Production Husqvarna

1966 marked the first year that Husqvarna began importing their machines to the United States for distribution to the American public.  Husqvarna played a huge role in the development and would never be the same!

This bike, serial number 66-049 arrived in the United States on February 10, 1966. This bike, along with nine others arrived in Long Beach of the freighter Lions Gate. They were the first Husqvarna’s to arrive in the United States. Of the nine bikes, one of them, a 1966 360cc serial number 66-001, was Thorsten Hallman’s race bike!

This bike was recovered in Imperial Valley in 1993. The restoration took 4 years to complete.

A few words from the owner…
It took one year to restore the bike. It was in such a bad state even the engine was totally blocked.  I bought everything, piece by piece, from different people and shops on the Internet. The bike has matching engine and frame numbers.  I wanted original parts used in the restoration, even the rear shocks.  I sent them to the Ohlin’s Factory to be restored.  The tank I found was the correct one for the this bike (small aluminium tank for the CR) but it was a disaster when I got it.  I sent it to a guy I know who specialized in aluminium restoration on fuel tanks, spare parts for bikes, cars and boats.  He had to take the tank completely apart, repairing it from the inside little by little.  The tank was reassembled and later painted. this guy is an artist ! (took 2 months!!)

The following bike is owned by Dave Brown.  This bike was previously owed and ridden by AMA HALL OF FAME RIDER DAVE MUNGENAST SR.  Dave explains alittle about the bikes history:

THIS IS A VERY RARE PIECE OF MOTOCROSS HISTORY, A TRUE COLLECTOR CLASSIC..

THIS IS AN OLDER RESTORATION FROM 1999, BUT YOU WOULD BE HARD PRESSED TO FIND ONE NICER THAT IS FOR SALE.  TOM RAMEY FROM SO. JORDAN UTAH PUT THIS BIKE TOGETHER WITH THE HELP OF JOHN LeFEVRE (VINTAGE HUSKY CA).

SEVERAL NEW OLD STOCK PARTS ARE ON THIS RIGHT DOWN TO THE TRELLEBORG 544 MOTOCROSS TIRES.. ALL PARTS ARE EITHER PLATED, PAINTED AND POLISHED TO MAKE THIS AN ABSOLUTY BEAUTIFUL BIKE  The ENGINE was TOTALLY GONE THROUGH, AND AS FAR AS I KNOW ONLY RUN AT MID OHIO AHRMA AMA MEET IN 1999/2000.. WHICH THIS BIKE TOOK FIRST PLACE IN ITS DIVISION OF THE MOTORCYCLE SHOW..

This 1972 Husqvarna 450 is very original and only has a few “race” hours on it. When the original owner picked it up from the dealer, it came equipped with the “SkyWay” Spark arrestor.  The owner took it out to a 60 mile desert race, completed the race and parked the bike never to ride it again! The bike is amazingly original and in great shape.  You don’t find bikes of this age, in this shape, very often……

I thought it might be of interest and of some help to display some of the work of a close friend and restorer who, does have time to take on new projects.  Noble Butler has been restoring bikes for over twenty years.  It started out as a hobby but has grown into a sideline business.  Noble has a broad pool of resources for plating, polishing, painting  and machine work on motors.  He does most of the basic engine work himself.  Turn around time on a basic restoration is
around 2-3 months depending on part availability and extent of the restoration (concours quality or race ready).  I can tell you that his prices are hard to beat and the quality of his work speaks for itself.  

Noble is located in Southern California and can be reached on his cell phone at (760)234-7946 or by email at: nbutler760@hotmail.com

This Husqvara has been confirmed as the bike ridden by Steve McQueen. It was confirmed in files once kept by Edison Dye. As you may know, Edison was the exclusive importer for Husqvarna motorcycles for many years here in the United States.

This bike will be on display at the San Diego Automotive Museum  from  January 8, 2008 through March 25, 2008.   ( Click Here )