The inspiration for this vintage build was to create something that would show his respect and admiration for his dad, Bernie Walksler, who has encouraged and supported him throughout his career.

It all started a couple of years ago when Dale discovered a pile of rare 1936 Knuckle parts at a swap meet. Using an early Harley-Davidson VL frame and the legendary 1936 Knucklehead engine he planned to honor the man that was always there for him through thick and thin.

The 61” Harley Knucklehead was introduced in 1936 providing a reliable performance model second to none and in my opinion with its reliability and futuristic good looks, one of the coolest engines ever built. The Knucklehead was the first OHV V-twin built by H-D and production continued until 1947 when it was replaced by the Panhead. It was the power plant of choice for an early generation of custom builders and is still coveted today. Attesting to that fact is that some current aftermarket engine manufacturers are producing an engine replicating the Knucklehead look.

This was a lengthy project as vintage Harley builds often are. Hell, just digging up parts for any 73-year-old motorcycle would be a formidable task for most people, but not for Dale.

He has accumulated a lifetime’s worth of parts and memorabilia. Some of which he would use for this first-year Knucklehead. For instance, some of the parts he used in this engine were obtained years ago and had been packed in oil in a barrel for 70-odd years. I can just imagine the expression on his face when he decided to open that barrel of 1936 motor parts for the first time. For him, it would be like opening up presents on Christmas day.

One of the highlights of this build was the fabrication of the gas tank. This was a Herculean effort by Dale, with a lot of help from his friends, and consisted of somewhere around one hundred parts, some of which were pirated from an old, rotted-out 1921 Harley tank. He also ran the shifter through the tank for easy access.

One of the finishing touches to the engine was the rare (1-of-150), cutout cam-covers, an early version cover that is much sought after by restorers. Finding this cover on a field trip is the kind of thing that would give Dale a major woody…pardon my French.

I won’t attempt to go into all the work involved building this bike in the space allotted, but if you would like to experience more of the building process that went into this fascinating bike, you can order a full 19-episode DVD from the Wheels Through Time web site. Just click on The Time Machine, register, and search for “VEL”. You will be amazed.

Up Close: The Time Machine

If you’ve ever been lucky enough to visit the Wheels Through Time museum you know that you could spend hours upon hours discovering the amazing craftsmanship, inventiveness and history of American motorcycles throughout the years.

Obviously not everyone could be lucky enough to be able to visit the museum in the beautiful North Carolina mountains so Dale Walksler in his infinite desire to spread the word and reach out to the masses decided to give everyone the opportunity to visit the museum via the Internet.

In April 2006, Wheels Through Time launched on its web site The Time Machine that’s a click of the mouse to hundreds of informative and entertaining videos. Professionally edited, these videos range from technical shows, vintage restorations, road trips, and interviews with some of the top authorities in our industry from around the world. Hey, some videos are just Dale and friends having a grand old time at events around the country.

Some of my favorite videos are the various tech clips where you can learn tips and tricks from some the most knowledgeable people around that not only deal with vintage motorcycles, but can also be useful on your own bike. Very cool! I also enjoyed the videos of the vintage bike shows that I would never get a chance to see if it wasn’t for Dale’s site, and let’s not forget Dale does auto too, so you can also check out some of the four-wheel restoration.

All you need to do is log on to www.wheelsthroughtime.com, click on The Time Machine, register for free, and you are good to go for hours of info and entertainment in a video format that you can’t get anywhere else.

Builder: Dale Walksier

Writing an article on Dale Walksler is a piece of cake. Dale is a “Vintage Motorcycle Junkie.” If he couldn’t ride, work on, or talk about vintage bikes for a day he would probably “jones out” and be restrained.

Here is a man whose first bike was a 1952 Harley Panhead he bought when he was 15-years-old. In 1977, be bought the Harley-Davidson dealership in Mt. Vernon, Illinois. He was only 22-years-old and this was his second shop. Are you starting to get the picture yet?

Dale owned and ran that shop for 24 years, concentrating on sales and service. In his last years running Dale’s Harley-Davidson, he was selling around 100 bikes a month in a city of 16,000 in the middle of nowhere. Quality begets quantity.

All of this time he was accumulating vintage bikes to restore along with parts and pieces, and ended up with 230 rare motorcycle and cars which were the cornerstone for his highly-acclaimed Wheels Through Time museum.

The museum moved from Mt Vernon, North Carolina, after running afoul with the local government, to the beautiful mountains of Maggie Valley, North Carolina, where it has 100,000-plus visitors a year. Those of us who were lucky enough to visit it have come to love it.

He continues to keep-on keeping-on with numerous restorations always in progress and has been seen many times on TV’s American Thunder anytime vintage bikes were showcased. He was also invited and participated this year in the Presidential Inauguration Parade.

Finally, I want to mention a very important part of Dale’s life, his son Matt, who is heir apparent to the legacy. I’m sure someday, someone will be writing a profile on him too.

Their latest project, The Time Machine on the Wheels Through Time web site (www.wheelsthroughtime.com) is just another venue for him to excel.

SPECIFICATIONS
Owner: Dale Walkster Year/Make: 1936 Harley-Davidson EL Fabrication: Dale Walksler, John Dills, Mron Pace Assembly: Dale Walksler Build time: 1.5-years Engine: 1936 H-D 61” EL Knucklehead Cases: 1936 Harley-Davidson Rods: Stock Harley-Davidson Pistons: +.020 Ross Racing Pistons Cylinders: H-D early 4-fin Heads: Open Rocker 1936 H-D Cam: H-D Lightning Cam Ignition: 6-volt generator/points Carb: Linkert M-5 Pipes: Gerald Rhinehart Header w/cut-out megaphone muffler Air Cleaner: ’36 Harley-Davidson Transmission: Hareley-Davidson 4-speed Primary: Half-Open Narrow H-D Primary Clutch: Early Narrow H-D Forks: Harley-Davidson Springer Frame: H-D 1936 VL Frame Front Wheel: 19″ H-D w/Vl Hub		Rear Wheel: 19″ H-D w/VL Hub Tires: Beck Sport King 19×3.85 Brakes: Harley-Davidson Fuel Tank: Custom w/in-tank shifter Oil Tank: Custom w/’37 Banjo Oil Lines Fenders: F/H-D Bobbed – R/H-D Front Handlebars/Risers: Hellings & Stellings Headlight: Original Chrome H-D Taillight: H-D Accessory Lights under the seat Hand Controls: Harley-Davidson Grips: Friction Tape Foot Controls: Modified H-D Pegs: Beck Lighted Pegs Electrical: 6-volts generator/points Painter: John Dill/Dills Paint Works Color: Creme/Tan/Green/Copper Graphics: Striped by Mark Peters Polishing: Gary’s Pro-Plating & Polishing Seat: A Little One Special thanks to: My dad, Moe, Matt, John, Brian, Brian, & Jason.