My Simplex Mark II Build

Zooming993

Active Member
#1
SaltCoupe motivated me to share my current 1960 Simplex Mark II restoration project. I picked it up earlier this year and is completely stock/original. Other then a couple missing engine parts it's all there. It came with the original West Bend 580 with a Palmini intake, velocity stack and mega phone exhaust pipe. The fuel tank is in great shape but the floor pan will need to be replaced. I've attached a few photos of how it looked when I got it. I've done quite a bit of work since I purchased it, those photos will follow.
 

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Zooming993

Active Member
#6
Here are a few more photos of my restoration project. Getting ready to tack the new floor pan and seat back in place. There's also a photo of some of the parts I blasted, primed and are now ready for paint.





 
#19
Isnt that the first year ? WOW did you restore it?
Yes, "1936" was the first year for the Knucklehead engine and no it's not an original, it's my interpretation of a 1936 EL. I built it from scratch ten years ago using all new parts. I did not buy a kit, I researched and sourced each part and built it part by part. My plan was to build a "36" as close to what it would have looked like when it came off the assembly line. It's a kickstart, foot clutch and hand shift and a bit of a challenge to ride. There are few areas where I improved the engineering without effecting the look, electronic ignition, belt drive , 12Volt vs. 6Volt and an updated Knucklehead engine. The one thing I did add that the original 36 lacked was an oil filter. At the time I built the engine one company had the licensing rights to reproduce the heads and barrels and they were based in Sweden (Knucklehead Power). I bought all the parts for the bottom end from S&S Cycle in Wisconsin. It took me well over 5 years to build and it was probably the most challenging projects I took on. I've gone ahead and attached a better photo.

 
#20
Unbeliveable what a beautiful bike. I used to be big into BSA motorcycles, drag racing and flat track, then as I got older started turning the flat trackers into street bikes, but those days are long gone. Mine were nowhere near the quality of yours and I doubt any came off the line looking that good. I can't believe you got the whole bike in new parts! Back in the day one of my friends had a 38 knucklehead chopper. Took 3 of us to start the dam thing.
 
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