A classic Electra Glide open. Is that what?

Yes, that can be a good plan. The Electra Glide were the top touring bikes. And for a conventional Electra Glide you don't even have to take your bank manager hostage.

In two flavors

The Electra Glides that are the nicest for us, those are the 'late Shovels' and the somewhat earlier Evo models. The Shovelheads had a bad name in Europe. They were so American that they broke with faster driving and the brakes were only for the looks on board. But a Shovelhead, and that can be one with 1200 or 1340 cc, is of course the most classic of the two.

A good Shovelhead can be a perfect motorcycle with a calm, thoughtful and forward-looking driving style. But like so many Harleys, such a machine may have suffered unimaginably under the double-tattooed hands of a self-appointed Harley Guru. So always buy a copy as original as possible. Many tuning measures on the layered blocks have broken more than you like. And at a Harley where the idle speed is set so that you can count your blows, the big ends of it turn.

Evo is better

The HD Evolution blocks were presented in 1983 after a development time of 7 years. And they were very much needed to polish up the brand reputation. But an early Evo can now also be 30 + '. And time can destroy more quality than you think. The Evoblocks were mechanically and thermally much better than the Shovels. The fact that the Evoblocks, the 'Blockheads' have light metal cylinders and heads made the broken massaging of the head gasket between the aluminum head and the cast iron cylinder into something that was really over.

The much longer cylinder and head bolts also made the connection between crankcase, cylinder and head considerably more stable. To keep the gas speed high enough on the inlet side, the inlet channels on the Evo's were not impressively large. That is why they would bravely cut be beers to connect to a larger carburetor. This dramatically maimed the filling of the cylinders. Harley made the exhaust ducts as short as possible to limit internal heating in the head. Smart!

A good alloy

The heads were made of the aluminum 242 alloy, the same alloy that was used for the cylinder heads of fighter planes from WWII. The Vtwins can be serviced with the block simply in the frame. Including the disassembly of the heads. The approach of all that effort was to be able to run the Evoblok 100 hour at full load.

At the time a bizarre idea after American thoughts. And we certainly wouldn't have dared. From 1986 the Evo's got a secondary timing belt drive. In 1987 a 38mm Keihin carburetor was introduced and it worked fine. When the block is very hot, the oil lamp may flicker because the oil becomes thinner. Fuel injection is optional from 1995. Thanks to Marelli. The 'classic' counterpart of the injection was a Keihin CVK40 carburetor.

Pricing

Shovel prices have since risen again. Prices fall somewhat with the Evo's. For a nice and good Shovelhead from 1981 € 12.000 can be requested. With amounts between € 8.000-9.500 it is handy to bring a connoisseur. When purchasing a good Evo Glide, think of 'from' amounts of around € 8.500. a new E Glide costs such an 23 mille in the currently available version. The paper shop must be in order for projects. And working on Harley blocks and baking is less easy than it seems.

And the quality

Pay attention. Harley blocks are often tinkered with inexpertly. But a professional can significantly improve a Harley Shovel or Evo engine. And to the supply market, companies like S&S supply complete engine blocks that are better than those of the factory itself. And don't grumble that a Harley "doesn't steer and doesn't brake." They just haven't learned for that.