Wheels Through Time, the all-American motorcycle museum located in the heart of Maggie Valley, North Carolina, is world-renowned for its collection of more than 375 of the rarest and most iconic American motorcycles. The museum prides itself on the fact that almost every machine in the collection is a running example, leading to its well-known tagline: “The Museum That Runs.”
The museum restores and then gives away a classic American motorcycle through its annual raffle, the nonprofit’s biggest fundraiser. The raffle was started in 2002 by museum founder Dale Walksler with the purpose of improving the Wheels Through Time visitor experience and preserving American motorized history for generations to come.
This year’s Raffle Bike is a sleek 1937 Harley-Davidson Knucklehead bobber, finished in H-D silver with black pinstripes and edged in gold. Rather than building this year’s raffle bike to showroom spec, museum curator and Dale’s son, Matt Walksler, wanted this bike to have the character and style of its era.
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Done up as a period-style custom, the machine features bobbed fenders adorned with a Crocker taillight, a period-style Flanders handlebar and risers reproduced by Tom Faber, and a freshly redone solo seat by Heather’s Leathers. The bike sports proper 1930s details, such as the rare 6-inch air filter, rectangular toolbox, 18-inch wheels, and correct one-year-only oil tank.
The heart of the machine is a genuine 1937 Harley-Davidson 61ci Knucklehead engine sourced from Mike Wolfe of American Pickers and meticulously rebuilt by Walksler. Ready to ride, this sleek silver beauty nicely represents the look and feel of early custom motorcycles.
This machine was hand-built in the Wheels Through Time restoration shop for the purpose of going home with one lucky winner on Nov. 18. One ticket costs $10, three of them cost $20, and $50 gets seven tickets, a T-shirt, and a choice of a DVD from the WTT collection.
Related: Harley-Davidson Knucklehead: Eighty Years: An expert’s perspective on perfection
To learn more about Wheels Through Time’s 21st annual Raffle Bike, head over to the Wheels Through Time website for your chance at owning a lovely Knucklehead while supporting caretakers of American motorcycle history.
