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1952 Indian Chief on 2040-motos

US $44,000.00
YearYear:1952 MileageMileage:24 ColorColor: Blue
Location:

Etters, Pennsylvania, United States

Etters, Pennsylvania, United States
QR code
1952 Indian Chief, US $44,000.00, image 1

Indian Chief photos

1952 Indian Chief, US $44,000.00, image 2 1952 Indian Chief, US $44,000.00, image 3 1952 Indian Chief, US $44,000.00, image 4 1952 Indian Chief, US $44,000.00, image 5 1952 Indian Chief, US $44,000.00, image 6 1952 Indian Chief, US $44,000.00, image 7

Indian Chief tech info

Engine Size (cc)Engine Size (cc):1,300 WarrantyWarranty:Vehicle does NOT have an existing warranty TypeType:Standard For Sale ByFor Sale By:Dealer

Indian Chief description

1952 Indian Chief - Blackhawk - Roadmaster - 80 Chief

This was Bob’s personal 1952 "80" Indian Chief.  It was restored around 1980, has matching numbers CS6080, it's an early 1952, the first one off the assembly line was CS6001.  This was restored very close to original, but there were some things dad wanted that weren't original, there's some extra chrome and it's not Indian's Seafoam Blue, it is Ford's Grabber Blue. 

Now for a little Indian history.  When Indian was still in business, even if you were a dealer, if your parts order wasn't over a certain amount, instead of the order going directly to the factory it went to your closest distributor.  There was one in California, one in Chicago and one in Philadelphia.  Bob, in 1959 or 1960, bought all the old Indian parts, 1953 and earlier, from the Philadelphia East Coast Dealer Distributor, Gene Shillingford and Sons.  At that time it was around 50 tons of NOS Indian parts, that's where a lot of the New Old Stock parts came from that we used on this motorcycle.    

Some of the other NOS parts, like the two fenders, chainguard and gastanks came from the person that purchased all of the parts from the Chicago distributor.  The other NOS parts used on this bike that I know of for sure are:
Handlebars
Handle Grips
Shift Lever
Luggage Rack
Speedo BSC
Ignition Switch
Dash Light
Stoplight Switch
Kicker Lever
Dimmer Switch
Headlight
Horn Bracket
Front Brake Lever
Rear Defender Bumper
And of course the two Fenders, Chainguard and Gastanks mentioned above

Below are the original Indian parts that were used that weren't NOS but I know dad chose the closest thing to it:
Dash Panel
Linkert M352 Carb
Petcocks
Front Fender Tip
Rear Bumper
Generator, Band and Bracket
All Engine Cases
Cylinders
Heads
Transmission Case & Tower
Rods
Flywheels
Horn
Rear Safety Bars
Brake Drums
Brake Panels
Wheel Hubs
Original Headbolts with the Raised Letter "N" on them
Primary Covers-Inner and Outer
Fork Top Covers
Front Fork Assemblies
Rear Shock Assemblies
Roadmaster Emblem on Fork Shield
Aztec Indian Emblem on Fork Shield
Spotlight Brackets
Seat T
Seatpost Assembly
Chummy Seat Helper Spring Assembly
Chummy Seat Spring Bracket and U Bolts (attached to motorcycle)
Chummy Seat Pan
Five Piece Seat Rail Assembly
There's definitely more, this is what I know of for sure.  It's been quite a long time since we restored this one. The main reproduction parts that were used on this motorcycle are rubber parts and decals. 

It also comes with a white Indian Chummy Seat, the special ordered earlier type seat pan, just like this bike came with the seatpost and seat bracket, rather than the normal bench type chummy seat that was standard.  52 and 53 Chiefs could be ordered with a solo seat or the earlier style chummy seat and they normally came with right hand throttle and left hand shift.  This one was ordered with the left hand throttle, right hand shift. 

Right now the bike has 24,330 miles on it since the restoration.  20 of those I just put on in the last couple weeks and there's probably going to be a few more until it gets purchased!  I know there was at least one top end job done on it so there isn't that many miles on the top end.  Everything works and runs good and it's a STRONG runner.  It does have a few little nicks and dings here and there in the paint, you can see some wear on certain parts like the saddle bag and seat.  Dad rode the bike, he used the bike, it was not a trailer queen, it was used the way it was intended to be used, it was rode.  So this isn't one of those "zero mile since restoration" motorcycles.  And as you can see it still looks very presentable.

On July 24, I took this bike back to Springfield, Massachusetts for Indian Day.  I rode it up State Street to the factory for a few pics.  And it won "Best Chief" this year at Indian Day.  There are a few more pics on our website - bobsindiansales.com  

Moto blog

Indian recalls 'rebel' motorcycles

Thu, 19 Apr 2018

3,341 bikes fell under the service action. The New World has announced a recall of Indians released from October 25, 2016 to November 17, 2017. The problem is that the switch is corroded, which can cause the engine to start unintentionally if the key fob is close to the motorcycle.

Indian introduces new PowerPlus engine

Wed, 20 Nov 2019

The apparatus with a 60-degree camber of the cylinder block can hardly be called the “little brother” of the 1811cc Thunder Stroke 111 engine - its capacity is 1769cc, but in terms of design solutions, the motors are fundamentally different. Let's start with the fact that, according to the manufacturer, the new engine is the most powerful in its class - it develops 121hp at 5500rpm and 178 Nm at 3800 rpm. PowerPlus, like the Scout motor, has an overhead camshaft, is equipped with four valves per cylinder and hydraulic compensators, eliminating the need to adjust clearances, the cooling is liquid.

India Raises Import Duty on Motorcycles to 75%

Thu, 28 Feb 2013

The government of India has laid out its budget for 2013-2014, increasing the import duty for large motorcycles. The news will impact several major manufacturers hoping to gain a stake in the world’s second largest motorcycle market. India has become the hotspot for manufacturers but one of the biggest obstacles they face is the duty India levies on luxury goods.

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