AUCTIONS

New dates, new venue, same massive four-day auction – Mecum head to Las Vegas

From glamorous Vegas to the Canterbury Auction Galleries

Whatever type of bike takes your fancy, there’s almost certain to be something of interest at Mecum’s Las Vegas sale, which has been rescheduled to April 28-May 1. Veteran, vintage, post-war Brit, classic American heavy metal, Japanese classic and dirt bikes – you’ll find them all at the new venue, the Las Vegas Convention Centre. By the time the sale opens, there’ll be well over 1000 bikes consigned – and probably more than 1500. It’s going to be a massive event.

One of the highlights of the auction for fans of American bikes will almost certainly be the sale of the JC Burgin Collection. It includes one of every year’s production of Harley-davidson’s iconic ‘Knucklehead’ EL and FL models from 1936-47, all in exceptional condition. The bike that kicked the collection off is a rare example of the first production EL from 1936. It was bought way back in 1975 and restored by the late JC Burgin and his team of restorers at Vintage Motorcycles Northwest, in Seattle, Washington.

The Knucklehead – Harley’s first ohv big twin for the street – wasn’t even officially catalogued for that year, for fear the innovative new engine, with H-D’S first recirculating lubrication system and a four-speed gearbox might prove unreliable. It didn’t, though – and the stylish Knucklehead would remain in the range until 1947, after which the new Panhead-engined models finally replaced it.

With a sale in an iconic American location, it always seems appropriate to concentrate more on the makes and models we never got here in good old Blighty. And what a shame we didn’t get the Triumph Bonneville TT Special. Admittedly, we don’t have too many deserts to race in, but plenty of UK classic fans are smitten by the pared-down, stripped-back allure of these rare machines. A number have been brought back and restored in recent years, but here’s one that won’t need restoration. It’s a brand new 1963 model that has spent most of its life in the John Howard Collection in Christchurch, New Zealand, before being brought back to the States (it was originally supplied to Johnson Motors). It won’t sell cheaply, but what a bike!

There’s still plenty of time for more bikes to make it into the catalogue, so we’ll be having another look at the final listings in April’s issue of Classic Bike... mecum.com

Rare 1936 Harley-davidson EL from the JC Burgin motorcycle collection is bound to attract some serious Stateside bidding

Left: Rare 1963 Triumph Bonneville TT Special is a cool desert sled originally supplied by California’s Johnson Motors

Right: This 1947 Harley-davidson FL is another bike from JC Burgin’s comprehensive collection of Knuckleheads