Better Beaters - Building Cars and Daily Drivers

 Thinking about Then Came Bronson. Part Two.

While it looks like a stock XLCH model, it isn't.

The Bike.

The motorcycle was always the focus and star of the show in my eyes. Any TV show that featured motorcycles, even if in just one episode would catch my attention. Maybe some of you out there can remember the episode in the old Dick Van Dyke show where Rob bought a small 50cc tiddler. He is out riding and encounters a group of serious bike riders. Years later I was able to find the episode on YouTube and saw the the other motorcycles were HD Sportsters and a couple of Triumph twins. Looking for motorcycles on TV was like looking for dinosaurs, even if they were just an iguana with a fin glued on it's back, they sure were worth watching!

When TCB first aired, I wasn't very familiar with motorcycles in general, and Harley Davidsons specifically. It wouldn't be until my later high school years when I was riding my Hondas and Kawasakis that I took a deep dive into Harley Davidson lore.

This is a '65 XLH. The bike was restyled over the following years.
It was practical touring bike, if lacking in sex appeal..

The bikes used in the series were 1968 and '69 Harley Davidson Sportster XLH models. These were the touring version of the Sportster, and most importantly they were equipped with electric starters. Kick start Sportys could be notoriously difficult to start, something that I would learn later from my own experience. I can't imagine trying to work around tight filming schedules with a finicky starting bike.

The exhaust has been exchanged for shorty duals. The valanced front fender has been swapped for an XLCH unit.

This example is close to stock, circa 1970/71, except it sports the seldom seen 
 "Boat Tail seat."Sportsters made acceptable touring machines
 in this configuration.

The XLH model Sportster looked much different from the XLCH muscle bike. The H stood for highway, and the bike was designed for touring use. It had longer valenced fenders, a big dual seat, and most noticeably, a big four gallon "turtle tank." The XLCH, was kickstarter only, with a magneto ignition and a 2 1/2 gallon "peanut tank" first seen on a post war lightweight model. The fenders were shorter, and the headlight was mounted to an alloy "visor" instead of being housed in a chrome nacelle like the "H" model. The H model also came with a smaller 18 inch front wheel.

TV and movie tourers never carried very much luggage.

Bronson's bike had an XLCH tank, a custom cobra seat, and a sissy bar. The front wheel rim was changed to a 21 inch Ankront aluminum rim with a 300 x 21 Avon Speedmaster tire. The front fender was a modified British Wassel unit and the stock headlight nacelle was removed and a Bates headlamp was installed. XLCH gauges were also installed. The stock rear fender was shortened several inches, the rear shocks were replaced with units with exposed chrome springs, and a Lucas tail light replaced the original. The stock long muffler twin exhaust was used, but the oval air cleaner was replaced with a round early style unit. There were also some bits chrome plated. A kick starter was fitted, but the engine was usually started by the "electric foot."

HD was not shy in cashing in on the Bronson Buzz,
releasing the exact color used on the TV bike.

"I've got my eye on you!"

The tank was painted an orange red color and featured "all seeing eye" decals on the sides. This symbol should be familiar to everyone, because it is found on the back of every dollar bill!

There were several copies of the main "hero bike" so that production could continue if the bike was damaged or refused to start and run. What's amusing is that there were also two other lighter bikes used when serious off road riding was done. 

From the movie. Note that it's a British Triumph, not a German BMW.

Bud Ekins handled all the off road and stunt riding. He is famous as the stunt rider in "The Great Escape" jumping a bike over the prison camp fence.

Just imagine this with an orange Sportster tank and a sissy bar.

In the pilot, when Bronson is seen riding on the beach sand dunes, the bike was actually a two stroke Ossa dirt bike with an orange gas tank. Of course it looks nothing like a Sportster, and bike savvy viewers were not fooled. Of course Sportsters were not the best bikes for off road escapades and jumps.

This Sprint was built as a tribute to the stunt bike.

During the series, the other stunt bike used was a Harley Davidson 350cc Sprint, an Italian horizontal single cylinder motorcycle. These also had orange tanks, Cobra seats and sissy bars!

Hey! It's a Sprint!

This is the Sportster.

Michael Parks also did many of the stunts on the show. The Sportster slid out and tumbled down many a hillside in several episodes, culminating in the famous "Bronson Rock" sequence. Sorry, I searched but couldn't find an image online. You'll just have to watch the episode.

Bronson's bike was a tasteful and safe mild custom, quite a bit different from the wild custom Choppers that were becoming popular.

From the movie, Easy Rider.

It was during this period when highly customized motorcycles of different makes were being built into sometimes wild street and show machines. Magazines that featured these choppers began circulating in the early 1970's following the release of TCB as well as Easy Rider. I had a subscription to several of these at that time and for many years afterward. Big Bike, Street Chopper, Chopper and finally the outlaw oriented Easy Riders.

A couple of tribute bikes on display.

There are quite a few die hard fans of Then Came Bronson who have constructed tribute bikes. I discovered that they would occasionally have get togethers to go on group rides, and discuss their love for the show. I was somewhat surprised by this, as I never had that degree of interest in the series.

A TCB fan get together.

Nonetheless, I went on to become seriously involved with motorcycling, not only for day to day transportation, but for long road trips. I moved up the ladder with corresponding bigger machines until I reached the ultimate level of Harley Davidson ownership. I rode HDs for the remaining 25 years of my almost forty year relationship with motorcycles.

Maybe I was a bigger fan of Then Came Bronson, then I realized at the time!