by fiftysevenXL » Mon Apr 10, 2017 6:19 pm
From notes I took during a visit to Milwaukee a few years ago; both the '54KH (S/N ??) and '57 XL (S/N 3390) were on display.
'54 KH: all 3948 (1/2" head), early-font 1038 CP, internal tooth locks on long brace bolts, center brace lock is inside, can't determine.
I bought a chopped front fender some years ago to get a long-rib brace (52-54 K-KH, cut at both ends), the center brace still had the 3948 bolts,
early-font 1038 CP, 7127 int. tooth locks, and 7744 (thin) nut, "bite" marks from the lock on inside of brace. The remaining long brace had the 7127
marks in the paint on the outside of the brace.
'57 XL: long braces are 3948 (1/2" head), smooth, no markings, int. tooth locks. Center brace has small (7/16") head, also no markings (3956?), again,
can't determine inside fasteners. The parts book shows 7127 (int. tooth) on all six bolts, but the drawing shows a split lock on the center brace bolt.
I have a nice 8x10 glossy photo of a '58 XLCH and '59 XLCH at the Bill Kennedy dealership in Phoenix, and both appear to have the 3956 in the center
brace (can't determine any head markings).
I hope we get some more input on this; I know there are a few original-paint '57 XL's around that would more than likely have the original fasteners
still in place. Also just noticed the '58 XLCH factory photo with the rider posed on it (in the Museum bikes book) has the small-head center brace bolt.
There seems to be a fair amount of disagreement on just which fasteners are correct for the front fenders; I am pretty sure my original-paint '56 KHK
had all smooth-head 3948's, but can't swear to it anymore; will try to dig up some photos.