ?

 No sign of pedals either ?

[esometisse]

Those Deluxe front forks/ action don't look anything like the forks on Keiths dads' bike ?

 No sign of pedals either ?

What's your suggestion then as to the make of the bike, a Harley? 

But you are right, the front forks lack the leaf spring and linkage and the front fender looks heavily modified. The front axle now rests directly in the slots for the spring links - the front wheel is about two inches too far forward now, just the length of the missing links!
But I can still see the second chain on the right side of the bike so the countershaft for the pedal crank is still there. If the pedal isn't just obscured by the rider's leg but really is missing completely he would have to push start the bike as there is no gearbox and kick starter. And where would he put his feet while riding?
The production of the Spacke engine for motorcycle use ended in 1919 at the latest, so if this photograph really was taken in the mid-thirties the bike would have been 15 to 20 years old and could have stood abandoned and partly dismantled in a barn for the last ten.
Maybe the young man found it, cleaned it, put it back together as best he could and just took it out for fun and the picture. If you look closely there seems to be no twistgrip on the handlebar as well!?

Anyway this is a great period pic. Thanks for sharing, Keith!

Cheers
Andy

[keithh]

Andy's observations many be bolstered by a tale that my Dad (Harold) used to tell.  He told the story of how he was given a broken down bicycle, fixed it up and traded it for a broken down motorcycle.  He fixed up the motorcycle, traded it for a broken down car and repaired that.

Dad never quit fixing things.  He retired as the State Maintenance Officer for the State of Minnesota.

~Keith

[R]

Interesting story and interesting pic then.
Could well be right about chopped down forks, although the Dayton had forks like that (heavier though, & pivotted in the middle), with Deluxe engine for 1915. Without the tin can at the top though...

The Deluxe engine in a Deluxe motorcycle came from 2 different makers - Deluxe engines were built by Spacke (Indiana) from 1913 to 1917, supplied a number of makers - all near clones of each other.  So could be in a Deluxe, Dayton, Eagle, Sears, etc ?   ( i.e. you can't tell its a Deluxe motorcycle just because its got a Deluxe engine in it...)

[cardan]

You can buy one if you like:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1914-Sears-Twin-Low-Reserve-/130763423110

[keithh]

Thanks... A bit steep  for me, though.