During first years of the 70's, I was looking for JD components to an aged 1924 Harley Davidson basket case I had picked up cheap at an AMC convention in Schenectady, New York. During the search, I learned about Bill's Custom Cycles in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. A telephone call confirmed they had many of the components I had been hunting for, so I borrowed Mom's ride, grabbed my buddy Ricky Politi, and off we went along to rural Pennsylvania on the hunt for a biker's gold! Located within a nondescript cinder block structure near the highway, I felt unsure of what to anticipate from the shop. When I walked in, the shop opened up into a large room, the angels began to come down singing, and bright light flashed and focused in one spot from the imaginary bright cloud over my head. I realized that I was definitely in the correct destination.
I saw display cases packed with classic reconditioned motors, NOS Harley parts in those amazing orange and black cases, a niche of antique riding hats , and a long, L-shaped counter with shelves filled with stuff behind it. Dispersed over the large area were recovered Barleys of each and every style known: Panheads, 45's, Knuckleheads, a ServiCar, a few Indians. Where ever you look and it was there. Bill , the property owner, specialized in purchasing Harley dealers which had gone belly up. Bill's place was loaded with NOS parts from all eras. Bill also focused on buying out a lot of other things and would buy out anything old that he liked; his catalogue increased to huge proportions!
In the late 90's, he questioned himself, what good was all this stuff if you couldn't feel it, see it, enjoy it, touch it, and share it with others? For that reason, he started focus on what would come to be the beginning of his rising museum, known as Bill's Old Bike Barn. Bill put to use a complete barn he invested in and reassembled the interior of the building to accommodate the exhibits, and it looks good as a background upon which to present his things. He stocked the barn with a large cross section of bikes and motorcycle collectible items.
Bill realized that the gallery was ideal for people who definitely are into motorcycles and cars, but Bill wanted to exhibit something for everyone to ensure the gallery generally is a destination for not only motorcycle and automobile buffs but also for families too. Bill added a couple more buildings, now amassing 45,000 sq/ft. and filled them with some other memorabilia to interest also the most discerning antique enthusiasts.
Bill set up a massive collection of pieces in a number of shops that look like a tiny town called Billville, which has everything from a 1939 World's Fair bar, to an office pf the mayor, to a postal office and everything from that era! The museum is awesome, so take the family along, and intend on spending a day to take it all in. Certainly, there is something for everyone.
I saw display cases packed with classic reconditioned motors, NOS Harley parts in those amazing orange and black cases, a niche of antique riding hats , and a long, L-shaped counter with shelves filled with stuff behind it. Dispersed over the large area were recovered Barleys of each and every style known: Panheads, 45's, Knuckleheads, a ServiCar, a few Indians. Where ever you look and it was there. Bill , the property owner, specialized in purchasing Harley dealers which had gone belly up. Bill's place was loaded with NOS parts from all eras. Bill also focused on buying out a lot of other things and would buy out anything old that he liked; his catalogue increased to huge proportions!
In the late 90's, he questioned himself, what good was all this stuff if you couldn't feel it, see it, enjoy it, touch it, and share it with others? For that reason, he started focus on what would come to be the beginning of his rising museum, known as Bill's Old Bike Barn. Bill put to use a complete barn he invested in and reassembled the interior of the building to accommodate the exhibits, and it looks good as a background upon which to present his things. He stocked the barn with a large cross section of bikes and motorcycle collectible items.
Bill realized that the gallery was ideal for people who definitely are into motorcycles and cars, but Bill wanted to exhibit something for everyone to ensure the gallery generally is a destination for not only motorcycle and automobile buffs but also for families too. Bill added a couple more buildings, now amassing 45,000 sq/ft. and filled them with some other memorabilia to interest also the most discerning antique enthusiasts.
Bill set up a massive collection of pieces in a number of shops that look like a tiny town called Billville, which has everything from a 1939 World's Fair bar, to an office pf the mayor, to a postal office and everything from that era! The museum is awesome, so take the family along, and intend on spending a day to take it all in. Certainly, there is something for everyone.
0 comments:
Post a Comment