This 1908 Harley set a new record for Mecum in Las Vegas. Auction MEcum.
Fuel tank with strap Harley-Davidson 1908, Mecum Auctions
WE LOVE CAFÉ racers, we love bobbers and we love a killer race car. But we also love great classics, and sometimes they come from an unlikely manufacturer. This year at Mecum .’s Las Vegas Auction, a rare bike almost sold for $1 million, and it wasn’t a Henderson or MV Agusta, not even a Vincent or a rare Indian. No. It’s a Harley-Davidson.
1908 Harley-Davidson strapless gas tank, auctioned at Mecum
The most expensive motorbike For sale this year at the 2023 Mecum auction is a 1908 Harley-Davidson Strap Fuel Tank. This rare bike has an interesting pedigree that makes it one-of-a-kind. Less than a dozen of these bikes exist, yet this bike may be the most original. This strapless tank, so called because the fuel tank and oil tank are held to the bike-like frame by a nickel strap, is one of the oldest surviving HDs and comes before that. Harley tractors by decades.
This Harley sold at auction for $935,000, Mecum Auction
When the auction dropped, the bike sold for $850,000. That amounted to $935,000 after auction fees. Watch the hammer fall mecum’s video.
The saddle cover is one of the original parts of this 1908 Harley, Mecum Auction
This particular bottle with a strap was found by motorcycle collector David Uihlein in 1941 and he kept it for 66 years. Yes, it has been restored, but it is one of the most accurate and original bikes from the time. It has the original fuel tank, wheels, engine belt pulleys, seat covers and silencers.
Fuel tank held by nickel wire, Mecum Auction
Yes, that’s a lot of scratches for an old Harley. It’s not the most expensive motorcycle ever sold, but it is the most expensive bike ever sold by Mecum in Vegas. This isn’t the first strapped tank Mecum has ever sold, in 2021 the company sold a 1907 strapped tank for $297,000. But this bike has a well-documented history, as well as well-documented 115-year-old original parts.
