Author Archives: Karan Andrea

Goin’ Down Swingin’ The closer I got to finishing this shovel, the more it felt like the bike was fighting me at every single turn. Clearly, it is an inanimate object and cannot actually fight me – or can it? This bike was gonna go down swinging, but I was gonna win. I was gonnaContinue reading “Nothing Happens Fast on a Shovel – Part IV”

Sometimes, the Shovel Wins So at this point, I had made pretty fair progress – handlebars were done, front block was pretty much done, dash was mostly wired. I was pretty happy, and proud of myself that I hadn’t given up yet. But it wasn’t done yet, either. This project would be nothing if itContinue reading “Nothing Happens Fast on a Shovel – Part III”

Down the Rabbit Hole – It Worked for Alice So my ’74 FLH quite definitely has its own personality – stubborn, taunting, needy, greedy, difficult – we really are not friends, but we do have a working understanding. Kind of like the US and Russia during the Cold War. We either get along, or weContinue reading “Nothing Happens Fast on a Shovel – Part II”

Can We Be Friends? About three years ago (2016), I bought a 1974 FLH that looked pretty good, overall, but was obviously rough around the edges, to say the least. It terrified and intrigued me all at the same time. It was tough to ride – very mechanical and beasty – it wouldn’t hold idle,Continue reading “Nothing Happens Fast on a Shovel – Part I”

The shovelhead in these posts was my first old bike, and my first adventure into working on a bike. That bike has been a teacher of sorts. Over the days, weeks and months that I worked on it, and worked with other people on it, the bike taught me more about patience, process, and people.Continue reading “The Atomic Shovel: The Life and Times of a 1974 FLH”