Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/125870
1917 Henderson: 'W ith a ot 0 eir things you don't see anyInore A mirror makes it possible to view the oil level fr om the rider's position. The inside lever alongside the gas tank is a hand clutch; the outside lever is the gearshift. By Ben T. Martin Antique motorcycles are truly rare finds. Most motorcycles enjoy a rather short life span. There are a few exceptions. This 1917 Henderson has 11,000 miles on it, three owners in its history, and the same sharp looks it boasted 57 years ago . Thi: present owner, G len H.. Turner of Springville, Utah , is pr imar ily res ponsible for its condition today . S ince he swapped for it in 1961, a cquirin g th e bike fro m Frank Kallenberg of Long Bea ch, California, Glen has co mp le tely restored it. Included in the swap was an o ld photo of th e o rigina l o wn er, A. K. Millard, riding the bi ke in 1920. Th e b ig gest pr oblem G le n A ccording to o ne advertisement. a man could buy a new 191 8 Henderson for $ 335 . Apparently A. K. Millard was a Henderson dealer, as the ad s bear his rubber stamp. Another ad bo asts: " 1917 Henderson Shatters Ocea n To Ocean Motorcycle Record." A. T. Bedell rode from Los Hende rson speedometers were driven by large gear s. Angeles to New York, a distance of 3296 miles , in 127 hours, 46 minutes. His ave rage speed was 25.8 MPH and th e total elapsed time was 7 days, 16 hours, 16 minutes. Quite a feat when you consider 1917 road co n dit io ns! This was considered proof of Henderson stamina. February 5, 1917 Motorcycling And Bicycling ran an ad testifying to Henderson 's gas mileage. Carefully supervised tests showed that He nderson owners could expect 55 -105 miles per gallon depending on road and wea ther co ndi ti o ns. Claimed top speed was about 75 MPH . A man named Heath came up with a "Henderson Conversion." He changed the manifold and carb ura tor sy stem around, too k off the flywheel, pu t on a propeller, and used the motor to fly Iight airp lanes. In the 1920s Ex celsior bought o u t Henderson. Eventually Schwinn bought Excelsior, Once Gl en obtained the information he n eeded, the resto ration was a matter of time and har d work. Glen does all of his own metal work and makes h is own molds to fabrica te rubber and metal parts. The t ires on his Henderson are 44 years old. He had to patch just one area on one of them. Because of their size ( 29 x 3~1 they ar e hard to replace. The only modification Glen made on the bike was in the size of the battery box. Originally the bike did not come equipped with lights. These we re an option the owner co uld buy. G len equipped the bike with 1917 lights and m o d i f ie d the batte ry box to ac comodate a modern bat tery. • Dual headl ights, hand operated daxon, tank-mou nted toolbox, backrest, and luggage rack are a few of the featu res of th is 1917 Henderson. There is a level gauge (indi cat ing the grade of hi ll) in the handle of the t ool box. en countered in h is res torati on proje ct was a scarci ty of information and spe c ifica tio ns on Hendersons, There ar e very few Hendersons ar ou nd today . When Glen go t th e bi ke it had a lo t of extra c us tom '''paraphe rnalia n o n it. Fo r example, it sporte d m ud protectors for the skins of .lady passengers. a gas filler ca p mad e from an old phonograph tone arm, an d an auto pu mp m oun ted on the engi ne to blow up the tires . Glen had trou ble determining wh a t was stock an d wh a t wa s in ven tion , He need ed pictures and specs to fa ithfully rest ore th e veh icle . A tr ip to th e New York City Pub lic Li b ra ry yielde d no th ing . A t the Smi th soni an Ins tit u te h e found a diagram of the mo tor an d a pan s list wh ich he was allowed to co py. Later he found an o ld bike dealer in SI. Lows wh o had a rider's manual. Sin ce they co uldn't agree o n a pri ce, Glen co pied the in form at ion h e needed the most and went o n his way. Then Frank Kallenberg, the guy G len got the bike from, offered so me help. Frank had fo und som e Hende rson ad s and a rider 's manual for t he 19 17. Henderson w as one o f the e arliest four cyclinde r bikes. When it firs t came ou t it w as a sin gle spee d with a hand lever " ecl ipse" clu tc h . Later model s had a two speed re ar hub. By 19 17 Hendersons had a th re e-spe ed gearbox . • 33