Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/776310
72 nFebruary 2017n www.thunderpress.net THUNDER PRESS Digging on the Shovel 2016 marks the 50th annual opportunity to buy a Shovelhead. Better do it sooner than later as they are already worth more than Evos in today's marketplace. "Worth" is not always the same thing as value, but the reality is that fi nally… fi nally… the Shovelhead is getting the respect and attention it deserves. The last of the built-to-be-rebuilt Harley engines, fl awed yet fabulous in ways we are about to revisit and explore. First, the disclaimer: with neither space nor inclination towards an all-en- compassing history, we'll be limited here to engine, transmission and pri- mary drive tidbits. There are books and websites aplenty to give you the poop on bright bits, colors choices and banality ad nauseum, regarding the Shovel's 18-year reign as Harley's fl ag- ship. I don't much care, so if you do feel free to look therein. Besides, some of the facts and fables about the engine alone, in its various incarnations from 1966 through 1984, would make for a pretty good sci-fi saga. So, in my best imitation of the late, great Rod Serling, next stop: the Highlights Zone. It's October, the summer of love hasn't happened yet, the Stones and the Beatles are fi ghting it out on record charts, Vietnam has turned sour, super- model Jean Shrimpton puts the mini skirt on the map, Batman and Star Trek premiered on TV, and president Lyndon Johnson has just signed into law a newly-created agency known as the Department of Transportation. Which of these events eventually has the most impact on the newly intro- duced Shovelhead we shall see, but at the time, it remained what Harley Big Twins had been, for over a decade, the largest-displacement motorcycle engine you could buy. Only Norton and Royal Enfi eld offered even 750cc motorcycles, and 500cc was a big bike, so the 1200 (and change) cubic centi- meters that came with a spanking-new Harley 74" had its appeal. The pity is, it would be another fi ve years before you could buy this engine without buying the 750-pound motorcycle it powered. Not that the fi rst FX in 1971 was a featherweight, but to my mind it showcased what a good 74" could do… unfettered. To fathom what I mean by that, we need a simple chro- nology, so here it is. 1966—Dresser H-Ds were already plenty chunky, particularly with the addition of a twin-shock swingarm frame and electric starter. To haul the avoirdupois, more power was needed. The Panhead had served well, but never without its limitations, so in true Harley fashion, a new top end was stuck on the existing bottom end. Specifi cally, the Sportster-derived heads were changed from 90-degree valve angles to a more modern, shal- lower, cooler-running 78.5 degrees in the new combustion chambers, and straighter, more effi cient ports with a larger intake valve. Piston crowns were thinner so pistons were lighter, even on high-compression (8.0:1) FLH models. There were no more rocker covers for rockers rocking in the heads them- selves, because the new top end had actual rocker boxes! Lending the shape that gave the new top end its name, you could say that Shovelhead rocker boxes really rocked! (That might have a little to do with the very distinctive sound of a Shovel engine as well.) Voila! 10–15 percent more power! Even using the old Panhead Linkert carb and FL low compression of 7.4:1. All these good new parts were bolted to a Panhead bottom end. In fact, the top ends were interchange- able, so all these years later the infa- mous phrase "Pan-Shovel" can leave you wondering. 1967—Oil rings were changed from three-piece to one-piece design, the better to reduce oil consumption. The fi rst Harley carb to feature an accelerator pump was added… the infamous Tillotson! 1968—A new aluminum-bodied oil pump, with larger pressure feed gears, replaced the old steel one. A better Prestolite starter motor and Bendix was introduced which helped a lot on cold winter mornings. The hand clutch-operated assistant/booster, better known as the "mousetrap," was elim- inated in favor of a new release arm, linkage and cable. 1969—No real mechanical changes, for reasons revealed in 1970. But, it's worth noting that the sum total of all models of these "fl atside/ generator/kidney" Shovels produced in four years amounted to a mere 29,877. IMHO it's these machines that represent the epitome of "shovelness." Nice narrow primary and timing sides, adequate power, kick and/or electric starting and nice details abound… mostly good stuff. Naturally, I'd want to throw out a lot of the bad. First and foremost, toss the points and mechani- cal advance in favor of electronic igni- tion, convert to a 12-volt alternator, upgrade the carb (probably to a CV) and for God's sake… synthetic 20/50 and a good spin-on oil fi lter! Second (my pre ference, though I'd never say it about another machine), toss the motor into a light, rigid frame—or at least make something close to an FX version of the existing chassis. With the same goal in mind, add lightness and remove the unnecessary… period. Think about it. No federal compliance to worry about and sheer simplicity in the bar- gain. Thing is, with such a small num- ber of original machines left to choose from, it might be a form of sacrilege to chop up a survivor at this point. The alternatives we'll discuss in a bit. 1970—The Shovel top end gets a new bottom end. The only time that's happened to a Big Twin… I'm pretty sure! From "fl atside" and generator to "cone" and alternator in one fell swoop, accomplished via some major Let's talk about this "built-to-be-rebuilt" aspect of Shovelhead engines, as seen here. It's a double-edged sword. In the day it was accepted that mechanical devices of all kinds would need a lot of routine maintenance and fairly frequent (by current standards) overhauls and reworkings of various kinds. It was also expected that durable goods (like pocket watches, farm implements and motorcycles) would outlast the owner if all the above was adhered to properly. In short, it was not a throwaway society. Things were kept and kept up… mostly by people who knew what they were doing! (That's the other edge… amateurs need not apply! The notion that old Harleys were always breaking down is based on the foregoing premise: too many amateurs! Some Shovels haven't seen an experienced, professional mechanic in decades.) Shovelhead parts books show bits and pieces that are alien to the modern consumer, like over/undersized bearings, fi ve-piece crankshafts, assorted sizes of bushings, shims, steel inserts in alloy crankcases, and much more. The Evolution Big Twin that succeeded the Shovel rapidly set a trend towards (for lack of a better term) "modular" components. Complete assemblies where separate parts used to exist, shafts running without bushings, no crankcase inserts… I could go on. Today, all engines are like that. Use it up without much ado, buy a new one and move on. The point is, Shovelhead engines (whether original or aftermarket) respect the idea that you just might want to hand the thing down to your grand- children. And you can. Try that with whatever modern marvel is sitting in your garage now.