harleyKmodel

Would like to know if the head of the #3948 bolts that mount the front fender are 1038 CP , circle "F" or unmarked head for a 57 XL. Have reviewed several different photos of restored and unrestored machines. All photos are not defined enough to see markings - if any. Know that the motor company used what ever was available, just want to know what everyone has seen the most of.
Every K and XL from 52 - 69 came from the factory with six - 5/16 - 24 x 7/16 bolts.
thanks in advance for your time addressing this issue.
see everyone at Oley.
Phil

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.

Just went over some photos of the original-paint '56 KHK I used to own; all front fender bolts are 3948, no head markings, 7127 lock washers. So did all
'57 XL's have the 3956 center brace bolt, was it another phased-in change, any other opinions?

For what there worth:

Harley factory photo (I think) of a 56K.


Don Cs restored 57XL.

Here is a pic of the front fender mounting hardware from the 1957 Sportster at the Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee.

GaryM2 - thanks for the terrific detail shot of the museum bike;would you by any chance have a similar one for the center fender brace? This seems to be the one with the most questions; is it a smooth head 3948 like your shot of the front and rear braces, or a smooth head (or maybe F/circle) 3956 (7/16" head)
like I have in the notes from my visit?
RogerM

Here is the center mount for the 1957 Sportster at the Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee.

fiftysevenXL wrote:GaryM2 - thanks for the terrific detail shot of the museum bike;would you by any chance have a similar one for the center fender brace? This seems to be the one with the most questions; is it a smooth head 3948 like your shot of the front and rear braces, or a smooth head (or maybe F/circle) 3956 (7/16" head)
like I have in the notes from my visit?
RogerM

This doesn't answer your question, but is confirmation of your memory/notes at least on the '54 K. Therefore, I'd believe your '57 notes too!


Also took some picture of the '56 KHK in the museum and it appears to be all 1/2" smooth headed - but don't have a good high resolution picture of the center fender bracket bolt, although the fuzzy picture suggests smooth. On this '56 KHK, there is some questionable hardware for sure, as I don't believe they ever used the "3 slash marks" grade 5 fasteners, and there are several on this bike. Certainly makes me question how much stock we should put in the fasteners employed on these museum bikes.

It also has Buchanan spokes. I think the white/gold 57XL is one of the more original bikes they have there on display. The Elvis 56KH was restored by a second owner before the museum purchased it, so it has some later parts on it as well. My understanding is that they have an unmolested example of every model that came off the assembly line that are not displayed. Those are the ones that I would like to see.

There's also another version of the 3948, perhaps a later version, probably made by Rockford. This is the one that JW Boon sells.