Oley, Pennsylvania April 23 - 25, 2010

by Dick Shappy

Since I began collecting vintage motorcycles years ago, I have been attending vintage motorcycle swap meets across the country. Last week, April 23rd to 25th, the Perkiomen National Meet was held at Oley, Pennsylvania and, as always, this meet proved to be a great success for both vendors and collectors. I usually don't come home empty handed and this year's meet netted me a very nice original 1907 Indian Camelback single. I got interested in this beautiful early piece after seeing it at Davenport, Iowa last year and decided to purchase it this year at Oley.

1912 Yale 5 horsepower. — 1912 Yale 5 horsepower on display at the Perkiomen National Meet in Oley, Pennsylvania.

It was also nice to see so many of the old motorcycle "pickers" who scour the countryside all year and find the scarce parts that are needed for all the restorations we are involved with. At last years meet, I was successful in purchasing a 1912 Yale Twin and a 1912 Emblem Twin along with a 1911 Flying Merkel. You can follow the restoration progress of the Yale in the PROJECTS section of this website.

1912 Yale Model 27 7-
horsepower twin — 1912 Yale Model 27 7-horsepower twin after restoration.

Click here for more photos taken at the event

I was also successful in finding several "open" mags for early Merkel twins, two "soup can" type carburetors for early Thor, and several early carbide headlights and taillights. My assessment, however, regarding the pickings is that, while the number of hard to find parts is still somewhat available, the prices have increased considerably. For example, an early Merkel Twin magneto will bring as much as twenty five hundred dollars and "soup can" style carburetors have asking prices as high as thirty five hundred dollars.

It was nice seeing Ziggy, Lonnie Isom Jr, Dave Lightner, Andy, Billy Campbell, Mike Terry, John Szalay, Herb Singe, Steve Frizzell, Vince Martinico, Dale Axelrod, Dave Minerva, Dick Ollhoff, and another hundred or so sickies like myself.

Much of the talk at this year's meet concerned the motorcycle cannonball which is scheduled to take place in September. There are many concerns about obtaining parts in time to be able to compete and, although it may be too early to panic, it is not too early to be very concerned. I will be updating information about our entry and rider in a few weeks.

Upcoming meets that we are planning on attending are: Rhinebeck, New York, Wasseon Ohio, and Davenport Iowa. See you there!

Looking to buy? Check out these related vehicles in our sales inventory