Harley-Davidson motorcycle in the Dutch Army

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kordon
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Harley-Davidson motorcycle in the Dutch Army

#1

Post by kordon » 21 Mar 2014, 19:42

Hi all,
the book "Equiment of the Dutch Army in 1939-1940 [Holland Paraat! Number 1]" I saw a photo of the Harley-Davidson motorcycle, armed with a machine gun Lewis M.20. Except for a few photos unarmed motorcycles, no further information has been found. Maybe it was a prototype of the Harley-Davidson armed? How many Harley-Davidson motorcycles were Dutch Army? Were they armed? In what units they were (except armored car squadrons)?
Thanks in advance!
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phylo_roadking
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Re: Harley-Davidson motorcycle in the Dutch Army

#2

Post by phylo_roadking » 22 Mar 2014, 03:12

Hi Kordon - what a great pic! Nicely detailed. It's a pre-war WL 750 sidevalve by the look of it....though it COULD also be it's larger 1200cc UL brother! It has the pre-war "I"-section forks, as they're known...as opposed to the oval tubes found on the wartime WLAs and WLCs. And it still seems to be in it's civilian livery, apart from that small number sticker over the Harley Davidson logo on the side of the tank! Tanktop-mounted speedo too, as opposed to the wartime item mounted IN a heart-shaped dashboard on top of the tank...

This latter item would make me think UL rather than the smaller WL...and that style of tankmounted clock was gone for the 1937 model year for the sidevalves, so I THINK we're looking at a 1936 item...

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Another reason I'm thinking now of the 1200cc UL is that the Dutch Army later bought a lot of large-capacity BSA G12 1,000cc V-twins...along with lots of BSA M21 sidevalve singles. The Dutch Army by 1940 had two full regiments of "motorcycle hussars" - with BSA G12-driven sidecar MG combinations, BSA M21 MG combinations, and a lot of solo M21s. But it didn't use the BSA v-twins as "singletons"...

This bike - with its extra front propstand on the front wheel, and its stock livery, and its very strange mounting position for a Lewis gun would make me think of a "trial" item bought for evaluation - frankly, at the point that pic was taken, it's too bloody CLEAN to have seen many miles yet in a soldier's hands!!! :lol:
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kordon
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Re: Harley-Davidson motorcycle in the Dutch Army

#3

Post by kordon » 24 Mar 2014, 19:18

Hi Phylo
Although I am not a great expert modifications motorcycles Harley - Davidson, I think that you are right at the expense of the model 1936. On the speedometer you surely noticed. I can only add a few more features of this modification. Fixing the shift actuator, characterizes the model 1935 - 1936 period. On later models mount drive class gear shift forward. Coil springs front wheel covered jacket, which was mounted in 1936. Part of the company's logo, which is visible on the tank, was used from 1936 to 1939.

Information found in the last days, showed that the Dutch army and previously used motorcycles Harley - Davidson. Mounting arms on the front wheel fork Dutch also used earlier.
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kordon
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Re: Harley-Davidson motorcycle in the Dutch Army

#4

Post by kordon » 24 Mar 2014, 20:17

Now that found the use of this model motorcycle. Written sources, I have not found, so I can only speculate on the photo. Motorcycles Harley - Davidson model 1935 and 1936 in the image are found mainly with armored cars M.36, M.38, so we can assume that they were used in the 1st and 2nd armored car squadrons. Motorcycles, armed with machine guns Lewis, as it turned out were not uncommon. When installing a machine gun at the center of the front wheel fork, the spotlight had moved to the left, so the image is easy to detect these bikes (pictured top of this bike is marked in red).
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phylo_roadking
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Re: Harley-Davidson motorcycle in the Dutch Army

#5

Post by phylo_roadking » 24 Mar 2014, 20:28

Hi Kordon - I'd hestiate to say H-D immediately for those first two pics. The fronk fork...a leaf-spring item...is NOT typical of Harley Davidson at all. Looks faintly Indian...except by WWI all Indians were chain drive, and those are belt-drive single.

That pic is dateable to the second half of or immediately post-WWI era - on the very right of the first pic there's half of a single cylinder belt-drive Triumph motorcycle visible, possibly a Model H.

Got it! They are Dutch-built Eysink motorcycles...

Image

Image

Also... http://www.collectie.legermuseum.nl/asp ... id=i001908&

The Eysink Borthers from Amersfoort, Holland, began building cars and motorcycles in 1903. Car production halted in 1919....but motorcycle production continued until 1957!

The date on the topmost of your two Eysink pics is 1932 on the Overvalwagen site...so these Veteran Era motorcycles must have been kept on the road by the Dutch Army for 12-14 years before the Dutch started to replace them in the mid-1930s! The Dutch Army has been traditionally kind and conserving of their motorcycles - their 1960s Triumph 3TAs and BSA B40s are frequent re-imports home to the UK.
Twenty years ago we had Johnny Cash, Bob Hope and Steve Jobs. Now we have no Cash, no Hope and no Jobs....
Lord, please keep Kevin Bacon alive...

Bill Murray
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Re: Harley-Davidson motorcycle in the Dutch Army

#6

Post by Bill Murray » 25 Mar 2014, 00:07

Regarding Kordon's latest, I known nothing about motorbikes, but perhaps can help with the 4 wheelers.

The Dutch Army-Zeist photo shows what I believe is a 1939 Pontiac behind the cycle.
The armoured car platoon photo shows I believe a Ford 7V from Britain on the far right upper row.
Bill

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